The Bossier banner., 1891-08-27

make the same resolution l find in my
text, saying: II will arise and go to my
father
A lad at Liverpool went ont to bathe
went out into the sea-went out too
far, got beyond his depth, and he float
ed far away. A ship bound for Dublin
came along and took him on board.
Sailors are generally very generous fell
lows. and one gave him cap and
another give him jacket, and another
gave him shoes. A gentleman passing
along on the beach at Liverpool found
the lads clothes and took them
home, and the father was heartbroken
and the mother was heartbroken at
the loss of their child. They had heard
nothing from him day after day, and
they ordered the usual mourning for
the sad event. But the lad took ship
from Dublin and arrived in Liverpool
the very day the garments ar
rived He knocked at the door,
and the father was overjoyed and the
mother was overjoyed at the return
of their lost son. O! my friends, have
you waded out too deep? Have you
waded down to sin? Have you waded
from the shore? VIII you come back?
When you come back, will you come in
the rags of your sin, or will you come
robed in the Saviour's righteousness? l
be lieve the latter. Go home to your
God to-day. He is waiting for you. Go
home!
There Is a man who had the typhoid
fever. He said: 'Oh, if l could get
over this terrible distress! If this
fever should depart, if l Gould be re-
stored to health, would all the rest of
my life serve God" The fever depart
ed. He got well enough to walk around
the block. He got well enough to go
over to New York and attend to busi-
ness. He is well to-day-as well as he
ever was. Where is the broken VOW?
There is a man who said long
ago: 'If could live to year 1891, by
that time will have by business mat
ters arranged, and | will have time to
attend to religion, and l will be good,
thorough consecrated Christian" The
year 1891 has come. January, Febru-
ary, March, April, May, June-almost
half the year gone. Where is your bro
ken vow2" ''O,' says some man, "Tll
attend to that when l can get my char
acter fixed up; when can get over my
evil habits; am now given to strong
drink" or, says the man. Il am given
| to uncleanness;" or, saws the man, Il
am given to dishonesty. When get
over my present habits, then I'll be a
thorough Christian" My brother, you
will get worse and worse until Christ
takes you in hand. Not the righteous;
sinners, Jesus came to call"
Q! but you say: 81 agree with you on
all that, but l must put it off a little
longer" Do you know there were
many who came just as near as you
are to the kingdom of God and never
entered it? I was at East Hampton
and went into the cemetery to look
around, and in that cemetery there are
twelve graves side by side-the graves
of sailors. The crew, some years ago,
in a ship went into the breakers at
Amagansett, about three miles away.
My brother, then preaching at East
Hampton, had been at the burial
These men of the crew came very near
being saved. The people from Anna
gansett saw the vessel, and they shot
rockets, and they sent ropes from the
shore, and these poor fellows got into
the boat, and they pulled nightly for
shore, but just before they got to the
shore the rope snapped, and the boat
capsized, and they were lost, their
bodies afterward washed up on the
beach. o. what a solemn day ii
was-I have been told of it by my
brother-when these twelve men lay at
the foot of the pulpit and he read over
them the funeral service. They came
very near the shore-within shouting
distance of the shore, yet did net arrive
on solid land. There are some men
who come almost to the shore of Gods
mercy, but not quite, not quite. To be
only almost saved is not to be saved al
all.
To-day offer you the pardon of the
Gospel-full pardon, free pardon. ] dc
not care whatyour sin has been. Though
you say you have committed a crime
against God, against your own soul
against your fellow man, against youl
family, against the day of Judgment,
against the cross of Christ-what.
ever your crime has been, here is
pardon, full pardon, and the very mo-
ment that you take that pardon your
heavenly father throws His arms around
about you and says: My son, for.
give you. 1t is all right. You are as
much in my favor now as if you had
never sinned." o! there is Joy on earth
and joy in Heaven. Who will take the
Fathers embrace.
There was a gentleman in rail car
who saw in that same car three passeu-
gers of very different circumstances.
The first was maniac. He was care
fully guarded by his attendants; his
mind, like a ship dismasted, was
beating against a dark, desolate
coast, from which no help could
come. The train stopped. and
the man was taken out into the
asylum to waste away, pershaps.
through years of gloom. The second
passenger was culprit. The outraged
law had seized on MIN. AS the cars
jolted the chains ratified On his face
were crime, depravity and despair. The