Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1881-10-06
&eadiug fur the sabbath.
CONDUCTED BY
REV. ROBERT LATHAM.
IOriginal ]
BORN OF GOD.

One of the great differences between Chris,
tians and all the other members Of the hu-
man family, is that Christians are born again,
or born from above. This great change takes
place in every Christian. 1t is change
which precedes every other change. Our sa'
viour says concerning those who have under
gone this change, that they have "been born,
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor
of the will of mau, but of God" Jno. lib
The meaning Of this passage of Scripture
seems to be this The new birth which takes
place in the case Of every true child of God,
is not the result Of family connection. 1t is
not transmitted from father to son; it is not
of blood neither is it the product of natural
endowments. There is nothing in any man
which, by education or training, or assocla'
ton, can be developed into what the Scrip
lures call the new birth. Education can do
much, but there is one thing which it never
has DONE and never will do; it cannot make
a saint out of sinner. No man, by any ef-
fort on his part, can ever, no matter what
may be his surroundings, change his hard and
stony heart. Regeneration is not the will Of
the flesh. 81
Neither can one man regenerate another.
1t is not Of the will of man. We can do
many things for our friends, but we cannot
quicken those who are dead in trespasses and
sins. Regeneration is effected by God. 1t is
God that quickens those who are dead in
trespasses and SINS
In the great scheme ofSalvation, regenera.
tiou, OF as it is often called, being born Of
God, is the work Of the Holy Spirit. There
are many things connected with the act Of
the Spirit which should be carefully noted
The following may be mentioned. In regen'
Grafton the sinner is passive that is be does
nothing. As in the natural so in the spiritu
al life. In no sense can any man be said tc
be the author of his natural existence. Meth
er can any one be said to be the author Of his
own spiritual existence.
Again, there is no transition state between
dead and alive. No such state as partly
alive and partly dead. We are either dead
in tresspasses and sins, or alive in Chris,
Jesus. We may be partly moral and partly
immoral, but we are either wholly dead in
sin or wholly alive in Christ. Again, it may
be observed that without regeneration, nc
other Christian grace can exist in US. Oul
Saviour says, Eye must be born again"
1t is worthy of note, that while regenera
ton is produced by the Spirit Of God, it i;
always produced in accordance with estab
lished principles. Just as in the natura
world, termination never takes place only il
accordance with fixed and Interchangeable prin
ciples. So regeneration never takes place
only in accordance with principles which Goo
has seen fit to establish.
"Nor Now."-A story is told, among the
Russian peasants, of an old woman who was
at work in her house when the wise men o.
the East passed by on their way to find the
infant Christ, guided as they were by the stal
going before them in the sky. "Come with
u.s." they said ; eve are going to find the
heavenly child come with Us"
II will come" she replied, "but not just
now but will follow very soou, and over
take you and fiud him." But when her work
was done, the wise men had gone and the stsl
in the heavens had disappeared, and she new
er saw the infant Saviour.
1t is but story, but one that is full of in
struction and warning for similar story
could be told Of thousands of human hearts
and confirmed by the character and destiny
of thousands of human beings. The call te
come to Christ sounds in our ears, but we are
too busy with our daily work to heed it now
We have no time just yet for the Bible, OIL
the closet, or the serious thought, or for heark
ening to the voice of conscience and the whis
pers of the Holy Spirit. We are like the
Duke of Alva, who, when asked to look at a
remarkable appearance in the skies, replied
II am too busy with things on earth to take
time for looking up to the heavens" W.
are pressed with our business, or building oul
homes, or looking after the needs Of our chill
dren, or laying up wealth for the future, and
the time for seeking Christ is delayed, and
by the delay we have missed him forever.
SABBATH AND LIBERTY.-France gives
US some food for thought touching Sabbath
observance as related to popular liberty. II
is country in which, times past, Sabbath
observance has been at the lowest ebb. Al
this time there are signs of returning respec,
for the day. The period in which this change
has been most observable comedies almost
exactly with the establishment and mainten
ance of the Republic. Under the Empire
people were encouraged to make this day one
of amusement merely. The less time they
allowed for serious thought the better for the
despotism that oppressed them. But under
the new order OF government, since public
responsibilities have been thrown upon them
they have grown nore sober and thoughtful
and more inclined to reflect and worship Oh
the Sabbath. This fact is attested by all
candid observers. Always and everywhere
thoughtful observance of the Sabbath is
favorable to public liberty. And shall We
allow ourselves to 60 backward in this matter
when France and Europe in general show
signs of going forward?
ExcERPrA.-In religion, as in everything
else, it is the diligent hand that maketh rich
A satisfactory Christian experience is OBJ
tanned by the punctual performance of every
religious duty, by the regular systematic use
of the divinely appointed means of grace.
The reason why the men Of the world think
so little of Christ is, they do not look at him
Their backs being toward the sun, they can
see only their shadows, and are, therefore,