The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-06-13

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 dispense at the close
of the services seemingly without having
received any impression, that night voices
win be lifted in some household: "Men and
brethren, what shall we do to be savedl'
| o, this power of prayer! Pray! Prayl
| Another word of counsel have 20 give.
Be faithful in Bible research. A great many
! good books are now coming out. We dam
not read half of them. Atevery revolu-
ton of the printing press they are coming
They cover our parlor tables, and are in
our sitting rooms and libraries. Glorious
| 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 attention
| from Gods word, aud that there may not be
as much Bible reading as there ought 20 be.
How is that with your own experienced
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-gettlng 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 refresh
ment and health of the gospel Of God as it
comes through good books, find it ia better
when | 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 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
patience, beside Paul and catch something
of his enthusiasm, beside Christ and you
feel his love. And yet, how strange il is
that great many men have given their
whole lives to the assaulting of that book
l cannot understand it. Tom Paine
worked against that book as though he re-
oeived 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 intelects have endeavored to
destroy 1t. Hume, Bolingbroke, Voltaire,
have been after it. Ten thousand men now
are warning against the truIh of Gods
word. What do you think of them |
prove 1t is the meanest thing that has ever
been done in all the centuries
There Is ship at sea and in trouble. The
captain and the crew are at their wits end.
You are on board You are an old seaman.
You come up aud 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 taffrail9 o, you say. that Is
dastardly. But is it as mean as this9 Here
is the vessel of the world going on with
sixteen hundred millions of passengers,
tossed and driven in the tempest, aud at the
time we want help the infidel comes and he
takes hold of the only compass and he tries
to pitch it overheard. 1t is contemplate
beyond anything that is contemplate.
Have you any better light Bring it on if
you have. Have you any better comfort
to give usa Bring it on il you have. Have
you any better hopel Bring it on if you
have, and then you may have this Bible and
shall never want it again.
But can think OF a meaner thing than
that and that is an old man going along
on the mountains with staff In one hand
and lantern in the other. Darkness
has come on suddenly. He is very old,
Just able to pick his way out amid the
rocks and preo pices, 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
a long way from home" Eyes, :" 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 aud snatch the lantern and
blow it out! That would be dastardly,
contemplate until there is no depth Of
contempt beneath it. If you have better
staff. give It to him. If you have better
light give it TO him.
When God has put the stair of the gospel
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 illumina-
tionl / love the sting of the wasp aud 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 good while. 1t is a precious
book to their souls. 1t has been 30 in times
Of darkness and trouble. There was a SOL
der who fell in battle, and after he had
fallen he said IN feeble voice to his COM
rade. "Give me a drop" His comrade re-
piled, There is not a particle of water in
my canteen." 90" he said. ~ didn't mean
that. Look in my knapsack and you will
flnd a Bible there. Get out that old Bible
and Just give me drop out of that" And
his comrade found the Bible aud read a few
passages. The dying soldier said, 20,
George, there is nothing like that, is there,
for dying soldiers"
Cling to you Bible! If this Bible should
be destroyed, il all the Bibles that have
ever been printed should be destroyed, we
could make up Bible right OUT of this
audience. From that Christian mans
experience l take one cluster of promises,
and from that old Christian mans experi-
once another, put them all together, and
think would have Bible.
You see, my friends. have not tried to
hide the fact that have large expectation
of you who have entered the Christian life.
Do not be discouraged. Press on toward
the prize; God beside you and heaven be-
fore you. Keep your courage up. Look in
thirty years from now upon this church.
Another man in the pulpit. Other faces in
the pews. Another man leading the song.
Others carrying around the alms-boxes Of
the church. All changed. Thirty years
have gone, and look into the faces of the
people, and say: why it seems to me
have seen these people somewhere, but
cannot exactly say where. o, yes, now
begin to think. These were the converts in
1892 and 1890. Why, how you have
changed" 20, yes" they say, ''of course
we have changed. Thirty years make
a great change" 1 say: How many
wrinkles there are in your faces ~
20, yes" they say, thirty years make q
great many wrinkles" Have you kept
the faithP' Eyes, we have kept the faith"
"W here are those people who used to sit In
| the pew with your "All gone" Then :"
I F.aI -