The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1891-01-22

Ihe helmet you are to put on your
head, here are the sadals you are to
put on your feet, here is the breast
plate you are to put over your heart,
mere IS the sword you are to take in
your right hand and fight His battle
With. Quit yourselves like men,"
There are those here, perhaps, who
say, 1T is now 10, Is years, since |
was in the habit, the regular habit, of
church going" know all about your
case. | am going to tell you some
thing that will be startling at first,
and that is you are going to become
the LORDS sheep. 8Oh," you say
that is impossible; you don't know
my case; you don't know how far
am from anything of that kind" l
know all about your case. l have
been up and down the world. I know
why some of you do not attend upon
Christian services.
| go further, and make another an
nouncement in regard to you, and
that IS, you are not only to become
| the Lords sheep, but you are going
to become the Lords sheep this hour.
GOD is gong to call you graciously by
his Spirit. You are going to come
into the fold of Christ. This sermon
shall not be so much for those who
are Christians. I have preached to
them hundreds and thousands of times.
The sermon that [ preach now is
going to be chiefly for those who con-
slder themselves outsiders, but who
may happen to be in the house, and
the chief employment of the Christian
people here to-day will be to pray for
those who are not accustomed to at
tend upon Christian santuaries
When the steamer Atlantic went to
pieces on Mars rock why did that
brave minister OF the gospel, of whom
we have all read, go out in the lifeboat?
Why did he not stay and look after
the passengers that got ashore, wrap
ping hannels around them and kind
ling fires for them and preparing the m
food? There was plenty of work to
be done on the shore for those who
had already escaped. All! that brave
man knew that there were others who
would take care of those, and so he
said "Man the lifeboat! Pull away,
my lads, pull away Yonder is man;
there IS a woman freezing in the rig
ging. Pull away!". 1 see the oar
blades bend in the strong pull of the
oarsmen. Then they come up to the
wreck. The woman is frozen; she
drops into the waves-alas! poor
woman-and washes our to sea. But
then, Mr.. Ancient says: '"There is a
man yet hanging to the rigging; pull
away, my lads, pull away" They
come up, and he says, "Hold, now,
there five minutes and we will save
you. Steady, steady! Now give me
your hand. Leap! Thank God he is
saved! Thank God he is saved!"
SO there are men now in the break
ers. They have made a shipwreck of
life. While we come out to save them,
some are swept oH-swept off before
we can reach them-and there are
others still hanging on. Steady there
among the slippery places! Steady!
Leap into this life boat! Now is your
chance for heaven! This hour some
OF you are going to be saved Far
away from God, you are going to be
brought nigh. "Other sheep have I
which are not of this fold.'
Christ says that ministers of the
Gospel are to be fishers for men. Now
when I 60 fishing l do not want to fish
in anybody else's pond. 1 do not
want to go along Hohokus Creek,
where there are 10 or Is men fishing,
and drop my line just about where
they are dropping their lines. I should
like to get in a Newfoundland fishing
smack and push out to sea SO miles
beyond the breakers. Idon't think
the Church of God gains great deal
when you take sheep from one fold
and put them in another fold. 1t is
the lost sheep on the mountains YOU
want to bring back-the lost sheep
on the mountains. And they are
coming to-day.
You are now this hour in the tide of
Christian influences. You are going
to be swept in; your voice is going to
be heard in prayer; you are going to
be consecrated to God; you are going
to live life of usefulness, and your
death-bed is going to be surrounded
by Christian sympathizers; aud de-
vOut men will carry you to your buri-
al when your work is done, and these
words will be chiselled for your cpl
taph: ''Precious in the sight of the
Lord is the death of his saints" And
all that history is going to begin to-
day. "Other sheep have I which are
not of this fold"
Again l remark, the Heavenly Shep-
herd is going to find MANY OF his
sheep among those who are now re-
!ecters OF Christianity. Idonot know
how you came to reject Christianity.
| do not know whether it was through
hearing Theodore Parker preach, or
whether it was reading Remains Life of
Jesus, whether it was through some
sceptic in the store or factory. Or it
may be-probably is the case-that
you were disguised with religion and
disguised with Christianity because
some man who professed to be a
Christian defrauded you, that he be-
ing a member of the church and you
taking him as a representative of the
Christian religion, you said, "Well, if
that sreligion, Idon't want any of it,"
do not know how you came to re-
iect Christianity, but you frankly tell
me you do reject it; you do not think
the Bible is the Word of God, although
there are many things in it you ad-