Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1922-04-24
MACLACHLAN ON !.
BELIEF IN JESUS
Takes Personal Confession Of
Faith as Theme of
Sermon. 500.
EXPERIENCE AS GUIDE
Efforts to Deny Christ Really
Lived Bear Own Ref
utation.
EXPERIENCE AS GUIDE

rev. n. d. C. Maclachlan. D. n.
preached In Seventh Street Christian
rhurch Yesterday on why I Beliey,
IN Jesus. He said. in part:
l am preaching this brief ssr,c,
W sermons on certain fundameh
vi the faith because find that there
are many earnest souls who arc az
aous 10 relieve in the thing thev
Stnnd Tor. but cannot bring thar,
serves I" accept the way In wh,ch
IL Is offered to them in .hs-t raSi-
,lonal doEmas Of the church. 1t i.
~ some som, sort personal confession
OF faith. but made not because
imagine the public is Ereatly"int.r.
ested In what believe or why. hut
only because Of the guidance NV Az
perience may have for some who az.
seeking. or may have lost, the way
to God. way
Now when use the words.
neneve In Jesus there are several
things 1 shall take for granted
snail accept without question m.
iaGt that Jesus really lived. Efforts.
know. have been made OF recent
years to deny this; but mereiy from
the point OF view OF the honest his
,orian. they bear their own refnta.
non on their face. Neither is thern
"nS serious dispute ms to the kind of
man Jesus was. In spite Of the re-
lection OF Jesus claims. no valid.
criticism has ever been made ~ uiaS
ne ana character, which are .almost5
universally acknowledged. -tvr bs-
never and nonbeliever alike. to have
set the standard so high that. any,
..,ns higher is simply Uncomfortable.
I."i iurther. there Is no reasonable
ctnbt that He 'spake as never man
Spake' and laid down PRINCIPLES or
liNing. the truth OF which are con-
nrmeo ny every increment of human
experience. and that we have in the
gospels sufficiently accurate ac-,
and works. 20 70
but all this-much as it is--does
NOT quite cover all that 1 mean N,
heiieving In Christ There IS farE
more intimate and personal relation
snip between the Christian and hia,
LORD than that. Christian faith I'M
pies. in addition to the above. be-
.'e' IN Jesus as Savior. az Revea.er.,
az FRIEND, and that not in any abb
an Individual experience Of the souI
IL IL that sort of faith that 4 .wouia
justify. o''o
- Jenus ms savior.
savior Is one that saves: and
saving is very concrete matter or
lact. AS TO what happens to- people
after they are dead, one Is. in thu
region, more or less. OF specuIation
out 1t Is a matter not OF speculatfon
Eur OF observable fact. when maj,
liz saved from the power OF sin in his
life. whatever form that sin NAV
take. Now. the gospels tell us OF.
cases OF that sort in Jesus lifetime,
ana ana tho Acts and Epistles show that
the same kind of mora, miracles.
were performed In His Name. even
after Ills departure. But confes.
that TO acknowledge Jesus as UNI
versal Savior, something else is
needed-at least. have felt the
need Of it-than mere historical WITT
ness. which may have been esaK-S
serated or Incorrectly handed down.
namely, the actual operation OF
Jesus saving power In the world to-
day. Is Jesus a saving force in tho
twentieth century? Does He save
men and women in America as He
saved Matthew and Mary MaedaIene
In Palestine? This is an argument
there Is no gainsaying: It will be,
IL obtalnabie. a gospel according to
Richmond. Is
And II IL obtainable. The great
outstanding fact Of Christianity is.
that Jesus does today save people
from their sins. I am quite willing
10 grant that many cases OF So
called conversion are merely crises
OF emotional excitement, or merely
formal acceptance OF the social obli-
cation OF church membership. but,
there are cases--far more, perhaps
than we imaRine--where a, real
power enters the life and breaks the
strong man OF sin and selfshness4
and sets the soul free to follow In
Jesus footsteps. -@iet
Here we are not In the specula-
tive realm. but in the realm Of fact
The new life in Christ is as real as
radium. Lives can be lifted up from
tho earth and made to live in the
upper reaches. AS surely as the
aeroplane lifts it's load into the air.
The evidence for the two Is Of the
same kind. believe in radlum te-
cause sec It's results: 1 believe in
Jesus because I see His results"