Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1891-08-15

'garnereo IN temples Or sIn-rears OF %unurter-
able woe their baptism, the blood OF crushed
hearts the awful wine Of their sacrament,
5iasphenies their litany. and the groans of
the lost world the organ dirge OF their
worship.
Again. if YOU want to be qualified to meet
the duties which this age demands OF you,
yCu must on the one hand avoid reckless
lconoclasrn. AMI on the other hand not stick
too much to things because they are old. The
air IS full Of new plans, new projects, new
theories Of government. new theologles. and
lam amazed 10 sea how 50 many Christians
want only novelty in order to recommend q
thing 70 their confidence; and so they vacll-
lat- and sv5iug TO and fro, and they are use
le~s and they are unhappy. New plans
secular, ethical. philosophical, religious, els
atlantic. transatlantic. An. my brother. do
not aI0pt a Ening merely because II Is new.
Try Il by the realities Of a judgment day.
Rut. On the other hand, do not adhere to
anytalug merely because it is old. There is
10. single enterprise of the church or the
word hut has sometimes been sconed at.
Iner- was a time when men dertded even
Bib ,ocieties: and when a few young men
met near a h~aystack in Massachusetts, and
organized the first missionary society ever
sfganized in this country, there went laugh
Ter ana rlaIcu1e all around the Gnrlstlan
church. They said the undertaking was pre- |
p0sterous.
AMI 50 also the work of Jesus Christ was
a-sailed. People criei out, Nv hoover heard
Of such theories Of ethics and government?
Whoever noticed such a style OF preaching
as Jesus has, Ezekiel had talked OF mys-
terious wings and wheels. Here came q man
from laperlaum and GennesareL, ana ia
drew His illustrations from the lakes, from
III ,and. from the ravine, from the lilies,
from the cornstaiks. How the Fhar>ees
s.ofTed, How Herod derldedl how Calpiias
- Al ~, Jac,,c fhov nlI1Pka6 ny 1ha
beard. and they spat In his face, and they
calle1 Him this fellowm All the great en-
terprises i'll and out Of the churcn nave at
times been scoffed at, and there have been a
graf multitude who have thought that the
chariot of Gods truth would fall TO pieces IL
ii one. got out of the old rut.
AudSo there are those who have no pa
thence with anything like Improvement Ia
church architecture or with anything IKE
gooA hearty, earnest church slnglng, ana
thry ieriJe any form Of religious dlschS'lon
which goes down walking among everyday
men rather than that which makes an ex'
cur,ion on rhetorical stills. Oh, that the
Cuurcn OF Co. would wake up to an adapt
ability Of work, We must admit the sim
pie fact that the churches Of Jesus Christ in
this dav do not reach The great masses.
There are fifty thousand D aopie i'll Edinburgh
who never hear the Gospel. There are one
million pAOple in LONDON who never hear the
Gospel. There are a least three hundred
thousand souls in the city Of Brooklyn who
come not under the immediate miuistratlons
OF Christ's truth, AMI the Church of Col in
this dav, instead Of teiug a place full Of
living epistles, read and Known os all men,
IS more like a lead letter postofficr.
But, say the people, the world IS gong
to be converted. You must be patient. The
kingdoms of this world are to become The
kingdoms Of Christ Never, unless the
church of Jesus Christ pats on more speed
and energy. Instead of the church convert
ing the world, the world is converting the
church. Here is great fortress. How shall
it be taken An army comes aud sits around
about it, cuts of the supplies and SAYS, Now
we will lust wait unt.l from exhaustion and
starvation they will hove to give up Weeks
and months, aud perhaps il year, pas along,
aud finally the fortress snrrenlers through
that starvation and exhaustion. But. my
friends, the fortre-se> of sin arr never to
be taken in that way, l. they are taken for
God it will be by storm. Yoa viii have to
bring up the great slege guns OF the Gospel
to the very wall, and wheel the living artil-
lerv into line, and when the armed infantry
OF heaven shall confront the battle,nent> you
Will have to give the quick "ontnand: For
ward! tharge"
All, my friends, there is work for you to
do and for me to do i'll order to achieve this
grand accomplishment! Here is a pulpit,
and a clergyman breaches i'll it. Your pull
PIT is the bank. Your pulpit is the store.
Your pulpit is the editorial chair Your
pulpit is the anvil. ! Your pulpit is the
house scatfolding. Your pulpit is the me-
chanic's shop. ] may stand in this place and,
through coWardfca OF through self seeking,
may keep back the word | ought to utter;
while you, with sleeve rolled up and brow
beSweated with toll, may utter the word
that will jar the foundation of hea ven with
the shout of a great victory. Oh, that to-
day this whole audience might feel that the
Lord Almighty is putting upon them the
hands of ordination. Every one, go forth
and preach this Gospel. You have as much
right to preach as | have, or as any man has.
Only find out the pulpit where God will
have you preach, and there preach.
Hedley Wears was a wicked man in the
English army The grace of God came to
him. He became an earnest and eminent
Christian. They scoffed at him and said,
You are a hypocrite; you are as bad a.
ever you were Still he kept his faith in
Christ, and after awhile, finding that they
could not turn him aside by calling him q
hypocrite, they said TO him, 'tOh. YOU art
nothing but a fanatic That did not dis
turb him.. He went on performing his Chris
tan duty until he had formed all his trooI
into a Bible class, aud the whole encamp
ment was shaken with the presence OF God
So Havelock went into the heather tempt
in India while the English army was there
:. and put a candle into the hand Of each o
n the heather gods That STOOD around In tn
heather temple, and by the light Of thos
; candles, held up by tue idols, General Have
, lock preached righteousness, temperance AM
, Judgment to come. And who will say. OF
/ earth or in heaved, that Havelock had no
the right to preach?
ia the ministers house where l prepared
for college there was a mar who worked, b,
the name of Peter Croy. He could neithe
} read nor write. but he was a man Of God
Often theologians would stop in the house
grave theologians-and at family prayer
. Peter Croy would be called upon to lead, an
: all those wise men sat around, wonderstruc
! at his religious efficiency. When he praye
9 he reached up and seemed to take hold G
the very throne of the Almighty, and b
talked with God till the very heavens wer
: bowed down into the sltting-room. Oh. if
! Were dying | would rather have plain Itte
Croy stand 10y my bedside and common
= my Immortal spirit to God than some hear
' less ecclesiastic arraYed in costly canoI
= lcalS. tfo preach this Gospel, You say We
. are not licensed. Ia the name of the Lor
Almighty. this morning Iiic4nSa. Won. G