Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1872-03-06
w arren, Ohio. March 6. 1879.


! ted with it. If we do the evil, it
Furnishes us with the stings of re-
morse. The effects of conscience are
powerful and distressing. When she
erouses herself and puts on might, she
makes thestoutest heart quail beneath
| her indignant rebukes. In a world
like this we could do nothing without
her influence. For it is her prov
ence 10 walk freely and bodily among
the most secret thoughts, feelings and
/ purposes of the heart, as well as
among the open acts of life. She suf-
fers rothing to escape her scrutiny.
Thus viewed, we may say of her re-
straining power over the world, sit is
clear as the sun, fair as the moon, and
more terrible than an army with ban
ners.n We witness her power in the
bloodless lip-in the palled cheek-in
the start of terror-in the fearful for
bodings, that make the guilty flee
when no man pursueth But all this
power of conscience is not match
/ for sin. Love of pleasure, and vicious
| indulgences beseige her, and gradual
ily wall her in with neglect, opposi-
| tion and corruption, until the heart
no longer hears her voice or feels her
restraining influence. Thus despised,
rejected. and refused hearing, she
at last abandons the contest, and
gives over the victim of sin to the
commission of all deeds of darkness
and blood. or what multitudes is
| this true. They seem to have
no conscience. They ''fear not God,
nor REGARD man. They sin greedily.
Thev sIeep not, except they have done
mischief: and their sleep is taken
away, unless they cause some to fall.
They eat the bread Of wickedness and
drink the wine of violence. Go,
stand where lie the mouldering forms
of a Benedict Arnold, an Aaron
Burr. and a Prof. Webster, and hear
from their tombs a doleful sound de-
claring how mucl- greater the IS pow
er of sin than the convictions OF con-
| science.
VIII. Once more only. Sin is more
powerful than the dread of eternal
misery, and the desire of eternal hap
piness, united. . ....
The moral nature of man, the moral
government of God, and the Bible, all
agree in teaching that there is coming
a future in which man is to receive
good or evil accordingly to the deeds
done here in the body. The Bible
clearly teaches that this future is to
be endless: that the good or the evil
that man will begin TO suffer because
of the character which he has on en-
tering that future will never cease, it
4 will be eternal. The Bible teaches
i with equal clearness, that without re-
pentance for sin, and faith in tue
Lord Jesus Christ, man cannot receive
this eternal good; and that all who
will thus repent and believe shall be
made partakes therOf.
On the other hand, it teaches that
all who will not repent and believe in
Christ, must endure the eternal evil.
| Hence all who will, may be saved.
! The door of salvation stands wide
open, and there is nothing to prevent
any mans entering except his own
unwillingness. The provisions OF sal
yation are sufficient for the chief OF
sinners and the conditions on which
they are offered, are such as every man
can comply with. Whoever there
fore fails of heaven, will fail because
of his own neglect of duty. And the
blessedness promised to those who en-
ter heaven is such as to make it an
object of desire and hope to all who
have ever read their Bibles 1t mat.
tiers not how much they may disregard
it while here, they hope that they
shall be found meet for heaven after
they die.
so on the other hand, hell is de-
eIared to be the portion of all liars
drunkards, adulterers, fornicatorsr
murderers and all, who, from any
cause, are impenitent and unbelieving
at death. .-..
Here then is eternal and perfec
happiness freely promised to all who
will come and take it; and eterna
misery threatened TO all who will not
the one an object of intense desire
the other an object of intense dread
And vet sin is more powerful thar
this desire and this dread united. Fol
everywhere there is continued I'M
; enitence-eontinued unbelief- con
, tinued indulgence in every species o
vice and sin,and that too, by thnse who
, unhesitatingly assent to the teaching
of the Bible, and believe, that, II per
, sisted in until death, these things viii
, certainly consign them to eterna
, wretchedness. For the sake of pre-
: sent sinful qualification, men forfei
: heaven and incur he'll I
l In these facts we have unmistaka'
Bile proof of the fearful power which
sin has over the mind of man. 1t j
! hmore powerful than the love of repu-
ltat;on-than the love of health-than
: the influence of oaths or any OF tn
most solemn compacts between maj
; and man, and between man and OIL
I God-than the ties of natural affection
, than all those elements OF the sou
which make up the law of humanity
than the fear of fines, or imprison
I ments or death-thRn the CONVICTION
) of conscience-and more powerful
+ than the dread of eternal misery ant
the desire of eternal happiness united
What limit then shall be assigned
n . power that can overcome such prin
I ciples and feelings. In view of fact
I like, these wisdom declares II to be
! solemn duty of every man to ascertain
: what influence this power Is exerdni
' upon him aud his future destiny.
q Oar subject appeals to all the I'm
a penitent of both sexes, from beautnu
4 childhood to venerable old age. Fo
. all are ia danger; since the power @
4 sin TO retain men In impenltence be
: gins to exert its influence upon chill
4 dren, and 1t increases with thei
; years; so that it has become a wei
( established fact. that but few person
! are converted after-they reaen th
!! middle of life, and almost none alte
i they reached sixty years. ...y q.
n Surely then, the impentitento OF q
g ages should arise at once. apd snak
: off this power of sin, by immediat
n repentance and submission to Chris
4 whose gracious power will thence
d forward, be exercised in their behal
a giving them sooner or later com
h plete deliverance from all sin. a
II should listen to this appeal. For IN
II longer they delay repentance, tn
:. stronger Is the hold which sin gslnn
/ upon their moral sensibilities, and Ia
d greater becomes the danger that the
l. wifi lose their souls. ..-..l- -.
= The facts before Us show that thel
" is no security for any one except /
"a the protecting love and grace
II Christ, which can be obtained onl
e by their entire and absolute submi
ie sion to him. when men are tnI
united to the great Savior, there is I
power i'll the universe that can sepa
al ate them from his love. When thI
Mt united to him by 3 living faith, :
will protect from every roe for
O. will not suffer such to be temple