Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-12-04
Re-Baptism By the Holy Ghost
Needed By Church as Whole,
Says Billy IN Morning Sermon

with all the hundreds of preachers, with
, all your hundreds of thousands OF
church members. why do we have to go
back? Because the Spirit Of God isn't
abiding with us. Hence. We don't see
the manifestation of His power.
The spirit remains forever and the
power remains forever, and when we
have more Christian people. we ought TO
have more power with God.
We've got the members. we've got
money. Nineteen-twentieths of the
wealth Of this country is in the hands
, OF protesting Christians, Catholics and
Protestants:"
| God Gives Everybody
A Chance, Evangelist Says
God has spoken to mankind in three
| different dispensations, declared Mr..
Sunday First. through Abraham, Mo-
ses and the prophets and the Mosaic
law; next through the person of Jesus
/ Christ, who was sent into the world
/ to bring a message direct from God
/ Himself; finally, through the Holy
| Ghost. by means of which he conivcts
sinners of their misdeeds and convinces
/ them of their need of salvation.
| God is not strengthened through
| Himself. but through his people. con-
/ tinued the evangelist and has always
manifested His power through human
| beings. so that in proportion as we are
right with God, we are able to accom-
, plish results for God.
An unregenerated man can sin
| against the Holy Ghost by refusing to
become a Christian, said Billy. Chris
tians can grieve the Spirit by bearing
| malice, bitterness and wrath in their
/ hearts and by disobeying His commands
to do the things that will give us
higher ground for Jesus Christ
God gives everybody a chance, Of
| fers you salvation, but He's left It with
you to say whether you will accept or
refuse salvation" said the evangelist.
You say. There is something in the
| way" What is in the way?
well. my culture" You insult the
cultured men and women. All the cul-
| tured men and women OF the world are
Christian men and women. Do you
| mean to say that 1 will admit that the
man who doesn't believe in Jesus Christ
| is more of a cultured man that l am,
when do believe in Jesus Christ? Not
/ on your tin-type! Never admit that the
man who doesn't believe in Jesus Christ
Is more Of a cultured man than the
one who does believe in Jesus Christ!
You say my igonrance!" Billy Bray
the Cornish miner, was so ignorant that
he couldn't read his name either in
printing or writing.
So, we are ignorant of Gods word
that will give us salvation. Here, Gods
| got salvation for every sinner If you
have faith enough to walk up and
/ take It
Says Individuals Need
Re-Bapt1sm by Holy Ghost
The trouble with the church is that
1t has let the power run out, declared
Billy. Not only the church as whole,
but individuals in general, need re-
baptism of the Holy Ghost, in order
that the plan of salvation may be car
ried into greater effect than ever be-
/ fore
First, the church needs a Pentecost,"
shouted Billy.
TT isn't my desire or intention to say
anything unkind against the church. 1
love the church with every drop of
blood in my body, every joint, marrow,
nerve, cell, corpuscle, cuticle and hair
p, OF my body. It is the nearest to my
heart of any institution on earth, but
nobody that loves the church can be
blind to her weakness, and the cure Is
more people that are right with God.
I'VE are wrong in our financial pol
icies, when we have got to resort to
lot of tricks Of which we are asham-
ed. We grieve the Spirit Of God, and
we have got to resort to these things
/ in order to get money to keep the
church OF God going. And yet there
/ isn't a church in this country today
that hasn't members enough, who If
they'd give one-tenth Of their income.
wouldn't have an endowment fund on
hand. and could branch out and do
philanthropic work Then it wouldn't
/ have to be left to the lodges and other
institutions to do 1t, for God says, If
The church is too stingy to do 1t, you
Masons do IL and you Odd Fellows do
I IL. That is the work that the church
Of God should have been doing.
$50. they are wrong in our govern
ment. I don't mean the system of gov
eminent I mean we are wrong when
we put a lot of Goddess fellows in OFF,
cial positions"
There are many little things that pre-
vent US from receiving the blessing of
the Holy Ghost. said Mr.. Sunday, just
as there are thousands or little insects
that often prevent the farmer from har-
yesting a full crop. Incidentally, Billy
digressed long enough to urge everybody
to cease their war on owls, martins,
hawks and similar creatures which
prey upon pests that ravage the proper
| ty of men, but some times destroy q
small amount of valuable products in the
course Of their careers, when they can
find no other food to subsist on. Billy IS
little plea for the animals furnished an
interesting sidelight on his sermon.
America doesn't need conservation of
her natural resources so much as she
needs a tidal wave of salvation, a cy-
clone of religion to sweep over the land, "
shouted the evangelist as he brought
his discourse to a conclusion.
"If We love me, keep my command
ments What would. be the result? Our
lives would be an attraction and like
the magnet draws the steel, we'd be
drawing people to a higher and better
and richer experience II we'd only yield
to Jesus Christ and do his will
81 know God could send us out of
here with Singing face and consistent
life until we'd be a power for Jesus
Christ that would startle this old city.
What would be the result? The
numbers Of those that have come would
be nothing compared to the number of
those that would come.
IF ye love me, keep my command
ments. And 1 will pray the Father, and
he shall give you another Comforter,
that he may abide with you forever"
d