The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-02-27
THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL


the reason that man will always
strive to sclve the mysteries of ere
alton.
So far as we know, Rev. Lyman
Abbott is regarded as one among the
foremost preachers of the United
States at the present time, and his
weekly articles IN the Outlook to TN
known Friends" are among the chief
features Of that popular publication.
IN the last issue OF the Outlook
were two conceptions of Christianity,
che which DR.. Abbott denotes as the
Law" which is from the pen of an
Unknown Friend" the other is his
reply to it, which he denotes as the
: Gospel"
J We believe that both articles will
be read with interest by those who
are disposed to mediate upon relig-
ious themes.
The two articles follow.-Editor
Banner)
) When I went to Sunday school, I
was taught the Ten Commandments
and one Of them declared that "the
seventh day Is the Sabbath" / was
taught that this is a divine command
! like all the others of the Ten Com
mandments. But find that, three
hundred and twenty-five years after
Christianity was born. council of
human beings. called the Council OF
Nicaea, convened by a human being
r.r1od Torahauffro fho Tro1f in zfi-
tuted the first-day Sabbath to displace
the seventh-day Sabbath. Even. If the
members of the Council and Constan-
tine also were saints-and they we're
not, for the clergy In those days were
ignorant and immoral, and Constan-
tine was the murderer of his wife.
son and nephew, and was a political
weather-cock-even If they were
saints, they were all human beings.
Why shall any Christian keep
Sabbath, which is man made, when
the seventh-day Sabbath, which was
God,made, is set aside? And why need
any Christian show any respect for
Christianity when the personal ex-
ample OF Jesus is deliberately dis
regarded He kept the seventh-day
Sabbath. His example is, or ought to-
be. surely good enough for his follow
ers. He would keep the seventh-day
Sabbath If he were alive today.
A yet deeper subconcious thought
is this: II religion can be altered by
human beings. why respect religion?
/ believe that the falling off in church
attendance, the growing disregard
for the Sabbath. and the gradual per-
meation of society with unreligious
and irreligious poison is due to the
subconscious thought that human be-
ings may interpret even the plainest
and most direct and the most unmis
taxable divine declaration as they
please.
The Professionals declare that
they are not bound by the declara-
lions OF contain councils. Therefore
they reVolted from Catholicism. Why,
therefore. do they not refuse to be
bound by that Council of Nicaea?
believe that christianity would be
all the stronger if it returned to bible
teachings. believe it would be con-
sidered more binding if it did not set
aside divine commands by human
councils | believe that numberless
christians feel that they can take any
Liberty they please with what is call
ed religion If human beings in coun
Gil assembled may refuse to follow
the highest example of implicit ODE
dience, and may, besides, set aside by
human reasoning divine command.
Back to the bibIe!" say. Back
to first principals" Back to the
seventh-day Sabbath" 1t required
moral courage for Wyclif, Luther. and
Calvin to declare themselves against
council-made or man-made doctrines
and innovations. Is there no modern
Wyclif or Luther or Calvin?
Sabbath, then, to follow the prece-
dent of those days, Saturday night
after sunset should be observed as a
Sabbath in every christian city Is it?
IL is these Inconsistencies, these hui
man settings aside OF divine COM
mands. this un-christian refusal to
follow the personal example of the
very founder of Christianity, that
make us subconsciously reflect that
we need not trouble ourselves with
the demands of christianity as now in
terpreted. That is to say. all that we
need do is live a moral life, and. if
we choose, never set a foot in church,
disregard the Sabbath, and observe
only those social amenities which we
in our human, and therefore super
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