In His Image | Page 2

of the faith of men and women, especially the young, in a Creator,
all-powerful, all-wise, and all-loving, in a Bible, as the very Word of a
Living God and in Christ as Son of God and Saviour of the world;
second, the applying of the principles of our religion to every problem
in life. My purpose is to prove, not only the fact of God, but the need of
God, the fact of the Bible and the need of the Bible, and the fact of
Christ and the need of a Saviour.
Therefore, I have chosen "In His Image" as the title of this series of
lectures, because, in my judgment, all depends upon our conception of
our place in God's plan. The Bible tells us that God made us in His
image and placed us here to carry out a divine decree. He gave us the
Scriptures as an authoritative guide and He gave us His Son to reveal
the Father, to redeem man from sin and to furnish in His life and
teachings an inspiring example by the following of which, man may
grow in grace and in the knowledge of God.
"Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be
acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer."
W.J.B.
_Miami, Fla._

Contents
I. IN THE BEGINNING--GOD
II. THE BIBLE
III. WHAT THINK YE OF CHRIST?
IV. THE ORIGIN OF MAN

V. THE LARGER LIFE
VI. THE VALUE OF THE SOUL
VII. THREE PRICELESS GIFTS
VIII. HIS GOVERNMENT AND PEACE
IX. THE SPOKEN WORD

I
"IN THE BEGINNING--GOD"
Religion is the relation between man and his Maker--the most
important relationship into which man enters. Most of the relationships
of life are voluntary; we enter into them or not as we please. Such, for
illustration, are those between business partners, between stockholders
in a corporation, between friends and between husband and wife. Some
relationships, on the other hand, are involuntary; we enter into them
because we must. Such, for illustration, are those between man and his
government, between man and society, and between man and his
Maker.
Tolstoy declares that morality is but the outward manifestation of
religion. If this be true, as I believe it is, then religion is the most
practical thing in life and the thought of God the greatest thought that
can enter the human mind or heart. Tolstoy also delivers a severe
rebuke to what he calls the "Cultured crowd"--those who think that
religion, while good enough for the ignorant (to hold in check and
restrain them), is not needed when one reaches a certain stage of
intellectual development. His reply is that religion is not superstition
and does not rest upon a vague fear of the unseen forces of nature, but
does rest upon "man's consciousness of his finiteness amid an infinite
universe and of his sinfulness." This consciousness, Tolstoy adds, man
can never outgrow.
Evidence of the existence of an Infinite Being is to be found in the
Bible, in the facts of human consciousness, and in the physical universe.
Dr. Charles Hodge sets forth as follows the principal arguments used to
maintain the existence of a God:
I. The a priori argument which seeks to demonstrate the being of a God
from certain first principles involved in the essential laws of human
intelligence.
II. The cosmological argument, or that one which proceeds after the

posteriori fashion, from the present existence of the world as an effect,
to the necessary existence of some ultimate and eternal first cause.
III. The teleological argument, or that argument which, from the
evidence of design in the creation, seeks to establish the fact that the
great self-existent first cause of all things is an intelligent and voluntary
personal spirit.
IV. The moral argument, or that argument which, from a consideration
of the phenomena of conscience in the human heart, seeks to establish
the fact that the self-existent Creator is also the righteous moral
Governor of the world. This argument includes the consideration of the
universal feeling of dependence common to all men, which together
with conscience constitutes the religious sentiment.
V. The historical argument, which involves: (1) The evident
providential presence of God in the history of the human race. (2) The
evidence afforded by history that the human race is not eternal, and
therefore not an infinite succession of individuals, but created. (3) The
universal consent of all men to the fact of His existence.
VI. The Scriptural argument, which includes: (1) The miracles and
prophecies recorded in Scripture, and confirmed by testimony, proving
the existence of a God. (2) The Bible itself, self-evidently a work of
superhuman wisdom. (3) Revelation, developing and enlightening
conscience, and relieving many of the difficulties under which natural
theism labours, and thus