The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-10-17

4
Il have tried my best 20 bring my chill
dren TO Christ. I have laid hold Of the
oars until they bent in my CRAPS, and I
have braced myself against tho ribs of the
boat. and / have pulled for their eternal
rescue. but 1 can't get them 10 Christ"
Then / ask you 10 initiate the men OF the
text and cry nightly unto God. We
wan. more inportunate praying Tor cnli-
dren such as the father INDUCED in when
he had cried 20 bring MS six sons 10 Christ
and they had wandered of into disslpa-
ton Then ne got down in his prayers
and said, 20 God. take away my life x
through that means my sons may re-
pent and be brought 20 Christ and the
Lord startlingly answered the prayer and
in a few weeks the father was taken away,
and through the s0lemnity the six sons
fed unto God Oh. that father could
childrenl He rowed hard to bring them
10 the land. but could not, and then he
cried unto the Lord.
The Wanderers Return.
There are parents who are almost dis
couraged about their children. Where is
your son tonight? lie has wandered off
perhaps to the ends of the earth. Il
seems as if he cannot get far enough
away from your Christian counsel. What
does he care about the burrows that
come TO your brow; about the quick
whitening Of the hair; about the fact th1t
your back begins To stoop with the Dur
de1s2 Why. h would not care much 10
he heard YOU were dead. The black edged
letter that brought the tidlngs he would
put in the same package with other let
ters telling the story Of his shame. What
are YOU going u dO2 Both paddles
broken a the middle of the blade, how
can You pull him ashore? 1 throw you
one oar on which 1 believe you can bring
I .. fa sfa.fF.e
ise. Il viii be a God 70 thee and 10 thy
seed after thee" Oh b-oken-hearte3
father and mother. you have tried every
thing else, now make an appeal for the
help and omnipOtence Of the covenant
Keeping God, and perhaps at your mex
family neutrality-suspicious. on Thanl0sgiv-
ing day. perhaps next Cnris.maS-th.
prodiga, may be home. and if you crowd
on his plate more .uXuries than on any
other plate at the table i am sure IN
brothers viii not be jealous, but they Wi
wake up ell the music in the house, "be
cause the dead is alive again, and becaus
the lost is found" Perhaps your prayer
have been answered already. The vesse,
may be coming homeward, and by the
light Of this nights stars that son may
be pacing The deck of the ship anXiOU
for the time 90 come when he can throw
his arm around your neck and ask for
forgiveness for that he has been wiring
INK NuQE 0lu mart 81 lol1. fr.oTlluS re-
union that viii be too sacred for outsider
TO Look upon, but I would just like t
look through the window when you have
ar got together agsin and are seated a G
the banquet
Though parents may in covenant be
AID have their heaven in view,
They are not happy till they see
Their children happy too.
Aeain remark that the unavanine
effort of the Med iteVranean Oarsmen has
counterpart in the effort VIII ~ we ar
making 10 bring this world back 10 God
his pardon and safety. IF this world
could have been saved by human effort, II
would have been done long ago. John
Howard took hold Of one oar. and Carey
took hold of another oar. and Adoniram
JudsOn took hold Of another oar. and
Luther took hold of another oar. and John
Knox took hold of another oar and they
pulled until they fell back dead from ey-
hausdon. Some dropped i'm the ashes Of
martyrdOm, some on the scalping knives
of savages and some into the plaque
struck room Of the lazaretto and still tn
chains are not broken. and still the des-
potisms are not demolished. and still the
world is unsaved. What then? Put down
the oars and make no effort? I do no.
advise that. But I want YOU, Christian
brethren. to understand that the church
and the school, and the college. and the
missionary society are only the instrument
talities, and if this work is ever done al
all God must do It. and He will do II in
answer to our prayer. They rOwed hard
10 bring It to the land, but they
could not, wherefore they cried unto the
Lord"
1t Is Not in Human Strength.
Again the unavailing effort Of those
Mediterranean Oarsmen has a counterpart
in every man that is trying to row his
own soul into safety. When the eternal
spirit flashes upon US our condition. we
try TO save ourselves. We say, "Give m
a stout oar for my right band. give me a
stout oar for my left hand. and I wiz
pull myself into safety" No. 4 wave
Of sin comes and dashes you one way, and
a wave of temptation comes and d3sheS
you in another way. and there are plenty
OF rocks on which 10 founGer, but seem
ingly no harbor into which 10 sail. Sin
must be thrown overheard or we must
perish.
There are men who have tried for years
to become Christians. They believe all ]
say In regard TO future world. They be-
lieve that religion IS the first. the last. the
infinite necessity. They do every thing
but trust in Christ They make sixty
strokes in a minute. They bend forward
with all earnestness, and they lie back
until the muscles are distended, and yet
they have not made one inch in ten gears
toward heaven. What Is the reason?
That Is not the way TO go to work You
might as we'll take frall skiff, and put
it down at the foot Of Niagara and then
head Il up toward the churning thunder
bolt of waters and expect to work your
way up through the lightning of the foam
into calm Lake Erie, as for you to try to
pull yourself through the surf OF your
sin into hope and pardon and placilty
OF the gospel. You cannot do IL in that
way. Sin is a rough sea, and longboat,
yawl, pinnace and gondola go down IN
less the Lord deliver, but If you viii cry
to Christ and lay hold Of divine mercy
you are as safe from eternal conGemna-
ton as though you had been twenty years
in heaven.
l wish 1 could put before my unpardoned
readers their own helpleSsness. No hui
man arm was ever strong enough TO I'M
lock the door Of heaven. No foot ever was
mighty enough 10 break the shack,e Of
sin No oarsman swarthy enough to row
himself into Gods harbor. The wind is
against you. The tide IS against you.
corrupting influences are against you.
Helpless and undone. Not so helpless
sailor on a plank, mid-Atlantic. Not so
helpless a trave.er girded by twenty miles
Of prairie on fire. Prove IL, you say /
viii prove II. John vi, ~: mo man can
come 10 me, except the Father which hath
sent me draw him."
Salvation Is of Grace.
But while 1 have shown your helpless
ness want to put by the side Of Il the
power and the willingness Of Christ to
save you. think 1t was in 1886 a vessel
was bound for Portugal. but it was driven
to pieces on an unfriendly coast. The
"a raFQ lis ~ III