South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-03-08
REV. J. N. GREENE
IN SUNDAY SERMON
Gives Splendid Sermon on
Heroic Elements in Jesus
Well Attended.

Al the First Methods church
services sunday morning which
were well attended. DR.. J. y. Greene
took for his subject, THE Heroic
Elements in Jesus" and showed
that though Jesus is commonly
thought as rather effeminate
character because Of his meekness
and gentleness, yet He is the most
heroic and virile character in his
tory He said in part: Jesus had
a strength OF personality that was
commanding. He made his presence
felt. When He was III q neighbor-
hood people knew IL. He drew peo-
pie % Him as q magnet draws steel
filings. There was a force about
Him that caused His enemies TO
pause when they sought 20 lay vio-
lent hands on Him.
Manly Life.
Back OF this power of personal
ity lay elements that contributed to
heroic, manly life IN physical
courage and endurance Jesus was
unsurpassed. The physical is the
lowest standard for the measure
ment Of a man, but measured on
that plane Jesus would suffer moth
ing as cOntrasted with other heroic
personalities OF the world. He was
not afraid in the presence of danger
or death. He surrendered Himself
without hesitation 10 the mob that
came 10 arrest Him in the Garden.
and said fearlessly 10 them. L am
He. The world has never seen a
better example OF endurance than
that Of Jesus, as He hung on the
cross with rent hands and feet and
torn side, the burning fever aug
mented by the enflammg wounds
and terrible thirts, yet exhibiting a
courage that knew no complaint.
intellectual Side.
The intellectual element must
enter into the makeup of a well
rounded man. II is not enough for
"a man TO have the muscle OF an OK
and the courage OF a lion. To fill
out the measure of a man one must
have intellectual force. This Jesus
did not lack. His enemies said that
He knew letters which meant He
had much knowledge He was ia
miliar with the history Of the past.
He carried the scripture in His mind
and heart He knew both nature
and life. He laid down principles
for the control OF social life which
have not been outgrown TO this day.
lie has made contributions TO the
literature of the world. His utter
ances in the form Of the Sermon on
the Mount, His prayers and His
parallels Will endure long after the
utterances of Homer and Shake
spearc have been forgotten. He had
vision that spanned plains and
seas and reached to the horizons OF
eternity.
Had Devotion.
Jesus had a devotion 10 His mis-
sion that amounted 10 heroic per-
sistency. Some men can dream well
but they cannot realize their
dreams. Jesus could do both. The
man who coGld display the real
manly spirit must fix his vision as
a guiding star for. his life, and then
be willing 10 pay the price Of sacri-
fee, humility and even temporary
defeat in order to realize it, \ hard
fall or a blackened eye will not deter
him. A Gethsemane or q calvary
may be ahead but he moves on.
Moreover, Jesus displayed the
herOism OF the spiritual He had
place for the spiritual and moral
side OF life. He could discriminate
between the good and the bad, and
always exalted the right above the
wrong. The cause for much OF the
confusion and uncertainty i'm present
day social life is in the fact that
many who assume TO be leaders OF
men have forgotten 10 keep their
eyes fixed on the spiritual and moral
ideals. They have thus become blind
leaders OF the blind. II is a mark
Of the heroic and not Of the opposite
in these days for man TO hold
Righteousness aloft as the ideal for
social attainment Any coward can
drift with the crowd, but il takes
the hero to point the way 20 social
and personal Righteousness.
The Christ of heroic qualities has
not lost his appeal To men. When
properly seen, He will draw men 10
Himself. Men understanding Him
as He is, sec His beauty, feel His
power learn their own defects. and
through Him come 10 have their
own lives cleansed, forgiven and
transformed"