Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1913-12-07

philosophers finally filters through to
the multitude And IN that way it Is
often the unhappy fate Of truth,
unrelated unproportioned and dis
tortcd to exercise worse influence
than lie. so it is and has been
with this doctrine OF "thc immnence
Of God
None but spiritual power viii dom
mate spirit A machine may be
governor by a force, but not soul.
II the divine constraint on men for
righteousness is not exercised through
an intense, concentrated personality
knowing, considering, determining,
strong to command and able to bring
to pass It must be an inefficient in
flucnce
The Law of f-PrcserN alton.
But the philosophy Of omnscience,
or the psychology Of consciousness
Of God Is beside the point OF obserya-
tion here The thing really import
ant to think of-in an hour when
such a sense of God seems liable to
become a reminiscence-is can the
God-sense of generation fade out
and not take with It that generations
vital moral strength
In times past of Christian expert
ence the main reason why men were
strong to do what they understood to
he right was their feeling that God
would mark their failure If they fell
short They really believed in omni-
science, and made no artificial diff
Guilty Of faith by wondering as mod
erns do, how God can find time TO
take account of men and women In
dividually. Under that cOmpulslon
stout hearts went to the stake and
welcomed death rather than violate
their opinion Of truth aud right. I'm
der that COmpulsion mon attempted
enterprises OF incredible hardships
and apparently certain failure just be-
cause they felt God expected II Of
them. 4 cOmpulsion which forbade
men to shirk, or cover. or retreat,
and prevented their sneaiing away to
indulge the languOrs and appetites of
the flesh. God was to them the only
unacceptable fac. of the universe. Him
with whom We have to do"-in all
the stern necessity and lnevitableness
Of those majestic monosylla bles-was
TO these early Christians as vivid and
pertinent description OF God as II
was to the apostle who first penned
the words. But now all this back
ground Of God and |" has grown to
be so unaccustomed that the average
layman thinks it almost freakish for
his pastor to say that God expects
anything of him at all
like to think--let me say just here
I'm passing-of the positive aspect of
our first teXtual thought Thou shalt
have no other Gods before me- Thou
shalt have God II is the law OF
self-preservatlon. Thou shalt have
God, however. whom nothing shall
ever make unreasonable for you to
trust We must have a God who will
not break down and perish out OF
our souls in the time Of trial. We
must have a God to whom reverence
ana sanCtity is due. not alone In the
attitude OF prayer, but I'm the whole
life Of the individual We must have
a God introduced TO US by Jesus
Christ as "Our Father" We must
have God who shall be God to us;
our God, even when We can only cry
with Job, "Oh. that I knew whore
might find Him" We must have
COD to whom we can say: "Fathei,
into thine hands | commend my spir-
It," in the very hour in which We may
nave cried. MY God. my God. why
hast thou forsaken me-"
Underlying Principles OF christianity.
II interpret the Bible reyela-
tions correctly its purpose above all
purposes is to make God known as a
person Not set OF doctrines, but,
on the other hand. a person whom
We can know only by doctrines, and
whom. If we know, we shall surely
have some doctrine concerning God
found in fashion as man." God
made unto his brethren This, as !
apprehend it, Is the superlative mean