The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1889-08-15
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COMMON SENSE IN DOING coon

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stratagem, tho same 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 ar
rogant. Or they have a patronizing
way. They talk to man Of the world
in a manner which seems TO saw:
Don't you wish you were as good as
| anna Why, have to look clear down
before | 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 I was lad
was one day in q village store, and
there was large group of young men
there full of rollicking and fun, and a
Christian man came in, and without
any introduction Of the subject, and
while they were in great hilarity, said
to one OF them: George, what is the
first step Of wisdom2" George looked
up and said: Every man to mind his
own business" Well, it was a very
rough answer, but it was provoked.
Religion had been hurled in there as
though it were a bombshell. We must
be adroit in the presentation of religion
to the world.
BE NATURAL.
Do you suppose that Mary in her
conversation with Christ lost her sim
plicitya or that Paul, laundering
from Mars Hill, took the pulpit tone3
Why is it people cannot talk as natur-
ally in prayer meeting and on relig-
ious subjects as they do in worldly
circles2 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 fisher
mon about the drawn net that brought
in fish of all sorts, and talked with
the vine dresser about the iGer in the
vineyard, and talked with those newly
afiianced 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 forget-me-nots in the garland
OF Jesus. We must bring everything
to him-the wealth of language, the
tenderness of sentiment, the delicacy
of morning dew, the saffron Of float
ing cloud, the tangled surf of the
tossing sea, the bursting thunder guns
of the storms bombardment. Yes, ev-
cry star must point down to him, every
heliotrope must breathe his praise,
every drop in the summer shower
must flash his glory, all the tree
branches of the forest must thrum
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 do9 What we do / think will
depend upon three great facts. The
first fact that sin has ruined US. 1t has
blasted body, mind and soul. We
want no Bible to prove that we are
sinners. Any man who is not willing
to acknowledge himself an imperfect
and a sinful being is simply fool and
not to be argued with. We all feel
that sin has disorganized our entire
nature. That is one fact Another
fact is that Christ came to reconstruct,
to restore, TO revise, to correct, to re-
deem. That is a second fact The
third fact is that the only time we are
sure Christ will pardon us is the pres
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thing for us to do in view of these
three facts2 You will all agree with me
to quit sin, take Christ and take hin
now. Suppose some business man IL
whose skill you had perfect confidence
should tell you that tomorrow mon
day. morning between II and ~ o'clocl
you could by a certain financial trans
action make five thousand dollars, bu
that on Tuesday perhaps you nigh
make it, but there would not be an,
positiveness about it, and on Wednes
day there would not be SO much, AM
Thursday less, Friday less, and so OIL
less and less-when would you atten'
to the matter2 Why, your commol
sense would dictate:' Immediately
will attend to that matter betweel
IL and IL o'clock tomorrow (Mon
day. morning, for then | can surel
accomplish it, but on Tuesday
may not, and Oh Wednesday ther
is less prospect. l will attend TO it tc
morrow" Now let us bring our CON
mon sense in this matter of religion
Here are the hopes of the Gospel. w
may get them now. Tomorrow W
may get them and we may not. Nex
day we may and we may not. Th
prospect less and less and less and les:
NOW IS THE ACCEPTED TIME.
The only sure time now-now.
would not talk to you in this way If
did not know that Christ was able
save all tho people, and save thos
sands as easily as save one. l woul
not go into hospital and tear off th
bandages from the wounds If l had y
balm to apply. would not have th
face TO tell q man he is a sinner unle:
7 / had at the same time the authorit
of saving he may be saved. Suppos
in Venice there is a Raphael, a fade
picture. great in its time, bearing som
marks of its greatness. History d.
scrihes that picture. 1t is nearly fade
away. You say: ''Oh, what pit
that so wonderful a picture by r
| phael should be nearly defacedf Att
a while a man comes up, very unskil
full in art, and he proposes TO retouc
it. You say: Stand offl woul
rather have it just as it is; you WI
only make it worse" After q whi
there comes au artist who was Il
equal of Raphael. He says: II wi
retouch that picture and bring out
its original power" You have fu
confidence in his ability. He touch
it here and there. Feature after fea
ure comes forth, and when he Is dol
with tho picture it Is complete In q
its original power. Now God II
pressed his image on our race, b
that image has been defaced for hu
dreds and for thousands of years, &c
ting fainter and fainter. Here com
up divine Raphael. He says: Il c.
restore that picture" He has all pow
in heaven and on earth. He is u
equal of the One who made the pi
ture, the image of the Ono who DIRE
the image OF God in our soul /
touches this sin and ii is gone, tn
transgression and it disappears, and
the defacement yanishes, and ''whe
sin abounded grace doth much mo
; abound" Will you have the defac
ment or will you have the restoration
} am we'll persuaded that if / could
a touch of heavenly pathos in two mi
utes put before you what has be-
done to save your soul, there wou
, be an emotional tide overwhelmin
Mamma" said q little child to h
mother when she was being put TO b
at night, mamma, what makes yo
hand so Scared and twisted and unli
other peoples handsl" "Weh, sa
! the mother, ''my child, when you we
younger than you are now, years az
, one night after had put you TO beo
! heard cry, q shrek upstairs. / car
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