Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1888-08-22

text. like every other self-righteous man
was full of faults. He was an migrate, fol
he did not appreciate the home blessings
which he had all those years. He was dis
obedient, for when the father told him tt
come in he stayed out. He was liar, fol
he said that the recreant son had devoureo
his fathers living, when the father, so fal
from being reduced to penury, had a nome
stead left, had instruments of music, haC
Jewels. had a mansion, and instead of being
a pauper, was prince. This senior broth
er with so many faults of his own, was
merciless in his criticism of the younger
brother. The only perfect people that
have ever known was utterly obnoxious.
was never 80 badly cheated in all my life as
by a perfect man. He got so far up IN his
devotions that he was clear up above all
the rules of common honesty. These mer
that 90 about Crawling among prayer meet
ings, and in places OF business, telling now
good they are-look out for them; keep your
hand on your pocket book I have noticed
that Just in proportion as man gets good
he gets humble. The deep Mississippi does
not make as much noise as the brawling
mountain rivulet. There has been many a
stoiJ that had more goods in the show
window than inside on the shelves.
This self-righteous man of the text stood
at the corner of the house hugging himself
in admiration. We hear great deal in
our day about the higher life. Now, there
are two kinds of higher life men. The on
are admirable and the other are most re-
Ipulsive The one kind of higher-life man
is very lenient in his criticism of other, does
not bore prayer meetings to death with long
harangues, does not talk great deal about
himself, but much about Christ and leav.
en-, gets kinder and more gentle and more
useful, until one day his soul spreads wing
and he flies away to eternal rest, and every
body mourns his departure. The other
higher life man goes around with a Bible
conspicuously under his. arm, goes from
church to church, a sort of general evangel'
ist is nuisance to his own pastor when he
is at home, and nuisance to other pastors
when he is away from home; runs up to
some man who is counting out a roll OF
bank bills, or running up a difficult line oi
figures, and asks him how his soul is; makes
religion dose of ipecacuanha; standing in
a religious meeting making an address, be
has patronizing way, as though ordinary
Christians were clear away down below him,
so he had to talk at 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 be
now stands tell you plainly that roaring,
bouncing sinner is not SO repulsve to me as
the higher-life malformation. The former
may repent; the latter never gets over his
pharisaism. The younger brother of the
parable came back, but the senior brother
stands outside entirely cblivious of his owr
delinquencies and deficits, pronouncing his
own eulogium. Oh, how much easier 1t is
to blame others than to blame ourselves
Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed the serpent
the serpent blamed the devil, the senior
brother blamed the younger brother, and
none of them blamed themselves.
Again, the senior brother of my tex
stands for all those who are faithless about
the reformation of the dissipated and ths
dissolute. In the very tones of his voice
you can hear the fact that he has no faitt
that the reformation OF the younger son ii
genuine. His entire manner seems to say
} tsThat boy has come back for more money
He got third of the property; now he ha'
come back for another third. He will neve
be contented to stay on the farm. He vii
tall away. I would go in too and reJoic'
with the others if thought this thing wa
genuine; but 1t is sham. That boy is ;
2 confirmed ipebriate and debauchee. Alas
f my friends. for the incredulity in the Church
: of Christ in regard to the reclamation of th
t recreant. You say man has been strong
s drinker. say, "Yes, but he has reform
: ed" "Oh," you say, with lugubriou
, face, 81 hope you are not mistaken, hop'
, you are not mistaken" You say, "Don'
rejoice too much over his conversion, fo
soon he will be unconverted, fear. Dom
t make too big party for that returned pro
t digal, or strike the trimbrel too loud; ant
] if you kill calf, kill the one that is on th
a. commons, aad not the one that has beer
e efluxuriating in the paddock" That is tn
: reason why more prodigals do not com
home to their fathers house. 1t is the ranl
: infidelity in the Church of God on this sub
r iect. There is not a house on the streets o
J. heaven that has not in it o prodigal tina
!, has returned and strayed home. Their
r could be unrolled before you scroll OF
hundred thousand names-the name Q
: ,ndigals who came back forever reformed
, Wbo vas John Bunyan? A returned pro
r d;roi m Who was Richard Baxter? A re
trsuod ,,no 'igal. Who was George White
field 't tbe ; tbnn, 'erer? A returned prodigal
And 7 oonld 90 o., It in all directions in thi
anJ;ence % ~ and find ID on either side those who
once far astray for ma " years, nave :. zoe =
faithful, and their eternal 4"ls as,on wv. 10 a
sure as though they had bee- I 80 S1s,-I no
heaven. And yet some Of 70. ""'o ~
enough faith in their return. .,d
You do not know how to shake @nu :
with prodigal. Yen do not know how
pray for him You do not know how t.
greet him. He wants to sail in the warm
gulf stream of Christian sympathy. You
: ara the iceberg against which he strikes and
| shivers. You say he has been prodigal
| know it. But you are the sour, unrepon-
siVe, ceDsorious, saturnine, cranky, elder
brother, and if you are going to heaven one
would think some people would be tempt
ed to go to perdltion 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 bro
ken the more need he has of hospital, and
that the more man hes beer bruised and
cut with sin tho 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 fol-
elegant sinners, sinners in velvet and satin
and lace, for sinners high-salaried, for kid
gloved and patent-leather sinners, for sin.
ners, for sinners fixed up by hair-dresser
pomatumed and lavendered aDd cologned
and frizzled and crimped sAd changed
sinners-plenty of room! Such we meet
elegantly at the door of our churches, and
we invite them into the best seats with
Chesterfeldian gallantries; We usher them
into the house of God, and put soft ottomans
under their feet, and put gilt edged pray
er book in their hand, and pass the contri-
button box before them with an air oi
apology, while they, the generous souls
take out the exquisite portmonnaie, and
open it, and with diamond-f oger push down
beyond the ten-dollar gold pieces aud de
licately pick out as an expression of graft
tude, their offering to the Lord, ofone cent
For such sinners-plenty of room, plenty Of
room. But for the man who has beeu
drinking until his coat is threadbare and
his face is erysipelased, and his wife's wed
ding, dress is in the pawnbroker's shop, and
his children, instead of being in school, are
out begging broken bread at the basement
doors of the city-the man, body, mind and
soul, on fire with the flames that have leap
ed from the scathing, scorchiDg, blasting,
consuming cup which the drunkard takes,
trembling, and agonized, and affrighted,
and presses to his parched lip, and his
cracked tongue, and his shrieking yet im-
mortal spirit-no room.