We are reminded by Lowell that "events are apt to show themselves humorously careless of the reputation of the prophets." Nevertheless, we may by a study of past attainments and present achievements form some conceptions of our obligations to the future. What, therefore, are our obligations to Church Extension, and from whence do they arise?

      First: Back of all kinds of Christian effort and activity lies the great commission: "Go Ye into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation." The carrying out of this command of the King is the supreme business of every follower of Christ. All kinds of religious work received its value from its relation to and bearing upon the "marching orders" of Jesus. It is the center and circumference of Christianity and civilization.

      Second: Our obligation to Church Extension arises from the desire--yea, the [269] duty--to make our plea for unity possible and practicable, and thus fulfill the dying prayer of the Master.

      We gain nothing by minimizing our characteristics. The church of Christ stands for a pure democracy. We stand for the divine right and for the divine obligation to think. We believe in intelligent missionary zeal. We stand for the application of Christian principles to the solution of life's problems. Faults, we have them in plenty; mistakes, we make them in abundance; but we beg of you not to enlarge upon our failures, nor condemn us when we fall victims to our own limitations. We stand for the concrete embodiment in a church building of the "old plea" our fathers made. It is always new and fresh, because it is inspired. It is a lamp that never goes out, and a light that never grows dim. Every church established becomes a lighthouse to send forth its beneficent rays upon the paths of men. Church Extension has for its object the planting of such lighthouses in every hamlet and village of this and other lands.

      A church building is a hope embodied in material things; it is a prayer, stretching out its hands toward the eternal; it is a symbol of the presence of the Almighty; it is an expression of the fondest dreams of the soul; it is the hidden life of man expressed in outward form; yes, it is more than all of these. To us it is the expression of the deep soul-cry of the Son of God for the unity of his followers.

      A keen observer of the forces that underlie human society has said: "The events of human existence, whether public or private, are so closely allied to architecture, that the majority of observers can reconstruct nations and individuals, in their habits and way of life, from the remains of public monuments or the relics of a home." But not only is this true of the past, but from them we may infer something of the future hopes and ideals of a people. Just so; and every church building is an expression of the aspirations of its builders, and a prophecy of their future history. Sooner or later the world measures a people by its houses of worship.

      Every kind of life creates forms through which to express itself. This is true of the lower realms of existence, and it is likewise true in the spiritual realm. "Thou shalt build me an house to dwell in," says Jehovah. The tabernacle was perfectly adapted to the earlier stages of God's dealings with his people; but now that Israel has reached a higher stage of development, both temporal and spiritual, it is fitting that this higher development be expressed in a nobler form. And so the temple was built, and at once it became the center of Israel's worship and religious activity. Thus it became the visible token of God's presence among the chosen people, and the assurance of prosperity and success. It helped to keep alive the hope of the coming Messiah in Israel, and was at once the visible guarantee of their life and power in the world. It was a tabernacle, a sanctuary, and a place of public assembly. As a tabernacle, it was the place where God chose to manifest himself; as a sanctuary, it became the place where religious ordinances were kept, and God's word made known to the waiting multitude; and as a place of public worship for the people, it helped to cultivate the feeling of brotherhood, and thus aided in preparing the world for the coming of the universal reign of Christ. The history of the Jews for a thousand years can not be separated from the story of the temple.

      And the history of Christianity is like unto this. You can not separate it from the church building. Here it is that man meets his Maker, and renews his strength for the conflict of life. Paul and his colaborers were glad to utilize the synagogue and the forum as suitable places from which to proclaim Christ. This has been true in all ages. The gospel of wood and stone, of hammer and saw, has ever gone hand in hand with the gospel of salvation from sin. The one has added to the permanency of the other. The progress of Christianity through the ages is marked by the churches and cathedrals which her devoted followers have erected, as symbols of God's presence among men, and as reminders of man's duty to his Creator.

      Heathenism builds no temples; and heathenism is dying. Travelers tell us [270] of old temples and old mosques; they are never new ones. Christianity is rearing its humble meeting-houses every hour in the day, and the sun never sets on a church spire. To-day, after two thousand years, it continues on its majestic course with more world-wide healing in its beams than ever before. The more churches we build, the greater our prosperity. In my own State of Oklahoma we built a church every eight days during the missionary year just closed, and in no community has the simple gospel won greater triumphs. True, many of these churches were humble indeed; but if the rude meeting-houses of Bedfordshire, England, were "palaces beautiful" to Bunyan, then many of these modern structures are veritable homes of the soul, and the gateways to heaven. The mission of Church Extension, like that of the great Founder of the universe, who filled it with such beauty as to awake the soul in adoration, is to make the church such an expression of the life and will of the Master as that men will exclaim: "This is none other than the house of God." If Church Extension does this, its work is worthy of the support of every follower of Christ.

      OUR NEED. Our well-nigh seven hundred homeless churches, with pleading hands, send up an appeal for aid to Heaven that is well-nigh irresistible, and of which the Master may one day say, "Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye did it unto me."

      1. Let us hear, then, the plea of the homeless. Practically one-tenth of all our congregations meet in halls, tents, rented buildings, private residences, if they meet at all. This means that they are merely religious nomads in the community, the uncertain footballs of fate. Their condition is a precarious one, at best, and their mission to the community can never be filled. Embarrassed by foes without and fears within, they find their progress hedged in on every side. To borrow they can not, and they can not ask others to place a roof over their head. It is this or die. And so they come with the appealing cry of the Macedonian, "Come over and help us." If we are unable to answer, they will die of despair.

      2. Moreover, these appeals come from those who are our brethren. They are, like us, children of the King. They fight the same holy crusade. They have the same plea, they march under the same banner, listen to the same commands, and are animated by the same hope. If we honor our fathers as "heroes of faith," these are worthy to be counted as their successors. "Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ."

      3. But still further. Not only do we have over even hundred homeless churches, but in at least as many other communities a church could be established, if we had the means with which to do it. This is likewise a ground of our obligation. Do you say that these people where we have no church have not asked for aid? Of course not; but the faithful missionary does not wait for the hamlets and villages in India and China to arrange a home for him, get a preaching-place, raise the salary, and provide the audience, and then send the call. The voice of the Macedonian is inarticulate, but no less real for that.

      4. One word more. Good men have wondered why "our plea" does not win in the great cities. The answer is, it does win in the cities, of which there are notable examples. To decide otherwise is a reflection upon the intelligence of its great Author. But the same methods of work will not win in the cities that are in use elsewhere. When we invest the same amount of money, good business sense, dollars by the million, together with good locations and modern institutional church buildings, we will win the cities for Christ, and not before. In other words, Church Extension is the key that will open the cities to the preaching of the gospel and win them for our God and his Christ. Nothing else will do it.

      Naturally, the question comes, Who is sufficient for these things? To turn back would be cowardly; it is also impossible. Manifestly, there is but one answer. We must work with all our mind and soul and strength to quadruple the offering to the Church Extension Fund, and make it equal to the demands made upon it in the coming century. [271]

[CCR 269-271]