Summary of Sermon – Rev. Chaney Sermon “Bible of Jesus” – Unitarian Universalist Digital Archives

Matt. 22:29, “Ye do err, not knowing the Scripture,” was the text of Mr. Chaney’s discourse on the “Bible of Jesus.” It was the aim of the preacher to ascertain by a careful study of the quotations from the Old Testament, attributed to Jesus in the gospels, and by considering what Jesus said about the law and the prophets, what his view of the Scriptures of his day was. No abstract could do justice to the evidence thus brought together or show how strongly it established the preacher’s statement that there is no sign here of any belief in the infallible inspiration or absolute truth of the Hebrew Scriptures. On the contrary there is the express statement that Moses suffered many things because of his people’s hardness of heart and unfitness for anything better. There is also a very elastic method of interpreting and fulfilling prophecy; small heed being paid to its original signification or its literal accomplishment. Whatever our attitude towards the Old Testament should be, it is clear that the position of Jesus was wholly free from rabbinical adoration of its text or a corresponding Christian worship of its letter. What Jesus had and what he constantly shows is a reverent regard for the Hebrew Scriptures a line of thought running parallel with their most spiritual ideas and fulfilling them; a form of expression largely influenced by their models; and an insight into the eternal principles underlying all the changing incidents of their history, which made the story of the past seem like a leaf from the diary of the present and his daily life a fresh rendering of that which was from the foundation of the world.

The evening sermon was from Acts, 26:28 on Agrippa’s words to Paul: “Almost thou persuaded me to be a Christian.” The apparent fulfillment of Messianic prophecies was what almost persuaded Agrippa to be a Christian. But nowadays something nearer to the faith and interest of our times is needed for that object. The Jews might be converted by a proof of Jesus’ messiahship. Both the people who most need converting to Christianity to-day are not Jews but Christians.

Whether we will or not, we all have certain inbred hopes and fears and desires as to death, immortality, duty, God, retribution and future progress, which some form of religion alone can help. Shall it be Christianity! Can that in any of its forms do us this service?

Before answering these questions, Mr. Chaney proceeded to meet and remove some preliminary objections to Christianity, based upon the claims of infallibility and uniform inspiration in its sacred books, and the mistaken doctrines thus derived from them. He also discussed the hasty refusal of men of modern training to examine or trust books which were compromised with miraculous evidences. So long as Plutarch was read with instruction and profit, in spite of such admixture, and Herodotus, ,though frankly telling all sorts of fancies, was accepted is the father of history, there was no sense or justice to disqualifying the Bible as a vehicle of real history on the ground of its miraculous elements. It was not true, that one must believe all that is in the Bible or nothing, on the contrary, once let the methods of separating truth from error, which are in use in the universal history have their way in the Bible, and it would give new power and interest to the Book, and new reality and permanence to its religion.

The discourse closed with an earnest and convincing illustration of the sufficiency of the historic Jesus when separated from the dogmas, ceremonies, commentaries, governments, sects, books, saints, candles, clothes, cathedrals, bishops, priests, deacons, catechisms, standards, creeds and conferences of the church that has succeeded him – the sufficiency of Christ and his word, to take the weariness from life, the chill from death, condemnation from judgment, fixity from the future state, whether it be one of woe or bliss, delay from reformation, and postponement to some other world, from that heaven in progress for which the heart and soul of man cry out: <missing remaining clipping>

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