The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1891-09-18

let nun come AOmes Wnlbe anu
black. Come, red men of the forest
Come, Laplander, out of the snow.
Come. Patagonian, out of the heat
Come in furs. Come painting under
palm leaves, Come one. Come all
Come now. AS Mt this well Of Mesopo-
tamia, Jacob and Rachel were be-
trothed, SO now. at this well of saliva
ton, Christ our Shepherd win meet
you coming up with your long focks OF
cares and anxieties, and He viii stretch
out His hand in pledge of His affection,
while all Heaven will cry out: BE
hold the bridegroom cometh, go We ont
to meet him"
You notice that this well of Mesopo-
tamia had a stone on ii. which must be
removed before the sheep could be
watered; and find ON the well of sal
walton to-day impediments and obsta-
cles, which mustfbe removed in order
that you may obtain the refreshment
and life of this Gospel. In your case
the impediment is pride of heart. You
a fountain; you do not want to come
with so many others. tits to you like
when you are dry, coming to a town
pump, as compared to sitting in par
Tor slipping out of chased chalice which
has just been lifted from a silver sal
yer. Not so many publicans and
sinners. You want to get to Heav-
en-, but it must be IN a
special car. with your feet on
a Turkish ottoman and a band of
music on board the train. You do not
want to be in company with rustic
Jacob and Rachel, and to be drinking
out of the fountain where ten thousand
sheep have been drinking before you.
You will have to remove the obstacle
of pride. or never find your way to the
well. You will have to come as we
came, willing to take the water of
hand, and in any kind of pitcher, cry
ing out: 20, Lord Jesus, am dying of
thirst. Give me the water of eternal
life, whether in trough or in goblet;
give me the water of life; care not in
what it comes to me-" Away with ali
your hindrances of pride from the wells
mouth.
Here is another man who is kept
back from this water of life by the
stone of an obdurate heart, which lies
over the mouth of the we'll. You have
no more feeling upon this subject than
if God had yet to do you the first kind
ness, or you had 20 do God the
first wrong. Seated on His lap
all these years, His everlasting
arms sheltering you, where is your
gratitude ? Where is your morning
and evening prayer? Where are your
consecrated lives? 1 say to you, as
Daniel said to -Belshazzar: 1.-THE God
in whose hand thy breath is, and all
thy way thou hast not glorifed." If
you have treated anybody as badly as
you have treated God you would have
made five hundred apologies-yes, your
whole life would have been an apology.
Three times a day you have been seat
ed at Gods table. Spring, summer,
autumn and winter He has appropriate
ly appareled you. Your health from
Kim, your companion from Him, your
children from Him, your home from
Him. All the bright surroundings
of your life from Him. o man, what
dost thou with that hard heart? Canst
thou not feel one throb of gratitude to-
ward God who made you, and the Holy
Ghost who has all these years beenlir i'm
portuning you? If you could sit down
five minutes under the tree of a Saviour's
martyrdom, and feel His warm life
triclxling on your forehead and cheek
and hands, methinks you would get
some appreciation of what you owe to
crucitied Jesus.
Heart of stone, relent, relent,
Touched by jesus cross subdued;
go See His body, mangled, rent,
Covered with a gore of blood.
Sinful soul, what hast thou donef
Crucitied the Eternal Son.
Jacob with good deal of tug and
push took the stone from the wells
mouth, so that the floclSs might be
watered. And / would that to-day lay
word, blessed of God, might remove
the hindrances to your getting up to
the Gospel well. Yes, / take it for
granted that the work is done, and
now, like oriental shepherds, / proceed
TO water the sheep.
Come, all We thirstyI You have an UNI
defined longing in your soul You tried
money-making; that did not satisfy you.
You tried Office under government; that
did not satisfy you. You tried pictures
and sculptures. but works of art did not
satisfy You. You are as much discon-
tented with this life as the celebrated
French scholar who felt that he could
not any longer endure the mis-
fortunes of the world, and who
said: At four o'clock this after
noon / shall put an end to my own
existence. Meanwhile, I must toll on up
to that time for the sustenance of my
family" And he wrote on his book till
the clock struck four, when he folded
up his manuscript and. by his own
hand, concluded his earthly life. There
are men here who are perfectly discon-
tented Unhappy in the pastSunhappy
to-day, to be unhappy forever, unless
you come to this Gospel-welL This
satisfies the soul with high, deep, all
absorbing and eternal satisfaction. 1t
comes and it offers the most I'M
fortunate man SO much of this
world as is best for him, and
throws all Heaven into the bargain.
The wealth of Crosus and of all the
Rothschilds is only a poor, miserable
shilling compared with the eternal for
tunes that Christ offers you to-day.
In the far east there was king who
used once a year to get on scales,
while on the other side the scales were
placed gold and silver and gems; in
deed, enough were placed there to bal
ance the king; then at the close of the
weighing, all those treasures were
thrown among the populace- But
Christ to- day steps on one side the
scales, and on the other side are all the
t,.oasv~ne of tha rrrswnv-~n and He cavS.