In a sermon by Dr. James I. Vance in _The Christian Observer_, on
“The Harbor-light on the Church Spire,” he points out the mission of
the Church. He gives this as an illustration:
Recently, while on a visit to the old historic, picturesque city
of Charleston, on a Saturday afternoon, I was taken for a sail
around the harbor and a short distance out to sea. A friend took
me to the forward deck and pointing to a light that glowed above
the city in the distance, said: “That light is in the spire of
St. Philip’s church. It is the harbor-light of Charleston. The
channel here is an eddy channel, deep but narrow, and every
vessel that enters this harbor must steer by the light in St.
Philip’s spire.”
As I stood there in the deepening shadows, I began to think of
the many vessels, great and small, which through the long years,
had entered the port. Merchantmen and men-of-war, freighters and
pleasure-boats, yachts and schooners and excursion steamers,
ships of adventure and of exploration, rakish blockaders, boats
stript to their decks, grim and threatening, with all the
paraphernalia and munitions of war; and ships gay, with bunting
flying, with music and laughter resounding, and with decks
crowded with merry throngs of pleasure-seekers. For all, the
light in the church spire shone to show them a safe port and to
guide the ship to its desired haven.
It seemed to me to tell the story of what the Church is for,
to answer, in part at least, the question why Christ wanted
a church. The light shining over Charleston harbor from St
Philip’s spire, and far out to sea, is a picture of the mission
of every church in the world.
The mission of the Church is to shine the harbor-light. It is
to illuminate the darkness and, through the gathering gloom, to
point the true way. It is to show voyagers on the sea of life
how to reach the true haven. It is to tell wanderers how to find
their Father’s house. It is to guide the soul to God. It is to
shine out the harbor-light, so that souls in the offing may
reach, in safety, life’s true destination. (Text.)
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