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Show FOLLY OF PREACHING TO THE WORLDLY-WISE Why Should God's Ministers I Preach While Earthly Rulers Rul-ers Gemmand? h'oachlng Thus Serves the Divine Purpose Pur-pose During Thi5 Ag: In tho Com-ino Com-ino Age of Messiah's Kingdom It Will Be Different Tho Lnv Shall Go Forth and Tranigrosaors Shall Receive Re-ceive Corrective Punichmcntc, gKKWj?jj7pr Lancaster, Pa , MWM Uec -- - Pn-stor WrfiKs&H' ' Russell spoke here llllljll' tj today Bis text for i''B I hi occasion wus: Wmfe&h M "U plMS0d God bT l$W?lJM t!,e foonslmeJW 0L' iSi '"" " preaching lo save IrasiJi1 "MM them tlmt believe" I W&Mf-fi '$?$ -I" Corinthians l. PlsBreif "i! fcaii1 that thero is a rJTMff?K3aL zS&l wide diffeience be-t&STQg. be-t&STQg. RUfSElfl) rff,.n foolish preaching and "the foolishness of preaching." In the Church, tht Cospol has the right of way. If some claim that people no longer attend Divine service, thcie are three reasons why Ihcy will not (1) During the Dark Age the Church lost the Uosppl. and few Christians ! have recovered it. (Jospel signifies j good tldi'.i'js, (i message oj joy; but tlie , message handed down from the Dark i Ages has been bad tidings of great misery for nearly all mankind. No wonder ihe majority reject this horri- i ble presentation of the creeds Man- klud have trials enough in the present ' life, and need encouragement to hope i for better things hereafter. J (2i Uespondin- to the growth of in- j telllgcncc. minister- have ceased to i I preach eternal misery for all but tho I i "very elect " Nearly all ministers lot I , in the theological seminaries their 1 faith In the Bible a the inspired Word of God. aud art-opted the lindlngs of unbelief Higher Criticism. So tuej ' preach thofe tiling which they ought not to preach, ami leave .unpreached those things which they ought to preach. How can such ministers avoid "foolish preaching?" (3i Having undermined faith in tho Bible, these ministers mix Iheir higher critical, evolutionary views with diluted di-luted morality, and serve this instead of the (Jonol. Whoever flunks such preaching will convert from sin and unbelief to faith in (Jod Is deceived. i Tho Compel or Christ is glad tidings I Jesus died to bring mankind into liar i mony with God. Nothing Is said about , I an eternity of torture at the hands of ' fire-proof demons nothing to discredit I I the Wisdom. Justice. Love aud Tot. cr of God It acknowledges that mankind man-kind an under a just ptmalty hmth. but sets before them a glorious hope of a coming time whou the curse of death will be removed. According to the Scriptures, a New Dny is dawning dawn-ing a glorious prospect for all desiring to come inlo harmony with God. but stripes upon wilful sinners. The True Gospel includes the Message Mes-sage that duriug this Age God is so- Icctlng a Church, to be joint-heirs with ' our Lord in the honorable work of blessing all the families of the oarlh. The number who attain this posillou is a Little Flock, to whom it is the Father's good pleasure to give ihe King dom. Is Gospel Preaching Logical? Pastor Russell said that St. Paul refers re-fers to preaching tho Gospel as "foolishness," "fool-ishness," not Jn his own estimation, but in that of the worldly wise. That a man of Jesus ability should go about with a few disciples, performing some miracles and inviting chiefly the poor to follow nim. seems foolish to the world. They ask. Why did He not mnke friends with Scribes. Pharisees and Doctors oi the Law. whose Influence with the people would have counted? In replj, he .isked. If our Lord had done thus, who would have crucified Him? How would God's Plan have been carried out? It is well for the world that Jesus did not follow the suggestions of worldly wisdom. Trvly. the "WiSdom of God is foolishness with the world, even as worldly wisdom is foolishness with God. From the world's standpoint, it seems foolish for God to invite any to serve III in for, ?n all-powerful God to entreat, en-treat, where He could compel obedience. obedi-ence. Carthly kings enforce their commands: in fact, every one executes his own will. The Bible explains, however, how-ever, that God seekj those to worship Him who do so in spirit aud in truth. Therefore these miidt be given opportunity oppor-tunity to disobey, if they choose to do so: and persecutions, tribulations and attacks from the world, the flesh and the Devil arc permitted to test them. All of God's people are ordained to prench. The begetting influence of the Holy Spirit is the only ordination necessary, nec-essary, aud without it no one has Divine Di-vine authority to preach. God's Book makes no division of His people into clergy aud laity. Let us declare God's message in Its purity and simplicity. Let us not be disappointed that the worldly-wise consider it foolishness, and that it brings odium, as it did upon the Lord and His Apostles. God will find the "peculiar people" whom he seeks As Messiah's associates associ-ates they will "declare the decree. '" All mankind shall be brought to a knowl-Hlge knowl-Hlge of the Truth, the incorrigible destroyed, de-stroyed, and every knee bow aud every tongue confess, to God's glory. oo |