The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1913-03-21
Pastor RuSSell's Sermon


awakening is To come i'm the reSurrec-
ton morning. Indeed, they would
have omitted everything respecting the
reslIrrecti0n for il is one of the most
difficult matters To eIplain-huw there
| can he a resurrection OF the dead, when
they teach that nobody is dead and
! that those who seem Ia die really be-
come more alive than when they were
! living Evidently the old Book. which
| Row prize so highly, was not made
! by man The intelectualS already are
diScardi" ii, and the religious. finding
! that they cannot defend their creeds
! from its pages, are ut last 'discredit-
! in" the Word Of God.
Ny hope and prayer and effort are
on behalf of the thinking Christian
! people OF today. | would have them
| see that this wonderful Book. while
OUT OF accord with the creedS of Chris
| tendon and the world, is fully in bar
mony with itself. would have them
see that the great Plan of salvation
which the Bible sets forth towers far
above all the efforts Of puny men, as
represented in the creedS OF Christen
dom. | would have them see the glori-
Gus fulness of the Bible Message; that
its length and breadth and height
and depth could not have come from
any other quarter than from Above.
| would have them see that this Wis
dom from Above is the noblest science
and the best instruction"
Great men of the past have perceiv-
ed that the Bible has been identified
with the best there has ever been of
human progress Many have been
their expressions respecting it as the
Torch of Liberty and Civilization. But
these dear men did not see the real
beauty Of the Bible, because they did
not understand its real Message, for
Gods due time for the full understand
ing OF that Message is only now here
And now Bible students have advan-
tages in Bible study such as never be-
fore were possessed And now. in
Gods time. His Word is shining as a
| light upon the pathway, with bril-
liancy that is grand.
iIuC SaiuC anu SOets
Learning. along all the various lines
of present day instruction. is surely
valuable. Chemistry has done and is
doing much for the world: so are cleo
tricity and other applied sciences. l
congratulate your city upon having in
its midst one of these institutions Of
learning. | remind you. however, that
the truths OF science which apply to
our every day life. while very impOr.
tant to our human progress. are not
alone sufficient for us
In other words. in Gods order, all
mental cravings. appetites and powers
which none of the applied sciences
however useful, will satisfy. The hu-
man mind must reason, must reflect.
mist have theory respecting whence
We come and whittier we go. and the
object of our present existence These
questions. formerly the more promi-
nent ones, have been cast into the
shade in recent times
| understand that in many classes
such philosophiZing is tabooed. At
very most, the searcher for knowledge
and Socrates and their immature de
ductiOnS. No one, seemingly. thinks
of attempting to progress in mental
philosophy beyond these giants of the
past. And yet the Evolution theory
tells us that living nearly three thou
been much nearer to the monkey state
than we are today. Besides all this.
those men had none OF the Wisdom
which comes from Above-claimed
none of it.
The Pastor sought to impress the
propriety of beginning Bible study
afresh, ignoring the creeds of the Dark
Ages and permitting the old Book to
explain itself-One passage throwing
light upon another He pointed out.
however, that the Bible specifically de-
clares that none except the consecrat-
ed. the sanity. can have the Holy
Spirit; and that not without it can the
Bible be fully and clearly understood.
His exhOrtatiOn implied. therefore. he
said. that all who desire to have the
Wisdom and instruction from Above
should first Of all recognize a supreme
personal Creator. God OF Justice.
Wisdom, Love and Power TO Him
they should consecrate their hearts,
their lives. Then they should take IN
the study of His Word. DESTROYS of
knowing His will that they might do
it In every particular
Graduation Day Is Upon Us.
Graduation day is here The exami-
nations are on. The intellectual are
being called upon to answer. What
shall it profit a man if he gain all ma
terial knowledge and miss the Wis
dom that cometh from Above? I'm
less the Pastor is greatly mistaken. the
next few years will show that much
of the learning that has been given
has not only not been helpful. but real
ly has been injurious. The Pope of
Rome is quite right in his declaration
that the education which ignores
God and the Divine Purpose in Reve-
lation cannot bring blessing
If the next few years shall show an
increase in the spirit of discomfort in
the same ratio as the last ten years
behind us, it will be a most unhappy
world And that unhappiness will be
traceable largely to our colleges They
have exalted material knowledge and
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