The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1893-11-23
THE WORD II TURNS HISTORY
A MIGHTY WORD.
DR.. Tslmsge Draws Remarkable Lessons
From an Old Subject.

] =.
boot. Exodus xxxii.. 49,
There is in our English language smaI
conjunction which. propose. by Gods heip
10 haul out OF its present insigniacancy an,
set upon the throns where Il belongs AM
that IL the conjunction ''if" Though mad
OF only two letters, Il is the pivot on which
everything turns. Az time and all etprn!t,
are AZ is disposal. We slur II in our utter
ance. W. ignors IL In our appreciation. and
mons OF us recoynizs Il "a tbs most tremen
dous wor in all the vocabulary outside O
| those words which describe deity
| "it!' Why. that word We take as a tram,
among words. now appearing here. now an
psar'ne there bur having no vslus OF IL
! own. when II really has miliionairstIom ol
words. aud IN It's train walk all planetary
| sisllar. iuul-. solar destiui-s IL the boa, OF
I leaves made wuertight. In which ths infant
Moses sailed the Nile. had sunk WAC would
h1v" lei Israel out OF Egyp,2 II the Red
Sea had not parted for the ps,aps OF one
host and then come together Tor the sub
'nsrgen'r % another. would the hook ol
Exodus ever have been written? n the shin
on which Columbus sailed for America had
gone down IN an Atlantic cv,ione. how much
longer would u have taken FOR the dtscoy-
erv o' this continent
II Groucay had coma IN with reinforce
ment. ir time 10 give the French the victory
at Waterloo, what would have been the fat,,
oi Europe? Ifthe Spanish Armada hat not
been wrecked of the coast how diHsren,
would haye been many chapters in English
history Ii the battle OF Hastings o. tb.
battle OF PultowI. or the battle of valmy. or
the battts oi Mataurus, o. the battle OF Ar
bella. or tue battle of Chalons. each ons Of
which turned the worlds destiny, had besn
decided the other way
II Shakespeare had never been born for
the drama, or Handel had never been born
Tor music, or Titan had never been born for
painting, or Thorwl.dsen had never been
born Tor sculpture. or Edmund Burke had
never been born Tor eloquence. o. Socrates
had never been born for philosophy, or
Blackstone had ntvsr been born for thu law
or Copernicus hal nlvpr been born for ,.-
trouomy. or Luther had never 5ean born for
the reformation
Oh. that conjunction "iiw How much has
depended on II The height OF Il. the depth
OF u, the length OF II. the breadth % il. the
immensely ot II. the innniy OF it-who can
measureI IL would swamp anything but
omnipotenrp. But must conhne myselfto-
day TO the IFS OF the Bible. aud in doing 80
| shalt speak OF the ''if' OF oyerpowerinr
earnestness. the &c OF incredulity. the ..it''
OF threat the "if' Of augmentation. the .'if''
OF eternal Significance, or so many o; these
ms as can compass in the time that may
be reasonably allotted TO pulpit discourse.
First, the III OF oyerpowering earnest
mesa. My text gives il. Tue lsraelites have
al that Col mad done for them, and now
Moses Offers the most vehement PRAYER OF all
history, and II turns upou an M" III
Ihou wilt forgive their sins--aud II not blot
me. | pray Thee. out Of Thy book" Oh.
what an Overwhelming "if!' II was a.
much As 10 say "It Thou wilt not pardon
them. do not pardon ma. II Thou wilt NOT
bring them TO the promised iaad, let me
never sees the promised land. II fthsy must
perish. let me perish with them. In that
book where Thou recordes. their doom re-
cord my doom. II they ara shut out OF
heaven. let ms be shut out OF heaven. II
they go down into darkness, let me go down
into darkness What vehemence and holy
reckessness OF prayer
Yet there are those here who, I have no
doubt. have. In their all absorbing desire TO
have Others saved. rlsked the same prayer.
for II Is n risk. You must not makeit unless
You are willing to balance your eternal sal !
walton on such an Elf" Yet there have been
cases where mother has bsen so anxious
for the recovery OF a wayward son that her
prayer has swung and trembled and poised
on an ''it like that OF the text. "It not
blot me- pray thee. out OF thy book Writs
his name In the Lambs Book Of Life. or turn
TO the page whers my name was written ten
or twenty or forty or sixty years ago, and
with tle black ink OF everlasting midnighc
erase my first name, and my last name and
all my name. II he is TO go into shipwreck.
let me he tossed amid the same breakers. II
hs cannot be partner in my bliss. let me he a
partner in his woe have for many years loved
Thee. q God. and IL has been my expecta-
ton TO ait with Christ and all ths redeemed
AT tne banquet OF the sSies but | now give
up my promised place at the feast. and my
promised robe, andmy promised crown, and
my promised throne unless John. unless
George, unless Henry. unless my darling son
can share them with me- Heaven will bs no
heaven without him. o God. save my boy
or count ma among the lost ="
That Is "A terrific prayer. and yet there IL a
young man sitting in the pew on the main
loor. or In tue lower gallery, or In the top
gallery. who has already crushed such a
prayer from his mothers nsart. lie hardly
ever writes home, or. living AZ home. what
does he care how much trouble he gives her
Her tears ara no more TO him than the rain
that drops from the caves on "a dark night. /
The fact that she does not sleep because OF
watching for his return late AT night does not
choke his laughter or hasten his step forward
She has tried coaxing and kindness and
self sacrifice and all the ordinary prayers that
mothers make for their children. and all have
failed. She il coming toward tho vivid and
vsnturesome aud terrific prayer OF my text
She Is going TO lift her own eternity and Sc:
" upon that one ''if," by which she EXP sets
TO decide whether you will 90 up with her or
she down with you. She may bs this mo.
ment looking heaYenW Ird ana saying Lord
reclaim him by thy grace" and then adding
that heart rt-rendering If -ofmy text Iii not,
blot me- pray Thee, out Of Thy book.
After three years OF absence son wrote
his mother ia one OF the New England
whaling villages that he was coming home
In a certain ship. Motherlike. she stood
watching aud the ship was In the ofing. but
n fearful storm struck II and dashed the ship
on the rocks that night All that night the
mother prayed for the safety OF the son. and
just al dawn there was knock at the cottage
door, and ths son entered. crying out,
Mother. knewyou would pray ms home
II would ask all those In this asssmblags
who have been prayed home TO God by pious
mothers TO stand up there would be scores
that would stand, aud II should ask them
Ia give testimony il would be the testimony
OF that New England son coming ashore
from the split timbers OF the whaling ship,
"My mother prayed me home"
Another Bible ''lt' Is the ''it' OF incredu-
lity. Satan used 1t when Chrsts vitality
was depressed by forty days abstinence IRON
food. and the tempter pointed to some stones,
In color and shape like lCa5es Of bread, and
said. III thou De tins Son Of God. COM