Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1888-03-19

| religion She said: II can't give up my
| religion And so they took her down to the
beach of the sea, and they drove in a stake
at low water mark, and they fastened her to
| it. expecting that as the tide came up her
| faith would fail The tide began to rise, and
came up higher and to the girdle, and to the
| lip, and in the last moment, just as the wave
was washing her soul into glory, she shouted
the praises of Jesus.
Oh, no, you cannot separate a soul from
Christ. 1t is an everlasting marriage. Bat
| tie, and Storm and darkness cannot do 1t. Is
it too much exultation for man, who Is but
dust and ashes like myself, to cry out today:
Il am persuaded that neither height, nor
depth, nor principalities, nor powers, nor
| things present, nor things to come, nor any
other creature shall separate me from the
love of God which is in Christ Jesus, my
LordF' Glory he to God that when Christ
and the soul are married they are bound by
a chain, golden chain-it might say so-a
chain with one link, and that one link the
golden ring of Gods everlasting love.
1 go step further, and tell you that when
Christ receives soul into his love he puts OH
him the ring of festivity. You know that it
has been the custom in all ages to bestow
rings on very happy occasions. There is
nothing more appropriate for a birthday gift
than a ring. You delight to bestow such a
| gift upon your children at such a time. 1t
means joy, hilarity, festivity. Well, when
| this old man of the text wanted to tell how
glad he was that his boy had got back, he
expressed it in this way. Actually, before he
| ordered sandals to be put on his bare feet,
before he ordered the fatted calf to be killed
to appease the boys hunger, he commanded:
Put ring on his hand
Oh, it is merry time when Christ and
the soul are united. Joy Of forgiveness!
What a splendid thing it is to feel that all is
right between me and God. What glorious
thing it is to have God just take up all the
sins of my life and put them in one bundle,
and then fling them into the depths Of the
sea, never to rise again, never to be talked
of again. Pollution all gone. Darkness all
| illumined. God reconciled The prodigel
home. "Put ring on his hand
Every day find happy Christian people. l
find some Of them with no second coat, some
of them in huts and tenement houses, not
one earthly comfort afforded them; and yet
they are as happy us happy can be. They
sing "Rock of Ages as no other people in
the world sing it. They never wore any
| jewelry in their life but one gold ring, and
that was the ring of Gods undying affection.
| Oh, how happy religion makes us! Did it
make you gloomy and sadl Did you go with
| your head cast down, | do not think you
| got religion my brother. That is not the eff
| feet Of religion. True religion is joy. Her
| ways are ways Of pleasantness, and all her
paths are peace
Why, religion lightens all our burdens. 1t
| smooths all our way. 1t interprets all our
sorrows. It changes the jar Of earthly dis
cord for the peal of festal bells. In front of
the flaming furnace of trial it sets the forge
IN which scepters are hammered out. Would
| you not like to-day to come up from the
swine feeding and try this religioni All the
| joys of heaven would come out and meet
you, and God would cry from the throne:
Put ring on his hand
You are not happy. l see it. There is no
peace, and sometimes you laugh when you
feel a great deal more like crying The
| world is cheat 1t first wears you down
with its follies, then it kicks you out into
darkness. 1t comes back from the massacre
of a million souls to attempt the destruction
of your soul today. No peace out of God,
but here is the fountain that can slake the
| thirst. Here is the harbos where you can
drop safe anchorage.
Would you not like. ask you-not per-
functorily, but as one brother might talk to
another-would you not like to have pillow
of rest to put your head on. And would you
not like, when you retire at night, to feel
that all is well, whether you wake up to-
morrow morning at q o'clock, or sleep the
sleep that knows no wakingi Would you
not like to exchange this awful uncertainty
about the future for glorious assurance of
heavenl Accept Of the Lord Jesus today,
and all is well. If on your way home some
peril should cross the street and dash your
life out, il would not hurt you. You would
rise up Immediately. You would stand in
the celestial streets. You would be amid the
great throng that forever worship and are
forever happy If this day some sudden dis
ease should come upon you it would not
frighten you. II you knew you were going
you could give a calm farewell to your beau
tiful home on earth, and know that you are
going right into the companionship of those
who have already got beyond the toiling and
the weeping.
You feel on Saturday night different from
the way you feel any other night of the
week You come home from the bank, or
the store, or the shop, and you say: "Well,
now my weeks work is done, and tomorrow
is Sunday 1t is pleasant thought. There
is refreshment and reconstruction in the very
idea Oh, how pleasant it will be, If, when
we get through the day Of our life, and We
go and lie down in our bed Of dust, We can
realize: "Well, now the work is all done,
an>, tomorrow 10 Sunday-an everlasting
Sunday"
Oh, when. thou city of my God,
Shall thy courts ascend,
Where congregations ne'er break up,
And Sabbaths have NO endf
There are people in this house today who
are very near the eternal world II you are
Christians, bid you be Of good cheer. Bear
with you our congratulations to the bright
city. Aged men, who will soon bs gone,
take with you our love for our kindred in tine
better land, and when you sec them tell
them that we are soon coming. Only few
more sermons to preach and hear. Only O
few more heartaches Only few more tolls
Only a few more tears. And then, what an
entrancing spectacle will be open before US!
Beautiful heaven, where all is light,
Beautiful angels clothed in white,
Beautiful strains that never tire,
Beautiful harps through all the choir;
There shall join the chorus sweet,
worshiping ut the Saviour's feet.
Iapproach you now with general invita-
ton, not piciing out here and there a man
nor here and there q woman, nor here and
there child; but giving you an unlimited
invitation, saying: "Come, for all things are
now ready We invite you to the warm
heart of Christ, and the inclosure Of the
Christian church. know a great many
think that the church does not amount to
much, that it is obsolete; that it did its work
and is gone now, so far as all usefulness is
concerned. 1t is the happiest place l have
ever been in. except my own home.