Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1885-06-08

than one year! :,
But" says some man, I literally support
the gospel and the churches our open and
the gospel is preached; all the spiritual ad-
vantages are spread before men and If they
want to be saved, let them come TO be
saved; have discharged all my responsible
ty. "Ah, is that the Masters spirit? Is
there not an old book somewhere that
Commands Us to Go Out
into the highways and hedges and compel
the people to come in2 What would have
become of you and me if Christ had not
come down off the hills Of heaven, and if
he had not come through the door of the
Bethlehem caravansarai, and if he had not
with the crushed hand of the crucifxion
knocked at the iron gate Of the sepulchre of
death, crying: Lazarus, come forthT
o my christian friends this is no time for
inertia when sll the forces of darkness seem
to be in full blast, when steam printing
presses are publishing inidel tracts, when
express railroad trains are carrying
messengers of sin, when fast clippers are
ladened with opium and rum, when the
night air of our cities is polluted
with the laughter that breaks up from the
ten thousand saloons OF dissipation and
abandonment when the fires Of the second
death already are kindled in the cheeks Of
some, who, only little while ago were in.
corrupt. Oh, never since the curse fell
upon the earth has there been time when
it was such an unwise, such q cruel, such an
awful thing for the church to sleep. The
great audiences are not gathered in the
Christian churches; the great audiences are
gathered IN temples OF sin-tesrs OF unutter.
able woe, their baptism, the blood Of crushed
hearts, the awful wine of their sacrament
blasphemies their litany and the groans OF
the lost world the organ dirge OF their wor-
ship.
Again, if you want to be
Qualified to Meet the Duties
which this age demands OF you, you must
on the one hand avoid reckless iconoclasm
and on the other hand not stick too much
to things because they are old. The air
is full of new plans, new projects, new
theories of government, new theologies
and am amazed to see how so many
Christians want only novelty in order to
recommend thing to their confidence;
and 80 they yacillate and ewing to aud fro
and they are useless and they are unhappy.
New plans-secular, ethical, philosophical,
religious, cis.Atlantic, transatlantic, long
enough 10 make a line reaching from the
German universities to great Salt Lake
City. Ah, GS brother, do not take bold OF
a thing merely because it is new. Try it
by the realities Of Judgment Day. But
on the other hand do not adhere to any
hing merely because it is old. There is
not a single enterprise Of the church or the
world, but has sometimes been scofied at
There was time
When Men Derided
even Bible societies, and when few young
men met hear hsystack in Massachusetts
and organized the first missionary society
ever organized in this country, there went
laughter and ridicule all around the Chris.
tian world. They said the undertaking was
preposterous. And 80 also the work OF
Jesus Christ was as8ailed. People cried
out: "Who ever heard Of such theories OF
ethics and government? Who ever noticed
such a style oi preaching as Jesus hadr
Ezekiel bad talked Of mysterious wings and
wheels. Here came man from Caper-
naum and Gennessaret and he drew his IL
lustration from the lakes, from the sand,
from the ravine, from the lilies, from the
cornstalks. How the Pharisees scofed
How Herod derided How Judas Kissed
And this Jesus they plaeked by the heart
and they spat in his face and they called
bira ",his fellow" All tho great enterprises
in and out of the church have at times been
scoffed at, and there have been great mul.
titude who have thought that the ,hariot OF
God truth would fall to pieces if it once
got out OF the old rut And so
there are those who have no patience
with anything like improvement
in church architecture or with
anything like good, heartyaearnest church
singing, and they deride any form Of re-
rigious discussion which goes DOWN walking
among everyday men rather than ths,
which makes an excursion on rhetorical
stills. o, that the Church Of God would
make up to an adaptibility Of work! We
must admit the simple fact that the churches
Of Jesus Christ in this day
Do Not Beach the Great Masses.
There are fifty thousand people in Edin.
burgh who never hear the gospel. Thee
one million people in London who never
hear the gospel There are at least three
hundred thousand souls in the city Of Brook.
lyn whom net under the Immediate min 8.
trations Of Christ truth aud The Church OF
God in this day. instead Of being place full
of living epistles, read and known OF all
men, is more like dead letter" postofhce.
But" say people, the world is going to
be converted; you must be ps'telt; tie
kingdoms OF this world are to become king
doms Of Christ" Never, unless the Church
of Jesus Christ puts on more speed and
energy. Instead of the church converting
the world, the world is converting
the church Here is great fortress. How
shall it be taken2 An army comes and sits
around it, cuts Of the supplies and says:
Now we will inst wait until from exhaus.
ton and starvation they will have to give
up." Weeks and months and perhaps q
year pass along. and finally the fortress sur
renders through that starvation and ez
haustion. But my friends, the fortresses Of
sin are never to be taken in that way. II
thsy are taken for God it will be by storm
Yoa will have to bring up the great siege
guns Of the gospel to the very wall and
wheel the flying artillery into line and when
the armed infantry Of heaven shall confront
the battlements you will have to give tSe
quick command: Forward! ChargeP
oh, my friends,
There Is Work
for Jou to do and for me to do in order 10
this grand accomplishment Here is ny
pulpit and preach in it. Your pulpit ID
the bank. Yoar pulSit is the store. You,
pulpit is the editorial chair. Your pulpit is
the anvil Your pulpi. is the house
scaaoldipg. Your pulpit is the mechanic.
sledge. l may stand in this place and
through cowardice or through sekseekine
may Keep back the word / ought to utter;
while you with sleeve pfled up and broI
besweated with toll majs ~ the word that
viii jar the foundations sss even With the
shout Of Q great victosa oh that this
,-o-n;,c this vrhola auffrS1 mipht fael