-^ 
 
 
 ^ Peace, Christianity, and the 
 War in Europe 
 
 
 J* 
 
 A SERMON 
 
 SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1914 
 
 
 BY ^ 
 
 ^ REV. THOS. J. BROWN 
 
 ^ Rector St. Luke's P. E. Church ^ 
 
 ^ Washington, D. C ^^ 
 
 DELIVERED 
 
 
 •^ PUBl.lSHKD 15Y RKUUEST 
 
 -i« 
 
 ^ .j* J« Jt .J* .^ .^ .^ ^ ^ .^ •>« v»« v^ v"* v*» ^ sM 
 
PRINTED BY 
 
 Odd Fellows JouENAr> 
 
 WASHINCTON, D. C. 
 
^, 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 Peace, Christianity, and the War in Europe 
 
 A Sermon 
 
 Revel, xi, 15: "And the seventh angel sounded; and 
 there were great voices in Heaven, saying, The kingdoms of 
 this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His 
 Christ ; and He shall reign forever and ever. ' ' 
 
 In a prophetic vision, veiled in deep and impenetrable 
 mystery, the Lord revealed to His servant John, a prisoner 
 on the Isle of Patmos, the things which are destined to come 
 to pass during the present aeon, or dispensation of grace. 
 Among other wonderful symbolic disclosures made to the 
 apostle was that of the appearing of seven angels, which stood 
 before the throne of God, to whom were given seven trumpets. 
 Each of the seven angels, successively, and in turn, was com- 
 manded to sound his trumpet. And there followed the vsoimd 
 of each trumpet dreadful epoch-marking events on the earth, 
 and among the nations, and peoples of the world. 
 
 I shall not indulge in any speculation, or guess, as to how 
 many of the angels have already sounded their trumpets; for 
 such indulgence would be more than likely to prove rather 
 diverting and curious than profitable and edifying. But I 
 make bold to affirm, because the fact is patent and evident 
 that the seventh angel has not yet sounded his trumpet. 
 For there is nothing which stands out so conspicuously in 
 relief and that is so clearly attested by the present wan-iug 
 of the great nations in Europe as does the fact that "The 
 kingdoms of this world have not, as yet, become the kiug- 
 
 3 
 
doiiis of our Lord and of His Christ." But that there are not 
 only countless churches to be found in all those countries 
 which are now engaged in a sinful war, but that also those 
 churches were founded, and have been supported and are main- 
 tained by innumerable adherents to the Christian religion 
 and faith, is not, for a moment, to be denied. Yet, the fact 
 is, that the government and state policy of not a single one 
 of those countries are dictated by and founded upon the 
 principles of the Christian religion. That there are more or 
 less of Christians in those nations now at war is only but 
 an earnest and a pledge that the prophecy that they will 
 all become converted and turn unto the Lord is in course of 
 fulfillment; but not that it has been fulfilled. A part is. 
 never equal to the whole. 
 
 Nor is there any warrant for denominating a nation Chris- 
 tian when and so long as its governmental policies manifest 
 themselves to be hostile and antagonistical to the cardinal 
 principles of Christianity. 
 
 When the news that the great conflict in which the major 
 part of Europe is now engaged was first bruited abroad to 
 the world, men stood aghast ; and in their perplexity ex- 
 claimed, as did Pilate to Jesus : "What hast thou done?" 
 
 For many were fierce and loud in their condemnation of 
 Christianity, as though it were the underlying and the moving 
 cause of the breaking of the peace and good will upon the 
 earth. The fallacious conclusion unto which they came was 
 derived from the false premises that the nations that are 
 parties to the fratricidal strife now decimating the faire.st 
 part of Europe are all Christians. But the answer which 
 Jesus made to the question of Pilate is pertinent and applica- 
 ble to those, who, to-day, seek to discredit Christianity be- 
 cause of the present war. Said Jesus: "My kingdom is not 
 of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would 
 my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews : 
 but now my kingdom is not from hence." But — 
 
 I am concerned at present only to show that the destructive 
 war, now in progress in Europe, is not being waged for the 
 
furtherauce and advanceiiient of the cause of Christiauity. 
 
 So; the millions of men mobilized and marshaled upon the 
 battlefield, and which oppose armies with armies, in hostile 
 array, are not inspired and actuated by the spirit of Jesus 
 Christ; nor are they, primarily, enlisted to conserve a pur- 
 pose of establishing the principle of righteousness and justice 
 on the earth; but are animated unto wrath and destruction, 
 by the lust of power, by covetousness, by avarice, and for 
 greed and gain. The spirit which has seized, and that con- 
 trols, the powers of Europe is utterly anti-Christian. 
 
 I dare not presume to predict what will be the ultimate 
 good that will result from the war, which now so distresses 
 and perplexes the nations of the earth. But if no other 
 good comes of it than that of causing Christians to realize 
 that the kingdoms of this world have not, as yet, become the 
 kingdoms of our God and of His Christ, still not a little will 
 have been gained from it to Christianity. But let it, mean- 
 time, never be doubted that though conceived and begotten 
 in iniquity, yet will God utilize this war to the general 
 amelioration of the condition of mankind, and to the ad- 
 vancement of the establishment of His kingdom on the earth, 
 and to the honor and glory of His name. 
 
 For it is written: ''The fierceness of man shall tiu-n to 
 Thy praise, and the fierceness of them shalt Thou refrain." 
 
 But if this dreadful war shall serve to free Christians of 
 the delusion, of which, for the most part, they are and have 
 been holden, that the nations of Europe and our own nation 
 are Christian, then it is possible that they will cease to look 
 to earthly governments to effect moral and religious reforms 
 but will cooperate more with the divine institution founded 
 l)y Christ for that purpose. I have been wont, for a long 
 time, with increasing apprehension and distrust, to regard 
 the growing tendency, among even the ('hi-istians, to look to 
 and to trust the government of men as though it were the 
 government of God. For it has come to pass that, nowadays 
 men are wont to ti'ust less to the religion of Jesus Chri.st 
 and more to science and to the government as the best and 
 
most effective agency wherewith to accomplisli the regen- 
 eration of the world. 
 
 Millions of dollars have been freely given for the estab- 
 lishment of a bureau, apart from that instituted of Christ, 
 for the purpose of propagating and promoting the establish- 
 ment of eternal peace among men ; while the church can, with 
 difficulty, hardly get an hundred dollars to support the 
 heralds and ambassadors of the King, proclaiming His proc- 
 lamation of: "Peace on earth, and good will toward men." 
 
 You have heard the cry of the emissaries of the Carnegie 
 Peace Foundation, saying "Peace! Peace!" But there is no 
 peace ; neither shall there ever be till ' ' the kingdoms of the 
 world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His 
 Christ ; and He shall reign forever and ever. ' ' 
 
 But, apart from the Christian church, what institution else 
 is to be found on the earth that owns and acknowledges 
 Christ Jesus as King, and that holds itself bound to be gov- 
 erned and controlled by His will? Where, on the earth, is to 
 be found a state, whether a republic, kingdom, or empire, 
 where .President, King, or Emperor, as the minister of Jesus 
 Christ, is exercising authority and rule in accordance with 
 and in obedience to His will, as revealed in the gospel? 
 
 Yet, in reference to the Carnegie Peace Foundation, I 
 earnestly deprecate being understood as depreciating the 
 desire which prompted the establishment of such an insti- 
 tution. 
 
 For the desire for peace is most commendable. But the 
 pity, and what is exceedingly to be regretted, is that the in- 
 stitution and means which the Prince of Peace has devised 
 and established for the making and conservation of peace 
 and good will among men, as it would seem, has been adjudged 
 inefficient and inadequate to that end. 
 
 For the peace foundation has been established upon the 
 assumption that the attainment and maintenance of peace is 
 possible, irrespective of whether men be Christians or not. 
 
Hut that assinni)tioii is utterly at variaiuie with, and in direct 
 contradiction to, the words of Jesus, that: "These things I 
 have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In 
 the world ye shall have tribulation ; but be of good cheer. 
 I have overcome the world." 
 
 The assumption on which rests the Carnegie Peace Founda- 
 tion is that peace can be established among, and be maintain- 
 ed between, the nations of the earth without the necessity 
 of regeneration. That our old human nature, as it is, with- 
 out any change, offers a sufficiently substantial basis on which 
 to build a magnificent and everlasting temple of peace, in 
 which all the peoples and nations of the earth can worship 
 in sweet amity. But you, my brethren, mnst perceive that 
 that assumption is diametrically the antithesis of that on 
 which Christ would have us build our hope of peace in Him. 
 For He demands unequivocally and emphatically that we 
 must be born again. "Except a man be born again, he can 
 not see the Kingdom of God." "But the Kingdom of God 
 is not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and 
 joy in the Holy Ghost." 
 
 Now, but except the church, the divine institution of our 
 Lord Himself, there is never another institution on the earth 
 given, wholly and entirely, to the preaching and propagation 
 of the gospel of peace, founded upon the regeneration of 
 mankind. According, then, to the faith of the Christian 
 church, instead of tending to peace, they do but make for 
 confusion who seek to establish peace upon the earth on any 
 other foundation save that of the regeneration of the nations 
 in Jesus Christ. 
 
 When the seventh angel shall blow his trumpet, proclaiming 
 that "the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms 
 of our Lord and of His Christ," the saying of St. Paul that 
 "Now in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off, are 
 made nigh by the blood of Christ; for He is our peace, who 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 021 547 564 5 
 
 o 
 
 hath made botli one, and luith liroken down the middle wall 
 of partition between us," will then have been realized. 
 
 But until that propitious time, which yet lingers and which 
 is to be devoutly hoped for, shall have come, it behooves us. 
 who profess and call ourselves Christians, to work and to 
 pray unceasingly, that God's Kingdom come, and that His 
 will be done on earth by men, as angels do it in Heaven. 
 
 But not, brethren, imtil all the nations that dwell on the 
 earth shall have been converted and shall have turned them 
 imto Him whom God hath highly exalted ; unto Jesus, a name 
 which is above every name ; and that at the name of Jesus 
 every knee shall bow, of things in Heaven and things in 
 earth, and things under the earth ; and every tongue shall 
 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the 
 Father, will peace on earth and good M'ill among men obtain. 
 
 "Where is Thy reign of peace, and purity, and love? 
 When shall all hatred cease, as in the realms above? 
 When comes the promised time that war shall be no more, 
 Oppression, lust, and crime shall fiee Thy face before? 
 We pray Thee, Lord, arise and come in Thy great might ; 
 Eevive our longing eyes, which languish for Thy sight." — 
 
 Amen. 
 
 
 m 
 
\ 
 
 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 021 547 564 5 
 
 HoUinger Corp. 
 pH8.5