Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1889-08-31

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for bad behavior. and he was maddene
by 1t, and he leaped into the SEQ
and no sooner haG he leaped into th
sea than, quick az lightning, an albatro;
swooped upon him. The drowning mar
brought to his senses, seized hold of tn
slbatross and held on. The luttering @
the bird kept him OF the wave until re
lief could come. Would now the dow
Of Gods convicting. converting and saw
ing spirit might flash from the thron
upon your soul, and that you, takin!
hold OF it's potent wing. might live ant
live forever.
/ want to persuade you to lay hold o.
this strong swimmer. mo" you say
"ft Is always disastrous for a drowning
man TO lay hold Of q swimmer" There
is not a river or lake but has q calamity
resultant from the fact that when
strong swimmer went out to ave q sink.
i..g man, the drowning man clutched
him, threw his arms around him. pin.
Toned bis arms and they both went down
together. When you are saving a man
in the water you do not want to come up
by his face; you want to come up by his
back. You do not want him to take hold
of you while you take hold of him. But,
blessed be God, Jesus Christ Is so strong
a swimmer, he comes not 10 our back,
but to our face, and he ssks us TO throw
around him the arIns OF our love, and
then promises TO take US to the beach,
and he will do II. Do not trust that plank
Of good works. Do not trust that shiv-
cred spar Of your W righteousness.
Christ only can give you transportation.
Turn your face upon him as the dying
martyr did in olden days when he cried
out: None but Christ None but
Christi Jesus has taken millions to the
land, and he is willing TO take you there.
oh, what hardness TO shove him back
when he has been swimming all the way
from the throne of God to where you are
now, and is ready TO swim all the way
back again, taking your redeemed spirit.
| have sometimes thought what a
spectacle the ocean bed will present
when in the last day the water is
all drawn off. 1t will be a line OF
wrecks from beach to beach. There Is
where the harpooners went down. There
is where the line Of battle ships went
down. There is where the merchantmen
went down. There is where the steamers
went down, a long line Of wrecks from
beach to beach. What q spectacle in the
last day when the water is drawn of!
But oh, how much more solemn IL we
had an eye to see the spiritual wrecks
and the places where they foundered.
You would find thousands along our
roads aud streets. Christ came down in
their awful catastrophe, putting out for
their souls, spreading forth his hands
oo a uuipnrn nv aNrnoIafh for hto N 10
swim" but they thrust him in the sore
heart, and they smote his fair cheek, and
the storm and darkness swallowed them
up. ask you to lay hold of this Christ
M Jay hold Of him now. You will sink
without him. From horizon to horizon
not one sail in sight. Only one strong
swimmer, with head flung back and
arms outspread. hear a great many il
the audience saying: "Well, ! would
like to be a Christian. ] am going to
work to become a Christian" NY
brother, you begin wrong. When a nan
is drowning, aud a strong swimmer comes
out to help him, ne says TO him; Now
be quiet. Put your arm on my arm or
on my shoulder, but don't struggle,
don't try TO help yourself, and I'll take
you ashore. The more you struggle and
the more you try TO help yourself the
more you impede me. Now be quiet
and I'll take you ashore" When Christ,
the strong swimmer, con O. out to saw a
soul, the sinner says: That's right. !
I'm glad to see Christ, and l am going to
help him In the work of my redemption.
| am going to pray more and that will
help HIM; and l am going to weep ex-
t~ravagantly I'VE my sins and that will
help him." No, my brother, ii will not.
Stop your doing. Christ will do all or
none. You cannot lift an ounce, you
cannot move an inch, in this matter of
your redemption.
This is the difficulty which keeps
thousands Of souls out Of the kingdom of
Lesven. 1t is because they cannot con-
sent to let Jesus Christ begin and COM
plete the work Of their redemption.
why" you say, then is there nothing
for me to dor" Only one thing haveyou
to do, and that is to lay hold of Christ
and let him achieve your salvation and
achieve IL all. ! do not know whether
l make the matter plain or not. / simply
want to show you that a man cannot
save himself, but that the almighty son
of God can do 1t, and will do 1t, II you
ask him. o, fling your two arms, the
arms of your trust and love, around THE
omnipotent swimmer Of the Cross.
That is a thrilling time when someone
swamped In the surf is brought ashore
and being resuscitated. How the people
watch for the moment when he begins to
breathe again, and when at last he takes
one full inhalation, and opens his eyes
upon the bystanders, q shout of JOY rings
up and down the beech. There is Joy
because a life has been saved. o, We
who have been swamped in the seas of
trouble and sinl we gather around you.
Would that this might be the hour when
you begin to live. The Lord Jesus Christ
steps down, he gets on his knees. he puts
he lip to your lip, and would breathe
pardon and life and heaven into your
immortal soul. God grant that this hour
there may be thousands Of souls resusci'
tated. stand on the deck of the old
gospel ship amid q crowd Of passengers,
all of them hoping that the last man over
board may be saved. May the living
Christ this hour put out for your safety,
spreading forth his hands in the midst
of you, as q swimmer sprcade.h forth hi
hands to swim"
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