The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1889-03-29

had an idea that they were almost right,
and they built religion as a sort Of extern
sion, as an ornamental cupola. There
was a superstructure of religion built on
substratum of unrepented sins. The
trouble with good deal of modern the
Ology is that instead of building on the
right foundation. it builds on the debris
of an unregeneratsd nature. They at
tempt to rebuild Jerusalem before, in the
midnight of conviction, they have seen
the ghastliness Of the ruin. They have
such poor foundation for their religion
that the first northeast storm of tempta-
ton blows them down.
have no faith in a mans conversion If
he is not converted in the Old-fashioned
way-John Bunyan's way, John Wesley's
way, John Calvin's way, Paul's way,
Christ's way, Gods way. A dentist once
said to me: "Does that hurt?" Said 1:
''Of course it hurts. It is In your BUSH
ness as in my profession. We have to
hurt before we can help" You will never
understand redemption until you under
stand ruin. A man tells me that some
one is a member Of the church. 1t makes
no impression on my mind at all. 1
simply want to know whether he was con-
verified in the Old-fashiOned way, or wheth-
| or he was converted in the neW-fashiOned
way. If he was converted in the old-fash-
| toned way he Will stand. If he was con-
verified in the new-fashioned way he will
not stand. That is all there is about it.
A man comes to me to talk about religion.
The first question 1 ask him is: 'Do you
feel yourself to be sinner?" If he say:
swell, YES" the hesitancy makes me
| feel that that man wants ride on Nehe-
/ miah's horse by midnight through the
ruins-in by the gate of his affections, out
! by the gate of his will: and before he has
| got through with that midnight ride he
will drop the reins on the horses neck,
and will take his right hand and smite on
| his heart and say, "God be merciful to me
/ a sinner, Twill take his feet out of the stir
rups, and he will slide down on the
/ ground, and he will kneel, crying:
| ''Have mercy on me, 0 God, accord
Ping to thy loving kindness, according
unto the multitude of thy tender mercies;
| blot out my transgre ssions, for acknOwl-
/ edge my trans gressions and my sins are
ever before thee" All, my friends, you
ses this is not a complimentary gospel.
| That is what makes some people SO mad.
/ 1t comes to q man Of a million dollars and
| impenitent in his sins and says: YOU'RE
| q pauper." 1t comes to a woman of fair
| est cheek, who has never repented, and
| says: "You're sinner" 1t comes to a
man priding himself on his independence
| and says: you're bound hand and foot
| by the devil" 1t comes to our entire race
and says; You're a ruin, CHASTITY ruin,
an ilimitable ruin"
Satan sometimes says to me: "Why do
| you preach that truth? Why don't you
preach gospel with no repentance in it?
| Why don't you fatter mems hearts so
that you make them feel all right? Why
don't you preach a humanitarian gospel
with no repentance in it, saying nothing
about the ruin, talking all the time about
redemption?" 1 say: sect thee behind
me, Satan" 1 would rather lead five souls
the right way than twenty thousand the
wrong way. The redemption of the Cos
pei is a perfect farce if there is no ruin.
1.-THE whole need not a physician, but they
that are sick" eli any one, though he be
an angel from Heaven, preach any other
gospel than this" says the apostle, "let
him be accursed." There must be the
midnight ride over the ruins before Jeru-
salem can be built. There must be the
clicking of the hOOfs before there can be
the ringing of the trOwels.
Again. My subject gives me a specimen
of busy and triumphant sadness. If there
was any man in the world who had right
to NOPE and give up every thing as lost
1t was Nehemiah. You say: ''He was cup
bearer in the palace of Shushan, and il
was a grand place." So it was. The hall
Of that palace was two hundred feet
square, and the roof lowered over thirty
six marble pillars, each pillar sixty feet
, high; and the intense blue of the sky, and
the deep green Of the forest foliage, and
the white of the driven snow.
all hung trembling in the uphol-
stery. But, my friends, you know
very well that fine architecture
will not put down home sickness. Yet
Nehemiah did not give up. Then, wheI
you see him going among these desOlated
streets, and by these dismantled towers,
and by the tOrn-up grave of his father,
, you would suppose that he would have
been disheartened, and that he would
, have dismounted from his horse and gone
to his room and said: "Woe is mel Ny
fathers grave is torn up. The temple is
, dishOnOred. The walls are broken down.
have no money with which to rebuild.
! ! wish had never been born. l wish 1 were
dead" Not SO says Nehemiah. Although
he had grief so intense that it excited
, the commentary Of his King, yet tina
penniless, expatriated Nehemiah rouse'
himself up to rebuild the city. He gets
his permission of absence. He gets his
passports. He hastens away to Jerusa-
lem. By night on horseback he rides
through the ruins. He overcomes the
most ferOciOus opposition. He arouse!
the piety and patriotism of the people
and in less than two months, namely, il
ifty-two days, Jerusalem was rebuilt.
That's what 1 call busy and triumphan
sadness.
My friends, the whole temptation is will
you, when you have trouble, to do just the
opposite to the behavior of Nehemiah, anC
that is to give up. You say: 81 have los
my child and can never smile again" YOT
say; 81 have lost my property, and 1 can
never repair my fortunes" You say: 81
have fallen into sin, and never can start
again for a new life" If Satan can make
you form that resolution, and make yOJ
keep it, he has ruined you. Trouble is no
sent to crush you, but to arouse you, t.
animate you, to prOpel you. The black
smith does not thrust the iron into The
forge and then blow away with the bellows
and then bring the hot iron out on the
anvil and beat with stroke after stroke tx
ruin the iron, but to prepare it for q bet
ter use. Oh, that the Lord God of Nehe'
miah would rouse up all broken hearted
people to rebuild. Whipped betrayed
shipwrecked, imprisoned, Paul went RICH
on. The Italian martyr, Algerius, sits IL
his dungeon writing a letter, and he date!
it From the delectable orchard Of the
Leonine prison." That is what 1 call tri
umphant sadness. knew mother who
buried her baby on Friday, and on Sab
bath appeared in the house of God and
said: "Give me class; give me
a Sabbath-school class. 1 have NJ
child now left me, and 1 would
like to have class of little
children. Give me real poor children
Give me q class of the back street.
That I say, is beautiful. That is tri
umphant sadness. At three O'Clock this
afternoon, in beautiful parlOr in Phila
! delphia-a parlOr pictured and statuetteC
there will be from ten to twenty dest
/ tute children of the street. 1t has been 81
every Sabbath afternoon atathree O'clocl
for many years. These destitute children
receive religious instruction, concluding
, with cakes and sandwiches. How do
know that that has been going on 70