Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1889-09-13

spe Washington, and all the cities OF
noun. ,.h they would crush it. No. no.
a ne e ~ vii come when God will SIT
49, nu nn the white throne to see the
wv" s',a ,raiohed. and on one side Will be
tho worlds opportunities, ana on the
other side the worlds SINS. DOWN VIII
oo The sins, and away VIII go the oppcr-
ENTITIES. and God will say TO the mes
senoers with the loren: bum tha az
world! Weighed and found Want,ng!
"1 cd will weigh churches. He takes a
oreot church. That great church, accord
mo ia the worldly estimate, must be
wa;ohed. Heputs it on one side of the
holancas and the minister and the choir
ana the building that costs its hundreds
of thousauds of dollars. He puts them
IN one side of the balances. On the
her side of that scale he puts what
that church ought to be, what its conse-
Grafton ought to be. what its sympathy
for the poor ought to be, what it's de-
yotion to all good ought to be. That IS
on one side. That side comes down, and
the church not being able to stand the
test, rises in the balances. 1t does not
make any difference about your magnlfl-
cent machinery. church is built Tor
one thing-to save souls. IT 1t saves
few souls when it might save n multi
|
| his mouth. Weighed and found want
| ing! SO God estimates nations. How
many times he has put the Spanish
monarch into the scales, and found it
insufficient and condemned it! The
French Empire was placed on one side
the scales, and God weighed the French
Empire, and Napolean said: Have /
| not enlarged the bouleyards? Did not
kindle the glories of the Champs Ely
sees? Have I not adorned the Tuileries?
Have / not built the gilded opera
h ouse?" Then God weighed that nation,
and he put on one side of the scales the
emperor, and the boulevards, and the
Tuileries, and the Champs Elysees, and
the gilded opera house. and onthe other
side he put that mans nominations, that
mans libertinisln, that mans selfish
ness, that mans goddess ambition. This
last came down, and all the brilliancy of
the scene vanished. What is that voice
coming up from Sedan? Weighed and
found wanting!
But | must become more individual
and more personal in my address. Some
people say they do not think clergymen
ought to be personal in their religious
addresses, but ought to deal with sub
jects in the abstract. l do not think
that way. What ..wouldyou think of q
hunter who should go to the Adiron-
dacks to shoot deer in the abstract? All!
no. He loads the gun. he puts the butt
Of it against the breast, he runs the eye
along the barrel, he takes sure aim, and
then crash goes the antlers on the rocks.
And so, if we want to be hunters for the
Lord, we must take sure aim and fire.
things in religious discussions. If a
physician came to sick room, does he
treat disease in the abstract? No; he
feels the pulse, takes the diagnosis,
then he makes the prescription. And if
we want to heal souls for this life and
the life to come, we do not want to treat
them in the abstract. The fact is, you
and have malady which, if incurred
by grace, will kill us forever. Now, I
want no abstraction. Where is the balm?
Where is the physician?
| People say there is day of judgment
coming. My friends, every day is a day
of judgment, and you and l to-day are
being canvassed, inspected, weighed.
Here are the balances of the sanctuary.
They are lifted, and we must all be
weighed. Who will come and be weighed
first? Here is o 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 bal
ances, say: What is that bundle you
have along with you?" Oh" he says,
that is my reputation for goodness, and
kindness, and charity, and generosity,
and kindness generally" 20 my
brother! we cannot weigh that; we are
i going to weigh you-you. Now. stand
IN the as seales-y you the moralist. Paid
my debts. Have you acted in an up
right way in the community" "Yes,
yes. Have you been kind to the poor?
Are you faithful in thousand relations
IN llfe!" Yes" So far, SO good. But
now, before you get out of this scale,
want to ask you two or three questions.
Have your thoughts always been right"
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 con-
TESS that in ten thousand things YOU
have come short-have you not?" "Yes. ;"
Make ten thousand marks. Come now,
get me book large enough to make the
record of that moralists deficits. Nv
brother. stand in the scales, do not hy
away from them. Iput on your side the
scales all the good deeds you ever did,
go w hino "oIus you ever uttered; but
on the other side the scales 1 put this
weight, which God says l must put
thereon the other side the scales and
opposite to yours I put this weight:
by the deeds of the law shall no flesh
living be justified Weighed and found
wanting.
Still, the balances of the sanctuary
are suspended and we are ready to weigh
any who come. Who shall be the next?
Well, here is Journalist. He comes and
he gets into the balances, and as he gets
in see that all his religion is in genu-
texions and in outward observances.
AS he gets into the scales I say: what
is that you have in this pocket" "Oh, !"
ne says, that is Westminster ASSEM-
oily Catechism. say: Very good.
What have you in that other pocket"
~oh, he says, that is the Heidelberg
Catechism. Very good. What is that
you have under your arm, standing in
this balance of the sanctuary" "Oh."
ne says. that is church record"
Very good. What are all these books
on your side the balances?" "Oh." he
says, "those are 'Calvin's Institutes.'S
My brother. we are lot weighing books.
we are weighing you. It cannot be that