The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-05-19

that he had no right to share the
remaining estate, and secondly, that he
had brought disgrace upon the honored
name of his father and of his family,
and was, therefore, unworthy of their
recognition or association.
We note, second, that "he went and
joined himself to citizen of that
country" IL any lingering hope that he
might sometime return with joy to the
old home had ever thrust a golden ray
of light across the dark isthmus of
debauchery to a better life, it was now
abandoned. His face already turned
from his fathers house, he took
another step and joined himself to
citizen of that distant land of darkness
and want.
We note, third, his painful humilia-
ton. He was sent into the field to feed
swine. What avocation could be
meaner, or what calling could be more
humiliating to the Jewish mind than
that of feeding the hated, unclean
swine? In this degraded condition he
fain would have shared the lot of the
irresponsible brute and filled himself
with the husks upon which the swine
did feed; but his conscience lashed him
into the remembrance of the fact that
he had mind and a soul which rose
above the beasts of the field and that
out of them grew spiritual wants that
could not be satisfied on the low
| plane of animalism.
We note, fourth, that she came to
himself" From sober, candid review
of his situation he saw his true state;
his rebellious spirit was humbled, and
the spirit of penitence and reformation
possessed him. He resolved to return,
confess his sin, and seek, not sons,
but servants place in his fathers
house of joy, peace and plenty.
We note, fifth, the result of this
honest effort to reform and return, to-
wit: The father saw him while yet a
great way off, ran, met, received, and
embraced him; while the poor spirit
broken prodigal imploringly cried:
Father, have sinned against heaven
and in thy sight and am no more worthy
to be called thy son." But the father
did not give him time to finish his
speech and say, make me as one Of thy
hired servants" but to the servants he
cried: Bring forth the best robe and
put it on him, clothe and adorn him and
let us make feast and rejoice at the
return of this my lost son, who was
counted as dead, but who is alive and
restored unto u.s." The father forgot
and forgave all, and restored him to
his former place. Thus a fathers love
brought him back and redeemed him
from one of the lowest bells and re-
stored him to grace and glory.
This third parable does not illustrate
the state of the ordinary sinner, who
has forfeited his infantile justification
and grown mighty in sin; but it repre-
sents one who has been in the active,
intelligent, responsible possession of a
place in Gods spiritual household, and
who has wilfully apostatized; one who
has deliberately gone out from the fold
of Christ, cast away his confidence and
wasted his great wealth of spirit in
rioting and wickedness.
How many dear young people, after
having been brought happily into the
communion of love and of the fellow
ship of saints, by the volition of their
will, yield to temptation, neglect duty,
leave the church, and go on, step by
step, with sore conscience, darken-
ed soul and restless spirit, seeking the
happiness promised by the tempter in
exchange for their faith, until they see
that they have been deceived, and that
their happiness is gone from them.
They find themselves in a land of
spiritual famine and in great want
the soul longs for peace; fain would
they hush the voice Of conscience and
still the tossing soul. In this sad state
how often do we see some noble young
man join himself to citizen or agent
of that dark kingdom, some gambler or
rum seller at whose hands he is not
only debauched, but sent into the fields
of animalism to live on plane with
the lowest brute beasts.
Brethren, let us in the fear of God
bestir ourselves and with awakened
zeal and renewed energy move out for
the reclamation of the poor prodigals
and the preservation Of the young, pure
and virtuous, from falling into the
SHARES of the destroyer. Let US hold
Gods olive branch of peace out to the
poor back slider; and while he realizes
that in his aching heart there is a
void the world .can never fill" tell him
that our blessed Lord will give peace
precious peace-to the troubled heart
and restore the apostate soul to the
joys of his present salvation. And
when the prodigal one returns, let us
not say, "this thy son" hath done pro-
higately and dishonored our good name;
| . -. 4, s,nk., .