The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1919-04-11
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REV. J. ]. DICKEY.

Our last lesson was God, Our Heav-
emily Father. Today II Is Christ, Our
Savior.
A liberator implies that somebody
Is In bondage. Abraham Lincoln Is
called the Great Liberator, because
he freed three million slaves. A saw
for implies somebody lost. Christ is
called the Savior Of the World"
It follows that the world is in bon
dage, in slavery, lost This fact Is
fundamental; It underlies the whole
scheme of redemption. You cannot
liberate a man unless he is in bond
age; you cannot save man unless he
Is lost. The Bible abounds with pas
sages like these: "All we like sheep
have gone astray; we have turned ev-
cry one to his own way" lisa. 53:6
There Is none that doeth good. No
not one," Pisa. 14:1-3. "The heart is
is deceitful above all things and des-
perately wicked, who can know it?'
Jer. 1918. 81 am Carnal sold under
sin-when | would do good evil Is
present with mech wretched man
that am who shall deliver me?'
The bondage of mankind consists in
sinful nature which renders man
powerless to resist evil and do those
things which his judgment approves
The death of Christ made 1t possible
for God to be just and yet forgive
mans sins and by the Holy Spirit Sc
renew his nature that he has power
to do Gods will, and love for Gods
service. This power is impaired to
man when God for Christ's sake for
gives his sins.
The palsied man brought into the
presence of Christ was a sinner. He
said to him "Thy sins are forgiven
This he did in response to the faith
of the man ard of those who bore
him. After this he healed his body
He first delivered him from the bond
age of sin, then from the bondage OF
disease. This deliverance rom sin
is called convt rsion, the new birth
justification, salvation, regeneration
etc. 1t comes at the moment Goo
forgives a mans sins, instantaneous
ly. Every conversion recorded in the
New Testament is instantaneous
This is Gods work, man cannot for
give his own sins, neither can he de-
liver himself from this sinful nature
Prof. Max Muller, of Oxford Univer'
sity, England, in speaking before thu
British and Foreign Bible Society
said that in long life devoted to thu
study of the religious books of thu
Orient he had found that all religion!
agreed in guaranteeing man salvation
through his own works.
BY following the precepts of his re
ligion man becomes worry to dwell
with his God and live happily for ever
From all religions that he had examin
ed. he tells us, only one must be &C
cepted, namely, the Christian religion
the religion of the Bible. This denies
man the power to justify himself be
fore God, but holds forth salvation b,
grace through faith in Christ.
If men could make themselves hol.
there would be no need Of Saviour
II they could free themselves from sill
there would be no need of liberator
Christ not only forgives past sins Blu
renews the heart of man so that h
may live without SHINING.
eff the Son, therefore, shall maxi
you free, we shall be free indeed,
Jno. 1886. When a man is Delivers
from the bondage of sin he is as con
scious of it as when he is Delivers
from slavery, from prison or from
disease.
Through Christ men are freed from
selfshness, from pride, from avaric
from malice, from all the filthines
of the flesh and spirit" He is mad
happy in this life and he is prepare,
for the society Of heaven.