Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-08-08
ense that we should watch and wait un-

good, and yet are dead failuresi Why is
it? They do not exercise the same tact
the same ingenuity. the same surategem
the seme common sense in the work OF
Christ that they do in worldly things
Otherwise they would succeed in this
direction as well as they succeed IN the
other. There are many men who have
an arrogant way with them, although
they may not feel arrogant. Or they
have patronizing way. They talk to q
man OF the world in a manner which
seems TO say, ''Don t you wish you were
as good as am? Why, [
have to look clear down be-
fore can see you, you are so far
beneath me. That manner always
disgusts, always drives men away from
the kingdom of Jesus Christ instead of
bringing them in. When 1 was a lad l
was one day in a village store, and there
was large group of young men there
full of rollicking and fun, and a Chris
tian man came in, and without any in
PRODUCTION Of the subject, and while they
were IN great hilarity, said to one of
them; ''George, what is the first step of
wisdom?' George looked up and said:
Every man to mind his own business!''
Well, it was very rough answer, but it
was provoked. Religion had been
hurled in there as though it were bomb
shell. We must be adroIt in the presen-
tation of religion to the world.
BE NATURAL
Do you suppose that Mary in her con-
versatiOn with Christ lost her simplicity?
or that Paul laundering from Mars hill
took the pulpit tone? Why is it that
people can not talk as naturally in prayer
mo nd
do in worldly circles? For no one ever
succeeds in any kind of Christian work
unless he works naturally. We want to
initiate the Lord Jesus Christ, who
plucked a poem from the grass of the
field. We all want to initiate Him who
talked with farmers about the man who
went forth to SOW, and talked with the
fishermen about the drawn net that
brought in fish OF all sorts, and talked
with the vine dresser about the idler in the
and talked with those newly
affiauced about the marriage supper, and
talked with the man cramped in money
matters about the two debtors and talked
with the woman about the yeast that
leavened the whole lump and talked with
the shepherd about the lost sheep. Oh,
we might gather even the stars of the sky,
and twist them like tOrget-me-nots in the
garland of esUs. We must bring every
thing to Him-Uhe wealth of language,
the tenderness of sentiment, the delicacy
of morning dew, the saffron OF floating
cloud, the tangled surf of the tossing sea,
the bursting thunder guns OF the storm s
mbardment. Yes, every star must
point down to Him, every heliotrope must
breath His praise, every drop in the sum
mer shower must fash HIS glory, all the
tree branches of the forest must thrun
their music in the grand march which
shall celebrate world redeemed.
Now, all this being so, what is the
common sense thing for you and for me
TO do? What we do, l think, will de-
pend upon three great facts. The first
fact that sin has ruined us. 1t has
blasted body, mind and soul. We want
40 Bible to prove that we are sinners
Any man who is not willing to acknowl-
edge himself an imperfect and sinful
being is simply fool and not to be ar
yued with. We all feel that sin has dis
our entire nature. That is one
fact. Another fact is that Christ came
to reconstruct, to restore, to revise, to
to redeem. That is a second fact.
The third fact is that the only time
ne are sure Christ viii pardon us is the
present. Now, what is the common
sense thing for us to do III view of these
.hree facts? You will all agree with me
% quit sin, take Christ and take him
low. Suppose some business man in
whose skill you had perfect confidence
should tell you that morrow (Monday) |
morning, between IL and u 'elOck,
7Ou could by certain financial transact
ion make five thousand dollars, but |
hat on Tuesday, perhaps, you might !
make it, but there would not be any posi-
Iveness about il, and on Wednesday |
here would not be so much, aud Thurs
lay less, Friday less, and so
III less and less-When would you /
attend to the matter? Why your COM |
non sense would dictate: Immediately !
viii attend to that matter, between II !
md y O'Clock Tomorrow (Monda) |
morning, for then I can surely accom- |
,lish it, but on Tuesday l may not, and |
n Wednesday there is less prospect. l |
7ill attend to it tomorrow - Now, let !
IS bring our common sense in this matter |
# religion. Here are the hopes OF the |
gospel. We may get them now To- |
morrow We may get them and we may |
lot. Next day we may and we may not |
The prospect less and less and less and |
ess.
NOW IS THE ACCEPTED TIME.
The only sure time now-now. |
would not talk to you in this way if / did |
lot know that Christ was able to save all |
he people, and save thousands as easily |
IS save one. / would not 90 into a hos /
,ital and tear off the bandages from the |
Wounds if l had no balm to apply. 1 |
would not have the face to tell man he |
5 a sinner unless I had at the same time /
he authority of saying he NAV be saved |
suppose in Venice there is a Raphael, |
AIDED picture, great in its time, bearing !
ONE marks of its greatness. History /
describes the picture. 1t is nearly faded |
way. You say: fOh, what a pity /
hat SO wonderful picture by Raphael |
hould be nearly defaeed. After .
while man comes up, very unskillful /
n art, and ne proposes to retouch it.
Zou say: ''Stand off l would rather
ave It just as it is; you viii make it /
7Orse. After a while there comes an
rtist who was the equal of Raphael. He |
avs: 81 will retouch that picture and /
ring out all its original power You /
ave full confidence in his ability He /
ouches it here and there. Feature after
eature comes forth and when he is done
With the picture it is complete in all its /
riginal power. Now God impressed his
mage on our race but that image has