The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1894-11-28
stupendous
undergirdTng,
overarching,
=. Ag

|
and the whir of the wheels and the flying of
the dust show the Indignation of the great
commander. "He turned and went away in
a rage" So people now often get mad at
religion. They vituperate against ministers,
against churches, against Christian people.
One would think from their irate behavior
that God had been studying how to annoy
and exasperate and demolish them. What
has He been doing? Only trying to cure
their death dealing leprosy. That is all.
Yet they whip up their horses, they dig in
the spGEs, and they go away in a rage.
So, after all, ii seems that this health ex-
cursion of.General Naaman is TO be a dead
failure. That little Hebrew captive might as
well have not told him of the prophet, and
this long journey might as well not have
been taken. Poor, SICK dying Naamau
Are you going away in high dudgeon and
worse than When you came? AS his chariot
hats moment his servants Chamber up in
it and coax him to do as Elisha said. They
say "Its easy. II the prophet had told
you to walk tor mile on sharp spikes in or
der to get rid of this awful disease, you
would have done it. 1t is easy. Come, my
lord. just get down and wash in the Jordan.
You take IL bath every day anyhow, and in
this climate it is so hot that it will do you
good. Do it on our account, and for the
sake of tho army Won command. and for the
marion that adm1res you. Come, my lord
just try this Jordanic bath" "Wen,'
he says, ito please you I win
drive to the brink of the Jordan. The horses
paw and neigh to get into the stream them
selves and cool their hot TANKS. General
Naaman, assisted by his attendants, gets
down out of his chariot and painfully comes
to the brink q the river and steps in until
the water comes to the ankle, and goes on
deeper until the water comes to the girdle
nd cfo ior 10. dor in hos
just little inclination of the head will
thoroughly immerse him. He bows once
into the food and comes up and shakes the
water out of nostril and eye, and his attend
ants look at him and say, "Why, general,
how much better you do look!'
And he bows second time into
the food and comes up, and the
wild stare is gone out of his eye He
bows the third time into the flood, and comes
up, and the shriveled skin has got smooth
again. He bows fourth time into the food
and comes up. and the hair that had fallen
out is restored there are thick locks again
all over the head. He bows the fifth time
into the flood, and comes up, and the hoarse-
ness has gone out of his throat. He bows
the sixth 1ime and comes up, and all the
soreness and anguish have gone out OF the
body. "Why," he says, 81 am almost well,
but will make q complete cure, and so he
bows the seventh time into the flood and he
comes up, and not so much as tester or
scale or an eruption as big as the head OF
pin is to be seen on him.
He steps out on the bank and says, IT'S 1t
possible?" And the attendants look and say,
SIS it possible?" And as with the health OF
an athlete he bounds back into the chariot
and drives on there goes up from all his at
tendants wild "Huzza, huzza !" OF course
they so back to pay and thank the man of
God for his counsel so fraught with wisdom.
When they lett the prophets house, they
went off mad. They have come back glad.
People always think better of a minister af-
ter they are converted than they do before
conversion. Now we are to them an lntoler-
able nuisance because we tell them 10 90
things that go against the grain, but some OF
us have great many letters from those VINO
tell US that once they were angry at what we
preached, but afterWard gladly received
the gospel at our hands. They once called
us fanatics or terrorists or enemies. Now
they call US friends. Yonder is man who
said he would never come into the church
again. He said that two years ago. lie SAID,
''My family shall never come here again If
such doctrines as that are preached. But
he came again, and his family came again:
He is a Christian. his vile Christian, all
his children Christians, the whole house
hold Christians, and you shall dwell with
them in the house of the Lord forever. Our
! undying coadjutors are those VINO once
heard the gospel and "went away in
rage"
Now, my hearers, you know that this Gen
! eral Naaman did two things in order to ger
well. The first was he got out OF his char
| lot. He might have staid there with his
swollen feet on the stuffed ottoman, seated
on that embroidered cushion, until MS last
gasp he would never have got any rellef.
He mad to get down out Of his chariot. And
you have got to get down out or the caar!or
of your pride If you ever become Cnrls-
tian, You cannot drive up to the cross with
a coach and four and be saved among all
the spangles. You seem to think that the
Lord is going to be compimented by
your coming. Oh, no, you poor, mis-
| cradle, scaly, leprous sinner. get down
out of that. We all come in the
same naughty way. We expect to ride
into the kingdom of God; Never
until we get down on our knees will we find
mercy The Lord has endorsed US, un-
charioted US Get down out OF your pride.
Get down out OF your self Righteousness and
YOUR hypercriticism. We have all got to do
that. That is the journey we have to make
| on our knees. 1t is our internal pride that
keeps us from getting rid OF the leprosy OF
sin. Dear Lord, what have we to be proud
OF? Proud of our scales? Proud of our UNI
cleanliness? Proud OF this killing infection?
Bring us down at Thy feet, weeping, pray
ing, penitent, believing suppllantS
For sinners, Lord, Thou cam'st to bleed,
And I'm a sinner vile indeed.
Lord, believe Thy grace is tree;
oh, magnify that grace in me.
But he had not only to get down out of
his chariot. He had to wash. "Oh," you
say, IT am very careful with my additions.
Every day plunge into bright and beauti-
tul bath" All, my hearer, there is food
brighter than any that pours from these
hills. 1t is the food that breaks from the
granite of the eternal hills. 1t is the flood
of pardon and peace and life and heaven:
That fioot started in the tears of Christ and
the sweat OF Gethsemane and rolled on, ac-
cumuating food, until all earth and heaven