The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1890-06-21

~ - SASHu Nv HSNl liz "a
WIS q great way of his fnt'ler sow him !,
And this brings me to- notice the fathers
haste. The bible says ia r,in. No wonder,
He did q knoW but that he would change
his mind and 70 back. He did not know
but that he would drop down from exIlaus.
ton: he did not know but that something
fatal might overtake him bssore he rot al
to the uoorsil. and so the father ran.
=. The Bible, for the most part, speaks d
God al walking. ssIns the fourth watch oi
the night" it says, Jesus came unto them
walking on the sea. He walketh upon the
wing of the wind. Our first parents heard
the voice of the Lord, walking in the garden
in the cool OF the day, but when a sinner
starts for God, the Father runs to met him.
Obi if u man ever wants help, it is when lie
tries to become q Christian. The world saws
to him. "Back with you. Have more spirit.
Don't be hnmpered with religion. Time
enough vet. Wait until YOU get sick. Wait
until you get old.o Satan says: ..Baek with
you; you are SO q that God WiIlhave moth
ing to do with you" or You are good
enough and need no Redeemer. Take thine
ease. eat, drink aud be merry" Ten thou
sand voices say: Back with you. God is d
hard master. The church is o collection Of
.hypocrites. Back into your sins; bnck to
evil indulgencies; back to you prayer
less pillow. The silliest thing that a man
ever does il to come hack alter ho has been
wandering Oh, how much help a man
docs want when he tries to become d Chris
tianl Indeed, the prodigai cannot find his
home to his fathers house alone, I'm.
less some one comes to meet him he had
better have stayed ly the swine.trnughs.
When the tide I'M IN, % might more
ensily with your broom sweep back the surges
than You could drive back the ocean u. your
ransgressions. What are we to
do? Are we to fight the battle alone, aud
trudge on with No one to aid us, and no rock
to shelter us, and no word o. encouragement
to cheer us? Glory be to God, we have in
the text the announcement When he was
yet a great way off. his father ran When
the sinner starts for God. God starts for the.
sinner. God does not come out with a slow
hesitating pace. The Infinite space slip be-
neatl, His feet, and He takes worlds Mt q
bound. sThe father ram" Oh, wonderful
meeting, when God and the soul come to.
getler. 'a.The father ran. You start for
God and God starts for you, and you meet;
and while the angels rejoice over themeeting,
your long injured Father falls upon your
neck with a~ttestations OF compassion and
pardon. YOnr poor, wandering, sinful, pol
luttod soul, and the loving, the eternal F
Their have met.
| remark upon the fathers kiss. HE fell
on his neck. I my textsays, ''and kissed him
1t is not every father that would have lone
that. Some would have scolded him, and.
said: Here, you went of with beautiful
clothes, but now you are all in tatters. You
went off healthy, and come back sick and
wasted with your designations" He did not
say that. The son, all haggard and ragged
and filthy and Wretched, stood before his
father. The father charged him with zone oil
his wanderings. He just received him. He
just kissed him. His wretchedness was a re.
communication to the father love. Oh, that
fathers kissl How shall / describe the love
Of God?-the ardor with which He receives a
sinner back again? Give me q plummet with
which ] may fathom this sea. Give me a lad
der with which / may scale this height. Give
me words with which / can describe this love.
The apostle in one place, 'sunsearchable;"
in another, past finding out" Height over.
topping all height; depth plung;ng beneath
all depth; breadth compassionate immensity;
Oh, this love! God SO loved the world. He
loves you. Don't you believe it? Has He
not lone everything to make you think SO?
He has given you lie, health. friends, home
the use OF your hand, the sight Of your eye.
the hearing of your eel. He has strawn
your path with mercies. He has fed you,
clothed you, sheltered you, defended you,
loved you, iinportuned you all you'll @ long.
Don't you believe He loves you? Why, ifnow
you should start up from the wilderness OF
our sin. He would throw both arms around
you. TO make you believe that he loves
you. He stopped to manger, n cross, and
sepulchre. With oil the passions of His holy
nature reused, He stands before o to-day,
and would coax you to happiness and
heaven. Oh, this fathers kiss! There is SO
much meaning. and love, and compassion in
It; 50 much pardon in it; SO mach heaven in
it.
/ proclaim him tho Lord God, merciful,
gracious, and long suffering, abundant
in goodness n truth. Lest you wonld not
believe Him, He goes up Golgotha. and
while the rocks are rending. and the
graves are opening, and the mobs are howl.
ing, and the sun is hiding, He dies for you.
See Hint See Him on the Mount of Cruel,
fxtion, the sweat on His brow tinged with
the blood exuding from His laternted TEN.
pies! See His eyes swimming in deathl Hear
the que breathing of the Sufferer as He pants
with q world on his heart! Hank to the fail
OF the blood from brow, and hand, and foot,
on the rocks beneath-drop! drop! drop!
Look at the nailsl How wide the wounds
arel Wilder do they gape as His body comes
down upon them. Oil this crucifxion agonyi
Tears melting into tears. Blood flowing in
to blood. Darkness dropping into darkness
Hands of men Joined with hands of devils to
tear apart the quivering heart of the Son Of
God! @5
Oh! Win He never speak againl Willthat
crimson face never light up again. He will
speak again; while the blood is suffusing His
brow, and reddening His cheek, and gather
ing on nostril and lip, and you think He is
exhausted and cannot speak, He cries out
until all the ages hear him: Gather.
forgive them, they know not what they dol"
is there no emphasis in such a scene as that
to make your dry eyes weep, and your hurd
heart break? Willyou turn your back upon
it, and say BY your actions what the jews
said by their words: ssHis blood be on MS.
and on our children What does it all
mean. my brother. my sister? Why, ii
means, that for our lost race there was a
Fathers kiss. Love brought Him do wns
Love opened the gate. Love led to the sac
ridce. Love shattered the grave. Love
lifted Him up in resurrection. Sovereign
slovel Omnipotent Lowell Infinite love!
bleeding Lowell Everlasting Lowell
"Oh, Tor this love let rocks and hills
Their lasting silonce break:
And all harmonious human tongues
The Snyiour's praises speak.
Now. will you accept that Fathers kiss?
The Holy Spirit comes to you with His
arousing, melting, alarming, inviting, vivi-
flying influence. Hearor, what creates in
thee that unrest?
"A Rival to the Pedometer.
The pedometer's life Of usefulness
annn1s 70 ho very anri0ua1v thrnntnn.