The Red Cloud chief., 1892-07-15
PILATES QUESTION.
~What Shall I Do Then With
Jesus9' evr
Each De a. Ven Win Have 20 Ask and
ArSv4rt tor Himself Thst Question
s<rmoA by Rev. 4. Dewitt Tai.
mage, DID.

lected for publication this week Is from
= the text Matthew xvii. 22, what
shall I do with Jcsus?"
PLATE was an unprincipled politician.
lie had %sympathics, convictions of right
ana desires 70 be honest; but all these
were submerged by a wish TO be popu-
lar and 10 please the people. Two dis
tinguished prisoners were IN the grasp
of government, and the proposition was
made TO free one OF them. There stands
Barabbas, the murderer; there stands
Christ, the Saviour of the world. Atthe
demand of the people the renegade Is
set free. but Jesus Is held. As the hard
visavcd and cruel eyed Barabbas goes
among his sympathizers. receiving their
coarse congratulations, PLATE turns to
his other distinguished prisoncr-mild,
meek, inoifensive, loving, sclf.sacriiic-
ing-and he IL COMPOUNDED as to what
course he had better take, so he inn
panels the mob as a jury to decide, say
ing 70 them: "What shall l do, then,
with Jcsus?" .
oh, It is no dried or withcrcd question,
but one that throbs with warm and
quick pulse in the heart of every man
and woman here. We must do ONE
thing with Jesus. He is here. You
and I are not 50 certainly here as He Is,
for lie fills all this 'placc-the loving,
living, dying Christ-and each n of
us will have to ask and answer for him.
self the question, what shall ! do,
then, with Jcsus?" Well, my friends,
there nrc three or four things you can
do with him.
You can, in the first place. let Him
stand without q word of recognition;
but ] do not think your sense of con.
mon courtesy will allow that. He
comes walking on such n long journey,
you will certainly give Him a chair on
which He may sit. lie is 81 weary, you
would not let Him stand without some
recognition. IL n beggnr comes to your
door, you recognize him and say:
"What do you want?" II you meet q
stranger faint in the street, you say:
what Is the matter with you?" and
your common humanity, and your com
mon sympathy, and your COMMON sense
of propriety will not allow you to let
Him stand without recognition-the
wounded Ono of the hills. You will
ask: What makes Him weep? where
was He hurt? who wounded Him?
whence came He? whittier goes Hep l
know there have been men who have
with outrageous indifference hated
Christ, but l know very we'll that that
IA not what You will do with Jesus.
Another thing you, can do with him
YOU can thvust him back from your
heart and tell him to stand aside. II an
i~noffensive person comes and persists In
standing close up to you, and you have
In various ways given him to UNDER
stand that you do not want his presence
or his society, then you ask the reason
of his im~pertinence and bid him away.
Well, that Is what we can do with
Jesus
Nc has stood close by us u great
whils-tn twenty. thirty, forty years.
He Mas stood close by you three times a
day. breaking bread for your household,
NIL night watching by your pillow; He
has been in the nursery among your
children; lie has been in the store
among your goods; lie has been in the
factory amid tho flying wheels, and now
II you do not like His society you can
bid Him away; aye, II lie will not GO
you can take Him by the throat and
tell Him you do not want His inter
ference; that you do not want His
breath ON your check; that you do not
want His eye on your behavior. You
a bid Him away, or il He will not GO
in that way, then you can stamp your
foot, as you would at a dog, and cry,
''Begone!'
Yet know yon will not treat Jesus
that way. When plate could not dc
that, you could not. Desperadoes and
outlaws might do so. but ! know that
is o the way you will treat him, tina,
that is not what you will do with Jesus.
There is another thing You can do with
him-you can look On him merely as M
optician to cure blind eyes, or an artist
to tune deaf ears, q friend, u good
friend, n helpful companion, q
cheerful passenger on shipboard; bu,
that will amount 10 nothing. You car
look upon him as u God and be abashed
while he rouscs the storm, or blasts q
fig tree, or heaves n rock down tn,
mountain side. That will not do yor
any good; no more saw your soul thar
the admiration you have for John Mil
ton or William Shakespeare.
can think of only one more thin,
you can do with Jesus, and that is t,
take Him into your hearts. That is tn
best thing you can do with Him; that /
the only safe thing you can do will
Him, aud may the Lord omnipotent b,
spirit help me to persuade you to d.
that. a minister of Christ was speak
ing to some children and said, 81 vii
point you to Christ" A little child ros
in the audience and came p and pu
her hand in the hand of the pastor an
said: please, sir, take me to Jesu
now. want TO go now" Oh, that
might be now with such simplicity q
experience that you and l join hand
and seek after Christ and get an expires
sion Of his benefaction and his mercy!
You may take Christ into your cont
dcnce. Ifyou can not trust Him, whoi
a you trust? do not offer you n dry
theological t~echnicality. l simply ms
you TO come and put both feet on tn
"Rock Of Ages" Take hold of Christ
hand and draw Him 10 your soul wit
perfect abandonment and hurl yourse