Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-01-27
Today's Sermon
SUBJECT:
? 1ERsoNAL woRK-"HE THAT

Sunday THE medical school teaches
ven 70 be doctor, the law school
teaches you to be an attorney and the
church should teach people to save souls.
If you DO not then YOU are not fishers Of
men. or you are trying to make Christ
out a liar.
ANY church that does not believe in
the divinity OF Jesus Christ. heaven or
bell isn't authorized by God and IL a
church isn't authorized It degenerates
into a third rate amusement bureau,
''The majority of the Christian people
never speak about Christ to others.
want to urge everybody to engage in per-
Honal work. Each of you write down five
names Of members of your own family
and ask how many of them belong TO
the church Some of you may hnd one
or two Of that number are church mem-
hers
why are so many people outside the
church? The church is at fault. Each OF
you should be a fisher of men.
THAT is why we have Christian Science
the holy rollers and so forth. The preach
ers are chasing fads instead Of souls. l
4 like to see people afraid I'll talk religion.
That's my business That's your BUSH
ness. The trouble Is the last thing people
give to Christ is their tongues.
"Its your business to be Christian.
IL YOU are a lawyer, you are a lawyer
TO nav expenses and your business is to
be a Christian. If you are doctor, you
are a doctor to pay expenses and your
business Is to be Christian. You work
for a living to pay expenses. but your
business is to be a Christian.
'Regard life as an opportunity to do
good and bring somebody from sin Your
{ business is to find the lost. It's not the
church's business to educate people It's
their business to save people.
Thousands OF college graduates are
going as fast as they can straight to
hell. If had million dollars l would
give ,999 to the church and one dollar
to education. Not that l belittle educa-
tfon, but 1 believe that it's not intellect
but religion that will save men.
",rhe church is wrong today when 1t
breaches so weeks in the year to the
church members, and two weeks to those
outside. 1t should be two weeks to the
church and 30 weeks to the outsiders
And one person can set church on fire
for God.
II tell you the church of the future
must have personal work and prayer Tho
trouble with some churches is that they
think the preacher Is a sort OF ecClesas-
tfcal locomotive who will snort and pun
and pull the whole bunch through to
glory.
THE poorest stick in the world to do
personal work is the young preacher just
out of the seminary. Why? Because
they minimize and even laugh at per-
sonal work in the seminary. Two-thirds
of the theological teachers never had any
experience in soul saving We are preach
ing people to death. A the prayer
meeting the preacher gets up and gives
his scripture lesson and maybe one elder
or deaconess or somebody makes
prayer, but the only reason we know it's
q prayer meeting is because it comes on
Wednesday night
IF all the Methodist preachers would
each save soul in a month there would
be 900 souls saved a year If all the
Baptist preachers would each save
soul month there would be 1850 souls
saved in year. If all the other evan
ilical preachers would save soul a
month there would be 1,425,OOO souls saved
In year. Over 1000 Protestant churches
last year made report of no accession on
confession of faith. Christ said to preach
the gospel to all the world and that
means every creature in the world.
Christ had quick eye in working
TO save souls. He passed Matthew at
the seat of customs. II he had list
ened to his disciples probably Peter
would have advised him to leave the
publican at his work for he was too
busy. John would have said that the
old robber was thinking of nothing
nut making money and James would
have advised that Christ wait for
more favorable opportunity. But
Shrfst said to Matthew: Follow me
and viii make you a fisher of men,
and Matthew jumped up and left the
money on his table and followed Christ
end through him how many thousands
were saved.
IAN along life's journey you viii find
men ana women without Jesus Christ
Church members must be careful of their
behavior If the Lord calls and YOU
don't hear and have good hearing IT'S
your fault. If the Lord provides wood |
and coal and you are too lazy to get
IL and you freeze it's your fault. If |
He didn't provide it and you froze it |
would be His fault. II you're starving .
and the Lord provides food and you are |
too lazy to eat it'syour fault If you .
atarye. II sin separates you from God /
ana He hides His face and won't serve
you it's your fault.
Il knew a man who used to yeI amen \
At the prayer meetings and paid his
Washerwoman so cents for doing the
washing. One day he invited her 70 din
ner and then the miserable old scala
Was locked her 25 cents for the dinner
when IL came time to pay for the wash
Ing And then during a meeting the old
akiufiInt seoundrel had the nerve to 20
np to the woman and ask her TO be a
Christian.
"'You go to the DEVIL was Just what
"You cannot serve God and mammon.
a lot of you church members try to
prove God n liar right there. You go to
the theatre on Tuesday night, go to
prayer meeting Wednesday night 20 to
> dance Thursday night and a card
party Friday night. and then on Sunday
morning 90 TO church and occupy a
space II inches square.
4 believe that the Lord allows me as
mueh liberty as a FegeneFated conscience
permits. I might do something that would
not hurt me. but / do not believe in do
lns IL II II might lead somebody else to
10 wrong or make 1t harder for him 10
do right At Ephesus Paul would not
at meat because a man told him that
i had been used as a sacrifice to an idol
and 10 eat 1t would make II harder for
him tc do right. Paul said; If meat
makes my brother TO offend I will eat
20 meat, II my playing cards makes II
harder for some one else to do right III |
burn every dirty card IN the house II
yon are a Christian you will do it. too.
II you are not you won't do H.
It's my experience that the clurch
member who won't do personal work has
some sin In his or her life. The devil
Hiil let you pass the collection plate or
anything else, but not personal work
And every excuse yOu offer for not do
Iua personal work is OF the devil The