Year: 1872

Sermon by the Rev. John Kay-The r e.


ture Glory OF the Righteous.


The Rev. John Kay, OF Paisley, Scotland
preached yesterday morning in the Westminster
Presbyterian church. in Twenty-sec0nd street. The
congregation was very slim 0ne owing. Ofcourse,
to the absence of many OF its members from the
city; but the discourse was as earnest and as i'm
pressive as II every seat had been occupied. MIR.
Kay took for his text the passage from Matthew


Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun In
the kingdom of their Father" He said that all we
know about the future world was derived from the
Bible. Some of the ancient philosophers, drawing
hope from the evidence In man Of noble faculties,
which were apparently nipped in the bud by death,
had entertained faint expectation that
there was life beyond the grave. But such a hope
was faint one, and was confined to a few very
enlightened men. To the mass Of men, for thou
sands oil years. all was doubt and Darkness The
Bible tells us that there were two extreme states
In the future world-heaven and hell-and though
this disclosure was specifically made only In the
~ord OF God, yet still it was strengthened by what
we saw taking place around us in this world.
yirtue and vice were prOgressive-the bad man
was gradually growing worse, while the good man
was constantly growing better. And, so far as we
Of either good or evil, and In the future world we
might indeed either become as God or as the devils
En0s %dr M od Us IN tue 's o
damned or the joys OF the righteous. In
the text the glory Of u, the .,Idgs righteous q
majesty AMI grandeur even OF the Almighty than
the heaven lit up by the great light that was made
to rule the day. Mr.. Kay then at length enlarged
upon the beauty and sublimity and glory OF the
sun, and showed that it was as necessary a spring
OF life In the material world as God himself was IN
the spiritual world. Remembering this, we could
form some idea Of the exceeding exc. glory Of the
holiness. they should enter upon an eternity OF bless
edness and happiness And might we not, therefore.
say to ourselves, Take courage let us think OF the
glory OF our reward; though our humble piety may
be unknown to all but few Immediately around
us, yet still we, shall shine forth as the sun
n our ir Again inns oe
showed the great glory, but also the excessive
light that would irradiate their minds in heaven.
symbol OF knowledge. Our knowledge now was
but feeble, fiickerinG and Irregular, but In the
world to come we should become, as II were. sell.
where you might through the universe 1t would
send forth light because IT was itself the source OF
borrowed and faint, obscured by sinful passions
and desIrcs we should in heaven be as suns, shin


ing by virtue OF our being ourselves, like the sum-
while on earth, the privilege of the Christian
to have seasons OF specially holy and sacred
ana ow aess
such seasons become dimmed and clOuded over !!
But In the future this enlightenment would be un-
interrupted and we should see God face to fAce.
Mr.. Kay went on to say that in his opinion heaven
was progressive state. Many Christians seemed
final reward they would at ono once reach the highest
JOY OF which their nature could be capable. This,
however. was fallaclous view. The soul would
undoubtedly be constantly receiving through eter.
nifty revelations OF the glory, and goodness and
wisdom Of God. Mr.. Kay concluded by pointing out
the strong encouragement the Christian ought to
find in keeping in the narrow path that led TO sal
walton by the exceeding great glory OF his reward