The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-02-13

evangelism 60 un anQ hold up the great doc.
trines Of Christian churches as absurd, dry
and ins1plicabls technicalities. "There Is
your doctrine Of the Trinity" they say.
"Absurd beyond all bounds. The idea that
Eaere 10 G2d In three persons Impossible
II It Is one God he can't be three, and II there
are three, there can't be one" At the same
time all Of us-they with us-acknowledge
ttnities al around us. Trinity in our own
make-up-body, mind, soul Body. with
think, soul with which we love. Three,
yet one man. Trinity in the air,
light, heat, moisture-yet one atmosphere.
Trinity In the court room-three Judges on
the bench, but one court. Trinities all around
about Us, In earthly government and in
nature. OF course, all the illustrations are
defective, for the reason that the natural
cannot fully illustrate the spiritual But
suppose an ignorant man should come up to
the chemist and say: II deny what you soy
not made of different parta The air is
one; breathe it every day. The water
Is one; ! drink IL every day. You
can't deceive me about the elements that
60 to make up the air and the water" The
chemist would say: 'sYou come up into my
laboratory and will demonstrate this whole
thing to YOU The ignorant man goes into
the chemists laboratory and sees for him,
the air Is one but they are made up Of
different parts. So hasa u . nan who
says: 'T can't understand the doctrine of
the Trinity" God says: "You come up here
into the laboratory after your death, and
you will see-you will see 1t explained, you
will see 1t demonstrated. The ignorant
man cannot understand the chemistry of the
water and the air until he goes into the la
boratory, and we will never understand the
Trinity until we go into heaven. The igno-
rance Of the man who cannot understand the
chemistry Of the air and water does not
change the fact in regard to the composition
Of air and water. Because we cannot under.
stand the Trinity, does that change the facti
"Aud there Is your absurd doctrine about
justification by faith" say these antagonists
who have chewed up the little book Of evan
gelism, and have the consequent embittered
Observation-Disclosures by faith; you can't
explain it" I can explain it. It is simply
this: When a man takes the Lord Jesus
Christ as his Saviour from sin, God let's the
offender of. Just as you have difference
with some one; he has injured you, he apollo
glzes, or he makes reparation. you say:
Nov, that's all right, that's all right" Jus.
tifcatio1 by faith is this: A man takes Jesus
Christ as bis Saviour, and God says to the
man: "Now, it was all wrong before but 1t
Is all right now; it is all right" That was
Muov nhuo uhTLu Lukuer Wud1 uo Wd5.
Justification by faith, it Is going to conquer
There Is your absurd doctrine about re-
generation" !" these antagonists Of evangelism
say. What Is regeneration Why, regener-
alton Is reconstruction. Anybody can under
stand that. Have you not seen people
who are all made over again by some
wonderful influence In other words,
they are just as different now from
what thav mad IN ha r,nccih1a Tho old
Constellation, man-of-war, lay down here
at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Famine came
to Ireland The old Constellation was fitted
up and though it had been carrying gun.
powder and bullets it took bread to Ireland.
You remember the enthusiasm as the old
Constellation went out Of our harbor, and
with what joy it'was greeted by the famish-
ing nation on the other side the sea. That Is
regeneration. A man loaded up with sin
and death loaded up with life. Refitted.
Your observation has been very small in
deed if you have not seen changes in charac.
ter as radical as that q, . ..
A man came into this church one night,
and he was intoxicated, and at an utterance
of the pulpit he said in subdued tone:
"Tbat's 1ie." An officer of the church
tapped him on the shoulder and said: You
must be silent, or you must 20 out" The
next ulBnt GIlut stTauRer calue duu ne "taS
converted to God. He was in the liquor
business. He resigned the business The
next day he sent back the samples that had
Just been sent to him. he began to love that
which he hated baptized him by INNER
sion in the baptistry under this platform.
A large salary was offered him II
he would return to his former busi-
ness. He declined It. He would rather
suffer with Jesus Christ than be pros
l.. - D. 10 IoSt
to his Christian mother The Christian mother
wrote back congratulating him, and said:
IF In the change Of your business you have
lack Of means, como home; You ara always
welcome home" He told OF his conversion
to a dissolute companion. The dissolute
companion said: well. il you have become
q Christ All. you ha Letter go over and talk
to that dying glrl. She is dying with quick
consumption in that mousse" The new con.
vert went there. All the surroundings were
assoqse ss.s G He tod the Ss, a68ng !ssd Git
she, "that can't be, that can't be! What
makes you think sol" II have it here in q
book in my pocket" he replied. He pulled
outa New Testament. She said: SHOW ID
to me; II can be saved, show 1t to me in
that book" He said: II have neglected this
book as you have neglected it for many
years, and don't know where to find it, but
I
Then he began to turn over the leaves. and
strange and beautiful to say, his eye struck
upon this passage: Neither do I condemn
thee; 90 and sin no more" She sand: 1T
isn't possible that is therem yes"
he said, "that is there" He held It up
before her dying eyes, and she said:
"Oh, yes, see 1t for myself; ]
accept the promise: Neither do condemn
thee; 60 and sin no more.'' In few hours
ho~o irif RI Cyav 20
it, and the new convert preached tle funeral
ermon. The man who few days before
had been blasphemer and drunkard and
a hater Of all that was good, he preached the
sermon That is regeneration. that is re-
generationl II there are any dry husks Of
technicality in that, where are they2 All
made over again by the power OF the grace
of God.
A few years ago ship captain came in hero
and sat yonder under the gallery. He came
i'll with contempt for the Church Of God
When an opportunity was given he arose
for IrIyer, and as he was moro than six feet
high, when he arose for prayer no one
doubted that he arose! That hour he be-
came Christian. he went out and told the
ship owners and the ship commanders what
great change had been wrought In him, and
scores and scores have been brought to God
through his fundamentally.
A little while after his conversion he was
on ship off Cape Hatteras in thick and pro-
longed fog, and they were at their wits ends
and knew not what to do, the ship drifting
about hither and thither, and they lost their
bearings; and the converted sea captain
went to his room and asked God for the SAL
vation Of bis ship, and God revealed 1t to
him while he was on his knees that at a GER
tain hour, only little way of, the fog would
lift; and the converted sea captain came
out ON the deck and told how God heard his
prayers. He said ut is all right, boys, very
soon now the fog will lift," mentioning the
hour. A man who stood there laughed
aloud in derision at the idea that God would
answer prayer; but at just the hour when