The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1890-05-21
NARROW ESCAPES.
The Line Between Religion and Some
Of Its Professors.
Old-FaahIoned Belief In Christ tho Unl'
versal Need-Comfort 10 the Words
OF Job to All Believers - Tai.
IMAGES Sermon.

OF Job to All Believers = Tai.
IMAGES Sermon.
DR.. Talmage preached last Sunday on
marrow Escapes" taking as his text
Job xix, 90: II am escaped with the
skin of my teeth"
Job had it hard. What with boils and
bereavement and bankruptcy, and fool
Of wife, he wished he was dead, and l
do not blame him. His flesh was gone,
and his bones were dry. His teesh vast
ed away until nothing but the enamel
seemed left. He cries out: 81 am es-
Gagged with the skin Of my teeth. There
has been some difference of opinion
about this passage. st. Jerome and
Schuitens, and Drs. Good and Poole and
Barnes have all tried their forceps on
Jobs teeth. You deny any interpreta-
ton, and say: "What did Job know
about the enamel of the teeth?" He
knew every thing about 1t. Dental sur
gerry is almost as old as the earth. The
mummies of Egypt, thousands of years
old. are found to-day with gold filling in
their teeth. Ovid and Horace and Solo
mon and Moses wrote about these i'm
portant factors OF the body. To other
provoking complaints Job, think, has
added an exasperating toothache, and.
putting his hand against the inflamed
face, he says: II am escaped with the skin
Of my teeth"
A very narrow escape you say, for
Jobs body and soul; but there are thou
sands Of men who make just as narrow
escape for their soul. There was a time
when the partition between them and
ruin was no thicker than tooth's enam-
81, but as Job finally escaped, so have
they. Thank God! thank God!
Paul expressed the same idea by a diff
ferent figure when he says that some
people are sawed as by fire." A vessel
at sea is in flames. You 60 to the stern
Of the vessel. Tho boats have showed
of. The flames advance; you can endure
the heat no longer on your face. You
slide down on the side of the YES
sci, and hold on with your fingers until
the forked tongue Of the fire begins to
lick the back Of your hand, and you feel
that you must fall, when one of the life
boats comes back, and the passengers
say they think they have room for one
more. The boat swings under you-you
drop into it-you are saved. So some
men are pursued by temptation until
they are partially consumed, but after
all, get off-"saved as by fire. But
like the figure of Job little better than
that of Paul, because the pulpit has not
worn it out; and want to show you, If
God will help, that some men make mar
row escape for their souls, and are saved
IS with tho skin of their teeth"
1t is IS easy for some people to look to
the Cross as for you to look to this pull
pit. Mild, gentle, tractable, loving, you
expect them to become Christians. You
60 over to the store and say: "Grandon
Joined the church yesterday Your
business comrades say: "That is just
what might have been expected; he al
ways was of that turn OF mind" In
youth, this person whom describe was
always good. He never broke things
He never laughed when it was improper
to laugh. At seven, he could sit an
hour in church, perfectly quiet, looking
neither to the right hand nor to the left,
but straight into the eyes OF the minis
ter, as though he understood the whole
discussion about the eternal DEGREES.
He never upset things nor lost them. He
foated into the kingdom Of God so gradu-
ally that it is uncertain just when the
matter was decided.
Here is another one who started in
life with an uncomfortable spirit. He
kept the nursery in an uproar. His
mother found him walking on the edge
Of the house-roof to see If he could bal
ance himself. There was no horse that
he dared not ride-no tree he could not
climb. His boyhood was q long series
Of predicaments: his manhood was reck-
loss; his mid-lifs very Maynard. But
now he is converted and you 60 over to
the store and say: "Arllwright joined
the church yesterday" Your friends
say: ut is not possible! You must be
joking" You say: "No; I tell you the
truth. He joined the church." Then
they reply: There is hope for any OF
us if old Arkwright has become Chris
tan" In other words We will admit
that it is more difficult for some men to
accept the Gospel than for others.
! may be preaching to some who have
cut loose from churches and Bibles and
Sundays, and who have come in here
with no intention Of becoming Chris
tians themselves, but just to see what is
going on; and yet you may find yourself
escaping, before you leave this house,
IS with the skin of your teeth" dc
not expect to waste this hour. have
seen boats 60 off from Cape May or Long
Branch and drop their nets, and after
awhile, come ashore, pulling in the
nets, without having caught single
fish,. 1t was not good day, or they had
not the right kind of net. But we OK.
pect no such excursion to-day. The
water is full of fish, the wind is in the
right direction, the Gospel net is strong.
Oh, thou who didst help Simon and
Andrew to fish, show us to-day how to
cast the net on tho right side Of the
ship!
Some OF you, in coming to God, will
have to run against skeptical notions
1t is useless for people to say sharp and
cutting things to those who reject the
Christian religion. can not say such
things. By what process Of temptation
or trial or betrayal you have come t.
your present state know not There
are two yates to yonr natnre-the rats