Show SPIRITUAL GATES ARE ALWAYS OPEN I I Influence o of or F Environment Is is' isS is'S I S Shown in Fighting Lifes Life's Battles LEARNING NOT ESSENTIAL Rev William Burnett Speaks Gate of on Righteousness at Phillips Church Rev nEV William Burnett preached yesterday ester morning at Phillips Congregational Congregational Con Con- church taking as his subject subject subject sub sub- the tho Gates ol ot Righteousness In which he lie pointed to Christ and the experience of and trust in him Following is a part of or his messa message message mes mes- sa sage e the text being Open to mo me tho the gates of or righteousness righteous righteous- ness He sal said in part You all aU l know now how Important nt to the Eastern city were Its walls wails and gates Only the small villages that had nothing in them thorn to tempt the avarice of tho the nomadic robber were without walls All the larger towns that hll had gathered within them the products of or civilized life and culture strongly protected t d with walls and gates Always 8 tho the signs of or destruction destruction destruction de de- de- de were tho the breaking down olits of ol its gates One of or Gods God's repeated threats of judgment upon Israel was wile that ho he would take away her walls alls and gates I Now ow this literal fact soon pa passed into metaphorical use and we wo find It used in describing tho the condition otan of ot an individual life That in certain circumstances he was like a n city without without without with with- out walls or gates And Anel wo we hear such I expressions as the gates of the mornIng mornIng mornIng morn morn- Ing the gates of ot light and as In our text tho the gates of or righteousness We Vc Weare Weare are also familiar with this figure o of speech In our own on time Common Ex Expressions You hear henr men Inon now speak of th the gateway of the nations tho the gateway of commerce an and the tile door of opportunity We Ve are to understand from althis all al this that between ono one place and another another another an an- other there are string barriers that tha can be passed only at certain places place called gates and also that between one condition of life an and another there aro are arom m walls 11 s Intangible but real that tha can be passed through only In certain places and finally that between on one mental or spiritual condition an and another another an nn- other there arc are also walls c clearly early defined defined de de- de- de fined that can be pierced only onlIn In partIcular particular par par- places or ways was You can easily seo see that this J Jall Is all true to practical life A man c cannot cn can- n- n not wander In any haphazard way Kway into the life Ufe and mid skill of a a. banker or ora ora ora a doctor or a scholar or mechanic or ora ora ora a Christian There are arc definite rates gates through which ho lo must enter If It he I Is ever eyer to get Into an any of ot these kinds o ot of life lire But our business this morning i Is with tho the spiritual and we e are arc to Inquire inquire In Inquire In- In quire how man comes to be conscious of or this city of or righteousness how h he got out of It ft and what is this gate b bj by whIch v he seems to to hope to re-enter re II It Now let us go back for a n. momento moment momen to primitive man nn and we shall ge get what I still believe beHove to be bo the simplest simples and cleanest Idea of the honor and higher spiritual life The Tho symbol Is familiar to you oU it Is tho the picture of th the Garden of or Eden Now whatever theory we e may hold about the tho toll tall o oman of man in that simple figure of it wo we get got this fact fact that is true to our experIence experience ex ox- a change in mans man's condition and a n. change chango In two respects When hen we see him outside the garden arden he finds find that two changes have taken placa a change in the quality of life lite It Itself lt and also a n. change in his environment Whereas within the gates his life Ufe wa wo purer In Quality and tho the environment friendly without the gates Sates he his life lite lower in quality an and the environment environment en on- largely at enmity with v the thc weaker life liCe If It man would have brought the tho same life lire into his changed conditions the thc problem for tor him hahn would have hao been simple for he would make tho the wilderness bloss blossom om like c the rose All Experience tho Change Now every life 11 passes C through this same experience Each life Ute passes through h the gate g-ato from the tho garden of ol Innocence into the knowledge and practice of moral evil and In every such experience o wo tin find the same changes taking place in the quality I of life and unfriendliness of tho en on- But why dl did not man return to the garden when he lie found his mistake Because the gate was closed and at it stood tho the cherubim and flaming sword just as there thero Is behind every mans man's conscience the tho sen sense o of ot justice and righteousness One class of or theologians theologians theolo theolo- gians glans today tell ten us that we wc may re reenter re re- enter the tho gate another teaches that it is Ig not necessary Let us listen to this latter class for a a. moment They say that man can lift himself Into this higher life b by knowledge and right principles It is a great mistake to think that rules are life and the tho greatest of all mistakes is to confound knowledge with life Rules and principles and knowledge ar are not life Bre They arc only tho the Instruments of life I may know rationally all nil the tho secrets of nature I Imay Imay Imay may know Go God rationally and antl yet Ct be poor in life lire itself Nay ay mere knowledge knowledge knowl knowl- edge Is often otten the sign of ot want of life hart o Grand Schemes There is no class of or men In Salt Lal Lake e today who know such grand brand schemes for making fortunes and doIng doIng dolog do- do Ing log heroic things as those poor POOl derelicts dere dere- who are gathered in thu city jail jailor or aroun around the free soup kitchens h n You cant can't say that their plans aro are not feasible fear feas ible Ibie and yet et you ou are arc quite sure that i if you would give o them the means and the opportunity for tor carrying them out they would be back at nt tho the soup kitchen hitchen hitch kitch en next winter What ao they lack lack- lack rules plans knowledge No life Bee It ItIs Itis Itis is not by the gate of ot knowledge be that man enters the higher lIt hlf life t I If It we turn now to the thao plan proposed proposed proposed pro pro- posed by bythe the Savior ViOl we shall shan see how sane and md true to experience It is There is nothing moro more common cormon Inthe in inthe I the experience of life UCo than as men have looked back at that gate gato through which they pa passed etl into the experience of sin they have earnestly wished they might re-enter re It and escape from the control of ot evil ovil And nd as they thoy have looked looke at that gate some somo have despaired despaired des des- paired of entering because of or tho the flaming sword while v others have hae thought without going back they 1 could go on and cultivate le Hio out IUt of oC tho the control of or evil Invites to Enter In Now when hen we get above the fogs created b by theological quibbling we wesee wesee wesee see that Christ has opened that gate gat and has made It possible nay beckens beckons beckons beck beck- ons ens and pleads with every even man to enter in not from the knowledge of sin not even from the outward consequence consequence con con- sequence of sin but from its reign and effects in his spiritual nature And this righteousness is not a passing pasing n Into a n better environment but Into a Do hIgher duality quality of ot life itself Experience Is 19 tho the supreme te test t both of or religion an and life liCe And in th the the e experience of this righteousness that t twe we have through Christ man not only can cnn enjoy a higher life UCe here hele but butU it also begets in him a hope that refuses to believe that the possibilities of ot life lire are arc confined to this mortal scene or orare orare orare are bounded b by the material universe Life Lito should not be bo the mero mere friction friction friction fric fric- tion of or our being with time Ume and environment n lr and death should bo be rot not so much tho the decay of our body from without as Its casting off by tIle the expanding expanding ex ex- power of the life within that i passes from glory to glory even cen as asby asby i b by the spirit of the Lord I |