The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1889-08-30


know why we ministers Of the Gospel need
always be fishing IN the same stream and
preaching 9rom tho same text that other
people preach from. I can not under
stand Tho policy of the minister
who, in Blackfriars, London, En-
gland, every week for thirty years
preached from the Epistle to the He
brews. 1t is an exhilaratiOn to me when
] come across a theme which feel no
one else has treated, and my text is one
OF that kind. There are paths in G od's
word that are we'll beaten by Christian
feet. When men want to quote Script
ure, they quote the old passages that
every one has heard. When they want a
chapter read, they read chapter that all
tho other people have been reading, so
that the Church to- day is ignorant of
thrCe-fourths Of the Bible. You go into
the Louvre at Paris. You confine your
solf to one corridor of that Opulent gall
lcry of paintings. As you come out your
friend says to you:
'Did you see that Rembrandt?"
'No."
"Did you see that Rubens?"
rNoD
Did you soc that Titian1"
"No."
"Did you see that Raphael?"
"No."
"WeH," says your friend, ''then you
didn't see tie Louvre"
Now, my friends, I think we are too
much apt to coufine ourselves to one of
tho great corridors of this Scripture
truth, and so much so that there is not
one person out Of million who has ever
noticed the all-suggestive and powe rful
picture in the words of my text.
This text represents God as strong
swimmer, striking out to push down in
iquity and save the souls of men.
lie shall spread forth His hands in the midst
OF them as he that swimmeth spreadeth forth
his hands to swim.
The figure is bold and many sided.
Most # you know how to swim. Some
of you learned in the city school, where
this art is taught; some of you in boy
hood, in the river near your fathers
house; some of you since you came to
manhood or wOmauhoOd while summer
ing on the beach Of the sea. You step
down in the waves, you throw your head
back, you bring your elbows to the
chest you put the palms OF your hands
downward and the sOles Of your feet
outward, and you push through the water
as though you had been born aquatic. II
IS a great thing to know how to swim,
not only for youself, but because you will
after awhile, perhaps, have to help to
save others.
] do not know any thing more stirring
CT sublime than to see some man like Nor
man Mckenzie loaping from the ship
Madras into the sea To save Charles Tur-
ner, who had dropped from the royal
yard while trying to loosen the sail
bringing him back to the deck amid the
huzzls Of the passengers and crew. IL q
man has not enthusiasm enough to cheer
in such circumstances he deserves him.
self to drop into the sea and have no one
help him. The Royal Humane Society OF
England was established in I774; its OBJ
jcct to applaud and reward those who
should pluck up life from the deep. Any
ono who has performed such a deed oil
daring has all the particulars Of tina
bravery recorded in public record, and
ON his breast medal done in blue and
gold and bronze, anchor and monogram
aud inscription, telling to future genera
tious the bravery of the man or woman
who saved some one from drowning
But my friends, if it is such a worthy
thing to save a body from the deep, ash
YOU il &c is not a worthier thing to save
an immortal soulY And you shall see thii
hour The Son of God step forth for thi.
achievement.
lie shall spread forth His hand in the mids
OF them, as he that sWlmmCth spreadeth fortl
lis hands TO swim.
In order to understand the full force
OF tbis figure, you need to realize, first o.
ALL that our race is in a sinking condi'
tion. You sometimes hear people talk
ing OF what they con slider the most beau.
says tits "home," another man says 1t is
the word mother" another says it is
the word Jesus" but 1 will tell you the
bitterest word in all our language, the
word most angry and baleful, the word
saturated with the most trouble, the
word that accounts for all the loathsome
ness, and the paug, and the outrage, and
the narrowing, and that word is "sin.'
You spell it with three letters, and We
those three letters describe the circum,
ference and pierce the diameter of every,
thing bad in the universe. SinI it is
sibilaut word. You can not pronounce 1
without giving the siss of the fame o.
the hiss of the serpent. Sini And thel
il you add three letters to that word i
describes every one of US by nature
sinner. We have outraged the law o
God, not occasionally, or now and then
hut perpetUally. The Bible declares it
lIarl! 1t thuuders two olaps; "The hear
is deceitful above all things and desper
Htely wicked" THE soul that sinneth
Sc shall die"
What the Bible says our own conscience
uCirms. After Judge Morgan had sen
tcuced Lady Jane Grey TO death his con,
science troubled him much for ths
deed that he became insane, and al
through his insanity he kept saying
Take her away from me! Lady Jan
Grey. Take her away; Lady Jane Grey =
ltwas the voice Of his conscience. An
no man ever done any thing wrong, how
ever great or small, but his conscienc
brings that matter before him, and a
every step Of his misbehavior it says
wrong, wrongl" Sin is a leprosy, ST
is a paralysis, sin IS a consumption, ST
IS pollution, sin is death. Give it fai
chance, and it viii swamp you, body
mind and soul, forever. In this world j
only gives a faint iuGmation OF its viru
lc@ce. You see patient IL the FRS
stages Of typhoid fever; the cheek j
somewhat flushed, the hands somewha
bot. preceded by slight chill. "Why,
YOU say, typhoid fever does not seem {
be much Of disease" But wait unit
the patient has been six weeks under il
ana all his energies have been wrung GU
and lac is too weak 10 lift his little finger
nud his intellect is gone; then YOU sc
tpe full heyoo Of the disease.