Wesleyan Church Opening Services.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume IV, Issue 562, 27 January 1891, Page 3

Wesleyan Church Opening Services.

The inaugural services in connection with the new Wesleyan Church were continued on Sunday. The Rev. R. M. Ryburn preached in the morning and again in the evening. In the morning he took as his text the 127th Psalm, Ist verse—“ Except the Lord build the house they labor iu vain that build it: except the Lord keepeth the city the watchman waketh but in vain.” Those words, said the preacher, set forth (.he necessity of having God’s blessing on everything they undertook, for unless it were in accordance with God’s will it could not De successful. The speaker went on to enlarge upon this thought—that God bad brought this universe into existence, that He was Omnipotent and everything was held in Hi* power, that we are feeble creatures held in existence by His will. That will was an infinitely good one, and anything contrary to it was ein, some confusion that would end iu dire result. Look at the pages of history, said the rev. gentleman, ci ing the cases of Persia, Greece, and Rome. Where were those grtat nations, and others, now ? The Greeks were above the whole world in the arts and the Romans were in law making The soldiers of Rome gained the sway of the whole wo. Id. They would have smiled at the thought that 'heir naiion would be swept away, but. it had gone like a dream. Righte-iusness ha 1 not existed in those nations and God had undermined tbeir power. Our own great naiion would fait by intemperance, immorality, selfishness, and lust, unless the Lord built it. They bad these words of the text graven more deep y than in the solid rock. The same truth was also applicable to the Church. Look at the Church that existed iu North Africa, one of the leading centres of the world, but now a wilderness. Contentions, heresies, and strifes crept in, and it was swept off the fa ch of the earth. They need not go so far from home to find illustrations. Some men said that the way to advance the Church was to make it attractive, aud they wanted all kinds of innovations, but all that would be in vain unless they had the guiding spirit of the Lord. The speaker cited the work of Napoleon and others to show that the work of man w »uld end in naught unless it was in accordance with the wid of God. Tua Holy Ghost was was their great birthright, but some were sei>ing it for a mess of pottage. They should not form their own plans, and ask God’s blessing upon them, bu'. ask Him first to guile their steps. Sometimes they might get weary of well-doing, but they should consider whether it was not some weikuess within themselves that made their labor in vain. Let God’s spirit guide the u. Tiiere was a lack of energy and zeal at the present time, aud many Cnurchea were going backwards or standing still instead of going forward ; he hoped that God s blessing would rest upon ihe church they had now built. In the afternoon Captain Gar butt (Salvation Army) conducted the children s service. There was a Large attendance, including many adults, ani the service was bright and impressive. Iu the evening the Riv. Mr Ryburn continued the thread of the morning s discourse, showing ihat while God’s p*eseuce was necessary they might, have it with them The text was Exodus ,33, 14th verse—“ Aud He said, my presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.” Those words told them that God was prepared to give them a blessing. The Jewish naiion traveling through the wilderness was typical of die Christian travelling through life—a true picture of themselves—aud as they studied the course of the children of Israel, they s »w their own characters writteu iu the murmuring against God, aud the desire to return to the flesh pots of Egypt. They at the present lime had the same sinful hearts. Scarcely hid they set out on the journey when the e was continual turning aside, and once when Moses was away they turned to other gods and made a golden calf and fell down and worshipped it, siy ng “ l’h se be thy Gods, O Israel,” So it was with them They were kept spurred on to worship God when in His house, but let the leader be away f om their midst, then like the Israelites they would fall down to the feet of the golden ca.f. Siu meant separa'ion from G id. The great valley that separated them from God had been bridged over by Jesus Cnrist. God’s auger with the Israelites and then his reconciliation were related, and the preacher said that gave assurance of the forgiveness of their sins. A great deal of what was heard about Jesus Cnrist was to many p?op e pictorial aud not a rea'ity—there were a great many Still separated fr m God, being b iud to their sins. He impressed upon them that God Was willing to give them His presence if they would only accept. Him as their guide. Those who realised the great difficulties in life, who were earnestly striving to live for His grace in their every day life, sometimes needed the assurance that God would ~; ve < hem rest; io that promise of S, s pr „® 008 ‘hey bad assurance that they would get rest from th.B weary Bin burdened life, f rom what they might cad ifiis weak intellectual life. Let them not be weary in well doing. They had started a new year in the history of that Church, They had to go forward vary much hka the journey in the wilderness; there was a greater work to do 'han perhaps some of 'hem realised. They bad as great a task impose! upon them as hat of Moses—they should stand firm to their God. Let that promise of God be their motto, an assurance of strength supp.ied in the diffijulqea io be encountered. They should go forward, and God would give them guidance. Each service was well attended, and in the evening the accommodation was again found insufficient for ihe occasion, some who came late not being able to obtain pews.