Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-01-06
TODAY's SERMON
"PENTEcosTr

aAAo AASAJ t9BiiAh AiNAi hAtiib " HiiiSii
There was no cut-and-dried schedule
They looked TO the Holy Spirit for guild
ance as to how the meeting was to b,
run. They were looking for two grea
things-first the Holy Ghost and ther
power. You'll have better prayer meet
ings II you go expecting something. not
culture and then power, not wealth and
then power. not power and the Holy
0host-it's got to be first the Holy Ghost
and then power
I'VE are disciples today Just as GER
tainly as those men back in Judea, when
it comes to the work OF carrying OH the
gospel. One reason for the church's fall
ure today is that It does not realize that
IL has the same God-gven mission. If
the church is not doing the work of God,
who is? The saloons are not. The poll
uciaus are not. The clubs are not If
the church is not doing Gods work to-
day. who Is? Show me? I'll leave the
church because I'm looking for Gods
representative. II you are not, get out
OF the church You and 1 have the same
command to keep the world in a state
Of perpetual revival that the disciples
had. You'll find the church that isn't is
dying OF dry rot today too, pure and
simple.
'Why did they scatter in all directions
like shot from a gun! II shows good
sense in you when you try to find out
Gods way of doing things His way is
to plant in April and May. not in Octo-
Der or November. You may not believe
In God, but there isn't any old infdeI
who can run even his own farm without
following the divine order. The time
you spent in getting an education Is not
wasted. The time you spend eating and
sleeping and gathering energy is not
wasted. Let's have the same kind of
horse sense in the church They waited
ten days for Pentecost. What the church
needs today is baptism of horse sense.
LET GOD COME FIRST.
''They made their business and domestic
affairs arrange themselves not to inter-
fere with the 10 days PRAYER meeting
You do the same with these cottage and
union prayer meetings. Never mind your
clubs and your literary society. You can
read your paper on Ruskin four or five
months from now just as well now.
You'll get 1t all out of the encyclopedia,
anyhow, and it'n be there then just as
wen as now. Gods purpose is to give
Him the rlght-of-way. Your. way is to
let housecleaning. theatregoing. feasts,
lodge meetings. card parties, weekend
blowouts and everything else come In first
before God. ~ -
They were continuously in the temple.
They had all-day meetings, not for an
hour in the morning. What did they go
for? Did they go to gossip and talk
about their neighbors? No, they went
to talk about God If fellow got up to
say something he didn't have some fellow
pulling a watch on him If he happened
to take up five minutes of his time. I've
been in churches where they had clocks
screwed on the pulpits, and believe the
Devil had his hand in that. If the min
lister happened to go five minutes over
time-Whewl They took time to pray and
praiseSGod. Just consider why IL was and
see how mucth they had to be thankful
for. Then they were brethren there and
they had better times. Judging from the
church attendance today. heaven won't
be packed with men, No doubt the dis
clples had just as pressing business as
the men of Philadelphia today
''And those were warm meetings.
Everybody was enthusiastic. There was
no danger of catching pneumonia by sit
ting down on a seat that had Just been |
vacated by some church official or dea-
con. There was no ice water to those
prayer meetings.
''They came with one accord in one
place. 1 don't care IL it's the finest
church and they don't come with one
Inb ttolY OHOSl Wull bt llltl0 |
10 bless you. There are some members |
OF the churches who haven't had him |
yet III Philadelphia had had to walt for |
certain members Of the churches, the old |
town would have been In hell long ago. |
When anybody prayed there, everybody |
else said Amen. There was nobody |
who said Il wonder IL he's going TO |
pray all night There was nobody who
said: II don't pray better than that |
I'd keep quiet
"Weve never had another Pentecost be-
cause we've never had power. The |
church has Increased in number but
not in power. After 1900 years, why is |
II that 100 praying men had more power
than T., ,000,0 900 church members have to- |
day? They were all with one accord. |
That was 1t. They haven't been that |
way IN the church OF God from that |
day TO this.
eve need one accord more In our |
church today than we do church steeples |
and pipe organs. The average church |
pays more attention to the kitchen than |
10 the Holy Spirit Some people think |
they can't run church without oyster |
soup The more soup there is the faster |
the church is going TO the devil 1 be- |
lieve In oyster SOUP but do not believe in |
coaxing quarters out of mems pockets TO |
pay the hack salary OF the preacher. Some |
or you women will sweat your bangs out |
straight ia the social room with smile |
on your race but put you IN the prayer /
meeting and you're stir as you can get. |
You're killing religion and assassinating |
the church by your stiff. staid conven-
We need one accord IN the |
ehurches more than We need high-priced |
opera singers stuck up in the choir loft |
- sing chromatio scales like squirrel !
elinbs q tree
NEED ONE MIND.
You need more Of one mind In the
sha1ch and less controversy. More one
nind ana no denominational fuss. no
half-spntung over opinions, no worry
inF over your dinner burning up be-
eauas xou left the gas too high, no worry
ing about that note coming due. no
thinllng about what you're going to
wear AZ the next social blowout and Won
darins u mrs. eo-and So Is going 70 slip
enc over on you. There WAS just one
fhias al that meeIinE-one aeeoFdrand
lhaHa Hhy 4 VA 3 sfsat meeting
E4ers hoaf there knew Jesus some
lkneH HIm affer the tesh and some after
Ene sp'Eit Ineza IS ns doabt that rha
eoeH HAeM ~ Aealsd vas there. Inere
q aHatE anz fHzE tH aI4aa n4n tEe