The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1894-09-12

not ask John to put his head down on
his bosom. John could not help but
put his head there. l suppose look
at Christ was iust 70 love him. How at.
tractive his manner! Why, when they
saw Christ comcy along the street they
ran into their houses, and they wrapped
up their invalids as quick as they could
and brought them out that he might look
at them. Oh, there was something so
pleasant, so Inviting, so caeerlnr II
everything he Gid, in his very look.
Wher these sick ones were brought out
| did he say: DO not bring before me
these sores? Do not trouble me with
| these leprosies?" No, no, There was
a kind lock; there was geRt?e wore;
there was s healing touch. They could
not keep away from him.
In addition to this soitness OF charac'
ter there was fiery mcmentum. How
the kings Of the earth turned pale! Here
is q plain man with a few sailors at bis
back, coming eff the sea OF Galllee, 60
! ing up to the palace of the Csesars,
making that palace quake to the toun-
daiions and uttering word OF mercy
and kindness which throbs through all
the earth and through all the heavens,
and through all ages. Oh, he was a
loving Christ. But it was not etteml-
macy or insipidity of character. It was
accompanied with majesty, infinite and
omnipotent. Lest this world should not
realize his esrnestness, this Christ
mounts the cross.
think there are many under the ln-
fusnce of the Spirit of God who are say.
ing, ''I will trust his if you will only
tell me hoW,n and the great question
asked BY many is, "How, how" And
while I answer your question l look up
and utter the prayer which Rowland
Hill 30 often uttered in the midst OF bis
sermons, Master, helpw How are
you to trust in Christ?
Just as you trust any one. You trust
YOUR partner in business with important
things. IF q commercial house gives you
a note payable three months hence, you
expect the payment of that note at the
end of three months. You have perfect
confidence in their word andin their abll'
Iity. Or, again, you 60 home today.
You expect there will be food on the
table. You have confidence in that.
Now, l ask you 20 have the same conf
dence in the Lord Jesus Christ. He says
''You believe; take away your sins, i"
and they ara all taken away. "WhatW
you say, ''bsfore I pray any more, be-
fore I read my Bible any more. before l
cry over my sins any mors?" Yes, this
moment. Believe with all your heart
and you are saved. Why, Christ is only
waiting to get from you what you give to
scores of people every day. What Is
thai? Confidence. If these people whom
you trust day by day are more worthy
than Christ, If they are more faithful
than Christ, if they have done more than
Christ ever did, then give them the pre-
ference, but if you really think that
| Christ is as trustworthy as they are then
deal with him as fairly.
"Oh," says some one in light way,
81 believe that Christ was born at
Bethlehem, and that he died on the
cross" Do you believe 1t with your
head or your heart? I will
illustrate the difference. You
are in your house. In the morning
you open a newspaper, and you read
how Captain Braveheart on the sea
risked his life for the salvation of his
passengers. You say: "What a grand
fellow he must haYe been! His family
deserves very we'll of the country"
You fold the newspaper and git down at
the table and perhaps do not think OF
thati Incident again. That is historical
faith.
But now you are on the sea and it is
night, and you are asleep. and you are
awakened by the shr lex of "Fire!" You
rush out on the deck. You hear, amid
the Wringing of the hands and the faint
ing, the cry: mo hope! No hope! We
are lost! We are LOST" The sail puts
out its wing of fire, the rope makes
burning ladder in the night heavens, the
spirit of wreck Kisses in the wave and
on the hurricane deck shakes out its
banner of smoke and darkness. "Down
with the lifeboatsu cries the captain.
stDown with the lifeboats!" People
rush into them. The boats are about
full. Room only for one more man.
You are standing on the deck beside the
captain.
Who shall it be? You or the captain?
The captain says. "You." You jump
and are saved. He stands there and
dies. Now. you believe that Captain
BraYeheart sacrificed himself 70: his
passengers, but you believe it with love,
with tears, with hot and long continued
exclamations, with grief at his loss and
| Joy at your deliyerance. This is saving
faith-ln other words, what you believe
with all the heart, and believe in regard
to yourself. On this hinge turns my
sermon-aYe, the salvation of your I'M.
mortal soul. You often 60 across a
bridge you know nothing about. You
| do not know who built the bridge, you
do not know what material it is made OF
but you come to it and walk oVsr it and
ask no questions. And here is an arched
bridge blasted from the "Rock of Ages"
and built by the Architect of the whole
universe, spanning the dark guilt between
sin and Righteousness, and all God asks
you is to walk across it, and you start
and you come to it and you stop, and
you 60 little way on, and you stop and
you fall back, and you experiment, You
say, "How do I know that bridge will
hold me?" instead of marching on with
finn step, asking no questions, but feel
ing that the strength of the eternal God
is under you.
Oh, was there ever prizs pro1ered
so cheap as pardon and heaven are Of
fered to you? For how much? A mil
lion dollars? 1t is certainly worth more
than that. But cheaper than that Vou
can have. it. Ten thousand dollars?
Less than that. Five thousand dollars?
Less than that. One dollar? Lsss than
that. One farthing? Less than that.
without money and without price"
No money to pay. No journey to take.
No pennance to suffer. Only just one
decisive action of the soul, "Belleve on
the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be
saved"
Shall try to tell you what it is to be