Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1879-04-20

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day, and what has been our treatment Q
them2 With few exceptions, very cred
liable to US, from the day that the whit
man planted his foot on the Atlantic eoas
down to this moment sham ful injustice
cruelty and wrong have marked our treat
ment of the Indians; and now, having
! chased them behind the Alleghanies, be
! hind the Ohio and the Tennessee, behinC
the Mississippi, beyond the Missouri anc
to the further edge of the great plains, t.
| the Rocky Mountains and the sterile plain!
| and mountains still beyond, the reHuen
tide of our civilization threatens to bury
their diminishing thousands in the sands o.
| Sierra Nevadas. Now if Gods justice
always vindicates itself in the punishment
of national crimes by national calamities,
| it requires not the eye of a prophet to see
that day of retribution yet awaits US as q
nation, and that we, or our children, will
| feel Gods avenging hand. There is but
one way to avert this Fundamentals
| pentance and Restitution. If we can not
restore life to buried tribes, and the lands
of which we have robbed them by VIC
lence, or fraud, we can give the remnant
good homes, recognize them as brethren,
protect them in their lives and liberty, and
teach them the truths of the Gospel. May
God lead u.s. as nation, to do right, that
we may escape the punishment due to our
national crimes.
said that sometimes punishment of in
dividuals as well as nations, begins in this
world. While it is true that Heaven
may begin on earth" it is equally true that
the pangs of eternal death are felt, some
times in part, in this world. illustrations
abound; The Sodomites, the Egyptians,
with Pharoah, Annanias and his wife
Sapphire, and the unbelieving and God
defying people OF Jerusalem.
after death the punishment q1iiL beyond
a PeradUent1sre, begin, If not IN this life,
for who can forget the rich man, who died,
and was buried, and lifted up his eyes in
hell, being in torment.
The Savior assured US, with his own
lips, that this AWFUL doom thus initiated in
time. or after death, qUlll be cOnSaG17anlated
at the great and terrible day Of judge
ment, when He will will q sign to every
child of Adam home in heaven or place
in hell
This punishment a0W be eractEy propor-
toned to the character Of the ofen8e for
according to his works." shall every one
be judged, and the servant that "knew his
Masters will and did it not, shall be beaten
with many stripes" but he that knew not
His will land did it not, shall be beaten
with few stripes"
But aohat aUiU be the nature and du1a-
ton of the sinners punishment
1t 9CiU be eternal The Gospel tells US
it will be Everlasting punishment" ever
lasting destruction" everlasting chains"
''unq1enchable fire." ''the worm that never
dies" eternal Punishment" sc.
Divine justice could only proportion
gqnishments to the grade of crimainadlity.
The crime takes its measure chiefly from
the character of the Law-giver
The Law-giver is the infinite God,
the criminal is man, His crea-
ture, gifted with plenary ability to
obey and stand, and yet free to rebel and
fall. Against the infinitely just and holy |
law of this infinitely just and holy Law
giver, in the free exercise Of His fearful |
perogative, man rebelled, and thus, vol |
UNFAIRLY and freely, incurred an infinite /
penalty. But man is finite, and hence, could |
not endure q punishment of infinite in |
tensity. How, then, can he suffer an in
finite penalty The answer is clearly |
only in the direction in which he isinfnite. |
But in the duration of his existence he is |
infinite, and, hence, his punishment is to |
be everlasting.
Having thus endeavored to show that |
reason and justice demand future punish |
ment, that the doctrine is abundantly and |
clearly revealed in the Bible, that it is suf-
fered by sinful nations in time, sometimes
begins with individuals in this life, with
all other incOrrigibles at death, is in exact
to the criminality of the Of
fender, and is to be everlasting, I proceed
to notice the question propOunded in the
punish theeW Sinner, suppose the day of
Judgment to have this moment burst upon
you. Imagine yourself in the presence
Of the Judge, your dreadful doom is al
ready fixed. What will you, what can
you say in your behalf?
Dare you declare 1.-THE sentence I'M
ust?" No! Mol you can not, for the
universe proclaims Gods infinite justice
All heaven will cry out Just and holy
art Thou, Oh Lord, God Almighty"
Will you answer, The sentence is cruel?'
Unfortunate plea Impossible! TIE ALL
dercilul Jehovah, whose very name is
Love, can not be cruel-the most degraded
riminal in His universe shall never expe-
fence twinge Of pain numerically in
icted.
Possibly, in the agony of despair. you
nay venture to murmur that you ''PasSed
rom earth aoithout notice, and a0ithout
earning ?' But oh the record! the record of
our life, blazing out on the pages ofyour {
evivifed memory will flash the falsehood
q your face. A thousand Gospel sermons,
he prayers and tears of Sighted parents,
ne pleadlngs of the Holy Spirit, the living
hosts of buried opportunities, the groans,
he agOnles, the blood of the Crucitied one (
isregarded, and conscience fanged with
re and tremulous with eternal life, will all I
onfrOnt and cOnf0und you. Paradventure
oa may bow the knee and cry "Oh, me 7
mel Only this once suspend the /
XecutlOn OF my sentence, and grant me a
ew brief term of trial" Undone, I'M
onel Your prayer is now too late. Your
rotation is closed, and now you are lost
ost lost forever! Your harvest is past, !
our summer is ended" and while you <
ainly plead, your dreadful sentence,
Depart, | never knew YOU" shakes G
eaven with its thunders, and wakes with
S direful reVerberations the remotest S
choes of helps unfathomable abyss. Soul 2
nd body immortal, bat transported by
DDS eye, you tremble on the very brink E
the yawning chasm ofeternal night, and 2
the bitterness of unavailing repentance 9
)nfess your sins, and cry "0h, mercy
ercy pity rescue save me- only this
ne time, save mel" Too late too late C
4 time on earth, this plaintive plea whis- R
cred in gentle mercy's ear, would have
leathed the vengeful sword of justice and E
aged the uplfted thunder. Jesus would R
ave washed you in His blood and crowned L
Oh with eternal life. But the trump of
cd has sounded times funeral dirge On
Iese shores Of eternity the throne Of grace r
occupied by Justice You have ban
he'd mercy.
Henceforth, for you, there is no promise
o gospel No Saviour! No mediator c,
o mercy No hope foreverl!! Ii
Does contrition, extorted by terror, turn fe
desperation? As almighty power hurls al
ou from His presence and plunges you
to the gulph of despair, ''qvtll yoW resist
od and defy the Aln.ightyH c.
Unhappy spiritl How impotent you
gel Before the flash of His eye the
IF h Ia burpad nm tho opd