The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-03-28
ADAY WITH An EVANGELIST
The Spirit Evinced and Addresses Deliv-
cred at Three of Mr.. Mills's Meetings.
An Increasing Interest Is Shown Among the
UneOnverted-Things That Attend Saliva
ton and Gods Demand for Pure Hearts.
THE AFrERNooN MEETINGS.
MIR. Mills Talks OF the Things That Accom-
pany Salvation.

pany Salvation.
All three of the evangeIistic meetings were
! well attended yesterday. the total attendance
being at least thirty i've hundred. The interest
| is also observab.E spreading TO the class which
do not regularly attend church, and action was
taken yesterday to increase che spread in this
/ direction still further Printed cards of invita-
| ton .wers given to all those who attended the
/ two big meetings. with the request that they be
handed, If possible, to some one who had not
| attended the services.
The ladies' meeting in the lecture-room of the
! the Second Presbyterian Church, yesterday aft
eruoon, was attended by about three hundred
persons Mrs. G. g. Mitchell wife of the pas
tor of the Fifth Presbyterian Church, led the
| exercises. She read the 10th Psalm, and spoke
of the necessity of conservation upon the part OF
| the women in the churches, if success ex-
pected to attend the meetings. The fact should
| be borne in mind that the ladies composed more
| than half the membership ofithe churches. and if
| they would but bow themselves before God. there
| would be showers of blessings. 'If only ten of
us were earnest enough" said she, "the city
| could be saved" A number OF ladies offered
| prayer for the success of the revival meetings.
| The Second Presbyterian Church well
/ filed at the afternoon meeting yesterday. be-
| ginning at o'clock, notwithstanding drizzline
| rain was falling at the time. Perhaps two
thirds of those present were ladies. After a
| couple of hymns, led by Professor Towner, Rev.
| DIR. Rondthaler led in prayer. Mr. Mills evil
| IDENTIFY thought the congregation before him was
composed of church members, as all Of his re-
| marks were addressed to people of that class.
| His text Hebrews vi. 8; "But, beloved,
we are persuaded better things Of you, and things
thataccompany salvation. though we thus speak"
4 % A.
eelist, ''of a farmer who began praying for rain
on the 1st of January, who went into his closet
and began asking God for rain for fear the
| crops would suffer for the want of it when
/ spring came; and then when February came he
/ would still be IN the closet praying as he would
/ BE in March, and in the spring. when his
neiRhbors out in the field at their blowing?
| While ne was praying for rain his
| fields were being neglected, end when
l the rain came in showers it only
| helped to make the weeds grow Hosea said:
| 'Sow to yourselves in righteousness. reap in
mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is
time to seek the Lord, till He come and rain
| righteousness upon you The important
| phrase in that verse is Break up your fallow
4 ground When rain comes on fallow ground it
4 is curse instead of a blessing, for it causes
/ only the weeds to grow. Therefore it is all
| important that a mans heart be prepared
| to receive God, that the seed should be planted
in it when the rain of Gods blessing comes.
| man who has in his heart the things that are
| acceptable to salvation Is prepared for the
| blessing of God. If he has not, the blessing is
| turned into a The coming of Christ will
be blessing to some and curse to others
| These mercy drops that falling about US
! now will soon turn to showers of blessing If our
hearts in fit condition. They will be a curse
or blessing, as our hearts are prepared to re-
| ceive them"
| There were certain things, the evangelist
| said, which always accompanied salvation, and
by them church members could test their
| hearts and see whether they were in fit condi
ton to receive the blessings of God. The first
| thing which always accompanied salvation was
4 knowledge of it. On one occasion, in a West
| ern city. church member came up to Mr. Mills
| and said: perhaps you didn't know that was
mem Der of your church; but | am" Mr. Mills
| replied that he had discovered the mans name
| in looking over the church rolls. but had never
seen anything in his conduct to indicate that he
\ was member
Perhaps that is sor the man answered ST
| don't come to church any more. have to stay
| away in order TO be consistent"
| The pastor told him it was a great way for a
| church member to be consistent to remain away
| from services. The man then said that his bus
/ mess was such that ms couldn't be Christian
| he kept a drug store and the custom of the
| place was such that he mad to sell whisky Peo-
pie knew he did that, and if they had seen him
| going to church they would have called him a
| hypocrite. Il tell you one thing, though" he
| remarked, IT am always at church
munion SUNDAY, and I'll tell you another thing:
| Theren never be time when, If die. that
shall not go straight up to glory. have the as
| surance of it"
''Wel where in the world did you get any as
| surance of thatl" the pastor asked.
II got 1t out of the Bible"
"Well will you not please get O Bible and
show where you find it !"
The man took a Bible and turned TO the verse
in the fifth chapter of Jonu. wnich read: He
that heareth my word, and believeth on Him
| that sent me. hath everlasting life, and shall
condemnation. DaS96d from
death unto life"
NOW. believe on the word" the man added,
land the Bible is witness that shall be saved"
THAT" said the evangelist, was much
TO say, Let God be true and my heart be liar.
Poor. miserable blasohemous man! He could
not have sunk any lower il he had sunk into
hell. You cannot save men by formula. No
soul will be saved by believing this that
Mar n. ust have some sort of assurance that he
belongs to Christ; must be able to say, L know
that believe H1m-a belief that will endure for
all time and under any circumstances. have
known some people who thought they were
saved when they Were well, and thought they
were lost when they had the dyspepsia" A man
could know he was saved when he was willing
to do what God wanted him TO do. He could
not will to do Gods will without knowingis If
q man had not the spirit of God he was not
Christian.
walton was joy-Christan joy. These things
have | spoken unto you that my Joy might
main in you, and that your joy might be full"
There was no such thing as a Joyiess Christian;
joy was the natural condition or Christian
OF course. there were some rare and exceptional
cases where disease had so affected people that
they could never look on the bright side of any
thing, hut the normal condition of Christian
man joyful IF you joyless," said
the evangelist, II am afraid you are not
Christian at all. I know OF some
protesting Christians who afraid they will
be filed with joy. that He will overload their
hearts with Joy. There is society of dwarfs
in London. TO which one is admitted .
member who is not dwarf. They pretend to
glorify themselves for their physical deformity.
| know of some people who act just like that in
regard to their souls Tney want just
enough religion to consider themselves safe
and not enough give them peace.
great many people lived along without know
ing what genuine salvation was. They were like
the little boy who went Of the FIRE sh-air
excursions from New York city to the borders of
Lake Champlain. At the first meal at which he