A LIVING DEATH

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 787, 7 October 1929, Page 10

A LIVING DEATH

ITS GRIM POSSIBILITY VAIN PURSUIT OF PLEASURE • A Living Death—ls It Possible" was the question discussed yesterd morning by Pastor Reuben E. Dov ! at Mount Roskill. He took as his t* • Ezekiel 33. xi.:—“For why win ye dk O house of Israel?” “A party of alpinists in SwiUerhM were once overtaken in the mountah' by a blizzard.” said Mr. Dowle. —n, * lost the track, vainly strugglin' 7 until eveuing. “Suddenly they saw a light in the valley below. By- risking a great dea' they reached’ a goat-herd’s shelte ' Though it was a humble dwelling the,were thankful. The kind woman did all she could to make the halt-f roze men comfortable. Then she uttered one word, ’Why?’ She wondered whr they had attempted to accomplish th almost impossible. “Is not this episode illustrative ot the foolishness of thousands today chase the elusive butterflies oi wealth aud pleasure? Good in moc.iratio’" yet disastrous if carried to extremes’ At the same time these people arturning their backs upon the spiritu-i feast found in the Gospel of Divine Redeemer. “Ezekiel, the prophet, was a n.. , ot visions. He was, moreover, a great patriot; one that loved his counn. men. He noticed their mistake ami warned them of impending disastei Idolatrous peoples surrounded them and alas! many succumbed to their allurements. Ezekiel pleaded win, them with a heart-broken cry. 'Whv will ye die. O house of Israel? Hi, sympathy was akin to that of our Lonl Jesus, when he said, ’Come unto me all ye that labour and 1 will give you rest.’ Ezekiel. like Christ, had com. passion on the multitudes. Ezekie' like Jesus Christ, was moved by a mighty heart of love. RESCUING THE PERISHING “In modern times the church w a , realising the necessity of rescuior the perishing: those who are wandering from the central point of bliss. The church must agouise more for the lapse of the people from truly spiritual life. National decay would continue if the church did not put on her beautiful garments, aud go forth to rescue the people from a living death. It was possible, it would appear, to be physically alive, yet spiritually dead. The Jews were, as far as material Interests were concerned, a virile people, yet blind to their highest interests. “These experiences of the Jews illustrated the fact of human depravity. The exceeding sinfulness of sir. was plainly discernable. Christ lamented the hard-heartedness of the people; He compared them with a generation of vipers. They resisted His pleadings. This depravity-, too, seemed complete and universal. Ancients and moderns were alike. “To some this teaching was unpalatable, but it was Scriptural. Human depravity had left its marks down through history-. Neither could human beings erradicate the evils ot human nature. Human sympathy had done much to uplift, but had only been partially successful. Divine love as manifest in the Incarnation, was the only remedy- for the failures of mankind. "Ezekiel referred to an ‘ldeal City.’ He said, when concluding his visions, better times would come. Though the Jews needed reprimanding there would yet come times of refreshing. All was not dark and pessimistic. Far from it, there was the Gospel of Hop.. His people would return to national righteousness, and the name of the city from that day would be ‘The Lord is there.’ There is today, as well. » glorious hope for all blooming with immortality.”