Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-04-17
Preachers Like Billy Sunday of
Great Value to Society, Says
Central Union Pastor

Gospel and the Social Motive was
delivered in Central Union church
last Sunday by DR.. Doremus Scudder:
MARK I2:3O-31 AND MATTHEW
22:37-39.
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with ali thy mind and with
all thy strength. This is the great and
first commandment. And a second
like unto ft 10 this: Thou shalt love
thy netghbor as myself" On these
two commandments the whole law
hangetII and the prophets.
A letter came to me a week or two
ago saying that the editors of the
Harvard Theological Review are
studying the effect upon the churches
Of the social movement and desire
answers TO the following questions:
/. Is the social motive likely to be
profound and permanent?
2. Is IL, as some claim, the Gospel
3. AS others claim, is it distinctly
not the Gospel?
The questions are we'll taken. They
are being heatedly debated in such in
fiuentiaf periodicals as the Atlantic
Monthly and the Century Magazine.
Let US think together for a few mo-
ments about them. Some claim, so
the Harvard Theological Review edi-
tors state, that the social motive is
distinctly not the Gospel. In order
to talk clearly we must define what
we mean by "the social motive" and
"the Gospel" Thou shalt love thy
neighbor as thyself' is a social law,
for Jesus defined the word neighbor
in his story Of the Good Samaritan
to be any human being who needs
your help In any way, to cure his
body, develop his mind. or strength.
en- his spirit Every man you meet
needs you, II only TO the extent of a
cheerful face, a glad handclasp, or a
radiant good morning. Your rela-
lions to other men Of course are so
cial relations. Hence the second law
OF love is social and the motive, that
is the force moving your will to obey
that law, Is what the Harvard Review
editors mean by the social motive.
Now, then, what Is the Gospel ?
Gods spell or Gods speech is the
meaning Of our English word. The
Greek word is quite similar and
means good message. The good mes.
sage or the word from God that Jesus
brought Is the. Gospel What good
word did Jesus bring? All that he
said was the good message, was 1t
not? II was message of Gods for
giveness, of salvation from wrong
doing, Of abundant life, of power to
become truly Gods sons, of the con-
slant presence Of the Great Father
with every child, Of responsibility
resting upon every disciple in giving
to others what Jesus has given him,
of a great future beyond the grave
and so on through everything that he
taught. Perhaps some of you would
phrase the gospel as the message OF
new life that our Lord gave. Suppose
we ask Jesus TO condense 1t all for
us in the shortest compass. II we
do that we will get concrete an
swer because on one occasion man
put exactly that question to the
Christ. We read the account in the
tenth chapter OF Luke. The man
asked, What shall 1 do to inherit
eternal life?" Jesus led him to re-
peat the twofold law of love to God
and man and then said, "This do and
thou shalt live" The Gospel, then,
In its briefest, most comprehensive
form is this double law Of love. The
social motive is therefore included
In the Gospel Those who claim that
it is distinctly not the Gospel must
wipe out of Jesus life his clear teach
ing as TO the second fundamental
law, obedience to which gives etern-
al life. .,-.g--. 49,. ....-...-.
Second: Is the social motive like
" to be profound and permanent?
The answer must come without hesi-
tation, "Just as profound and perman.
ent as human nature" Nay, it goes
wider than that, for as long as the.
universe holds social beings, so long
must the social motive exist as law
No. in the statute book Of the ct.
ernal God. - Il
This leads up to the third and most
important question for our day: us
the social motive, as some claim, the
Gospel?" z.- - -~
Upon this several things may be
said. First, If Jesus words bear any
relation to the Gospel. the social mo-
tive is not the gospel but only a
secondary though absolutely essential
part Of the gospel. Our Lord has said:
The great and first commandment is,
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart and with all thy
soul and with all thy mind and with
all thy strength. You cannot by
any means eyaporate these words out
OF his message. Boil down every
thing he uttered, strain out every
non-essential until you have got the
last sine qua non left and this Law
of love to God forms the immensely
predominating part of the residue.
Without 1t there is no gospel. Jesus
entire message revolved about God.
Take the Father out of Jesus words
and you have no power or meaning
left in them.
Second, Jesus life even more than
his words told the same truth. Every
thing he did sprang out of his con.