Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1891-07-03

| AZ ukNc y tuauAicse SuAu-
That is Shakespeare "a foolish son is C.. q
heavineSs Of his mother" That Is the Bible
| Well, my friends have not some OF us been
cruel prodigals, Have we not maltreated
our Fatherf And such a Fatherl 30 low
ing, 30 kind. II He had been a stranger, IL
He had forsaken us, IL He had flagellated us,
| IL He had pounded us and turned us out OF
doors on the commons, It would not have
been 50 wonderful-our treatment of Him;
but He is a Father 50 loving, so kind, and
| yet how many Of us for our wanderings have
never apoogized. We apologize for wrongs
done TO our fellows, but some OF us perhaps
have committed ten thousand times ten
thousand wrongs against God and never
| apologized.
! remark still farther that this resolution
Of the text was founded In a feeling of home
sickness. | don't know how long this young
man, how many months, how many years
he had been away from his fathers house
but there is something in the reading Of my
! text that makes ME think he was homesick.
Some of you know what that feeling Is, Far
away from home sometimes, surrounded by
everything bright and peasant-penty of
| friends-you have said, II would give the
world 10 DO home tonight Well, this
young man was homesick for his fathers
| house. | have no doubt when he thought OF
his fathers house he said, Now, perhaps
father may not be living"
We read nothing in this story-this par
able founded on everyday life-we read
nothing about the mother. 1t says nothing
about going home TO her. l think she was
dead. | think she had dei OF n broken heart
Mt his wanderinys A man never gets over
having lost his mother. Nothing said about
her here. But he Is homasic for his fathers
house. He thought he would lust like TO go
and walk around tho old place. As
thought he would just like to go and see II
things were as they used to be. Many man
after having been Off n long while has gou,
home and knocked at tho door, an a strah-
ger has come. 1t is the old hom ss;ead, but a
stranger comes to the door. He finds out
father is gone and mother is gone AMI
brothers and sisters oil gomez | think tlis
young man OF tho text said TO himself, Per
haps father may be dead Still he starts -
find out. He Is honcsck. Are thsro any
here to-day homesick fo- God, homeSick for
heaven?
A sailor, after having been long on the
SEQ, returned 10 his fathers house, and his
mother tried to pers,:lic him not to go away
again. She said: Now you had better stay
at home. Don't go away; we don't want you
to go. You will have It greet deal better
here" But 1t made him angry. The night
before he went again TO sea he heard his
mother praying in the next room, and that
made him more angry. He went far out Oh
the sea, and a storm came up, AMI no was
ordered 10 very perilous duty, aud he ran up
the ratlines, and amid the shrou is OF the
ship he heard the voice that he had heard in
the next room. He tried 70 whistle 1t off,
he tried to rally hi9 courage, but
he could not silence that voice be had
heard in the next room, AMI there in
the storm aud the darkness he said: 40 Lori
what wretch have been: what wretch
l am. Help me just now, Lord God" And
/ thought in this assemblase to-day there
may be some who may have the memory of
a fathers petition or mothers prayer
pressing nightly upon the soul, and that
this hour they may make the same resolution
l find in my text, saying. II will arise and
go to my father.
A lad at Liverpool went out to bathe, went
ont into the sea, went out too far, got beyond
his depth and he hoatel far away. A ship
bound for Dublin came along and took him
on board. Sailors are generally very gener-
GUS fellows, aud one gave him a cap and
another gave himn 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 hesrtbrokeD, the mother was heartbroSen
at the loss OF their child.
They had heard nothing from him day
after day, and they ordered the usual mourn
ing for the sad event But the lad took ship
from Dublin and arrived in Liverpool the
very day the garments arrived He knocked
at the door, and the father was overjoyed
and the mother was overjoyed at the return
OF their lost son. Oh, my friends have you
waded out too deepi Have you waded down
into sinf Have you waded from the shoref
viii you come barki When you come back,
will you come In the rags Of your sin, or will
you come robed in the Saviour's righteous.
ness, believe the latter. Go home to your
God to-day. He is waiting for you. Go
homel
But remark concerning this resolution,
It was immediately put into execution. The
context sayS HE arose and came to his
father" The trouble in nine hundred and
ninety. nine tunes out OF thousand Is that
our resolutions amount to nothing because
we make them for some distant time IL
resolve to become Christian next year, that
amounts to nothing at ali. IL | resolve to
become Christian tomorrow, that amounts
TO nothing at all. II resolve ut the service
to night to become a Christian, that amounts
TO nothing at oil. IL | resolve after | 60
home to-day to yield my heart to God, that
amounts to nothing at all. The only kind OF
resolution that amounts to anything Is the
resolution that is Immediately put into exc
cution.
There is a man who hal the typhoid fever.
He said: ''Oh! il could get over this ter
rihle distress! II this fever should depart,
IL could be restored to health, l would all
the rest Of my life serve Col" Tho fever
departed He got we'll enough to walk
around tho b!ock He got well enough to go
over u New York and attend to business.
He is we'll to-day-as we'll as he ever was.
Where Is tho broken vowl There Is man
who said long ago, "If l could live to tho
year 1891, by that time l will have my busi-
ness matters arranged, and will have time
TO attend to rcigion, an1 will bo a good,
thorough, consecrated Christian"
The year 1891 has come. January, Febru-
ary, March, April May. June-alnost half
vows. "Oh," says somo man, "Fll attend
to that when l can get my character fixed
up. When can get over my evil habits. |
am now given to strong drink" or, says the
man, II am given to uncleauness,' or says the
man, ~ am given to dishonesty. When get
over my present habits, then I'll be a thor
ough Christian" My brother, you will get
worse and worse, until Christ takes you in
hand. mot tho righteous; sinners, Jesus
| came to call"
Obi but you say, 81 agree with you on all
that, but | must put 1t off a little longer
| Do you know there were many who came as
near as you are to the kingdom Of God and
never entered 1t. l was at East Hampton
and went into the cemetery to look around,
and in that cemetery there are twelve graves
side by side-tho graves OF sailors This
crew, some years ago, in ship went into
the breakers at Amagcnsott, 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 Amagansett saw the ves-
sci and they shot rockets aud they sent
ropes from the shore, and these poor fellows
got into the boat, and they pullel nightly
for the shore but Just before they got to the
shore the rope snapped aud the boat capsized
and they were lost, their bodies afterward
washed up on the beach. Oh, whata solemn
day it was-I have been told it by my
brother-when these twelve men lay at the
foot of the pulpit and he read over them the
funeral servicel They came very near shore