Evening journal., 1916-01-05
Big Audience Hears Dr.. Lyon on
"The New, Old Christianity"

that God has not gotten disgustCd
with and discharged all of us long ago.
In the church's activity, or rather
inactivity, in some cities last year, the
converts cost more than four hundred
dollars apiece. If a business plant did
not pay a bigger dividend on the in
vestment than many churches are do
ing. they would have been declared
a fiat failure long ago.
Churches Fall to Grow.
Do you know that more than seven
thousand churches last year in two
great religious denominations report
ed not a single accession. Supposing
there were seven thousand flour mills
in this State that had great buildings,
fine machinery. steam up, engines run
ming and wheels turning. but during
the entire year the whole seven thous-
and did not grind single pound of
-four. what would you say of their
usefulness? 1t is just as much the
busin sss of the church to save souls
as it is of {. Touring mill to grind
wheat. Many Z. church is like a man
with crying baby. simply holding
its own like riding a rocking horse.
there is a great deal of activity but
very little advancement. The pro-
proprietor of lubricating factory in
the east, after running a year, was
asked, Where do you sell your prod
uct?" Said he. I'VE do not sell il at
ALL" What do you do with it then?"
was asked. we use it, said he Ito
oil the machinery with" The church
should De not merely hospital, but
a hive, not a place to coddle the
saints, but a place to save the lost.
Whenever any church becomes merely
a social club. society for ethical
culture. it had better nail up its doors.
That church IS dead and ought to be
buried.
Moreover. the early Christians had
the spirit of separateness. II was this
fact that first OF all brought on them
persecution. The heather world want
ed them to put a statue of Jesus in
the Pantheon along with the images of
Mars. Mercury. Jupiter and Minerva.
but they refused. Oh. said the heather,
now be liberal. We will make COM
promise with you. II you will come
into our festivals for the worship of
! Bacchus and Venus. then we will go
into your service for the worship of
Jesus. The Christians replied I'VE
/ will not do it," Then they said you
are fanatical and bigoted and you need
TO be disciplined. That was the be-
/ ginning of the era of persecution.
Why is IL that there are no more
people today that are being perse-
cuted for their piety? / will tell you
the secret. If the vicious and the un-
godly decided to persecute, they would
not know for the life OF them whom to
I persecute. The average church mem
Der is living such a neutral, negative.
colorless life that you can distinguish
no difference between him and the un-
I believer. The greatest hindrance to a
revival is not the active antagonism Of
the openly wicked and vicious. il is
the lukewarmness and indifference OF
! the average professed Christian. You
could not get man to leave the rocks
and hills Of old New England and 20
out to the fertile prairies Of Illinois
or Iowa, II he thought he had to work
just as hard to grow a bushel of wheat
or corn there as he did back among
the stumps and stones. Why does he
make the move? II is because he
thinks there is a difference in the
two regions. You could not get a
resident OF northern Minnesota or
Michigan to go down to southern Flor
ida or California if he thought il was
just as cold at Miami or San Diego as
it was at ST. Paul or Duluth
He goes because he knows there is a
marked difference between them. So
il is with US, there is a strong inertia
IN human lives. an unwillingness TO
change from our present condition un-
less impelled by some great incentive
to h. l. -
make the church just like the world
then all the world will flock into mem
bership with the church. Never was
mere made a greater mistake. The
hlgher the standard Of the college. the
stricter the requirements for entrance.
II ought to be equally so in religion.
You often see many religious organi-
cations in the membership Of which
are both the pure and the impure. the
godly and the ungodly, and from what
they say and do. you can challenge
anyone to discover any difference be-
tween them.
Early Christians Believed.
Why did the early Christians have
these three elements Of enthusiasm,
! personal endeavor and >separateness
II was due to three causes. First. they
believed something and believed II
with all their hearts. There was no
doubt in their minds about Jesus beine
what He claimed to be, the crucified
and risen Son OF God. Many Of them
had seen Jesus, II not they had talked
with others who had. To promote a
great cause. you must be backed up
! by great creed. Greed and charac-
ter have the relationship of cause and
, effect. What you believe makes you
what you are. Agnostics make poor
martyrs. Some folks / know ought
{ to make good martyrs, they are dry
enough to burn. II is not until you
believe something with all your heart
: believe it so strongly that you are
e willing to die for it. have you any
5 thing worth living for. There is a
E great difference between opinions and
= convictions. Opinions are things that
E you hold. but convictions are things
that hold you. Many in these days
are boasting Of their liberalism. | be-
4 lieve in a liberal religion, a religion
that is as high as heaven. as broad as
! the universe. and deep as the unfa-
thomed love OF God. But would like
to hear some one emphasize depth as
I well as breadth. Some folks are get.
), ting so broad that they are very shall.
4 low. A shot gun scatters over a good
e deal more territory than rife, but il
G will not penetrate nearly as deep.
Q In the next place. the early Chris
J. tians had lost hope in other agencies