Chapter XII: Part 12

But there is still another phase of Christian Science of which we must speak, would we do it justice, and that is the healing phase. Mrs. Eddy claims that she has restored the sick and brought back the dying to life. "Science and Health" and our community have been repeatedly agitated by specimens of this healing ability. It is well known to every one that Christian Science in its treatment of disease starts from the fundamental theory that there is no sickness and disease, as it says in their text-book, "Science and Health": "You call it neuralgia; this is all delusion, imagination. You expose your body to a certain temperature, and your delusion says that you catch a cold or get catarrh. But such is not the case; it is only the effect of your imagination." The consequence of this fallacy is that no medical remedies are resorted to; in fact, to a Christian Scientist ignorance of medicine is bliss. Mrs. Eddy warns against a knowledge of medicine as a hindrance to learning her system.

Stopping here for a moment to show the unscripturalness of all this, I would but briefly call your attention to such passages as Is. 38 and 2 Kings 20, where we read: "And Isaiah, the prophet of the Lord, said to Hezekiah the King, Let them take a lump of figs and lay it for a plaster upon the boil, and he shall recover." Or, turning to an instance from the New Testament, St. Paul the Apostle writes in 1 Tim. 5, 23 to his afflicted pupil: "Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities," thus suggesting a medicinal tonic or medicine. Our Lord approved of physicians when He said: "They that be whole," that is, healthy, "need not a physician," which evidently implies that the sick do need a physician, and we know from Col. 4, 14 that there was a physician among the first disciples of the Christian Church, and that was none other than the man who wrote the third and the fifth book in the New Testament, namely, St. Luke. It says in Col. 4, 14: "Luke, the beloved physician, greets you." And moreover, when we read that in the days of His flesh the sick and the palsied and the lame, and those afflicted otherwise, came to Jesus and He healed them, does not Christian Science, denying that there is no sickness, no palsy, and no disease, brand our Lord as a liar and a fraud? God protect us from such abomination!

But let us come to the final question: By what power or remedy does Christian Science heal, or, rather, claim to heal? Answer: By denying the existence of matter, of sickness, of death, and by seeking to give the mind complete mastery. Just imagine it is not so! Prayer is employed, but Mrs. Eddy does not attach as much importance to that as some of her followers, and from what we have heard, such prayer is not the prayer of faith, for she has far erred from God and the faith. God certainly does not answer such vain and profane babbling of lips that speak falsehood and lies. The whole Christian Science is a blustering, high-strung delusion. St. Paul gives a true characterization of it 2 Thess. 2, 9: "It is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish."

God grant that we may "avoid profane and vain babblings and oppositions of science falsely so called." With our hearts firmly grounded in the simple truth as it is in Jesus, and laid down in the Volume before us, let us hold fast through God's grace what we have. It is the power, the only power, unto salvation. Amen.

NINTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

And He spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a
certain rich man brought forth plentifully. And he thought
within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room
where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will
pull down my barns and build greater; and there will I bestow
all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul,
thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease,
eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool!
This night thy soul shall be required of thee; then whose shall
those things be which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth
up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.--_Luke 12,
16-21._

It is a serious matter to call any man a fool. It ought never to be done except when circumstances make it imperatively necessary. Christ, you know, employs very strong language in reference to this in the Sermon on the Mount when He says: "Whosoever shall say to his brother: Raca, shall be in danger of the council, but whoever shall say: Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell-fire." But we must bear in mind that our Lord does not condemn the expression "Thou fool" in itself, but rather the spirit in which it is spoken. He does not affirm that it is wrong to say that a fool is a fool, even to his face, but that it is intensely wrong to do so from a feeling of hatred, from spite; and so when God in the words just quoted says to the rich man, "Thou fool," He says so, not because He hated him, but because it was a fact, because He pitied His miserable condition, and because He wishes to deter others from following his example.

To deter others from following his example, by the guidance of God's Holy Spirit, is what we shall attempt to do in our pulpit instruction this morning. Permit me simply and briefly to direct your attention to two points in this striking parable, _I. That the rich man spoken of in this parable was in some respects a wise man_; _II. in some, and the chief respects, a foolish one_.

That this man was in some respects a wise man, of this we have sufficient evidence before us. In the first place, he was a rich man. It says: "The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully." It is very often said that anybody can make money, that it requires no extraordinary powers to become rich, that those who have prospered in the world are more indebted to adventitious circumstances than to any merits of their own, and true it is that men without intelligence, without education, without genius, are sometimes, through a favorable combination of circumstances, enabled to accumulate a vast amount of wealth. Yet, as a rule, riches are acquired by those who work hard, who rise early and go to bed late, who devote themselves with untiring energy to the serious business of life. The great law is that "The hand of the diligent maketh rich." Success is a prize which can only be secured by those who diligently seek it. The very fact of this man being rich was in itself a strong proof of his prudence; for the two, riches and good common sense, stand, as a rule, connected.

Again, we are told that the land brought forth plentifully. What did that prove? Anything further than that the land was fertile? It proved that he was a skillful farmer, that he cultivated his land well, that he knew how to make the most of it. For while it is true that the abundance of the harvest depends on many circumstances over which man has no control, such as the refreshing dew, the genial rain, and the life-giving sunshine, so that after man has done his best it is God who must give the increase, we ought also to remember that God invariably observes the laws which He Himself has established: He never causes corn to grow where seed has not been sown; He never makes the uncultivated soil bring forth at the same rate as that which is properly tilled; the smiles of Providence and the help of God do not attend the indolent, and the careless and thoughtless. If a man would reap abundantly, he must sow abundantly, use the brains God has given him, and conform to God's laws; and so, when the land brings forth plentifully, it is a proof that it belongs to a skillful and prudent farmer.

And he was careful of his goods. He thought within himself: "What shall I do because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?" There was nothing wrong in this thinking, planning, and contriving. It would have been an unpardonable negligence on his part to let the corn rot in the fields for want of sufficient room to store it in, and it would have been hardly natural to expect him to distribute that for which he had no room among the poor. Doubtless it is the duty of those who are very prosperous to be also very liberal; according as they receive from God, so ought they contribute to God's institutions. But God nowhere commands them to give away _all_ they have to spare after supplying their own immediate wants. Men are perfectly justified in storing up for the future, in laying aside, and allowing to increase what they have no need of at the present. And it's the part of a thoughtful man who likes to make the most of his advantages and opportunities so to do.

Say what people, demagogues, and unprincipled orators may, and envy them as they do, those who increase wealth in an honest way have an unquestionable claim upon our respect. They are, as it were, the sinews of human society. Wealth is a mighty agent in the spread of civilization and good. Without wealth, railroads could not be constructed, ships could not be launched, towns, mansions, and harbors could not be built, most of the conveniences and comforts of civilized life could not be secured. Barbarous nations, you will find, are always poor. This man, from all accounts, did not acquire his riches by defrauding his neighbors or by wild and hazardous speculations, but in the exercise of a legitimate and respectable calling; he was entitled to it, he was deservedly respected. Nor did he--in this there was also a degree of wisdom--deny himself the comforts which his possessions were able to afford him. He was not a tight-fisted, miserly fellow who half starved through fear of spending his money, denying himself the things necessary to make life more enjoyable. Rather the man who, like him, says to himself, Take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry, than the man who in possession of abundance of this world's goods denies himself its comforts.

So far, then, we have many favorable traits in his character, some of which we might do well to imitate. He was an industrious, skillful, contemplating, wide-awake person who, in a business, social way, stood well with all who knew him. But this only makes the remaining part of his conduct, which we shall now consider, all the more deplorable.

But God said unto him, "Thou fool." Why did God address him thus? Because, first, all his thoughts were centered upon himself. With him everything was _I_, _myself_, and _mine_. _My fruits_, _my goods_, says he, as if they were absolutely his own, as if he owed them entirely to his own skill and industry, and had a right to apply them to his own selfish ends.

The man with all his worldly wisdom--and he has many like himself--had not mastered one very essential and elementary truth, namely this, that nothing that we have, nothing that we are, comes from ourselves; if we possess anything, we have either inherited it or earned it. If we have inherited it, it is not we who gave life, energy, power to those who have bequeathed to us what we have. If we have earned it, it was not we who gave ourselves the active brain, the strong arm, and steady nerve that did the work. At the most we have improved, made the most of a gift. Our powers, moral and intellectual, physical and spiritual, come from the Author of our life; our life itself is a gift. "It is God who hath made us, and not we ourselves." We do not exist as of right, we exist on sufferance and as a matter of bounty. We are stewards, trustees. We hold what we hold on trust, as life-tenants, for an unseen Lord. The first thing this man ought to have done when he found that his lands were crowned with plenty was to bow down before the heavenly throne and say: "Father of all mercies, I thank Thee that Thou hast remembered Thine unworthy servant, and hast so bountifully prospered the labor of his hands." But no, he says not a word about God or to God; all he said was about himself and to himself. "My" fruits and "my" goods--is his language. And as he received them without thought or thanks to God, he also used them. It is this feature which our Lord emphasizes when he remarks: "So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." Selfishness is the basest of all sins. It is the most repulsive, degraded, and degrading form of depravity, and to our shame it must be confessed that it is the peculiar fault of man. The whole constitution of nature is a standing protest against it. No created object exists for its own sake, or to serve its own ends; but everything contributes its share to the well-being of the rest of creation. Think of the sun, the most glorious of visible objects, how from day to day, from year to year, it lavishes its light upon the earth, giving life and beauty and freshness to the vegetable and animal kingdoms. Or think of the clouds, how with unwearied constancy they drink the waters of the ocean, not to retain them in their own bosoms, but to pour them down in plentiful showers, both on barren mountains and on fertile plains; or how this earth, after supplying generation after generation, is as productive as ever, and its mines inexhaustible. Everything, in fact, seems to teach the grand doctrine that it is better to give than to receive. Man alone, Heaven's chief recipient, forms the contrast. He is selfish, and herein consists his folly. Can we think of these things, and not blush at our own selfishness?

Again, his folly appears in this, that he provided only for the flesh, the least important part of his nature. 'Tis true, he talks about his soul, but only in such a way as if he hardly distinguished it from his body, and as if it ought to have been well satisfied with the things which his body only enjoyed. "And I will say to my soul," said he, "Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry." But God said to him, "Thou fool." He talked like a madman, like one beside himself, and hence he deserved the severest rebuke. For what is man? Not anything that he owns; not anything material that he can so handle as to make it serve his purpose; not even the bodily frame with which he will part company at death. Essentially, man is a spirit, enclosed in a bodily frame. The soul is the man, and that soul calls for first and best consideration. The contrary course is folly.

It is quite proper for us to be careful of our bodies, to provide things suitable for our present condition; indeed, it is necessary to do so. Alas! that rational and heaven-born creatures should confine their attentions exclusively to, "What shall we eat, what shall we drink, and wherewithal shall we be clothed?" and utterly neglect their souls, feed their bodies sumptuously every day, and leave their souls to perish with hunger. Is this right? Is it reasonable to do this? Man has been created for a higher purpose, and his ambition ought to be higher than to find blessedness in eating, drinking, and sensual pleasures. These things cannot appease the cravings of his soul. Man needs God for his portion and Christ for his Savior; it is only as he believes the Gospel that true peace is his.

And, lastly, he provided only for _time_, the least important portion of his existence. What a glorious place this world would be, what a glorious time it would be eating, drinking, and being merry, according to the ideal of the flesh, if--well, if it were not for one thing. What is that? The summons quoted here in our text. "Thou fool, this night shall thy soul be required of thee." "Many years," the man had said. "This night," God said, and from that decree there was no appeal and is no exception. That awful truth is applicable to every one of woman born and just as uncertain. Look around you, my dear hearers, within the circuit of your own experience, and see if you do not recognize the picture in the parable--an indolent, indifferent epicureanism whispering to itself, "Soul, take thine ease; don't be alarmed, eat, drink, and be merry," broken in upon by the same message flashed from heaven coming in a railway accident, in a sinking steamer, by death in the hunting field, or the river's waves, or by the sudden stoppage of the heart's action. "Thou fool, this hour thy soul shall be required of thee,"--and how do you know whether the next summons may not mean you? Learn from this parable the terrible uncertainty of human affairs, and, above all, learn from it the lesson of wisdom, _viz._, to look forward to the future, to forecast as to how it will be with you when the scenes and pursuits of this busy world will have ended. There is a life beyond this. Be wise, then, and provide for it. How? To speak with our text: "By being rich towards God." Hear the Gospel. Believe that Jesus suffered and died for you, reconciled you with God and heaven. Become members of God's kingdom on earth, the Christian Church. Make diligent use of the means of grace, the Word and the Sacraments, and thus be prepared and blessed in time and for eternity. Amen.

TENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the
members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is
Christ. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer
with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with
it.--_1 Cor. 12, 12 and 26._

There is, perhaps, nothing more remarkable, when you study the life of the Church at large and of each congregation individually, than the little interest which its members take in each other. In most cases the entire concern of the membership devolves on a few, or perhaps on the pastor alone; in many instances the amount of interest and sympathy which is shown to each other extends only to a formal, a very cool, social recognition; in some there is not even the interest which secures that. People go in and out of the same church-building, month after month, year after year, without as much as knowing, or caring to know the name of their fellow-member or worshiper. When difficulties arise and embarrassments, those who belong to the Christian Church feel no more liberty to call on a member of the Church for counsel or aid than they would on any other person; when disheartened and discouraged, in need of sympathy and a kind word, they have no reason to suppose that a single member of the Church sympathizes with them. And when living in the neglect of Christian duty, none of the members ever stop to administer an admonition or gentle rebuke to keep the backslider from a melancholy fall. In a word, people are left to take care of themselves very much alone; and this is the more remarkable when you consider the condition of those who largely make up the membership of a congregation like ours. Many of them are young and inexperienced in Christian life, gained from families where there is no religion, no kindred to help them on to God, rather, where they are exposed to influences that would draw them aside, and where every effort ought to be made to keep them in the fold.

The reflections, my beloved, and the constant cry, "What is the Church doing for its members? See how other organizations are helping each other, how they care for their constituents," have led me to propose for our consideration this morning: _What are the duties which the members of the Church owe to each other?_ We shall inquire _I. What the Christian Church is_, _II. note a few traits which ought to distinguish its members_. May God's Spirit make the sermon a profitable one.

First, what the Christian Church is. The Christian Church is an organization, a body, separate, different from all other organizations or bodies. It has a separate origin, a separate purpose. It has separate principles and law. As to its origin--the Church is divine. It is not a human institution. It is not a mere voluntary association, such as an Odd Fellows' Society, a Masonic Fraternity, a Mutual Improvement Club, an Insurance Company. None of these have in them any higher wisdom, authority, or goodness than human experience or contrivance has given them. It is different with the Church. God made the first Churches, and through them He made all other Churches. What the Church teaches in her creed is not from man, but from God. His revelation, the sacraments she administers, are divine institutions, God-appointed, and all the terms and the spiritual process by which people come to be part and parcel of the Church are directly from God. Men can no more make a Church than they can make a world. It is altogether a thing of God. Though human agencies are employed in its perpetuation, it is altogether of God.

This, it may be well to emphasize, is a point which does not enter into the practical consideration of men as it should. People come to church or stay away the same as they would go or stay away from a lecture on human science, politics, or travels. They forget that in the one case they are dealing with men and the things of men, in the other with God and the things of God. They listen to the preaching of the Word as they would listen to a candidate for political favor, except with a little more drowsiness and indifference. They forget that it is but man speaking in the one case, and that it is God, though by a man, speaking to them in the other. People all gaze more idly upon a baptism or an administration of the Lord's Supper than upon the shams and mockeries of a stage play, not reflecting that the one is mere empty buffoonery, whilst the other is a transaction upon which angels are gazing with reverence, and in which God is setting forth the precious riches of His almighty grace. They are great on praising their unions, clubs, lodges, fellowships, regarding them as the very connections for true fellowship, benefit, and improvement, and setting aside that organization without which the good that is in those connections would never have been. The little light with which those societies shine is only a borrowed light, reflecting feebly the spirit and principles of the Church which they largely despise. Beloved, these are no hasty utterances on my part. They are the words of deliberation and truth. There is a laxative goodishness, a weak religiousness spreading in our Churches that holds other organizations just as good as God's organization.

The fact is that the true and certain divinity, the God character of the Church, hardly enters any more into men's hearts. Let it be once rightly grasped and felt that the Church, as such, is a thing of God, that God's name and saving grace are linked with it, and that it is the channel, conservatory of heaven's truth and saving grace, by which alone men's souls are saved. Let those who profess to be Christians avoid any and every connection that holds teachings, rituals, prayers, and practices contrary to its teachings, prayers, and practices, and the Church would not be shorn so much of her strength and be so little thought of. If men are "brethren" in other connections besides the "brotherhood of Christ," which is the Church, hold with one hand to idolatry and with the other to Christianity, it need not be wondered that their zeal is a divided one, and, in most cases, the Church receives the smallest division.

The first general thought, then, is this: The Church is God's. Says the text, it is the body of Christ, distinct from all man-made associations, and so to be honored.

And what--to consider the second and larger part of our discourse--are some of the distinguishing traits of its members? By what are they to know each other and to be known of one another? Other societies have their pledges and badges. In some it is a secret sign known only to the initiated, the brethren of the craft; in others it is some peculiarity of speech or of dress, the cut of the cap or the hair. Now, it is remarkable that the Savior and His apostles prescribed no such external badge of membership, more remarkable because, perhaps, every society then, as now, could be known by such an outward badge. The Jew would be known everywhere by his broad phylacteries and the borders of his garments; the Roman soldier had some mark wrought with imperishable dye in the skin; the Greek introduced into the Eleusinian mysteries had some outward method of expressing that fact to the world. And nothing would have been easier than for the Savior to have appointed some such emblem for His followers. But in the sacred record there is not even a distant intimation of any such badge by which Christ's people or Christ's ministers are to be externally so distinguished. And yet, was there no badge, no mark of distinction? There was. What was it? Permit me, in answer, to quote a few passages. "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another as I have loved you. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." "He that loveth not his brother abideth in death." "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar; for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?" "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love." "As touching brotherly love, ye have no need that I write you, for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another."

And the story of John the Apostle is well known. In his old age of 98 years he was carried to the Church, and when he was asked whether he had anything to say, he would feebly respond, "Children, love one another." Not by signs, peculiarity of dress, or password--by attachment for each other were Christ's followers to be distinguished the world over, in all ages. In His Church they were to feel that, regardless of wealth, learning, office, or other human distinctions, they were on a level, that they had common wants, had been redeemed by the same precious blood, were going to the same heaven, and were in every respect "brethren." And under this conviction of feeling they were to hold to each other, love each other. My dear hearers, did this love ever in the history of the Church form such a distinguishing badge? It did. The time was when the attachment of Christians for each other was such as to impress the world with the reality of their religion, and with the fact that they belonged to the family of the redeemed. "See," said the heathen in the early days of Christianity, "how these Christians love one another, and how ready they are to lay down their lives for each other." Is it so now? I answer for anything that you can tell, if persecutions were to arise, those scenes of ancient martyrdom story might be acted over again. But if there is not this love of which the Savior and His apostles speak as a distinguishing characteristic of His Church, let it be for all of us a matter of self-examination and reflection. I, as a servant of the Master, can only tell what He requires of His disciples.

Again, a second trait and duty required,--they are to be characterized by sympathy for those of its members who suffer. The members of the Church are indeed expected and required to have sympathy for all who are afflicted, but the idea is that they are sympathizing with each other in a peculiar manner. Christians are exposed to the same kind of afflictions as others. They are liable to sickness and bereavement and poverty like others, and, in addition, they have sources of sorrow peculiar to themselves,--internal conflicts and struggles, persecutions and trials on account of their religion; and in these, as well as in the occasions of joy, they are supposed to find cordial sympathy and interest among their brethren. That is the idea set forth in the text when it says: "And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it."

Such is the formation of our body, the constitution of the nervous fibers and the tissues, that pain in one part affects the whole frame; that joy in one part diffuses itself over all. A pain in the heart, the side, or in one of the limbs does not confine itself there, leaving the rest of the body in a state fitted for its usual employments, but every part sympathizes with that which is affected. And so the pleasure which we receive from beauty of objects seen by the eye, or from the melody and harmony of music as perceived by the ear, is diffused over the whole frame, and we are filled with enjoyments. So is the Church which is the body of Christ. What affects one member is supposed to affect all. What gives pain to one gives pain to all. What honors one honors all. As an injury done to a nerve in the body, though so small as not to be traceable to an unpracticed eye, may be felt at the remotest extremities, so is the body of Christ. The dishonor done to the obscurest member should be felt by all; the honor done to that member should produce rejoicing. Without any officious intermeddling with the private concerns of individuals, there should be such an interest felt in the common welfare of the whole that each might depend on the sympathy of his brethren at all times and in all circumstances. Say not that "So it is not." The consideration now, the Savior's teaching, is that so it ought to be, and that every member of His Church should strive to make it so.

And one more duty must we mention, however briefly. It is this: As an essential to healthful congregational life there must be mutual admonition among the members. Here is the fundamental principle laid down by the Savior. "If thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone." You are not to blazon his fault abroad, you are not to allow the suspicion that he has done you wrong to lie, and rankle, and fester in your own mind. You are not to allow it to make you cold and distant, and evasive and repulsive when you meet him, without his knowing the cause; you are not to send an anonymous letter or a message by any one. You are to go to him and see him by himself, and give him an opportunity of explanation, or confession. It is a painful duty, and it is not a duty that devolves on the pastor, but according to the rule laid down by the Savior, upon a brother, _i. e._, clearly every one who is a member of the Church. Beloved, the more I study congregational life and gather practical experience, the wiser does the Lord's rule appear to me in preserving the welfare of the Church. Let us all strive to conform to it. Let us openly and frankly treat each other like brethren. If you have been offended by a brother, or if you have offended a brother, here is the rule that guides you; if you see a congregational member wandering from the path of true religion, going astray from Church and godliness, fail not to do your duty by him, by an attempt to admonish and reclaim him.

We have set before us to-day what the Church is, and what the characteristics of its members are,--a peculiar love founded on their common hope of heaven, and their attachment to a common Savior, sympathy with each other in joy and sorrow, and a common interest and proper admonition when going astray. God grant that all of us may rightly understand and may strive to live up to these things, so that the Church may answer its high and holy purpose, the salvation of men's souls through faith in Christ, to whom in all matter be glory and honor forever. Amen.

ELEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith, without
the deeds of the Law.--_Rom. 3, 28._

Whoever has read his Bible with attention must have observed that there are some passages which, at first view, appear hard to reconcile. Take, for instance, the passage before us. St. Paul here says "that a man is justified by faith, without the deeds of the Law," and to confirm his assertion produces the example of Abraham. "Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness." St. James in his letter, the second chapter, produces the same example, that of Abraham, and draws from it a conclusion directly contradictory. He says: "Ye see, then, that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." Can any two opinions be more opposite in appearance? And as may be expected, all manner of conjectures have been presented. I will not tire you with a tenth part of these interpretations. Only two shall I mention as a specimen. A writer of great eminence, recognizing the difficulty in its full strength, allows that it is not only hard, but impossible to reconcile the two apostles, and concludes that, since it is impossible to hold both their sentiments, we must abide by him who wrote the last. Accordingly, he gives up the doctrine of faith without works, supposing that St. Paul wrote with carelessness of expression, and that St. James wrote after him to clear up what Paul had obscurely or inaccurately expressed.

Again we would note that our great Reformer, Dr. Martin Luther, having felt the power of St. Paul's doctrine in his own soul, that he would have defied an angel from heaven to oppose it, when his adversaries pressed him with the passage from St. James, styled it an epistle of straw, because, in his opinion, it did not urge Christ sufficiently strong.

But what of an explanation of these apparently so contradictory passages?

Is there an explanation? Indeed, a simple and satisfactory one. God's truth never clashes. When St. Paul speaks of justification, he means the justification of our persons,--how we may be accepted by a just and holy God, that is, by faith, and by faith alone, not by works. When St. James in his letter speaks of justification, he speaks of the profession as believers, how a man proves, shows, that he has faith, and that he can only show that he has faith in one way, namely, by his works. St. James, in his epistle, is addressing such of his day as _said_ they had faith, though it had no influence upon their hearts and conduct. He shows that their hope is vain. He asks: "What doth it profit though a man say he hath faith, and hath not works? Can faith save him?"--that is, can such an idle, empty faith save him? He quotes an example: "If a brother or sister be destitute, and one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled, notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body, what doth it profit?" Would such empty professions of charity prove a man to have charity? No more, does he argue, would a person's mere assertion that he has faith, unless it were followed by good works, justify his profession. A Christian's faith is proved to be what it ought to be by works, and not by mere empty profession of faith. And so the example of Abraham is pertinent in both cases. According to St. Paul, "Abraham believed," had faith in God, and God counted it unto him for righteousness, accepted him by faith, and being thus accepted, Abraham, already justified before God in person, showed that he had the true faith by the effects which it produced in his heart and life, and when God directed him to offer his son Isaac upon the altar, he obeyed. Thus, concludes the Apostle James, his obedience, his works, justified his faith, his profession as a believer. In a word, St. Paul speaks of the justification of our persons, and that is by faith, and by faith alone, and St. James speaks of the justification of our faith, and that is by works. Viewed thus, there is no discrepancy, no difficulty, and having taken up the subject, let us continue to consider these two statements, perfectly consistent with each other:--

_I. That there is no acceptance or justification for any of us with God but through Jesus Christ received by faith, and that in this concern of justification works of every kind are absolutely excluded._

_II. That where faith in Jesus Christ exists, it must show itself by works._

To begin with,--what is it for a man to be justified? When a person has been brought to trial for any offense and has been found guilty, he must make satisfaction for this offense. If he is able to make a sufficient satisfaction for his offense, either through his own ability or that of his friends, and the law accepts such an indemnification, the criminal departs from the trial justified. He is not, indeed, an innocent man, but he is so regarded by the law, and though guilty, he would be no more liable to prosecution and punishment for that offense than a person who had never committed it. Now this is the way in which we are justified before God. We are guilty beings; the sentence of eternal punishment is pronounced upon us; we have no ability of our own to make satisfaction to the court of the just Judge. But an almighty Friend has died to make satisfaction for us; God is ready to accept this satisfaction, and in consideration of it He releases us from the penalty of eternal death to restore us to His favor, in a word, to justify us, to treat us as innocent. A person who is found in Christ, having the infinite merits of his Savior to plead for his justification, is no longer liable to punishment.

But how do we secure this satisfaction of an almighty Savior? Again the text answers: By faith. Take, in illustration, the incident of Peter's walking on the sea. We have in our natural state nothing more substantial under our feet to keep us from sinking into everlasting destruction than Peter had from sinking into the watery deep, and it is only when we realize our situation as he did, when we feel our entire helplessness and destitution of hope as he did, when we cast the imploring look and hold out the same suppliant hand, confident that He is able and willing to save, that we exercise a Gospel faith, receive all that Christ has ever done or suffered in our behalf. Faith is the hand that lays hold on the Savior, and so justifies.

Again, "We are justified," is the Apostle's assertion, "without the deeds of the Law." In the first chapter of this epistle to the Romans, Paul labors to show that the Gentiles had sinned against the law of nature which was written in their hearts, and in the second and third chapters, that the Jews had equally transgressed their written Law, and then, having thus shown that all the world is guilty before God, he concludes: "Therefore by the deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified." In other words, that good works are of no account in our justification, they cannot set us right with God,--make us acceptable with Him, cannot gain His favor. That is the teaching of the Scripture and the doctrine of the Church. Declares the Fourth Article of the Augsburg Confession: "We teach that men cannot be justified before God by their own powers, deservings, or works, but are accounted righteous in grace only through the merit of our Lord Jesus Christ received by faith."

Nor is there a lesson which we learn more slowly. It is a task most difficult for us to give up the idea of merit in ourselves, to feel that we can do nothing, absolutely nothing, towards purchasing the favor of God. Talk with the sick and the dying upon the grounds of their hope, and they will often be found pleading that they have always endeavored to live good lives, and have never been guilty of any gross sins, showing by such language that they are clinging to their own good works, instead of trusting to the heaven-procuring righteousness of God. Converse with Christians, even some of our church-members, and they will often speak in such a way as to show that they are placing some merit in their good character or endeavors to serve God. With one foot they may indeed be standing on the rock of salvation, but the other is too often still in the miry clay of our own deservings. We must learn to rest wholly on Christ. We must pray God to break down every vain dependence, to look away, with loathing and disgust, from anything that we possess or can do, to receive a crucified Redeemer as our only hope. "Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling."

This is the first proposition, that there is no acceptance with God but through faith, and that in this concern works of every kind are absolutely excluded. But this proposition, simple and plain as it is, must not be perverted. It will not do, then, to say, It matters not what our lives are, just so we only have faith in Christ. When the Scriptures assert that we are justified by faith, they do not mean a faith which leaves us indifferent to our practice. The faith that saves a man is of the kind that has a prevailing and ennobling influence upon the hearts and lives of those who possess it. Because man cannot gain salvation by his own righteousness and works, he must beware of falling into the fatal and ruinous delusion that he can abolish righteousness and good works. God demands good character and good works from His people. The same apostle who declares in the epistle: "By faith we are justified," adds: "And His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than they all." The Bible wants every Christian to be busy; his life should be filled with fruits of good. But these things must be put in their right place; and which is that? As an evidence of the faith within us. Faith saves us, but good character and good works prove that we have this saving faith. The truth of the matter is that to set little store on good works is an immoral and most pestilent heresy. The works by which we recommend religion and adorn the doctrine of God, our Savior; the works which spring from love to Christ and aim at the glory of God, the works by which a good man blesses society and leaves the world better than he has found it, are not worthless and "filthy rags," but they are the gracious and graceful ornament of a blood-bought soul, the fruits of God's Spirit within us, the clear and comfortable evidence of our being the children of God; and in this St. Paul and St. James agree. Whereas a faith that professes to believe in Christ, and denies Him in character and works, is not only unprofitable, but loathsome and offensive, a dead carcass.

God grant that we have all rightly understood that we place our sole and undivided dependence for salvation upon our blessed Redeemer, and that we evidence such faith in Him by the virtues of a holy character and the performance of godly acts. To God be all glory in Christ Jesus! Amen.

TWELFTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old he
will not depart from it.--_Prov. 22, 6._

It has grown to be a custom to speak at this time a few words concerning our youth. No one, I trust, will dispute the wisdom, nor question the appropriateness of this. After months of relaxation and rest our little ones have returned to the walls and duties of school life. God grant His blessing that they may become intelligent citizens, worthy and useful members of the commonwealth. That is our pious wish and prayer, and for such wish we have reason abundant. Perhaps there has been no time when the matter of education and bringing up of our children has called for so much thought and concern as at the present. Statisticians tell us what startling conditions prevail in our country in respect to wrongdoing, that murders, unchastity, forgeries like a tidal wave are sweeping our land far above what it is in other countries, and that a large percentage of these crimes are being perpetuated by mere striplings of boys. By far the larger number of the inmates of our penal institutions--work-house and penitentiary--are young men. Our reform schools--Good Shepherd institutions and similar places--house boys and girls by the hundreds, causing one to heave a sigh of inexpressible sadness. Look over the docket of our Juvenile Court, and it convinces you beyond cavil that there is enough to justify its existence; and then we have said nothing about the stubbornness against parents and superiors, flippancy, and other sins of youth daily on the increase. And who is to blame? Said an honorable judge of this city lately: "I do say that there is a fearful amount of depravity among the children in the cities of this country, and I don't blame the children as much as those who put them into existence, the parents;" and continuing, he says: "We are prating entirely too much about the unreal and unsubstantial. After all, the real questions are the ones that affect the homes and the children in the homes, and because we have neglected them, we are reaping the ill results." The testimony of thousands of others could be quoted to the same effect. Sufficient reason, accordingly, why we should direct attention to this vital subject. God blessing His word spoken, let us regard the text which reads: "Train up a child in the way he should go," noticing that this is done, _I. By instruction_, _II. by example_, _III. by discipline_.

First in order to a proper training of the young belongs instruction, and by that we mean religious instruction, education not of the mind only, but of the heart. We have no quarrel with education of the mind, the culture of our children in all the accomplishments and acquisitions of facts and sciences; on the contrary, we regard intellectual knowledge, to speak with King Solomon, as more precious than rubies and more to be chosen than fine gold; we hail with delight every facility and agency that would make our children just as bright as possible, and commend the spirit that makes our schools among the most elegant and conspicuous of public buildings. And yet, education of the mind alone will not do; we might point in evidence of that to the refined nations of antiquity. Is not ancient Greece with its music, painting, poetry, and the arts the model of modern states? And who has not heard and read of the Romans and the ancient Egyptians and Persians? Go to your public libraries and see the books on its shelves and the mutilated statues of Apollo, Juno, and the like that tell of their genius. Why did these nations not last? Why did the fabric of their grandeur crumble to pieces? Because it was not combined with the unperishable principle of virtue, and their want of virtue resulted from their want of religion.

Far more simple, however, is the consideration that man is not only mind, but soul, and that this soul is preeminently what makes the man, here and hereafter; that it is upon the attention given to that soul that man's happiness, or the reverse, depends. Hence, the importance and duty of educating the soul. And that duty--where does it begin? Most assuredly where God first put the children--that is the home. At as early a period as possible, as soon as the little ones begin to think and to reason, it is for us to bring them into uninterrupted contact with the sublime and simple truths of God's Word. You cannot begin too early. From veriest infancy let them breathe the air of a religious atmosphere. The names of God, Jesus, heavenly Father, words like heaven, angels, Bible, church, and others of this kind, let them be used over and over, constantly in the hearing of the child. At first they convey but little meaning to it. But the brain retains even what it at first does not understand, and day by day the impression deepens and the understanding grows. Moreover, parents cannot begin too early to teach the child to abhor sin. Mothers should give especial attention to their little daughters and train them in maidenly modesty and chastity, reticence and reserve. And this home education does not cease when the children at tender age are sent to the Sunday-school and the parochial school. What great things are expected from that short lesson on a Sunday morning! How unreasonable to look for results of any amount unless there be the cooperation of the parents with the teachers. How many parents cooperate with the Christian instructors? How often do parents inquire about the Catechism and Bible history lesson? sing with their children the religious songs taught? If parents fail to interest themselves in what is going on in this way, never speak to the little ones about their work, of what little value must this appear to the children. It needs the earnest and ardent cooperation of the parents. And so when it comes to confirmation. What is confirmation? A course of religious instruction by the pastor. My beloved, have you ever reflected what a most excellent appointment that is? What would our Lutheran Church be and do with it? Those few months spent in personal instruction with the pastor have been the most fruitful period of many a life, have laid a foundation, solid and impenetrable--and God prevent the day that parents would begrudge the hours devoted to that purpose, or regard the securing of a public school diploma higher than the Certificate of Confirmation. As the new term is about to open, let parents and sponsors carefully weigh this matter!--We train the children, in the first place, by religious instruction.

Again, it has been stated, by example. To bring up a child in the way it should go, you should go that way yourself. An ounce of example is better than a pound of precept. If children are to honor parents, parents ought to honor themselves and each other. If father and mother are rude to each other, no wonder if the example be soon followed. If father and mother are unpunctual in their hours, irreverent and vulgar in gesture and speech, it needs no sage to tell what the effect would be. Children need models more than criticism. Boys do not learn honesty and girls modesty so much from text-books--the parents are the best living encyclopedia of practical morality. What can one expect where the father is heard blaspheming his Creator, lives in debauchery, drowning his reason in liquor, spending his time and his earnings for purposes and in places unbecoming. How many a boy's soul has been poisoned by filthy talk heard from an adult's lips! An irreverent joke on some Bible story has well-nigh shattered the faith of many a lad!