PRACTICAL CHRISTIANITY

Press, Volume LI, Issue 8875, 18 August 1894, Page 2

PRACTICAL CHRISTIANITY

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m. THE ASCENT, DESCENT, ANJL> ELEVATION OP MAN. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of licerir and so contiunerh , . . shall be bless, d lv his dolug. -James 125 (8.V.) Under the figures of two mirrors, one to see the iace, the other, an ancient magic mirror, to view other persons or event*, the obedient servant of God is likened to a man who look* into the scriptures to discover the divine standard of conduct and to learn God's purpose concerning bis destiny. Let us exhibit the two sacred mirrors of Creation and Revelation, one showing God's work, the other Himself. "We shall see divine skill in evolution, grace in redemption, and love in seeking to uplift mankind.

1. Tlte Look which sees tvjuit God would have us see. In the perfect glass of divine revelation, we see that evolution is creation's beautifully arranged steps by Which God draws all things to their crown ; but the secret of when and how He created matter and visible life is unknown. He treated ; we see the heavens and the earth. As electricity is a force by which through a battery we produce sparks and thrills, so creation is the divine force which by means *f evolution God produces worlds and men. Combining the many and sometimes varied discoveries and theories of scientific men during the past fifty years, allow mc to show as it were a panoramic view of the Creator's work in harmony with the spirit ef His written word, It comprises the instinctive evolution, wilful devolution, And Conditional elevation of mankind. Beginning with our friend Professor Bicker ton'a discovery of the evolution of worlds, we see the marriage or collision of two enormous dead suns, their migh y jog producing intense heat and breaking off vast bodies of gaseous star-children, which revolve in harmony and become our glorious ■On, moon and planets. In due time the earth cools down, a crust forms, and in the midst of rich gaseous and aqueous air, organic life begins. In the dim lig*it waters are gathered into seas and level land appears. Tiny living germs or cells, bo small that ten might be' placed within the width of * human hair, evolve mosß on the rocks, grass, herbs, and trees in the vales, while the sun, now shining through the transparent blue sky, gives increasing power and beauty everywhere. Sealarvee evolve fish, and fie same in process of development, or it may be larvae from other varied germs, produce birda, beasts, and finally man. The original germ plasms are gifted with two master-passions, the one hunger, the other love of their kind,' with an instinct to co-operate, and an inspiration to self-sacrifice for the sake of offspring. God inspires the tiny creatures with other-ism, or love to one another for reproduction and mutual Comfort. The inspired instinct of love is, therefore, the motive power of evolution ; and as its passion is as divinely right as that of hunger, in lawful grooves it ia honourable in its expression as any other faculty. It is a human type or pioture of the spiritual and more joyous communion between God and man, to which true followers of Christ are led. The germplasm, so divinely formed, advances until it evolves a long headless creature without backbone like a worm, which in "time produces" the Mediterranean laueelet, whose backbone is only gristle ; and so the evolving machinery carries out the plan- of God—the tiny germ ; the fish ; the creature with two natures enabling it to live either in water or on land; the creeping thing ; the creature whose female suckles its young; then, mnoh further on, the tailed ape, the tailless ape, and, alter many more thousands of years, a creature differing chiefly from the ape by a lareer brain and voice-throat, namely, a man. In the wondrous process wo see reprodue* tion so enormous and rapid that there is occasionally a straggle for existence, and, therefore, creatures which possess a slight advantage have the best chance of surviving in calamity and reproducing their superior sand, while inferior' ones become extinct. Some creatures having harder gums, or with horny knobs thereon, are able to exist where others,with softer gums die out, and by the instinct which seeks the best obtain*' able otber-vne as a mate/in process of tune - they evolve teeth. The shore bird with the longest lefts and neck is better able to Obtain food than one not bo advantaged, and with " excelsior" instinct the present stork appears. But in most of the species, if not in all. there has been a." sport, that is, what may be called a genius, which, seeking .a similar mate, evolves a higher type of body. In this way certain animals, whoso bones have not yet been found, evolved both the ape and a genius-ape. The latter, learning to stand and walk in an upright position, in process of time evolves shorter hands, feel and claws, and gets rid of the tail; then learning to defend itself with a stick or stone, it gradually adds to its knowledge and develops into man. Jftrat, as we see, the genius-ape balancing himself, making bis claws into hands, using a stone as a stronger fiat, a pole as a longer arm, a sharpened stick to out and slay instead oi his nuts to scratch and rend, adding to his words, expressing hk meaning by uotohes on a branch, making spears, mud-house*, i garments and roads, establishing tribes and nations; and, finally, electing a king, with other civil ißed Mes» sings, we now see the ancient ape-man who Bcretmed with joy when ho ; learned to bit »n enemy with a stone, transformed into a trousered citizen who employs an army to fight his battles, and after a vast slaughter of bis fellow men. goes humbly in a procession beaded by a brass band to sing the T« D*u» in a church. Hat is the evolution of organisms eternal t No. We see the descendants, of the worm : of ten thousand years ago producing only a worm, sad the ape Only an ape. The various creatures as they now; exist seem to be the crown Of evolution—we may improve or alter the breed, but the present ape cannot evolve anything higher. In attaining their summit, God appears ■; to have drawtto.dividing line between the: species. 'We may improve or lower the breed, but man cannot, evolve into anything but man. It should be observed that in this age we are foolishly cultivating the brain at the cost of other faculties—the ears are less acute, the sight lets vivid, the strength lea* vigorous, while smoking, drinking, and other self-indulgent ht.bits are greatly deteriorating civilised man. No diseased or insane person should transmit his calamity to innocent children. Surely, for such a man or woman to reproduce physical badness Is a crime in the sight of God. For the sake of those who follow, every man should be chaste in mind and deed, and only Clean words issue front bis mouth. The unclean \bodied man or woman should, as the act of Goi and in mercy to the. race, be rigorously, but kindly, isolated until they are either clean or die. v We admit that evolution is a fact, bat ii modern man be its crown, is there not com* ; parative failure? To show this, we must turn back the panorama to find the true crown, when we we thatovoltttion achieved the summit when Adam talked and walked with God. So far as I am able to judgs, evolution is the visible story of the creation up to Adam, and *h>ee then its divine power has been thwarted by human wilL As Godgiven instinct evolved the higher form, so our disobedience to Him has devosuted inferiority. . Adam was the crown because God controlled till then; from that time most snea hay* chosen their own way and gone- down bill, in the divinely-arranged processes of six million years, the dust transformed into'a germ-plasm, ascended step by step until it evolve* the God-comranniDg Adam, who, we submit, was perfect in freedom of reason and and of higher useful intelligence than any God-unbelieving man of the present day. Beading between the lines, we believe he was informed that through his thirst for Advanced knowledge he would be tempted to disobedience, and if he did evil it would be the suicide of communion with God. Accordingly, in the act. of wilful disobedience, Adam's inner self died to godly invisible or spiritual realities, and lived only in the desires and necessities of the body. The result was that, though the human spirit retained latent divinity, Adam's self-willed descendants became so degraded as to be unlit to live. Wbat a sublime Meant from a partiole of dost to

EVANGELICAL SERMON.

a man who talked with God .' What a descent to the God-unbelieving modern man 1 .... Do you cay that unbtlievwg man is improving? It is troe that moderns are more refined, more polished, than the antediluvians, and when we are at peace there. is a greater regard for life; bat v oar average moral man who rejects Christ better thaa the average moral ancient Arabian ! If you offend modern unbelieving men, the aristocrat severely shuns you; the.plebeian seeks to drag yon into law; the merchant employer " locks out," while hie men ; *' strike," and sometimes burn and slay. In big disputes, such as the civil war in the j Slatea or between nations, the cotnmaudeca | cunniugly scheme which can mo3t rapidly ■ slaughter men, and as for modern bravery : which hides itself, as it were, in a steel tub : and fires through the bunghole at half-naked Africans, and is then my-lorded and goldmedalled for its glorious victory the less you compare it with ancient courage the ; better. Is the average God-unbelieving j modern better than the ancient believer, ' whose name was a sacred word in the house of the widow and fee heart of the poor? Are our modern youths better-mannered ia ; the streets, or more respectful at home, than ] the ancient young men ? and, in proportion to numbers, have we fewer cheats and thieves ? The fact is. that having turned from God, though civilisation adds to its luxury and knowledge, yet the morals of the modern world are gradually becoming lower, and it is necessary for out-ward comfort aud safety that our people be restricted, regulated, prohibited aud " moved ou " in a forcible style as would have amazed the ancient Persians. The iniquity of the modern world is more hidden, out ia it not as vile as the more publio sin of ths ancient world ? Since the day when Adam shook off the sacred bridle and discrowned his divinity, evolution has been nuable to reproduce godliuess. It is not now a human instinct, but a divine exotic which, however, thank God, is offered to all men. We may become godly ! Communion with our Creator may be restored. Therefore, in the germ from which the Creator evolved the perfectlyformed and spiritually-vitalised Adam, in the compassionate redemption whioh liuks every penitent man to Cnrist, in the inspired nature wbicu brings us into joyous touch with Heaven, and in the promise of glorious bodies iv which we shall be enshrined, we Bee what there is to be seen in the divine mirror, namely, the wisdom, power and love of God. St. The Look which uplifts u$ to what God would have us to be. It is blessed for mc to see that as Christ died for all men, I, one of the crowd, may be pardoned and uplifted ; but it is rapture divine to have Him take mc by the band and to hear Him cay, "I died for thee I" As an artist continues to look at the model, bo the believer continues beholding God ; and, intensely yearning to be like Him, we grow in the power to exercise purity, integrity, forgiveness, composeion, and love divine. A certain British Prime Minister,' who had been insulted, aaked a iriend, " Don't you think it would be mauly to resent it ?y, " Yes," said the friend, "it would no doubt be manly to resent it, bat would it not be more God-like ,to forgive and forget it?" So we behold I God, and He uplifts us. It is not God's purpose to give a different shape to the earthly body, but in these last days to evolve the divine Spirit in our inner self. Would yon see the model for evolution through the mighty power of 'the Spirit f Behold Christ! Do you ewne stly desire to be evolved into a disposition like His ? Then, as a father gives bread to hia hungry child, so your Heavenly Father J shall give the Holy Spirit to be the uplifting well and tiie evolviug sap in your inner self; and your home, whether gilded 1 mansion or humble cottage, shall be a heaven below, because you dwell there- your godly presence breathes forth paradise. Fat tiers, mothers, brothers, sisters, young men and maidens, what is your decision ? Will not you become so lovingly obedient Cβ God ac to enable Him to uplift you to eternal fellowship with Himself and evolve yon into a facsimile of Christ ? "Thy nature, gracious Lord, impart; C »mc quickly from above.: ■vVrlte Tny n>m name up >n my heart. . Thy new best a«oaeot«»ve. ( . f, ; . SERMON.%[JND. Readers who w«h PatfJoYßiroa'a sermons Ito be regularly published in the Press are respectfully requested to help to pay the cost by sending contributions (which will be acknowledged in this column) to him addressed "Chrifltohurch," or to leave them at the Paste Office, Gashel street. ! They are printed in the Press, Chrisfcchurch, in the hope that, with the " Talks to Children," they may be useful reading for churches, mission halls, and schools in the absence of the minister, at the bedside of the sick, or the diggers' camp fire.

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