The San Saba news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1873-1966, 1889-10-18

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on the way home;n aud suppose that man
! should say: 81 don't like that lantern. don't
like the handle of it, there are ten or fifteen
Things about it don't like; if you can't give
me better lantern than that 1 won't have
any,
Now, God says this Bible is to be a lamp to
our feet and a lantern to our path, to guide
US through the midnight of this world to tho
gates Of the celestial city. We take hold Of
It in sharp criticism, and deprecate this. and
deprecate that. Oh, how much wiser we
would be if 10y its holy light we found our
way to our everlasting homel
Then we do not read the Bible as we read
other books. Weread il perhaps four or five
minutes just before we retire at night. We
are weary and sleepy, 50 somnolent VIC hardly
know which end Of the book is up, We drop
our eye, perhaps on the story Of Sampson
and the foxes, or upon some genealogical tebl
important in its place but stirring no more
religious emotion than the announcement
that somebody begat somebody else,
and he begat somebody else, instead
of opening the book and saying: snow ]
must read for my immortal life. My eternal
destiny is involved in this bookn
How little we use common sense IN
prayerl We say: -'Oh, Lord, give me
this" and "Oh Lord, give me that" and
"Oh, Lord, give me something else, and we
do not expect to get it, or getting it.
we do not know we have it. We have
no anxiety about it. We do not watch
and wait for its coming.
As merchant, you telegraph or you write
to some other city for bill of goods. You
say: 'Send me by such express, or by such
steamer, or by such rail train.n The day ar
riTes. You send your wagon to the depot or
TO the wharf. The goods do not come. You
Immediately telegraph: "What is the matter
with those goods2 We haven't received them.
Send them right away. We want them now.
or we don't want them at alln And you keep
writing and you keep telegraphing, and yop
keep sending your wagon to the depot, or to
the express Office, or to the wharf, until you
get the goods
In matters of religion we are not so wise
as that We ask certain things to De sent
from heaven We do not know whether
they COME or not We have not any special
anxiety as 20 whether they come or not.
We may get them end may not get them.
Instead OF at z o'clock in the morning
saying: ''Have I got that blessiEgs p
at II O'Clock MONDAY, asking: ''Have
I got that blessing5' at Z o'clock in
the evening saying; "Have received that
blessingP and not getting it pleading,
pieading-begging, begging-aSking, asking
until you get. Now, my brethren, is not
that common senses II we ask thing from
God, who has sworn by His eternal throne
that lie Win do that which we ask, Is it not
common sense that we should watch and
wait until we get it2
but remark again: We want more COM
mon sense in doing good How many people
there are who want TO do good and yet are
lead failuresl Why is it: They do not ex-
srclse the same tact, the same ingenuity, the
iame stTntagem. the same common sanSa N
he work Of Christ that they do in worldly
-hings- Otherwise they would succeed in
his direction as well as they succeed
N the other. There are many men
ThO have an arrogant way with |
hem, although they may not feel arrogant. !
)r they have pabonizing way. They talk
10 q man Of the world in a manner which /
seems to say: Don't you wish you were as
good as I am2 Why, I have to look clear +
Town before l can see you, you are so far
)Gneath me- That manner always dis /
5usts, always drives men away from the
dngdom Of Jesus Christ instead of .
ringing them in. When / was a
I'd VAS one day in a village store, and
here was 4 large group Of young men there
I'll OF roilicldng and fun, and a Christian
nan came III, and without any introduction
# the subject, and while there were in great
iiarity, said to one Of them: George what
5 the first step Of WisdomY7 George looked
p and said: every man TO mind his own
usiness." Vel, it was very rough answer,
urled in there as though it wero bomb
hell. We must be adroit in tie presenta-
ion Of religion to the world
Do you suppose that Mary ia her CONVEX
alton with Christ lost her simplicity? or
hat Paul, laundering from Mars Hill, took
be pulpit toner Why is it people cannot
ak Us naturally in prayer meeting and on
eligious subjects as they do in worldly
lrcles? For no one ever succeeds in any
orb lsra
aturally. We want to initiate tho Lord
esus Christ, who plucked a poem from the
rass of the field. We all want to
nitate Him who tz-iss-s-i viii
lrmers about the man who went
nth to SOW, and talked with the fisher
zen about the drawn not that brought in
81 of all sorts and talked with the vine
resser about the idler in the vineyard, and
liked with those newly aiIianced about the
aITisge supper, and tailed with the man
-amped in money matters about the two
sbtors, and talked with the woman about
le yeast that leayened the whole lump. and
liked with the shepherd about the lost sheep.
n, We might gather even the stars OF the
y and twist them like fOrget-me-nots in the
lrland of Jesus. We must bring everything
Eim-the wealth Of language, the tender
9ss Of sentiment, the delicacy Of morning
W, the saffron Of floating cloud, the tangled
rf Of the tossing sea, the bursting thunder
ms of the storms bombardment Yes,
cry star must point down b him, every
'liotrope must breathe His praise, every
-op in the summer shower must flash His
ory, all the tree branches of the forest
ust thrum their music in the grand march
hleh shall celebrate worldredeemed. ]
Now, all this being so, what is the common
lse thing for you and for me to doS What ]
, do think viii depend upon three great /
cts. The first fact that sin has ruined US :
has blasted body, mind and soul. ;
9 want no Bible to prove that we are
lneTs. Any man who is not willing
acknowledge himself au imperfect
d a sinful being is simply fool and not to
argued with. We 81 feel that sin has dis &
ganized orr entire nature. That is one (
It. Another fact is that Christ came to Z
to restore, to revise, to correct :
redeem That is a second fact The S
I'd fact IS that the only time we are sure '
rist viii pardon us is the pres l
J. Now, what is the common sense thing i
US o do in view OF these three facts2 q
u will all agree with me to quit sin, take a
rist and take Him now Suppose some a
siness man in whose skill you had perfect I
lfidence should tall you that tomorrow f
Ondayl morning between II and u o'clock Ii
] could by a certain financial trans
ion make five thousand dollars, but a
It on Tuesday perhaps You might f
Ike it. but there would not be any posi- n
eness about it, and on wednesday there j.
1ld not be so much, and Thursday less, I
day less and 50 On, less and leSs-when
nd you attend to the matter? Why, your f
anon sense would dictate: Immediately: q,
i'll attend to that matter between II and =
o'clock tomorrow CMonday) morn y,
for then I can surely ac- N
0mplish it, but on Tuesday 1 &
y not, and on Wednesday there is less :
spect. l viii attend TO it tomorrow" n
v lot us bring our common sense in this r.
tier Of religion. Here are the hopes Of =,
Gospel. We may get them ,17-[ To =
ron ne may get them and Ye may not ID
t day We may md T9 may moi. Inc III
spect les and less and less and less tn
ie only sure time nOW-nOY. l would 50
talk to YOU in this way il did not know I'll
Christ was ahle 60 save all the people, Sc
save thousands as easily as save one 1 fo
Id not 20 into hospital and tear oil tho TO
5ages from the wounds had ",
hahn 20 apply / would not nave L,
face TO tell man he is 4 sinner unless Or
had at the same time the authority IL
aging he may be saved. Suppose IN 81
ice there is a Raphael, faded picture, eff
It in its time, bearing some marks OF Us 81
ltness History describes that picture IL :.
sarly faded away. You say: ''Oh- what III
tY that so wonderful picture by haphaei y,
i'd be nearly defacedP' After awhile bl
comes up. very unskillful in art, and ne ia
)oses TO retOnch it. You say: oOanu OF
would rather have it Just as 1t IS; you ac
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