The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1886-09-21

In your store. 1t may have been through
the trickery Of some profess ID Christian man
ask You how you became SO; but you frankly
tell me that YOU do reject it. You do not
believe that Christ is a divine being although
you admit that he was n good man. You do
not believe that the Bible was inspired by
God, although you think that there are some
very fine things in it. Yon believe that tho
s%criptural description Of Eden was only an
nllegory. There are fifty things that I believe
that you do not believe.
And vet Won are IN accommodating raI
Everybody that knows YOU says that Of you
If I should ask you to do n kindness for mo
or il any one else should ask of o a kind
ness. You would do it. Now, I have a kind
uess to ask Of you to-day. 1t is something
great delight. I want you by experiment. to
try the power o. Christi religion. If I should
come to you and You were very sick, and do"-
tors bad given you up and said there wa no
chance for You, and I should take out q little
bottle and say: Here is a medicine that will
cure you: it has cure | fifty people and it will
cure you Won would say: II have no conf
dence in it" would saw: "Won'tyou take
it 10 oblige mem "Well," you would say, eff
It's any accommodation to you I'll take it,"
My friend, will YOU be just as accommodating
in matters of religion?
There are some of you who have found
out that this world cannot satisfy your soul.
You are like the mar who told me after the
service was over: II have tried this world
and found it an insufficient portion. Tell
me Of something better" You nave come
to that. You are sick for the need of divine
medicament. Now, I come tell you of
a physician who will cure you, who has
cured hundreds and hundreds who were sick
as you are. "Oh," you say, 81 have no COLI
idence in him" But will you try lin. Ac-
commodate me in this matter; oblige me in
this matter; just try him. 1 am very GER
no special confidence in him: but if you ask
me as q matter Of accommodation, Introduce
him." So I introduce him-Christ, tina
physician who Ohas cured more blind eyes.
and healed more CHASTITY wounds. and bound
since the time of ICsculapius.
Tho Divine Physician is here. Are you
not ready to try hims Will you not, as a
pure matter Of experiment, state your case
from Him; If you cannot pray, if you do
not know how to pray any other WY. say,
sOh, Lord Jesus Christ, this Is a, strange
t3ling for me to dol! I now nothing about
people have been talking so long about what
thou canst do for me-, I am ready to do what.
over Thou commanded me to do. am ready
to take whatever Thou commandest me to
Of it."
Will you try that experiment. I do not at
this point of my discourse say that there is
49, OaAhS III olleNou OuJ L SlUlDuY S6V CrF 10
try it. Do not take my counsel, or the
counsel of any clergyman, if you despise
clergymen. Perhaps we maybe talking pro-
f~esSionally; perhaps we may be prejudiced
In our u~tterances; perhaps our advice IS not
worth taking. Then take the counsel Of some
very respectable layman-as John Milton,
the poet; as William Wilberforce, the states
Robert Boyle, the philosopher; as Locke, the
metaphysician. Thsy never preached or
pretended to preach; and yet putting down,
o0e his telescope. and another his parlia-
mentary scroll, and another his electricians
wire, they oil declare the adaptiveness of
Of the world. If YOU will not take the
recommendation of ministers OF the
gospel, then take tho Recommendation Of
highly respectable laymen- Oh, men, skepti-
cal and struck through with unrest, would
you not like to have some ,oflthe peace which
broods over our souls to-day? i know all
about your doubts. / have been through
them all. l have gone throughcall the cur
rlculum. l have doubted whether there is q
God, whether Christ is God. Uhave doubted
whether the Bible was true. I have doubted
the immortality OF the soul. l have doubted
my own existence. i have doubted every
thing, and yet, out of that hot desert Of
doubt, Ihave come into the.broad, luxuriant
sunshiny land Of gospel hope; and peace, and
comfort: SO l have confidence in preaching to
you, and asking you to come in. However
often you may have spokenagainstt the Bible,
or however much you may have caricaturod
religion, step ashore from that rocking and
tumultuons sea- If you go away adhering to
your infidelities, YOU will not sleep one wink
tonight. You do not want you children to
come up with your skepticism. You caunot
afford to die in that midnight darkness, can
you! If you do not believeiin anything else,
you believe in love-a faith cr's love, a moth
eT's love, q wifes love, n child's love. Then
let HE tell You that God 10 ives you more than
thew DO. OH Won mISG Cnnoa an Won will
como in. The great heart Of Christ aches to
have you come inland Jesus, this very mo-
ment-whether youSsit or stand-looks into
which are not of this fold"
3. Again, 1 remark, that; the Heavenly
Shepherd IS gomgto linda great many sheep
0nong those who have lbeen flung of evil
habit. Itmakes me feel mad to. see Christian
arc those who talk las though the grace
Of God were a chain of forty or fifty
links, and alter th " had run out there
was nothing to touch "a very bad case. If
the deer, they would look longer among the
banks and the bushes fo- the lost game thnn
they have been looking for that lost soul.
People tell us that If AMMAN lhas delirium tre-
mems twice that he cann0tEbe reclaimed; that
after a woman has fallen from her. integrity
she cannot be restored. iheiBible has die
tinctly intimated THAT the Lord Almighty 10
ready to pardon $50 times: that is seventy
OF God who have wallowed in every kind
Of sin: but, saved by the grace of Jesus, and
washed in his blood, they stand there radi.
ant now. There are those who plunged in
the very lowest bel Of nbominatiop, who for
the tenth time have been lifted .np, and,
finally, by the Grace of God, dhey stand In
Heaven gloriously rescuedby the grace prom
ised to the chief Of sinners. Iwantto tell you
that God loves to take hold Of very bad case.
When the church casts you of, amd,when the
club-rOOm casts YOU off, and whan society
casts you off, and when business associate,
cast you off, and when father casts you of,
and when your mother casts you of, and
when everybody, casts you of. your first cry