The Penn's Grove record., 1893-04-21

head, no coat for your hack. no SHOES ~.
your feet. Better travel on toward eternity
bare headed and bare footsd. and houseless
ant homeless, AMI frieniless, than gs
through life without religion.
Did religion make Raleigh anv less of a
salesman, or HlvalOcS anv less of a sol.
dier, or Grinnell any less OF 8 merchant, or
West any less of a ~naiuteri Religion is the
best security in every bargain. II IL the
sweetest note in every song, IL " the bright.
est gem in every c%oronet. No time TO be re-
hgious! Why, you will have to take time
to be sick, to he troubled to die. Our
world Is only the wharf from which we are
70 embark for heaven. No time to secure
the friendship OF Christ. No time 60 buy q
lamp and trim it for that walk through the
darkness which other wise will be illuminei
only by the whiteness OF the tomhstones.
No time to g i,icate the eye for heavenly
~splsndors or tie hsui for choral harps, or
the ear for everlasting songs, or the soul for
honor, glory AMI immortality. One would
shink we had tims for nothing else.
Other persons soologizs for not entering
the Christian life because il is time enough
yet. That Is very like those persons who
send their regrets and s9yE II will come IN
perhaps at II or II O'Clock. | will not be
thore at the opening OF the banquet. but I
Will DO there at the close" Not yeti Nos
vsti
Now. I do not give any doletuI view OF
this life. There IL nothing in my nature.
nothing In the grace of God, that tends to-
ward a doleful view Of human life. have
not mueh sympathy with Aidison's descrtp.
ton of the "Vision OF Mira" where he rep
ressnts human life as being a bridge of O
hundred arches, and both an is Of the bridge
covered with clouds, and the race coming
on, the most OF them falling down through
the first span, and all Of them falling down
thrOu0h tina lagt aDaO II AZ a Earn Ifounat
picture. l have not much sympathy with
the Spanish proverb which says, "fhe sky
Is good, and the earth Is goods-that which
% bad Is between the earth and the sky"
But while we Christian people are bound
10 take a cheerful view OF fife we must also
confess that life is a great uncertainty, and
that man who saws, 81 can't become a
Christian because there is time enough yet"
Is running a risk infinite. You do not per-
haps realixs the fact that this descending
grade OF sin gets sleeper and sleeper, and
that you are gathering up a rush and veloc-
tty which after awhile may not answer to
the brakes Oh, my friends, be not among
those who give their whole life to the world
and then give their corpse to God. II
does not seem fair while our pulses are in
full play OF health that we serve our.
selves and serve the world and then make
Go1 at last the present Of q coffin. 1t does
not seem right that we run our ship from
coast to coast, carrying cargoes for ourselves
and then when the ship Is crushed on the
rocks give to Col the shivered timbers. II
Is o great thing for a man on his dying pill,
low to r~epent-better than never at all-bui
how much better, how much more generous.
1t would have been if he had repentsd fifty
years beforei Ny friends, you will neyss
get over these procrastinations.
Here is a delusion. People think, ~ cal
go on in sin and worldliness. but after awhile
1 will repent, ami then 1t will be as though
1had COME at the very start" That Is q
delusion. No one ever gets fully over pro
c~rastination. Ii you give your soul to God,
heaven with only half the capacity for en-.
Joymsnt and knowledge you might have
had. There will bs heights Of blessednes
you might have attained, you will nevsl
reach; thrones OF glory on which you might
have been seated, but which you will nsyef
climb. We will never get ovor pro
cra~stination. neither in time nor In ster'
atty. We have started on Q march from
which thsra Is no retreat The h
ows Of eternity gather on our path
way, How insignificant 10 time compared
with the vast eternityi / vas thinking Of
this while coming down over the Allegheny
Mountains at noon, By that wonderful place
which you have ell heard described as the
Horsehoe-a depression In the side OF the
mountain where the train almost turns back
again upon itself. and you see how appro-
pirate is the description OF the Horseshoe
and thinking on this very theme aud prepsr.
ing this very sermon it seemed to me Is ii
the great courser OF eternity speeding along
had just struck the mountain with one hooi
and zone into illimltaole space. 50 hort u
time, SO insignificant is earth, compared witt
The vast eternityl
This morning voices roll down the sky
and all the worlds of light are ready to re
joice at your disenthrallment. Rush no
Into the presence of the King ragged witt
sin when you may have this robe OF right
eousnsss. Dash not your foot to piece
Throw not your crown OF life of the battle
ments. All the scribes OF God are this mo
Tment ready with volumes OF living light u
record the news of your sou! emanctpated.