, 1878-03-01
"IS THERE A HE'LL I"
I} Y T..
For the ARGUS. !

i1ayes polCy Will tno OOulll, NO,
not all combined elicit as much in.
terest just now, as does the question,
"Is there HELP" And vet it
makes but little difference what this
man or that one, however prominent
he may be, has to say upon the sub.
iect. Philosophical reasoning or
metaphysical speculation cannot set
tie or give a solution to the question.
Human sympathy extorted in behalf
of guilty rebels, who have gone on
with eyes open, steeling their con.
sciences against right and in the
practice of wrong, possesses no oargu.
ment justifying a sinners claim to
heaven. Church crseds and theories
do not decide what is or what is not
the punishment of the wicked.
There is but one Bsing who knows
what He'll is, or that can tell US any
thing about it. He has spoken.
Therefore, it is thus saith the Lord
against all human opinions Of any
and every age. There is no book
but the Bible that can tell us what
God teaches, and the Bible is true;
it is Gods message to man. What
it says is reliable, and there is no
evidence to disprove the facts that it
sets forth. ln6dels have vainly en-
deavored in all ages to seek means to
accomplish this, but have always
failed rs they ever will. The subject,
sis there HELP" is no new ques-
tion. 1t has always troubled wicked
men and ALWAYS WILL. 1t has lately
been given more prominence, because
of some incidental expressions of
Farrsr and Beecher, neither one of
whom, however, would father dis
belief in future punishment. And is
it not very singular, that men who a
few months since, were loud in their
denounciations OF Beecher, declaring
"that He'll was too good for him."
are now SO ready to bed.fellow him?
. consistency.
But to the question. When man
is out in a vessel in a storm, and the
winds are blowing hercely, and the
sea is boiling mad with angry waters,
tossing the ship about as feather
amidst its raging pillows, making
every Joint in her creak and her tim.
bers trembls, while her sails and
spars go flying through the air, and
the efforts Of the sturdy seamen are
Knocked by the raging elements, as
they are put forth to save and bring
forth to the port OF safety the vessel
and it's crew, the great question then
is, "can be saved? am in trouble;
how am l to be delivered? am
helplessIand everything against me?"
Did the 800 passengers OH the Paci.
fic talk jestingly or speculatively
about the result as they felt the ship
going down? Nay, was not their
only thought, how shall we escape?
Should sinner with millions oftrans-
gressions against God and his Law,
feel less as he is sinking into eternal
night? The only safety is to come
to this subject not as critics-not as
cavilers, but to it, as question of
personal safety, emptying ourselves
Of all disposition to trife, twist or
explain away what may touch us for
our sinful habits, and seek from the
plain teaching of the textbook Of
life, what that safety consists Of. St.
Matthew tells us that at the end of
the world the angels shall come forth
and separate the wicked from the
righteous and shall cast them into a
furnace of fire. Now, says the OBJ
jector, why not say this don't mean
FIRE nor FURNACE. Well then sup
posing we say it only looks like fire
and that this furnace means nice
parlor, with Turkish carpets and silk
cushioned lounges, and that those
angels were fairies, but would that
settle the question, while God says
by the Holy Ghost, THERE is FUR
MACE OF FIRE. What is the use of
the criminal, as hs stands before the
judge receiving his sentence, trying
20 explain away, or make himself be-
liove there is no prison, sheriff or
jailer? Was the Savior deceived
when he preached the sermon asgiven
by Matthew? Was Paul when he
declared to the Thessalonians that
"The Lord Jesus shall be revealed
from heaven with mighty angels in
flaming FIRE, taking vengeance on
those who know not God?" Again
Christ says "DOpart yS cursed into
everlasting fire." But are these not
fpuratiya exnrAssions? We anRynr.