West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1889-09-12


TO be hunters for the Lord, we must take
sure aim and fire. Not i'm the abstract are
we TO treat things i'm religious discussions. II
physician comes into sick room docs he
treat disease in the abstractf No: he feels
the pulse, takes the diagnosis, then he makes
the prescription. And III we want 70 heal
souls for this life and the life 90 come. we do
not want 10 treat them in the abstract. The
TACT is, you and L have a malady which IL
incurred by grace, will kill us forever. Now,
want no abstraction. Where is the balmY
Where is the physicianf
People say there is n day OF Judgment COM
ing My friends, every day is n day OF iudg-
ment, and you and to-day are being can
vassed, inspected, weighed. Here are the
balances of the sanctuary. They are lifted
and we must all be weighed. Who will come
and be weighed firstf Here is a moralist who
volunteers. He is one OF the most upright
men in the country. He comes. Well, my
brother, get in, get into the balances now
and be weighed. But as he gets into the
balances, / say: what Is that bundle YOU
have along with your "Oh," he says, ''that
is my reputation for goodness, and kindness,
and charity, and generosity, and kindlincss
generally" 20 my brotherl we cannot
weigh that; we are going TO weigh you
you. Now, stand i'm the scales-yon. the
moralist. Paid your debtsY' Yes" you
say, paid all my debts" "Have you acted i'm
an upright way i'm the communityY "Yes
yes" Have you been kind 20 the poor?
h hrs you fsithfu N thousand relations in
before you get out of this scale want 10 ask
thoughts always been righty' "No" you say
no" Put down one mark. Have you loved
the Lord with all your heart and soul. and
mind, and strength "No, you say. Make
another mark: Come, now, be frank and
confess that in ten thousand things YOU
have come short-have you notY,
Yes" Make ten thousand marks
Come now, get me book large enough TO
make the record of that moralist's deficits
My brother, stand in the scales, do not fly
away from them. / put on your side the
scales all the good deeds you ever did, all the
kind words you ever uttered: but on the
other side the scales put this weight, which
God says must put thereon the other side
the scales and opposite to yours / put this
weight: by the deeds of the law shall no
desh living be justified" Weighed and found
wanting.
Still: the balances of the sanctuary arc sus-
pended and we are ready TO weigh any who
come. Who shall be the ncxt? We'll here Is
a Journalist. He comes and he gets into the
balances, and as he gets in l see that all his
renglon IS In genuiexions and in outward
observances. As no gets into the scales /
say What is that you have in this pockety'
"Oh, he says, "thatis Westminster Assembly
Catechism," say: Very good. What
nave You in that other pocketY "Oh," he
says, that is the Heidelberg Catechism.n
Very good. What is that you have under
your arm, standing in this balance of the
sanctuary oh he says, that is church
record" Every good. What are all these
books ON your side the balancesY' ''Oh. = he
says, those are 'Calvin's Institutes" ''My
brother, we are not weighing books; we are
weighing you. 1t cannot be said that you are
depending for your salvation upon your or
thodoxy: Do you not know that the creeds
and the forms of religion are merely the scat
folding for the buildingY You certainly are
not going to mistake the scaffolding for tho
temple. Do you not know that men have gone
TO perdition with catechism in their pocketT'
But, says the man, 81 cross myself often"
ALI that will not save you.p t'Butr savs
mat VIII not save you" Says the man.
Il sat at the communion table"
THAT win not save You" ''Butn
says the man, II have had my name
ON tie church records" THAT will
not save yOu.n But have been a professor
Of religion forty years" THAT will not save
you. Stand there on your side the balances
and VIII give You the advantage will let
you have all the creets, all the church rec
ords, all the Christian conventions that were
ever held, all the communion tables that were
ever built, on your side the balances. On the
other side the balances l must put what God
says l must put there. l put this million
pound weight ON the other side the balances:
Having the form OF godliness, but denying
he power thereof. From such turn away
Weighed and found wanting
stu the balances are suspended. Are
there any others who would like to be
weighed or who will be weighed? Yes. here
comes wording. He gets into the scales.
can very easily see what his whole life is
made up of. Stocks, dividends, percentages.
buyer ten days, 4" buyer thirty days" Get
IN. my friend; get into these balances and be
weighed-weighed for this life and weighed
for the life TO come. He gets in. 1 find that
the two great questions in his life are How
cheaply can buy these goodsy and "How
dearly can / sell themY' / find he admires
Heaven because it is a land of gold and money
must be easy"
find from talking with him that religion
and the Sabbath are an interruption vul-
gnr interruption, and he hopes on the wav 10
church 20 drum upa new customer. AIfthe
week he has been weighing fruits, weighing
meats, weighing ice, weighing coal weighing
confect ons, weighing worldly and perishable
commodities, not realizing the fact that he
himself has been weighed. On your side the
balances, . wording! / viii give you full
advantage. put on your side all the bank
ing houses, all the storehouses, all the car
goes, all the insurance companies, all the fac
tories, all the silver all the gold, all the
money vaults, all the safety deposits-aIl ON
Your side. But It does not add one ounce,
Tor at the very moment we are congratu-
lating You on your fine house and upon your
princely income God and the angels are writ
ing IN regard 70 your soul Weighed and
lOuun wanting
But must 60 faster and speak Of the final
scrutiny The fact Is. my friends we are
moving on amid astounding realities These
pulses which now are drumming the march
OF LIE may, after a while call n halt We
walk ON hair hung bridge over chasms An
around us are dangers making ready 10
spring on us from ambush We lie down NJ
night, not knowing whether we shall arise i'm
the morning. We start out for orr cccupa-
lions not knowing whether we shall come
back. Crowns being FURNISHED for thy brow
or bolts forged FOR thy prison. Angels Of light
ready 70 shout at thv deiiyerence or fends
ot darkness stretching up skeleton hands
- phil thee down into ruin consummafe
Suddenly the Judgment will be here the
angel, with one foot ON the sea end the other
loot on the land viii swear bv Him that liveth
forever aud ever that time shall be no longer:
Behold. He cOmeth with cloude. and every
eye shall see Him. Hnrk ~ the Earring of the
mountains. Why, This is the sci ting down Of
the scales, the balances And then there is "A
hasn az from a cloud, but 10 is the giitter ~
the shining balances. and they are hoisted
ana all nations are 81 be weighed The I'm
forgiven get IN ON this side the balances
Ihey may have weighed thcm.civcs aud pro.
nounced n fottering decision The world
may have weighed them and pronounced
them moral Now they are being weighed
in Cod balances the balances that can make
no mistake. AN the property gone all thq
if.c' ot distinction gone Gll the worldly sue
fee gone, there is soul. absolutely moth
, 4 .i.. but soul an immortal soul, o never