The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1894-11-14

AAd II is glad time when the church
Of God sees men who are tossed on the
ocean of their sins plant their feet on
the rock Of Christ Jesus.
When prodigals come home just hear
those Christians sing. 1t is not a dull
tune you hear atsuch times. Just hear
those Christians pray. 1t is not ster-
eotyped supplicatiou we have heard
over and over again for twenty years,
but putting of the case in the hands
OF God with an importunate pleading.
Men never pray at great length unless
they have nothing TO say and their
hearts are hard and cold. All the
prayers in the Bible that were answered
were short prayers: Lord, that may
receive my sight" Lord, save me or
/ perish"
The longest prayer, Solomon's prayer
at the dedication of the temple, less
than eight minutes in length, accord
ing to the ordinary rate of enunciation.
And just hear them pray now that the
prodigals are coming home. Just see
them shake hands. No putting forth
of the four tips of the fingers in a for
NAL way, but hearty grasp, where the
muscles OF the heart seem to cleneh the
fingers of one hand around the other
hand. And then see those Christian
faces, how illumined they are. And
see that old man get up and with the
same voice that he sang fifty years ago
in the old country meeting house,
say: "Now, Lord, lettest Thou Thy
servant depart in peace, for mine eyes
have seen Thy salvation" There
was a man of Keith who was hurled
into prison in time of persecution, and
one day he got off his shackles and he
came and stood by the prison door, and
when the jailer was opening the door,
with one stroke he struck down the
man who had incarcerated him. Pass
ing along the streets of London, he
wondered where his family was. He
did not dare to ask lest he excite suspi-
cion, but, passing along little way
from the prison he saw Keith tankard,
a cup that belonged to the fam
lily from generatin to generation
he saw it in the window. His
family, hoping that some day he
would get clear, came and lived as near
as they could to the prison house, and
they set that Keith tankard in the
window, hoping he would see it; and
he came along and saw it, and knocked
at the door and went in and the long
absent family were all together again.
Once more l remark, that when the
prodigal gets back the inhabitants OF
Heaven keep festival. am very GER
tain of it. If you have never seen a
telegraph chart, you have no idea how
many cities are connected together
and how many lands. Nearly all the
neighborhoods of the earth seem retic-
ulated, and news flies from city to city,
and from continent to continent. But
more rapidly 90 the tidings from earth
to Heaven, and when prodigal returns
it is announced before the throne OF
God. And if these souls to-day should
enter the kingdom there would be
some one in the heavenly kingdom to
say:
That's my mother" ''Thats my
son" That's my father" That's my
daughter" That's my friend, "'That's
the one used to pray fol" "Thats the
one for whom wept so many tears, "
and one soul would say, "HosannaP'
and another soul would say, Halle
lujah"
| Pleased with the news the saints below
In songs their tongues employ;
Beyond the skies the tidings go,
/ And Heaven is filled with Joy.
Nor angels can their joy contain,
But kindle with new fire;
The sinner lost is found, they sing,
| And strike the sounding Tyre.
At the banquet of Lucullus sat Cicero,
the orator. At the Macedonian festival
sat Philip, the conqueror. At the Gre
clan banquet sat Socrates, the philoso-
pher, but at our Fathers table sit all
the returned prodigals, more than con-
querors. The table is so wide its leaves
reach across seas and across lands. Its
guests are the redeemed of earth and
the glorifed of Heaven, The ring of
Gods forgiveness on every hand, the
robe of Saviour's Righteousness
adroop from every shoulder. The wine
that glows in the cups is from the
bowls of ten thousand sacraments. Let
all the redeemed Of earth and all. the
glorifed of Heaven rise, and with
cleaning chalice drink to the return
of thousand prodigals. Sing! Sing!
Sing! Worthy is the Lamb that was
slain to receive blessing and riches and
honor and glory and power, world
! without endl"