Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1893-10-28

/ Aafi~ ti"b ~ l'ttANs AAspNA-9 - tf*t''''s -
the waters e,Ig"
| think 10y marin" law all our modern
vessels have enough llfcboats to hold all
the crew and all the passengers in case
of emergency. hut the marines Of my
/ text were standing 10y the only boat, and
that small boat. and yet 21G passengers.
But what thrills me through and through
| IL the fact that though we are wrecked
by sin and trouble and there is only ono
hfcboat, that boat Is largo enough To
hold all VIII" are willing to get into it.
The gosl"l hymn expresses it:
/ All may coIn'.. wlr-.vrr will;
This Man r-,,'iV,~ t-nr sinners stiII
But must haul in that statement "A
little. Room for all in that lifeboat.
with Just one exception. Not you-I do
not mean you. hut there is one excep-
tion. Their" have l.cn eases where ships
were in trouble. and the captain got all
the Passengers and crew into the life
| boats. but there WAS not room for the
captain. Hc through the sea trumpet.
shouted: Shove off now AMI pull for
the beach. G"olbyr' And then tho
captain, with pathetic AMI sublime self
sacrifice, went down with the ship. So
the Captain of our salvation. Christ tho
Lord. launches the gospel lifeboat and
tells us NIL to get in. but he perishes.
1T behuovcd Christ to suffer-" Was
il not so. yc who witnessed his asonizing
cxpirationI Simon of Cyrene. was II not
so! Cavalry troops. whose horses paved
| tho dust ut the cruciiiXion. was it not so.
| Ye Marys who swooue'i away with the
sun of the midday heavens, was ID not
~? by his stripes we are healed" by
his death we live. By his sinking in the
deep sea Of suffering we get of in safe
lifeboat. Yes. we must put into this
story u little of our own personality.
We had ride in that very lifcboat from
| foundered craft To solid shore
Once on the raging seas I rowed.
The storm was loud: :hc night was dark.
The ocean yawned and rudlcly blow',l
The wind that tossed my founlering bark.
But got into the gospel lifeboat, and
got ashore. No religious speculation for
me. These higher criticism fellows do
not bother me bit. You may ask me
30 questions about the sea, and about the
land. and about the lifcboat that can
not answer, but one thing | know, l am
ashore. and am going to stay ashore, il
the Lori by his grace will help me. |
feel under ne something so firm that
try it with my right foot. and try it with
my left foot, and then try il with both
feet. and II is so solid that | think it
must be what the old folks used to call
the Rock of Ages.
And bc my remaining days ON earth
many or few am g"ing (" spend my
time in recommending: the lifelDoat which
fetched me here. u lr,ur sinner saved by
grace, AMI in swinging the cutlass,s
To sever the ropes of any unsafe lifeboat
AMI let her fall off. My nearer, without
asking any questions get int" the gospel
lifcboat. Roon! and vet th-r, is room.
The biggest l~ai "n earth IL the gospel
liicb"at. You must remember the pro-
portion Of things. anl that the ship
wrecked craft is the whole earth. and the
liIchoat must br in Ir'lnrtI"n.
You talk about Your Caullni;lS, and
your Lucanias. AMI your Mairsiics. and
your City of New Yurks. hut all of
them put together ar" smaller than an
Indians canuc on Schrnn lake com
pared with this gospel lifebuat that is
large enough To take in all nations.
Room for one aud room for all. Get
IN! How? How?" y"u ask
Well. | knew how y"'I feel. for sum
mcr lcforc last un the sea- If Finland
had the same experience The ship in
which "" SAILED could n"t vcmtur, near
er than u mile from sh"r,'. WHERE St"rl
the Russian palace of Iit"riIuf. anil we
had to get into Il small i"at AMI bc
rowcd ashore. The water WIS rough,
and Is we went down the ladder at tho
side of the ship we held firmly on /" the
railing, but in order Ia ;;tt into tine boat
" had at last I" let -.
How did ! know that the I,uat was
;;",l and that the narsu"n were suili-
cicni? How did know that the Finland
sea would not swallow us with one open
in:: of its crystal jaws? We had {" trust,
anil we dill trust and cur trust was well
rewarded. In the same WY get into this
gospel lif.boat. Let go, y, l"n. as you
hold on Ia any other hope you are i'm
Isrilc'l. and you get no ;,dyauta." from
th" lifcbcat. Let ~. DOES some orc
here say. II guess will h"l,l IN II little
INV Htpu N'ttN. VI wv ~ iiftN IhtItUN-
age. "r To- something: can de- in the way
of achievin. my own salvation" No,
NJ, let go. Trust the Captain. who
would not put you into Il rickcty or un-
certain craft.
ELOQUENT rEEOINTIoT.
For tho sake Of Your present and ev-
erlasiiny welfare with all the urgency
of an immortal addressing; immortals.
cry from the depths of my soul and mt
the top "f my voice. Let "a. Last sum
mrr the life saving crew at East Hamp-
ton invited mo to come up to the life
station and see th. crew practice. for
twice werl; they are drilled in the i'm
rortant work assigned them hy the Unit
cd States government. AMI they go
through all the routine of slvin. the
slipwreckc,l But that would give lit
tlc ilea of what they would have To- do
If some midnight next winter. the wind
driving irachwar,l. - vessel should get
III tli" grasp "f - hurricane
S,.,. the lights nar. from th" ship in
the breakers. and then responding lights
fiaring from the beach, and hear the
rockets buzz rs they rise, and the life
boat rumblrs out. and the gun booms,
and the life line rises and falls across the
splintereti decks, and the hawser tight
ems. and the Afc car goes to AMI fro. car
rying the exhausted mariners. and tho
ocean, as il angered by tho snatching of
the human prey from the white teeth Of
its surf and th,Astroke of it's bil'owing
paw, rises with increased fury Ia assail
the Land ~ navy I nm ,.u,sutTel in no
light drill. practicing for what may
come over some If your souls. II is with
some of you wintry midnight. and your
hopes for this world and tho next are
wrecked
But seei SEC! Tho lights kintllcd ON
the bcachl throw out the life line
Haul in. hand over hand, All. there is u
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