The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1888-08-22


Now, there are two kinds of higher life
men. The one are admirable, and the
other are most repulsive. The one kind
of higher life man is very lenient in his
criticism OF others, does not bore prayer
meetings to death with long harangues,
does not talk a great deal about himself,
but much about Christ and heaven, gets
kindler and more gentle and more USE
full until one day his soul spreads a
wing and he flies away to eternal rest,
and everybody mourns his departure.
The other higher life man goes around
with Bible conspiciously under his arm,
goes from church to church, sort OF
general evangelist, is q nusence to his
pastor when he is at home, and nusence
to other pastors when he is away from
home; runs up to some man who is count
ing out roll of bank bills, or running
up difficult line of figures, and asks
him how his soul is; makes religion
dose of ipecacuanhs; standing in reG-
gious meeting making an address, he
has a patronizing way, as though ordl-
nary Christians were clear away down
below him, so he had to talk st the top
of his voice in order to make them hear,
but at the same time encouraging them
to hope on; that by climbing many years
they may after while come up within
sight of the place where he now stands.
I tell you plainly that roaring, roister-
ing, bouncing sinner Is not repulslVe to
me as that higher life malformation.
The former may repent; the latter never
gets over pharisaism. The younger
brother of the parable came back, but
the senior brother stands outside entire
" oblyious of his own delinquencies
and deficits, pronouncing his own eulog-
ium. Oh, how much easier it is to blame
others than to blame ourselvesi Adam
blamed Eve, Eve blamed the serpant the
serpant blamed the devil, the senior
brother blamed the younger brother, and
none of them blamed themselves.
Again, the senior brother of my text
stands for all those who are faithless
about the reformation of the dissipated
and the dissolute. In the very tones OF
his voice you can hear the fact that he
has no faith that the reformation of the
younger son is genuine. His entire
manner seems to say: '"That boy has
come back fof more money. He got
third of the property; now be has come
back for auoteer third. He will never
be contented to stay on the farm. He
will fall away. would 60 in, too, and
rejoice with the others if I thought this
thing was genuine; but it is sham.
That boy Is confirmed inebriate and
debsuchee." Alas! my friends, for the
increduity in the church of Christ in
reguard to the reclamation of the reeeant!
You say man has been strong drinker.
I say; eyes; but he has reformed" ooh"
you say, with lugubrious face, 81 hope
you are not mistaken; I hope you are
not mistaken" You say: "Don't rejoice
too much over his conversion, for soon
he will be unconverted, I fear. Don't
make too big party for that returned
prodigal, or strike the timbres too loud;
and if you kill calf, kill the one that
is on the commons, and not the one that
has been luxuriating in the paddock. "
That is the the reason why more prodi-
gals do not come home to their fathers
house. It is the rank in6delity in the
church of God on this subject. There
is not house On the streets OF heaven
that has not got prodigal that has re-
turned and stayed home. There could
be unrolled before you q scroll of
hundred thousand nsmes-the names OF
prodigals who came back forever reform
ed. Who was John Buyan? A returned
prodigal. Who was Richard Baxter?
A returned prodigal. Who was George
WhiteGeld, the thunderer? A returned
prcdigal. And I could go out in all
directions In this audience and find on
either side those who, once far astray
for many years, have been faithful, and
their eternal salvation is IS sure as
though they had been ten years IN
heaven. And yet some Of you have not
enough faith in their return.
You do not know how to shake hands
with prodigal. You do not know how
to pray for him. You do not know how
to greet him. He wants to sail in the
warm gulf stream of Christian sympathy.
You are the iceberg against which he
strikes and shivers. You say he has
been 8 prodigal. I knot it. But you
are the sour, unresponsive, censorlous,
saturnine, cranky, elder brother, and If
you are going to heaven one would think
some people would be tempted to 60 to
perdition to get away from you. The
hunters say that if deer be shot the
other deer shove him out of their
company, and the general rule is away
with the man who has been wounded
with sin. Now, I say, the more bones
man has broken the more need he has
of hospital, and that the more man
heen bruised and cut with sin the more
need he has to be carried into human
and divine sympathy. But for such men
there is not much room In this world
the men who want to come back after
wandering. Plenty Of room for elegant
sinners sinners in velvit, and satin, and
lace-for sinners high salaried, for kid
gloved and patent leather sinners; for
sinners fixed up by hair dresses, poma-
tuned, and lavendered, and cologned,
and frizzled, and crimped, and "banged"
sinners of room. Such We meet
slegantly at the door of our churches,
and We invite them into our best seats
with Chesterfeldinn gallantries; We
usher them into the house of God and
put soft ottomans under their feet and
puts gilt edged prayer book in hand, and
pass the contribution box before them
with an air of apology, while they, the
generous souls, take out the exquisite
portemonnaie, and open it, and with
diamond finger push down beyond the
ten dollar gold pieces and delicately pick
out as an offering to the Lord, Of one
cent. For such sinners, plenty of room,