The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1885-10-29

heaveDt what uroken bone or sorrow
have you ever set? Are you doing moth
| ing? Is it possible that a man or woman,
sworn to be follower of the Lord Jesus
| Christ is doing nothing? Then hide the
horrible secret from the angels. Keep it
away from the book of Judgment II you
| are doing nothing. do not let the world
| find 1t out, lest they charge your religion
with being false face Do not let your
| cowardice AMI treason be heard among
| the martyrs about the throne lest they
forget the sanctity Of the place and curse
your betrayal of that cause for which
they agonized and died.
May the eternal God rouss us all to ac-
tionl AS for myself, feel / would be
ashamed to die now and enter Heaven IN
til l have accomplished something more
decisive for the Lord that bought me. I
would like to join with you in an oath,
with hand high uplifted to Heaven,
swearing new allegiance to Jesus Christ,
and to work more for his cause and king.
dom. Oil brethren, how swiftly tbs
time does go byl It seems to mo never
saw such a swift summer-never sum-
mer that had such nimble feet. It seems
to me as If the years had gained some new
power Of locomotion-a kind of speed
electricl
II, this afternoon, you take a short
sleep, and you are entitled to iu, for God
intended the Sabbath not only for rest
for the soul, but rest for the body, you
will at least have one or two hours in
which to lay out plan for Christian
work In this ecclesiastical year. Hus
band and wife talk with each other.
Brothers and sisters resolve upon some
new work for Christ On your knees cry
unto God: ''Lord, what wilt Thou
have me to dor" and STAY
on your knees until YOU get
the answer. Arc you ready to join
with me in some new work for Christ?
I feel that there is such thing as classi-
cal piety, that there is such thing as
insular work, but it seems to me that
what we want now is concerted action.
The temple of Berth is very broad, and
it is very high. 1t has been going up by
the hands of men and devils, and no hui
man en- yinery can demolish it; but il
the 5000 ministers of Christ in this
country should each take O branch of
the tree of life, and all their congrega-
tions should do the same, and we should
march on and throw these branches
around the great temples of sin, and
worldllness and folly, it would need
no match or coal or torch of ours to
touch off the pile, for, as in the days
Of Elijah, fire would fall from heaven and
kind. the bonfire of Christian victory
over demolished sin. 1t is kindlin8 now.
Huzzahl Tho day is oursl
ST. further, learn from this subject
tn. .sLger of false refugees. AS soon as
these Shechemitss got into the tenn
pie they thought they were safe.
They said "Berith will taxa care
OF us. Abimelech may batter down
everything else he can not batter down
this temple, where we are now hid" But
very soon they heard the timbers crack
ling. and they were smothered with
smoke, and they miserably died. And
you and are just as much tempted to
false refugees. The mirror this morning
may have persuaded you that you have a
comedy cheek; your best friends may have
persuaded you that you have elegant
manners; Satan my have told you that
you are all right, but bear with me if
tell you that if unpardoned you are all
wrong, have no clinometer by which to
measure how steep is the inclined plank
you are descending, but know it is verv
steep "Well," you say, ''if the Bible is
true I am sinner. Show me some
refuge; will step right into IT," I sup
pose every person in this audience this
moment is stepping into some kind OF
refuge Hero you stop in the tower of
good works. You say: 81 shall be
safe here in this refuge" The battle-
ments are adorned; the steps are varnish-
ed; on the walls are pictures of all the
suffering you have alleviated, and all the
schools you have established, and all the
fine things you have ever done Up in
that tower you feel you are safe. But hear
you not the tramp of your unpardoned
sins all around the tower? They each have
match. They are kindling the combus-
tible material. You feel the heat and the
suffocation- Obi may you leap in time.
the gospel declaring: SPY the deeds of
the law shall no flesh living be Justified"
swell, you say: 81 have been driven
out of that tower; where shall 1 go?"
Step into this tower of indifference. You
say: "If this tower is attacked, it will be
a great while before 1t is taken.n You
feel at ease. But there is an Abimelech
with ruthless assault coming on. Death
and his forces are gathering around, and
they demand that you surrender every
thing, and they clamor for your immortal
overthrow, and they throw their skeleton
arms in the windows, and with their iron
fists they beat against the door, and
while you are trying to keep them out you
see the torches of Judgment kind
ling, and every forest is a torch,
and every mountain torch, and every
sea torch, and while the Alps, and Py-
renees, and Himalayas turn into q live
coal, blown redder and redder by the
whirlwind breath of q God omnipotent,
what will become of your refuge of lies?
"But," says someone, '.you are en-
gagged in o. very mean business, driving
us from tower to tower" Oh, no want
to tell you of Gibraltar that never has
been and never will be taken; OF a wall
that no Satanic assault can scale; of O
bulwark that the judgments earthquake
can not bulge. The Bible refers to it
when it says In God is thy refuge, and
underneath thee are the everI astinq
arms" Oh! fling yourself into it, Tread
down unceremoniouslY everything that