Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1919-05-01
FireSide Talks
With Members of the Newspaper
Bible Class
By REV. E. B. ALLEN, D. D.
Pilgrim Congregational Church
Oak Park, Ill.

Sunday School Lesson for May 4,
1919: Man Made in the Image of
God"
Golden Text: God created man
in his own image" Genesis 1927.
Lesson:- Genesis :26-28; 1913;
Ephesians 4:20-24.
/. The Value of Man.
When General Sherman's army
was marching through North Caro-
lima they went along road which
was very little Travelled. A woman
stood at her cabin door and watched
the seemingly endless procession of
men file past, thousands of them, all
clad with similar uniforms, and
laden with similar equipment. Her
wonder grew, and finally she eX-
pressed her amazement: Il reckon
you 'uns amt all got names," she
called out. She couldn't grasp the
thought of so many human beings,
each an individual to be reckoned
with as she herself was. The indi-
viduals were lost to her in the mass.
The worlds idea of the value of a
man has been steadily changed bv
the teaching of Jesus Christ's
standard of values put slavery out
of existence. Black men are as
precious to God as white men. The
great war has intensified the value
of the individual. We are too apt
to think of man in the mass. Only
when we see the great values in one
man do we get the right estimate OF
the things which effect him. So we
change our government, our eco
nomic systems, our conditions OF
work, our wages and our social
order because we realize how much
each man is worth in the sight of
God.
In the revised version of the Bible,
the 8th Psalm is given this sugges-
tive titia: Gods Glory and. Mans
Dignity. The verses read like
poem:
when consider thy heavens, the
work of thy fingers.
The moon and the stars, which
thou hast ordained;
What is man, that thou art mind
full of him?
And the son Of man, that thou visit
est him?"
We realize mans greatness when
we remember he is created in the
''image of God" He is but little
lower than the angels. He has in
him infinite capacities. His destiny
must be as great as his origin and
capabilities indicate. Man is so
precious that Christ died for him. No
man can treat his own life lightly
when he realizes what God has done
for him to make it a success. Only
when men share in Gods great plan
for them do they rise to the real op-
portunity which life offers.
II. "The New Man."
The great function of religion is to
make men over when they need it
and to give them the strength to con-
quer. Many men have lost the orig
inal image of God in which they
were created. Paul shows how the
old man of falsehood can be changed
into the new man of truth. He shows
how anger and theft, corruption in
speech and bitterness of. spirit can
be conquered. When the old nature
is mastered and the new nature is
received from God. then the fruits
of life are rich and noble. r
II is an inspiration 10 see men
whose lives have been changed. One
day in New York City a large COM
pany Of young men started for Camp
Upton. Among them were all sorts
and conditions of men, many - OF
them shabbily dressed. some of
them evidently failures, some indif-
ferent, some surly.l YeSterday that
same company of men passed
through New York on their wav to
the steamer that was to carry them
over TO France. They had put off
the old man and put on the new.
Their civilian clothes had been