Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-11-26

tions. On the very Sabbath, when You ar
hearing Gospel truths, your thoughts g
to the store, the farm, the law Office, ant
the bargains, the losses and gains of tn
past week or in perspective. The force o
these habits Of thought is plain withou
entering into the metaphysical merits O
the case. Now is the time to change it.
Habits Of conscience, that elastic Vitalit,
ever moving the soul, are wonderful il
their influence. The admenitions of con
science become less strong every time the,
are unheeded. Heaven lies around us il
our infancy, in the purity of our child
hood. The first oath boy swears causes
him deep anguish; the next causes less
and finally conscience becomes easy or
the subject, and the habit is confirmed
Unless the voice of conscience be needed,
its hardening process is for ever going on.
Change aow !, carry ont the theory when
you go home non.
The change in the affections and emo
tions of the soul were next alluded to by
the reverend speaker. The active emo
tons Of the soul when appealed to by the
demands of humanity, if the appeal be-
needed, become enlarged and elevated.
Each time the active emotions give heed
to these demands, they become strength
ened until we become the most humane of
men. The reverse produces opposite re-
suits. You can continue to give no heed to
these generous emotions until they die out
in your bosom, and like the Levite, you can
see suffering humanity unmoved, and pass
by on the other side. By calling out these
emotions, in romance or on the stage, in
imaginary characters -suferings of an
imaginary hero or heroine-you deaden
their good sensibilities because there is no
chance to exercise them. Hence, even ten.
der-hearted woman has been known to cry
at the theatre over imaginary wrongs, and
yet the same woman, on reaching her mar
bic palace, spurned from her door the real
suiierings of the beggaF child of the street
Sabbath after Sabbath you have had the
gospel preached to you: what is the effect
When you have seen dear ones sign the
seal in the covenant of life, how it moved
the Bottom of your soul But now, you
look coldly on. Your emotions have not
been tended, but deadened. Yet you think
you Will become Christians. In an i'm.
portant law suit, when convinced. do Won
put if Off Then why put off matter of
so much more Importance Because Won
have been appealed to 80 much, and put it
OH so long, that you are deadened. The
providences of God are every day warning
you that now is the accepted time. Most
of you have been reared in view of the
sanctuary and under the drippings of the
gospel; deep love has been shown you :;
father, mother and friends have
sent up daily prayers for you; vet
yon have put of the great duty. To
the young, the time will not always be
you will not always have mother to urge,
a father to pray; nor the older a wife to
lead and importune: you will not always
hear the Sabbath-bell, and have the doors
of the house Of God thrown open to YOU.
Now, the argument is that if with all these
happy Influences you do not come to God.
when, Oh when, will the more convenient
present itself? Does it take
death and the open grave to move the
heart? All! my young friend, go ask
those familiar with the chambers of dis
ease and death, if the sick-room and the
death bed are favorable to the solution of
the great problem of salvation? There is
the hot blood of fever, the wasting form,
and there are weeping friends. oh that
is not the convenient season, the accepted
time. Has il not come home 10 your
hearts that the suddenness of the summons
shows that the death-bed with all its
achings is not the convenient season. The
first grass that grows green or leaves that
fall may cover your last cold bed. These
uncertainties, these propositions, proven
by your own inner nature, and all the in
fuences surrounding you, proclaim that
now, now, now is the accepted time. There
is one shelter under which conscience
would shield itself that is, that God must
rescue you. You are a poor, poWerless,
helpless sinner, hanging over the brink of
hell. But you need not argue that Ais
mighty power alone will rescue You.
You must work out your own salvation
with fear and trembling, while the spirit
of God is working within you You are,
as it were, on the surging waters, and will
soon go down a life-boat comes to your
aid a rope is thrown TO you seize it
seize it now. You cannot convert Your
self, but when God whispers to Won, nov
is the time, obey the admonition.
The mercy of God is all powerful, but it
is an all coVenented mercy; the require
ments Of the covenent must be complied
with TO secure its bounteous outpourings.
The eleventh hour laborer received the
same reward that the ninth hour and sixth
hour laborer did, when they were called to
the vineyard. But neither of them were
called but once. Nol6 was the time with
each, nor did they delay after they were
called. The thief on the cross, the robber
and follower Of Barabbas, was called but
once. He had never been brought up
under the shadow of the sanctuary. The
first time the poor thief had ever seen
Christ was on that morning, when the two
bore their cross together. The thief saw
the nails being driven through the hands
of Christ to the cross he heard the
mockeries Of the multitude, instead
of raving or murmuring at his fate
the thief heard the Saviour say, Gather,
forgive them, for they know not what they
do" He was a bold robber, and had been
educated to the life he had led, but on
hearing that prayer, while the nails were
being driven through the hands of the
Saviour, the thief became convinced that he
who could in such circumstances of torture
thus pray, was surely the true King of the
Jews. 1t was his first conviction; the FIRST
snnburst of truth that had ever beamed
into his soul-it was the accepted time,
and he embraced it. Light broke in upon
his soul such as even Peter nor John had
not then seen, but which they afterwards
saw. Mary was there, and Peter and John
were there. Mary fingered at the cross,
and John, heroic John, the impetu-
Gus and ambitious man of God who
would sit upon his right hand,
staid there by Msry's side, because she re-
fused to leave. The gates of hell seemed
for a time to prevail-the mockeries of the
mob. the jeers of Barabbas, and the wild
acclamations of the Jews were heard.
What had that thief to fear He
had looked through the cloud-light had
broken full in upon him, and for him the
hslieluiahs folled unsteady out from
heaven. He saw and believed. Friends
will your dying souls thus heroically re-
cognize the importance of this being the
accepted time,-Will you believe, and battle
your souls in heavenly lightg
The speaker concluded by saying, that
if in a case of worldly affairs the same ar
guments he had used, had been advanced
TO any jury in the State in a civil suit, he
would be certain of the verdict; here in
this high court, arguing the cause Of his
Divine Master, in pleading for human
soul, he asked the same chance.
The entire LARGO ssgemblare was sorrv