Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-11-09

more tommyrot and falsehood than ever
David Swing, of Chicago, preached when
they kicked him out. / know Methodist
preachers that are preaching ten times
more tommyrot than Or. Thomas preach
ed when they kicked him out. None
preachers. Unitarians. and every other
denomination that do the same. / know
Baptist preachers that preach anything
under heaven but the truth.
That is theN q eat trouble with Us to-
day. That is why more of us haven't
got the power. We have denied the
atoning blood of Jesus Christ and the
cardinal doctrines OF the Son OF God.
Now think OF IL. lie had lived with
those disciples for years. Yes, ana He
had taught them. lie gave them power
to perform miracles. and He cast out
devils Yet He said. You need the
power OF the Holy Ghost if you are gO>
ing 10 do the work after | go away.
If I go not away, the comforter will
not come. II is expedient that [ go
away"
Now. you will never succeed without
the Holy Spirit. Never! There can be
no substitute. There Is no substitute
for the sun: there is no substitute for
blood: there is no substitute for life;
there is no substitute for the gospel;
ing TO inject lot of social service and
other stuff as a substitute for the gos-
pei of Jesus Christ. I am not opposed
to your social service; l am opposed
to anything that is trying to take away
the gospel OF Jesus Christ. People are
not saved by words; they are saved by
faith in the Son of God.
NO SUBSTITUTE FOR CHRIST
IN THIS OLD WORLD.
All these things are all right in their
place. but the trouble is. we are trying
to put them out of place, and put the
gospel out of its place. There is no
substitute for salvation. We must all
come the same way or we are forever
lost. And you may organize, you may
prepare, and you may have the best
singing and the best preaching, but you
will never have power without the Holy
Ghost
"Ye-. shall receive power after the
Holy Ghost has come upon you" Now,
then. YOU will all agree that no matter
what gifts a man or woman may pos
sess: no matter what scriptural knowl-
edge he or she may have, they never
will have power without the spirit of
God. Never! You have all heard peo-
pie pray. and | have-Oh, they could
touch the stars in their prayers. And
1 have heard people preach. oh, they
were peaches and they were orators,
and they would have the intonations of
voice. and they could wo-oo-oo-murder!
But II made no more impression on the
audience than the beating of a bass
drum. Why? Oh, il was all in the head
and not in the heart.
And 1 have heard people sing who
could sing perfectly from an artistic
standpoint. and they'd run the chro-
matte scale like a squirrel climbing a
tree. Everything was perfect, but it
was all done simply to show off the
tone production. That is all. 1t made
no impression. Like I tod you the 9TH
er day about a woman. This is another
woman Of the same type-always beg
ging to sing l never like to ask any
I body that wants to sing. / like to go
TO folks that don't ask to sing.
This woman finally came down with
a roll of manuscript and she was going
to sing, Where Is My Wandering Boy
| Tonight" She walked upon the plat
| form and stood there and said, Where
/ is my wandering boy tonight? The
che-ild." ] nudged another fellow next
to me and I said, IT'S dollars to dough-
nuts she hasn't got a kid walking down
the white way" All she did was 10
show the bunch that she had a good
voice. That's all She didn't want to
help a poor devil who was going TO
| hell so fast he couldn't see his own
dust. If you ever tried to do anything
you know il can. never be done without
the spirit of God. Never in the world.
The great need the church today