The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1890-09-05
admit that this grace of Christian forgive

tongue. and the sarcastic tongue, and
the quick tongue. and the stinging tongue
but we know very little about ''thc soft
tongue that brcakcth the bone" We
read lludibras, and Stcrne, and Dean
swift. and the ,thcr apostles OF acrimony
but give little time to studying the cX-
aNample of Him who was reviled. and
yet revilcd not again. y that the Lord.
bv HIS spirit. would cndow US all with
''the soft tongue that brcaketh the bone" !"
[ pass now to the other thought that |
desire to present. and that is. kindness
rs Il means OF usefulness. In all COM
muntIes you find sccptcal men.
Through early education. or through the
maltrcatmcnt OF proicsscd Christian peo-
pie. or through prying curiosity about
the future world. there are great many
peolc who become Sccptical in religious
things. How shall YOU capture them
for God? Sharp argument and sarcastic
rctort never won Il single soul from sccp-
tlciSm to the Christian religion. While
powerful books on the Evidences OF
Christianity" have their mission in con-
iirming Christian people in the faith they
have already adopted. | have noticed
that when sccpticalOeoplc arc brought
into the Kingdom ofCrist. it is through
the charm of some con~cnial soul and
not by argument at all.
Men arc not saved through the head;
they arc saved through the heart. \
storm comes out of its hiding place. 1t
says. "Now we'll just rouse up all this
sea;" and it makes great blustcr;
But it does not succeed. Part ofthe sea
Is reused up,-pcrhaps onc-half of it, or
One-fourth oft. After while the calm
moon. placid and beautiful. looks down,
and the ocean begins TO rise. 1t comes
up to high-watcr mark. 1t embraces the
great hcadlands. 1t submcrges the
beaches of all the continents. 1t is the
hcart-thrpb OF one world against the
hcart-tmob of another world. And |
have to tell YOU that while all Your
storms OF ridlcuc and storms ofsarcasm
may rouse up the passion OF an lmmor-
tai nature. nothing less than the attrac-
tive power OF Christian kindness can
ever raise the. dcathess spirit to happi-
ness and TO God. | have more faith i'm
the prayer OF child ) vcals old, in the
way of bringing IN imlidel back TO Christ
and to heaven. than have IN all the his
sing thundcrbOlts Of ecclesiastical con-
trOVcrSy.
You cannot overcome men with re
ligious augmentation. II YOU come ut q
sceptical man with an argument on be-
halt of the Christian religion. you put the
man on his mcttlc. lie says: Il sec
that man has Il carbinc. I'll use my car
binc. III answer his argument with my
argument" But if YOU come to that
man, pcrsuadin" him that you desire his
happiness on earth. and his eternal well
fare in the world to come, he cannot an.
sw>r it.
What | have said is Just rs true in the
reclamation Of the openly vicious. Did
you ever know 4 drunkard 70 be saved
through the caricaturc of drunkard !:
Your mimicry OF the staggering. step.
and the thicl; tongue. and the disgusting
hiccouyh, only worse maddcns his brain.
But if you come to him in Kindness and
sympathy; if you show him that you APP
.prcciatc the awful grip of Il dcpravcd ap-
petite; If you persuade him of the fact
that thousands who had the graphing
hooks of evil inclination clutchcd i'm their
soul us firmly as in his have been de-
.livcrcd. then ray Of light will flash
across his vision, and il will seem as Is Il
supernatural hand were stcadyiny his
gait.
y good many Years ago there lay in
the streets Il man dead drunk. his face
exposed to the. clustering MONDAY sun. a
Christian woman passed along. looked
at him. and said: Poor fellow" She
took her handkerchief and spread il over
his face, and passed on. The man reused
himself up from his dcbauch. and hcyan
to look at the handkerchief. and. 10! on
it was the name Ola highly respectable
Christian woman of the city. He went
to her. thanked her for her Kindness; and
that one little deed saved him for this
life. and saved him for the life that is to
come. He was afterwards attomcy-gcncr-
al of the United States; but higher than
all. lie became the consccratcd disciple
of Jesus Christ.
Kind words arc so cheap. it is n won
der we do not use them aftcncr. There
arc tens of thousands of people who arc
dying for the lack Of one kind word.
There Is 4 business man who has fought
against trouble until he is perfectly cX
haustcd. He has been thinking about
forgery. about robbery, about suicide.
Go to that business man. Tell him that
better times are coming. and tell him
that you yourself were in tight busi-
HtSS pass. ana inc l.oIl uCllNcTcN YOU.
Tell hm TO put his trust in God. Tell
him that Jesus Christ stand beside every
business man in his pcrplcXitics. Tell
hm Of the sweet promises of Gods COM
torting grace. That man is dyin" for the
lack of Just one kind word. Go tO-mOr-
row and utter that one saving. Omnipo-
tent, kind word. Here is Il soul that has
been swampcd in sin. He wants to find
the light Of the Gospel. lie feels like Il
shipwrcckcd mariner looking out over
the beach. watching for sail against
the sky. o. bear down on him. Tell
him that ;he Lord wait to be gracious to
HIM, and though he has been great sim
ncr. there is Il great Savior provided.
Tell him that though his sins are as
scarlet, they shall be as snow, though
they are red like crimson, they shall be
as wool. That man is dying forever for
the lack of one kind word.
There used to he sung at a great many
of the pianos all through the country
a song that has almost died out. | wish
somebody would start it again i'll our
social circles. There may not have been
very exquisite art in the music. but there
was grand and glorious sentiment: