The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-11-30
DR.. SM00T breaches
HIS FIRST SERMON
"CoHING TO ONESELF SUBJECT
CHOSEN BY CENTENARl's
NEW PASTOR.
GOOD CONGREGATION
HEARD TWICE YESTERDAY IN
FoRCEFUL sERMoNs--sToRy OF
PR0DIGAL son HIS TEXT
AT NIGHT.
GOOD CONGREGATION

Coming to Oneself was the
theme of the sermon preached in
Centenary Methodist Church last
night by Rev. T. A. Smoot, y. D., VINO
yesterday began service in his new
passionate. The congregations at both
services were large, and the sermons
Of DIR. Smoot, who is powerful
preacher, made profound impressions
upon the people.
The sermon last night was pre-
sentation OF the lesson drawn from the
story OF the prodigal son. following
closely the text. And when he came
to himself he said, I Will arise and
go to my father" DR. Smoot show
ed n forceful and convincing manner
the impossibility of receiving the
peace. the satisfaction and the happi-
ness taat comes with the finding of
oneself unless one goes TO the Father
The Great Event.
Il consider that the great event in
any mans life is the finding of him
self" said DIR. Smoot. 1T is great be-
cause It enables him to look into his
own heart and see its possibilities, its
real value. For | think to come to
oneself is constructive effort and re-
suit, If coming to oneself meant to
see oneself without any possibility OF
improvement. ] would not advise any
man to try TO find himself. But while
finding oneself means to see ones
faults and mistakes it means also to
see better things ahead. So it was
with the prodigal. He knew he HAD
done wrong. but when he came to
himself, he resolved TO do better.
We might even go so far as to
say that for any human to find him
SELF means to resolve to do better. It
:. =.
what he might have been: and al
though 1t is very painful to him to
note the difference between r1e real
man and the ideal it is just that diff
ference that awakens him and fills
him with ambition and noble purpose
to lead a new life"
The sorrow of contemplating one
self in ones sinfulness and misery is
counterbalanced by the JOY that comes
the feeling OF triumph, by looking
down into he rubbish heap of the
heart and finding there many A
precious gem. long-neglected." he
declared. The power Of influence
that has long lain dormant is brought
into the circuit or the electric current
OF the Almighty that belts The uni
verse and which does all work and
performs all tasks"
Finding Oneself
Making it clear that finding one
self is Gods opportunity to speak hope
10 the soul the preacher told how the
gospel had been sent as message to
a discouraged world. ready to give up
in despair.
II want you" he said. Ito realize
that Christ came to save the most
neglected person on the globe IF you
feel that your life is wasted and
utterly worthless you are now in con-
dition to hear the voice of God and
to receive new light and life
DR.. Smoot showed that in nature
tae Creator teaches that all energies
are conserved, that nothing is wasted.
and declared:
And as man has endeavored to
waste his own life and to trample into
the dust the ideals of his Lord, 1t has
been the purpose Of God to throw a
great obstacle in the way of his own
self-destruction, and MAT obstacle has
been His Son"
"And this corning to oneself Is the
first and greatest step in coming to
God. There are two great facts in
any mans life: the consciousness of
himself and the consciousness Of
God. In the real sense II is ilnpossi-
BILE for a man to come to himself and
not come to God"