Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1892-07-25
John Apr,ll James wrote "Advice to

Oh, the Bible Is the very book yot
need, anxious and inquiring soul!
lying soldier said to his mate, "Com
rade, give mo d dropr' The comradt
shook up tho ..nteen and said, ether,
isn't drop of water in the canteen.
"Oh,' said the dying soldier, "that's moi
what want; feel in my knapsack fol
my Bible" And his comrade found the
Bible and read him few of the gra
cious promises, and the dying soldier
said: "Ah, that's what l want. There
isn't anything like the Bible for dying
soldier, is there, my comradeY" Oh
blessed book while we live. Blessed
BOOK when we die.
remark, again, we must seek God
through church ordinances. "What,'
say you, cant man be saved without
going to church, | reply, there are
men, suppose, in glory, who have never
seen a church; but the church is the or
dained means by which wo are to be
brought TO God and if truth affects us
when we are alone, it affects us more
nightly when we are in the assembly
the feelings of others emphasizing our
own feelings. The great law of sympa-
thy comes into play, and truth that
wonld take hold only with the grasp Of
sick man beats nightly against the
soul with thousand heart throbs.
When you come into the religious cir
Gle, come only with one notion, and
only for one purpose--to find the way to
Christ. When sec people critical about
sermons, and critical about tones of
voice, and critical about sermonic de-
livery, they make nie think of man in
prison. He is condemned to death, but
an officer of the government brings a
pardon and puts it through the wicket
of the prison, and says: Here is your
pardon. Come and get it," "What!
Do you expect me to take that pardon
offered with such voice as you have,
with such an awkward manner as you
have? would rather die than so COM
promise my rhetorical notions!' All,
the man does not say that; he takes it!
1t is his life. lie does not care how it
is handed to him. And if this morning
that pardon from the throne of God is
offered to our souls, should we not seize
1t, regardless of all criticism, feeling
that it is matter of heaven or hell?
NOW IS THE TINE.
But come now to the last part of my
text. 1t tells us when we are to seek
the Lord. while he may be found"
When is that? Old age? You may not
see old age. Tomorrow? You may not
see tomorrow. Tonight? You may not
see tonight. Now, Oh, if ! could only
write on every heart in three capital let
ters that word N-O-W-now!
Sin is an awful disease. hear peolle
say, with the toss of the heal and with
trivial manner, "Oh, yes, I'm sinner"
Sin is an awful disease. 1t is leprosy.
1t is dropsy. 1t is consumption. 1t is
all moral disorders in one. Now you
know there is a crisis in a disease. Per.
haps you have had some illustration of
it in your family. Sometimes the physi-
clan has called and he has looked at the
patient and said: THAT CASE was simple
enough, but the crisis has parsed. If you
had called me yesterday or his morning
| could have cured the patient. 1t is too
late now; the crisis has passed" Just
so it is in the spiritual treatment of the
soul; there is crisis. Before that, life!
After that, death! o my dear brother,
as you love your soul, do not let the
crisis pass unatter ded to!
There are some here who can remem-
Der instances in life when if they had
bought n certain property they would
have become very rich. A few acres
that would have cost them almost moth
ing We're offered them. They refused
them. Afterward large village or
city sprang up on those acres of ground
and they see what mistake they made
in not buying the property. There was
an opportunity of getting it. 1t never
came back again. And ST. it is in re-
gard to mans spiritual and eternal
fortune. There is a chance; if you let
that go, perhaps it never comes back.
Certainly that one never comes back.
There is time which mercy has set
for leaving port. If you are on board |
before that you will get passage for
heaven. If you are not on board you |
miss your passage for heaven. AS in |
law courts a case is sometimes adjourned |
from term to term, and from year to |
year, till the bill of costs eats up the en- |
tire estate, so there are men who are ad- |
journing the matter of religion from |
time to time, and from year to year,
until heavenly bliss is the bill of costs
the man would have 10 pay for it.
Why defer this matter, o my dear
hearer? Have you any idea that sin will
wear outl that it will evaporate? that it
will relax its grasp? that you may find
religion as "a man accidentally finds a
lost pocketbook? All, no! No man ever
became Christian by accident or by
tho relaxing of sin. The embarrass-
ments are all the time increasing. The
hosts of darkness are recruiting, and the
longer You postpone this matter the
sleeper the path will become. ask
those men who are before me this morn
ing whether in the ten or fifteen years
they have passed in the postponement
of these matters they have come any
nearer God or heaven?
FLY FOR REFUGE.
would not be afraid to challenge this
whole audience, so far as they may not
nave found the peace of the Gospel, in
'egard to that matter. Your hearts,
1ou are willing frankly to tell me, are
becoming harder and harder, and that
I you come to Christ it will be more of
IN undertaking now than il ever would
lave been before. Oh, fly for refuge!
The avenger of blood is ON the trackl
The throne of Judgment will soon be
ct, and if you have anything to do to-
ward your eternal salvation you had
,etter do it now, for the redemption of
he soul is precious and it ceaseth for