The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1890-03-20


are those who would add unto the tests
rather than subtract from ;hSG. There
are thousands who would not accep,
| persons into church membership if they
drink wine, or if they smoke cigars, or il
they attend the theatre, or II they play
cards, or il they drive fast horse. Now,
do not drink wine or smoke or attend
the theatre, never played game of cards
and do not drive fast horse. although
would il owned one. But do not sub
stitute tests which tho Bible does not
establish. There is one passage Of scrip
ture wide enough to let all in who ought
to enter and to keep out all who ought
to be kept out: "Bclievc in the Lord
Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved"
Get mans heart right and his life will
be right. But how that tho old creeds
have been put under public scrutiny
something radical must be done. Some
would split them, some would car1e them,
some would elongata them, some would
abbreviate them. At tho present moment
and in the present shape they are a hin.
drance. Lazarus is alive, but hampered
with the old grave clothes. If you want
enc glorious church free and unencum.
bered take off the ecrenents Of old &C.
clesiastical vocabulary. Loose her, and
und let her go!
Again there are Christians who are
under scpulchral shadows aud hipdered
and hobbled by doubts and fears and
sins long ago repeuted of. What they
need is to understand the liberty of the
sons Of God. They spend more time
under the shadow Of Sinai than at the
base of Calvary. They have been sing
ing the only poo. hymn that Newton
ever wrote:
TITS point long to know,
OFT 1t causes me anxious thought
Do love the Lord or no,
Am his or am l not?
Long to know, do you7 Why do you
not find out? Go to work for God and
you will very soon find out. The man
who, all the time feeling of his pulse and
looking at his tongue to see whether it
is coated, is morbid, and cannot be
physically we'll. The doctors will say:
go out into fresh air and into active
life, and stop thinking Of your7elf, and
you Will get well and strong" So there
are people watching their spiritual
symptoms, and they call it self-cxamina-
ton, and they got weaker and sieklier in
their faith all tho time. Go out and do
something molly Christian. Take holy
exercise and then examine yourself, and
instead of Newton's saturnine and bill
lious hymn that first quoted, you will
sisg Newton's other hymn:
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved n wretch like me!
Once was lost, but now I'm found;
Was blind: Lut now see.
What many Of you Christians need is
to get your grave clothes off. l rejoice
that you have been brought from tho
death of siA to the life of tue gospel, but
you need f" get Jun &aGd:lc3oc ana Jour
feet loose and your tongue loose and
your soul loose. There is no Elm that
the Bible so arraigns and punctures and
flagellatcs as the sin Of unbelief, and
that is what is the matter with you.
"Oh," you say, "If you knew what I
once was and how many times I have
grievously strayed, you would under
stand why do not come cut brighter"
Then think you will call yourself the
chief Of sinners. I am glad you hit upon
that term, for have promise that fits
into your case as tho cogs in one wheel
between tho cogs Of another wheel or as
the key fits into the labyrinth of lock,
A man who was once called Saul but af-
terwards Paul declared: '"This 10 a
faithful saying and worthy of all acccp-
tation, that Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners, of whom I an
chief" Mark that-"of whom I am
Chief "Put down your overceats and
hats and I will take care Of them while
you kill Stcphen"-so Saul said to the
stoners Of the first martyr-"I do net
care to exert myself much, but 1 will
guard your surplus apparel while you DO
the murder" Tie New Testament &C.
count says: "The witnesses laid down
their clothes at a young mans feet
whose name was Saul" No wonder he
said: "Sinners, Of whom I am chief"
Christ is used to climbing. He climbed
to the top of the temple. He climbed
to the top of Mount Olivet. He climbed
to the top of the cliffs about Nazareth.
He climbed to the top of Golgotha.
And to the top OF the hills and the
mountains of your transgressions and he
is ready TO climb with pardon for every
one Of you. The grean Of Calvary 10
mightier than tho thunder of Sinai.
Full receipt is offered for all your in
debtednoss. If one throws stone at
midnight into bush where the hedge
bird roosts, it Immediately begins to
sing; and into the midnight hedges of
your espondency these words l hurl,
hoping TO awaken you to anthem. Drop
the tunes in the minor key and take the
major. Do you think it plsases the
Lord for you to be carrying around
with you the debris and carcasses Of old
| transgrcssions2 You make me think Of
some ship that has had tcmpestuous
time at sea, and now that it proposes
another voyage, keeps On it's davits tho
damaged lifeboats, and the aplinters Of
a shivered mast, and the broken glass of
smashed skylight. My advice is: Clear
the decks, overheard with all the dam
aged rigging, brighten up the saltsd
smokcstacks, opsn a new leg book, haul
in the planks, lay ont new course, aud
set sail for heaven. You have had the
spiritual dumps long enough. You will
please the Lord more by being happy
than by being miserable. Have you not
sometimes started out in tAe iain with
your umbrella and were busy thinking