Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1892-06-23


school teachers. That one does not gain
the attention Of her class. This one does
What is the difference between them, their
intellects being about equali The first
thought only OF her own apparel The
other came from great prostration before
God in earnest supplication. asking that
Gods mercy might come upon the school,
and that in the afternoon she might gain
the attention of those five or six immortals
that would be around her The one teacher
has no control over her class. The other
sits as with the strength Of the Lord God
Almighty.
A minister comes into the pulpit. He
has magnificent sermon, all the sentences
rounded according TO the laws of rhetoric
and fine sermonizing, and the truth makes
no impression ON the hearts of men. Peo-
pie go away and say. VERY beautiful,
wasn't ity" A plain man comes into the
pulpit. He has been on his knees before
God, asking for an especial message that
day, and the hearts of men open TO the
plain truth, the broken sentences strike
into their consciences, and, though the
people may disperse at the close of the sery-
ices seemingly without having received
any impression, that night voices will be
lifted in some household, Men and breth-
ren, what shall we do to be savedy" Oh,
this power of prayerl Pray! Pray!
Another word of counsel have to give.
Be faithful in Bible research. A great
many good books are now coming out. We
cannot read half of them. At every revo-
luton of the printing press they are CON-
ing. They cover our parlor tables and are
In nI1r CIT nd aria
GUS books they are. We thank God every
day for the work of the Christian printing
press. But have thought that perhaps
the followers of Christ sometimes allow
this religious literature to take their at
tention from Gods word, and that there
may not be as much Bible reading as there
ought to be.
How is that with your own experience!
Just calculate in your minds how much
religious literature you have read during
the year, and then how large a portion of
the Word of God you have read and then
contrast the two and answer within your
own soul whether you are giving more at
tention to the books that were written by
the hand of man or that written by the hand
of God. Now you go to the drug store and
you get the mineral waters, but You have
noticed that the waters are not so fresh
or sparkling or healthful as when you get
these very waters at Saratoga and Sharon
getting them right where they bubble
from the rock. And | have noticed the
same thing in regard to the truth of the
Gospel; while there is a good deal of re-
freshment and health of the Gospel of God
as it comes through good books, find it Is
better when l come to the eternal rock of
| Gods Word and drink from that fountain
that bubbles up fresh and pure to the life
and the refreshment and the health of the
soul.
READ THE BIBLE.
Read the Bible and it brings you into
the association of the best people that ever
lived. You stand beside Moses and learn
his meekness beside Job and learn his pa
thence, beside Paul and catch something
of his enthusiasm, beside Christ and you
feel his love. And yet how strange it is
that great many men have given their
whole lives to the assaulting of that book.
l cannot understand it, Tom Paine work
ed against that book as though he received
large wages, and was inspired by the very
powers of darkness, confessing that all the
time he was writing he did not have the
Bible anywhere near him. How many
powerful intellects have endeavnrctl to de-
stroy it. Hume, Bolingbroke, Toltaire
have been after it. Ten Thousand men
now are warning against the truth of
Gods Word. What do you think of
them? / think it is mean, and will prove
it. will prove it is the meanest thing
that has ever been done IN all the ccntu-
turies.
There is a ship at sea and in trouble.
The captain and the crew are ut their wits
end. You are on board. lou are an old
seaman. You come up and give some good
counsel, which is kindly taken. That is
all right. But suppose. instead Of doing
that, in the midst Of all the trouble you
pick up the only compass that is on board
and pitch it over the ta1rail? Oh, you say,
that is dastardly. But is it as mean as
this? Here is the vessel of the world going
on with sixteen hundred millions of pas
sengers, tossed and driven in the tempest,
and at the time we want help the infidel
comes and he takes hold of the only COM
pass and he tries to pitch it overheard. 1t
is contemplate beyond everything that is
contemplate. Have you any better light?
Bring it on if you have. Have you any
better comfort to give us? Bring it on if
you have. Have you any better hope?
Bring it on if you have, and then you may
have this Bible and l shall never want it
again.
But l can think of meaner thing than
that, and that is an old man going along
on the mountains with staff in one hand
and a lantern in the other Darkness has
come on suddenly. He is very old, just
able to pick his way out amid the rocks
and precipices, leaning on his staff with
one hand and guiding himself with the
light in the other. You come up and say:
"Father you seem to be lost. You are q
long way from home. "Yes," he replies.
And then you take him by the hand and
lead him home. That is very kind of you.
But suppose instead of that you should
snatch the staff from his hands and hurl
it over the rocks, and snatch the lantern
and blow it out? That would be das
tardly, contemplate until there is nc
depth of contempt beneath it. If you have
better staff, give it to him. If you have
better light, give it to him.
LIGHT TO OUR FEET.
When God has put the staff of the Cos.
pei in our hands and the lamp of Gods
word to light our feet, are you going to
take from US our only support and our only
illumination? love the sting of the wasp
and the rattlesnake better than do the
man who wants to clutch the word of God
from my grasp There are people here who
have been reading it a good while. 1t is g
precious book to their souls. 1t has beer
so in time of darkness and trouble. There
was a soldier who fell in battle, and after
he had fallen he said in a feeble voice tt
his comrade, "Give me a drop" His com
rade replied, "rhere is not a particle o.
water in my canteen." "Oh," he said, 81
didn't mean that. Look in my knapsacE
and you will find a Bible there. Get out
that old Bible and just give me a drop ou
of that" And his comrade found the Bi