Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-06-19

was darkened Processing themselves to be
wise, they became fools, and changed the
glory of the UncOrruptible God into an
image made like to corruptible man, and to
birds and four-foOted beasts, and creeping
things. Wherefore God also gave them up
to uncleanness through the lusts of their
own hearts, to dshonor their own bodies
between themselves; who changed the truth
of God into lie and worshipped and served
the creature more than the Creator, who is
blessed forever" (ROmans, 1:21-25)
Of contrary character the Hebrew
religion, which a heavenly witness to God
delivered it's sublime testimony against the
idolatries Of heathendom for centuries and
centuries.
The elevated morality of Tsraels law
rested on lofty theological truth. The
proclamation of the ten commandments was
preceded by recalling to the minds Of the
Jehovah had made Of Himself both to them
and to their fathers. The great truth upon
which the entire decalogue rests, is then
witnessed in these solemn words: "Hear
Israel: The Lord, our God, is one Lord"
deuteronomy yi:4.)
In like manner the moral life of their
great ancestor, Abraham, rested on the
same sublime truth about God: THE Lord
appeared to Abram and said unto him,
am the Almighty God walk before me and
be thou perfect" Genesis xvii:1.)
The aspirations of the human heart for
moral perfection are bereft of both their
inspiration and their support when God is
lett out OF the account, when His nature
IS ignored or obscured and His aid refused
IN the pride of human self-sufficiency, This
IS the plain implication of the words Of Jesus
when He said in the sermon on the mount
BE We perfect, even as your Father which
IS IN heaven is perfect" (Matthew v:48)
lie is but repeating in another form Gods
call to Abraham.
1t is in accord with the great truth of
GodS infinite purity and boundless might
lhat the first declaration of the APOSTLES
Creed, the symbol of doctrine held by uni
gersal Christianity. is this: 81 believe in
heaven and earth"
This sublime first-truth is not a dead and
lnfert1le abstraction. The thought that the
Almighty Creator of heaven and earth is al
so our Father, when duly believed is
bound to influence life and affect conduct,
1t protests all the tenets of atheism, fatal
ism, and pantheism. 1t implies that our
heavenly Father is on the one hand perfect
ly free, and that on the other hand He Is
absolutely independent of, and disengaged
from His works. 1t flatly contradicts the
horrible fatalism of the ancient Greeks that
Deity is Himself bound by fate and is the
slave, rather than the author of the universe
IL also denies the tenet Of modern pantheism
that God is but another name for nature
and that His works are really He It on
poses with uncOmprOmsing power the win e
system of modern matericIsm, which makes
God the helpless victim of the so-calIed
laws Of nature, and involves the conception
of the Divine character in such a compIfca-
ton of contradi an that at last it calls
Him the UnknOwable, and lies down in a
puddle of hopeless agnosticism.
1t declares the Fatherhood of the AL
mighty Creator and clears every obstruc-
ton from the way of approach to Him by
prayer.
1t points out clearly the path to moral
perfection. 1t shows us that such