The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-07-02


What bread is TO the hungry, what harbor
is to the bestormed, what light is to the
blind, what liberty is to the captive, that
and more than that, is Christ to the man
who trusts him.
Just try to get Christ away from that
christian. Put on that man the thumb
screw. Twist it until the bones crack. Put
that foot into the iron boot of persecution
until it is mashed to a pulp. Stretch that
man on the rack of the inquisition, and
louder than all the uproar of the persecu-
tors you will hear his voice like tho voice of
Alexander le CROW, above the cracking
faggotS as he cried out "Oh, Jesus! O, my
blessed Jesus o. divine Jesus! who would
not die for theer
Again: l remark that Christ is precious
to the believer, as friend. You have COM
mercial friends and you have family
friends. To the commercial friend you go
when you have business troubles. You can
look back to some day--it may have been
ten or twenty years ago-when, if you had
not had that friend, you would have been
entirely overthrown in business. But |
want to tell you this morning of Jesus, tho
best busiiiess friend a man ever had. He
can pull you out of the worst perplexities
There are people in this audience who have
got in the habit of putting down all their
worldly troubles at the feet of Jesus. Why,
Christ meets the business man on the street
and says: 20, business man, know all thy
troubles / will be with thee. | will see
thee through" Look out how you try to
corner or trample on a man who is backed
up by the Lord God Almighty. Look out
how you trample on him. o, there is a
financer that many of our business men
have not found out. Christ owns all the
boards of trade, all the insurance compa-
nies, and all the banking houses They say
that the Vanderbllts own the railroads; but
Christ owns tho Vanderbilts and the rail
roads, and all the plottings of stock gam
blers shall be put to confusion, and God
with his little finger shall wipe out their iu-
famous projects. How often it has been
that we have seen men gather up riches by
fraud, in pyramid of strength and beauty,
and the Lord came and blew ON it and it
was gone while there are those here to-day
who, if they could speak out in this assem-
blage, or dared to speak out, would say:
"The best friend | had in 1887; the best
friend had in 1851; the best friend | had
at the opening of the war; the best friend |
ever had has been the Lord Jesus Christ. l
would rather give up all other friends than
this one."
But we have also family friends. They
come in when we have sickness in the
household. Perhaps they say nothing but
they sit down and they weep as the light goes
out from the bright eyes, and the white
petals of the lily are scattered in the blast
of death. They watch through the long
night by the dying couch, and then. when
the spirit has gone, soothe you with great
comfort. They say: Don't cry. Jesus
pities you. All is we'll You will meet the
lost one again" Then, When your son
went off breaking your heart did they not
come and put the. story in the
very best shape, and prophesy the return of
the prodgale Were they not in your
house when Thea birth angel tapped its
wings over your dwelling' And they have
been there at the baptisms and at the we'd
dings Family frlendsl But have to tell
you that Christ is the best family friend.
o, blessed is that cradle over which Jesus
bends Blessed is that nursery where
Jesus walks. Blessed is that sick brow from
which Jesus wipes the dampneSs. Blessed
is that table where Jesus breaks the bread.
Blessed is that grave where Jesus stands
with his SCARED feet on the upturned sod,
saving: II am the resurrection and the
life; he that beieveth in me, though he
were dead, yet shall he live" Have you
babe in the house9 put it into the arms of
the great child-lover. Is there sick one in
the houses think of him who said: "Damsel,
arise Are you afraid you will come to
wantl think of him who fed the five thous-
and. Is there a little one in your house
that you are afraid will be blind, or deaf,
or lame. think of him who touched the
blinded eye, and snatched back the boy from
epileptic convulsions. Oh, he Is the best
friend Look over your family friends to-
day, and find another that can be compared
to him. When we want our friends, they
are sometimes out of town. Christ
is always in town. We find that
some will stick to us in prosperity who will
not in adversely. But Christ comes through
darkest night, and amid ghastlest sorrow,
4 to ,fDrN
There are men and women here who would
have been dead twenty years ago but for
Jesus They have gone through trial enough
to exhaust ten times their physical strength.
Their property went their health went,
their families were scattered. God only
knows what they suffered. They are an
amaZement to themselves that they have
been able to stand it. They look at their
once happy home, surrounded by all COM
fort. Gonel They think of the time when
they used to rise strong in the morning, and
walk vigorously down the street. and had
experienced health they thought mex
haustible. Gonel Everything gone but Jesus.
He has pitied them. His eye has watched
them. His omnipotence has defended them.
Yes, he has been with them. They have
gone through disaster, and he was pillow
OF fire by night. They have gone across
stormy Galilee, but Christ had his foot on
tho neck OF the storm They felt the waves
of trouble coming up around them gradually
and they began to sclimb sinto the strong
rock OF Gods defense, and then they sang,
as they looked over the waters: "God is our
refuge and strength, and ever present help
in time of trouble; therefore we will not
fear though the earth be removed,
though the mountains be carried into the
midst of the sea, though the waters thereof
roar and be troubled, though the mountains
shake with the swelling thereof Selah."
The other day there was a sailor who came
into the Bethel in New York, and said:
"My lads (he WAS standing among sailors,
l don't know what's the matter with me,
used to hear q good deal about religion and
about Jesus Christ. don't know
that | have any religion or
that | know anything much
about Christ but when l was ia
mid Atlantic looked up one day through
the rigging, and there seemed to come light
through my soul. | have felt different
ever since, and / love those that once
hated, and feel joy / can't tell you. !
really don't know what is the matter of
me-" A rough sailor got up and said: "My
lad, ] know what's the matter of you.
You have found Jesus. 1t Is enough to
make any man happy
''His worth II all the nations knew,
Sure the whole earth would love him too"
remark again; Christ is precious TO
the believer as final deliverer. You and
must, after a while, get out of this world.
Here and there, ore perhaps may come on