The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1893-11-03


parabola, and on and on, and up and
up. and down and down, and round
and round. Don't you see? Now, that
| Theosophic life-boat has been launched.
| 1t proposes to take you off the rough
sea of doubt into everlasting quietude.
How do you like that life-boat? Ny
opinion is you had better initiate the
mariners of my text and cut off the
ropes of that boat and let her fall off.
Another life-boat tempting to enter
is made up of many planks of good
works. 1t is really beautiful boat
alms-giving, practical sympathies for
human sufferering, righteous words
and righteous deeds. l must admit |
like the looks of the prov and of the
row-loclSs and of the paddles and of the
steering gear and of many who are
thinking to trust themselves on her
benches. But the trouble about that
life-boat is it leaks. never knew a
man yet good enough to earn Heaven
| by his virtues or generosities. IL there
be one person here present on this
blessed Sabbath all of whose thoughts
| have been always right. all of whose
| actions have always been right, and all
of whose words have always been
right, let him stand up. OF if already
standing, let him lift his hand. and
will know that he lies. Paul had it
about right when he said: by
the deeds of the law shall no
flesh living be justified" David
had it about right when he
said: There is none that doeth good:
no, not one" The Old Book had it
about right when it said: IAN have
sinned and come short of the glory of
God" Let man get off that little
steamer called THE Maid of the Mist, :"
which sails up to the foot of Niagara
falls and then climb to the top of the
falls on the descending floods, he can
do it easier than any man ever will be
able to climb to Heaven by his good
works. If your thoughts have always
been exactly right, and your words ex-
actlv right, and your deeds always eX-
actly right, and your deeds always eX-
actly right, you can go up to the gate
of Heaven, and you need not even
knock for admittance, but open it your
self, and push the angels out of the
front seats. But you would be so I'M
like anyone else that has gone up from
this world that you would be a curios-
ity in Heaven, and more fit for a heav-
emily museum than for place where
the inha bitants could look at you free
of charge.
Another life-boat is Christian Incon-
sistencies. The planks of this boat are
composed of the split planks of ship
wrecks That prov is made out of
hypocrisy from the life of man who
professed one thing and really was an
other. One oar of this life-boat was the
falsehood of church member, and the
other was the wickedness of some min
lister of the gospel, whose iniquities
were not for long while found out.
Not one plank from the oak of Gods
eternal truth in all that life boat All
the planlls, by universal admission,
are decayed and crumbling, and fallen
apart and rott en- and ready to sink.
well, we'll" you say: mo one will
want to get into that life-boat" Oh.
my friend, you are mistaken. That
is the most popular life-boat ever
constructed That is the most pop
ular life-boat ever launched. Mil
lions of people want to get into
it They jostle each other to get the
best seat in the boat. You could not
keep them back though you stood at
the gunwales with a club. Even by
such violence as that you could not
,,on,la from, into ho
most popular life-boat made of church
member Inconsistencies. In times of
revival when sinners flock into the in
quirv room. the most of them are kept
from deciding Alright because they
know so many Christians who are bad.
The inquiry room becomes a worlds
fair for exhibition of all the frailties of
church members, so that if you believe
all is there told you, you would be
afraid to enter a church lest
you get your pockets picked or
get knocked down. This is the way
they talk: 81 was cheated out of $500
by leader of a Bible class" "A Sun
day-school teacher gossiped about me
and did her best to destroy my good
name" ~ had a partner in business
who swamped our business concern by
his trickery, and then rolled up his
eyes in Friday night prayer meeeing,
as though he were looking for Elijahs
chariot to make a second trip and
take up another passenger. But what
a cracked and water-logged and gap
ing-seamed life-boat the inconsistencies
of others Put me on a shingle mid
Atlantic and leave me there, rather
than in such yawl OF spiritual conf
dence.
WELL" says some one, this subject
is very discouraging, for we must have
life-boat, if we are ever to get ashore
and you have already condemned
three" All, it is because want to per-
suade you to take the only safe life
boat 1t will not allow You to be deceived
and get on the wild waves and then
capsize or sink. Thank God, there is a
life-boat that will take you ashore
| in safety, as sure as God is God and
Heaven Is Heaven. The keel and ribs
of this boat are made out of tree that
was set up on q bluff back of Jerusa-
lem good many years ago. Both of
the oars are made out of the same tree.
The rcw-locks are made out of the same
tree. The steering gear is made out
of the same tree. The planks of it
were hammered together by the ham
mers of execut;oners, who thought
they were only killing a Christ, but
were really pounding together an es-
cape for all imperiled souls of all ages.
1t is an old boat, but good as new,
though it has been carrying passen-
gers from sinking ships to firm shore
for ages, and has never lost q passen-
ger. These old Christians begin to
s.,,:l., h.,..,.,S. = :.