Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1893-07-24

| alarge amount or the church's resources
Il actually hidden, and buried, and IN
developed. The Bible intimates that
that was a very rich land-thls land OF
Israel Ii SAYS ''the stones are iron,
aud out OF the hills thou shalt dig
brass and yet hundreds of thousands
OF dollars worth OF this metal was kept
under the hills. Well, that Is the dif-
hculty with the Church OF God at this
day. It's talent is not developed. III
One-half Of its energy could be brought
out, 1t might take
THE PUBLIC INIQUITIEs
/ OF the day by the throat and make them
bite the dust. II human eloQnenee
were consecrated in the Lord Jesus
Christ, Il could 10 few years persuade
I this whole earth TO surrender 10 COD.
There is enough undeYeloped Christian
energy IN the United States to bring
/ the whole world 20 Christ; but II Is
buried under strata Of Indifference and
under whole mountains Of Sloth. Now
is it not time for the mining TO begin,
and the pickaXes TO plunge, and Tor
/ this buried metal TO be brought out and
put into the furnaces, and be turned
/ into hoHltzers and carbines for the
Lords host? The vast ma1ority OF
| Christians IN this day are useless. The
most OF the Lords battalion belong TO
/ the reserve corps. The most OF the
/ crew are asleep in the hammocks. The
most OF the metal is under the hills.
/ Oh, is it not time for the Church OF God
| 10 rouse up and understand that We
want all the energies, all the talent,
and all the wealth enlisted for Christs
sakef
like the nickname that the English
/ soldiers gave 10 Butcher, the Com
mander. They called him "Old For
ward" We have had enough retreats
/ in the Church Of Christ; let us have a
glorious advance. And / say TO you
| now, as the General said when his
| troops were afirighted. Rising up In
his stirrups, his hair flying the wind, he
lifted up mis- voice until twenty thou
sand troops heard him, crying out;
Forward, the whole line."
Again / learn from this subject, that
we sometimes do we'll 10 take advantage
Of the worlds sharpening instruments.
/ These Israelitss were reduced to hle,
and so they went over TO the garrison OF
the Philstines to set their axes and
/ their goads, and their ploughs sharpen
cd. Tue Bible distinctly states In the
context-that they had no other instru-
ments now with which TO do this work,
and the Israelites did right when they
went over TO the Philistines to
USE THEIR GRINDSTONEs.
My friends, is IL not right for Us to en-
| plOy the worlds grindstOnes? II there
be art, il there be logic, II there bebusi-
ness faculty on the other side, let US 20
over and employ it FOR Cbrist's sake.
The fact is, we fight with too dull wea-
pOns, and we work with too dull imple-
ments. We hack and We maui when we
ought TO make a clean stroke. Let us
20 over among sharp business men, aud
among sharp literary men, and Ind out
what their tact is, and then transfer 1t
to the cause OF Christ. il they have
science and art it will dc US good to rub
against il. In other words let Us employ
the worlds grindstOneS. We will listen
to their music, and we will watch their
acumen, and we will use their grind
stones; and we will borrow their philo-
sOphcal apparatus 10 make our expert
ments, and we will borrow their print
ing presses to publish our BibleS,and we
will borrow their railtrains to carry
our Christian literature, and we will
borrow their ships TO transport our
missionaries. That was what made
Paul such a master In his day.
He not only got all the learning he could
get OF DR.. Gamallel, but afterward,
standing on Mars Hill, aud In crowded
thorOuhfare, quoted this poetry, and
grasped their logic, and welded their
eloquence, aud employed their mytho-
Iogy, until Dionysius the Areopagite,
learned in the schools OF Athens and
Heliopolis. went down under his ire
mendOus power In his day. He con-
Quered the worlds astronomy and
compelled it TO ring out the wisdom
and greatness OF the Lord, until for the
second time, the morning stars sang to-
gether aud all the sons of God shouted
for Joy. That was what gave to Jona-
than Edwards his influence In his day.
He conquered the worlds metaphysics
and forced IL into the service Of God,
until not only the old meeting house in
Northampton, Massachusetts, but all
Christendom felt thrilled by his Chris
tian power. Well, now, my friends,
WE ALL HAVE TOOLS
Of Christian usefulness. Do not let
them lose their edges. We want no
rusty blades in this fight. We want no
coulter that cannot rig up the glebe.
We want no axe that cannot fell the
trees. We want no goad that cannot
start the lazy seam. Let US get the
very best grlndstones we can find,
though they be in the possession OF the
Philistines, compelling them them to
turn the crank while we bear down
with al our might on the swiit-revolv-
ing wheel until all our energies and fac
ulties shall be brought up to q brighs
keen, sharp, glittering edge.
Again: my subject teaches as on what
small allowance Philistine iniquity
puts q man. Yes; these Philistines shut
up the mines, and then they took the
spears and the swords, then they took
the blacksmiths, then they took the
grindstOnes, and they took everything
but a file. Oh, that is the way sin
works; IL grabs everything. 1t begins
with robbery, and il ends with robbery.
It despoiIs this faculty and that faculty
aud keeps on until the whole nature is
gone. Was the man eloquent before, 1t
chickens his tongue. Was he
fne in personal appearance, 1t mars his
visage. Was he aflluent, 1t sends the
sheriff to sell him out Was he inhuen-
tlal, It destroys his popularity. Was he
placid, and genial, and loving, it makes
him splenetic and cross; and so
utterly is be changed that you can see
be Is sarcastic and rasping, and that the
Philistines have left him nothing but
file. Oh, ''the way Of the transgressor
is hard.n His cup is bitter. His night
ia dark His nanFs ara deem. His end