THE KING’S BUSINESS 199 churches, is not more ’work along the line of “ social service,” so called, but a more faithful preaching of the Word in the power of the Holy Ghost, and a more faithful Lninistry of the Word from house to house and store to store, and more prayer on the part of believers, and more persistent and intelligent efforts along definite soul winningJines, In point o f fact, the city and country churches that have grown and prospered through a long term of years have not been the,churches that have gone off along social lines, but churches that have held fast to apostolic methods. Institutional churches have not proven an aston ishing success even in cities. Evangelistic churches have proven as great a suc cess in the twentieth century as in the earlier centuries. in Song. before his death wrote for the Herald and Presbyter an article on “ The Praise Element in Public Worship,” a copy o f which was sent the editor. The portion directly to the point is here given: The third element in our worship is praise. An earnest pastor recently said to us: “ The question o f worship in praise has come to be a serious problem.” What is acceptable praise to God? What is to be achieved by it? W e know the aim and value o f teaching. It is to give us truth. W e know the use o f prayer. It is to secure from -God the, things without which we must die eternally. But what is the aim o f praise in public worship? Let it be written large that the object is not to teach the congregation music. A devout German Christian was asked, “What kind o f music do you hear in your churches in Germany?” “Music? W e do not hear music in our churches. W e have praise!” _ The distinction is clear. He did not mean that our blessed hymns'were not set to sweet harmonies to be sung. But the harmony o f the music was not the important thing. The sentiment o f praise, the very utterance o f it with the voice and from the heart, is what God would have. There has grown up among our evangelistic singers a very distressing and, we may say, offensive habit. W e have been waiting for the evangelistic preachers to-cry out against it., It is developed in singing hymns for fifteen minutes or more before the preaching service. This is designed to be a time o f praise. But instead, it is frequently degraded into a musical performance, with the attempted witticisms o f the leader thrust in between the verses o f the hymns. W e passed through a meeting o f several weeks, a few years ago. The preaching Was exceK lent. The leader o f the -praise service gave us a series o f antics. A fter singing a verse or two with the audience, the congregation was halted until he had informed the gentlemen how to open their mouths. He would then ask the ladies to sing a verse alone, to shoW the gentlemen how to open their mouths. That kind o f performance was called a praise service, and was permitted, supposedly fe to honor God, and prepare the minds o f the audience for the preaching o f the Word. W e have recently been enjoying some very" profitable preaching services in this city, despite the pre performances. Beautiful, precious, devotional hymns were frequently chopped into hash. A fter singing a verse, our leader stopped to tell his audience how much he had been praying over that hymn, and wanted to know how many o f his audience had been praying for a blessing on that hymn, though none o f them knew it was to be sung. Again the gentlemen are asked to - sing while the ladies whistle the hymn. Selecting another hymn, our leader put his hands down low and said: “When my hands are low, thus, let the gentlemen sing.” Then raising his hands midway he. said: “When my hands are raised, thus, let the ladies sing, and when they are raised aloft, let all sing.” It is a shame to speak o f these performances, that are, by a great stretch - o f a curious imagination, called praise meetings. One is almost moyed to cry out against this caricature o f a praise service. What is'the object o f true praise? Let God answer, “Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me.” And such praise lifts Rev. Dr. Samuel Ellis Wishard, who recently passed away in Los Angeles at the age of 90 years,, shortly Praising God
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