The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1890-07-02

nglon III the heart be renewed can mol
be exaggerated. Christ positively and
with the earnestness Of the night before
His crucihxion communicate. But 1t Is
the result Of Christian character, not
the cause Of it. Our church certificate
is poor title to Heaven. We may have
the name and not the reality. There
are those who seem to throw themselves
back with complacency upon their pub
lie confession of Christ although they
give no signs Of renewal II Satan can
induce man to build on such arotten
foundation as that, he has accomplished
his object. We can not imagine the abb
horrence with which God looks upon
such procedure. What would be the
feelings Of shepherd II he saw wolf
in the same fold with his fiocks, how
ever quiet he might seem to lie, or
general II among his troops he
saw one wearing the appointed
uniform who nevertheless really
belonged to the opposing host. Thus
must the heavenly shepherd look upon
those who, though they are not His
sheep, have climbed up some other way
and thus must the Lord Of hosts look
upon those who pretend to be soldiers Of
the cross while they are His armed enc
mics. II any Of you find yourselves de-
foient In the great tests Of Christian
character, do not, l beg Of you, look up
on your profession Of religion as any
thing consolatory. II you have taken
your present position from view that
you have Of Christ and your need OF
Him, rejoice with Joy unspeakable and
full Of glory and clap your hands for
gladness, but II you find yourself with
nothing but the name Of life, while dead
In trespasses and sin, arouse before the
door is shut. That gilded profession
the world may not be able to see through
It, but In the day Of divine reckoning II
will be found that you have no cloak for
your sin.
Furthermore: Outward morality will
be no covering for the hidden iniquity
Of the spirit The Gospel Of Christ
makes no assault on good works. They
are as beautiful in Gods eye as in ours.
Punctuality, truthfulness, alms-giving,
affection, and many other excellencies
of life that might be- mentioned, will
always be admired OF God and man, but
We take the position that good works
can not be the ground Of our salvation.
What we do right can not pay for what
we do wrong. Admit that you have all
those traits Of character which give
merely worldly responsibility and
influence, you must at the same
time acknowledge that during the
course OF your life you have done
many things you ought not to have
done. How are these difficult matters to
be settled? All, my friends, we must
have an atonement No Christ, no sal.
walton. The great Redeemer comes in
and says: ~ will pay your indebted
ness" So that which was dark enough
before is bright enough now. The
stripes that we deserve are fallen upon
Christ On his sccurged and bleeding
shoulders he carries us up over the
mountain OF our sins and tho hills OF
our iniquities. Christ's good works
accepted are good enough for us,
but they who reject them, depend.
ing upon their own, must perish.
Traits Of character that make us inhu.
ential on earth will not necessarily open
to US the gate OF heaven. The plank
that will be strong enough for house
floor would not do for a ships hulk.
Mere morality might be enough here,
but can not tako you through deaths
storm into Heavens harbor. Christ has
announced for all ages: ~ am the way,
the truth, and the life; him that cometh
unto me will in no wise cast out" But
pitiable In the way of account will be
tie condition Of that man. though he
may have given all his estate to benevo.
lent purposes and passed his life in the
visiting OF the distressed and done much
to excite the admiration OF the good
and the great, II he have no intimate
relation to Jesus Christ. There Is Q
| pride and depravity in his soul that ne
has never discovered. A brilliant out.
side will be no apology for depraved
inside. 1t is no theory OF mine, but an
announcement Of God, who can not lie.
"By the deeds Of the law shall no flesh
living be justified" Open the door OF
Heaven and look in Howard Is there,
but he did not secure his entrance by
the dungeons he illuminated and the
lazzarettos into which he carried the
medicines. Paul is there, but he did
not earn his way in by the shipwrecks
and imprisonments and scourgings Or
throne overtopping all the others, ex
cept Christ's, the old missionary ex
claims: "By the grace OF God l an
what en-"
Again: Exalted social position will be
no cloak for sin. Men look through the
wicket door OF prisons, and seeing the
incarcerated wretches exclaim, 20, hog
much vice there is in the world" And
they pass through the degraded streets
Of D city, and looking into the doors Of
the hovels and the dens OF corruption
they call them God-forsaken abodes.
But you might walk along the avenues
through which the opulent roll In their
fiourishing pomp and into mansions
elegantly adorned, and find that even In
the admired walks Of life Satan works
mischief and doath. The first tempta-
tion Satan wrought in gardep, and he
understands yet most thoroughly how
TO insinuate himself into any door OF
ease and splendor. Men frequently
Judge OF sin by the places in which 1t is
committed, but iniquity in satin is tc
God as loathesome as iniquity in rags,
and in tho Day of Judgment the sins OF
Madison avenue and Elm street will all
be driven In one herd. Men can not