Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-12-14
4hor snooend2 As we'll when chicago was on

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with n pail of cold water there are 800 other
anvious souls on fire. Oh, how much bet
Ter If would be to lay hold Of the chariot OF
Cnrlst's gospel and help pull 1t on rather
than TO fling ourselves in front of the wheels,
trvino TO block their progress We will not
ston fhe chariot, but We ourselves will be
ground to powder.
hid Won ever hear that there was con-
vention once held among the icebergs in the
arctic2 IT seems that the summer was com
mo On and the sun was getting hotter and
hotter aud there was danger that the whole
icefleld would break up and flow away, so
The tallest and the coolest and the broadest
NJ oil fine icebergs. the very king OF the arc
tlcs. stood at the head of the convention.
and with gavel OF ice smote on taole Oh
ice calling the convention to os-er. But the
sun kept growing in intensity OF near; ana
the south wind blew stronger ana stronger,
and soon all the iceield began 10 grind up,
iceberg against iceberg, and to now away.
The first resolution passed by the convention
was. 'Resolved, that we Abolish tne sun;
But the sun would not be abolished. inc
beat ut the sun grew greater and greater
until after awhile the very king OF the Ice
berps began to perspire under the glow, and
the smaller icebergs fell over, and the cry
was: "Too much excitement Order,
orderT" Then the whole body, the whole
field. of ice began to flow out, and thou
sand voices began to ask: "Where are we
going to now? Where are we floating to2
We will all break to pieces" BY this time
the icebergs had reached the gulf stream,
and they were melted into the bosom of the
Atlantic Ocean. The warm sun is the
eternal Spirit. The icebergs are frigid
Christians. The warm gulf stream is a great
revival. The ocean into which everything
melted is the great, wide heart OF the
pardoning and sympathizlng God.
But think, after all, the greatest obstacle
to revivals throughout Christendom to-day
is an unconverted ministry. We must be-
lieve that the vast majority of those who
offlcate at sacred affairs are regenerated,
but suppose there may float into the minis
try Of all the denominations OF Christians
men whose hearts have never been changed
by the grace of God. OF course they are all
antagonistic to revlvals.
How did they getinto the ministry? Per-
haps some of them chose 1t as respectable
profession. Perhaps some chose 1t as
means Of livelihood. Perhaps some OF them
we're sincere, but were mistaken. As Thomas
Chalmers said, he had been many years
preaching the gospel before his heart had
been changed and, as many ministers OF the
gospel declare, they were preaching and
had been ordained to sacred orders years
and years before their hearts were regener-
ated. Gracious God, what solemn thought
for those of us who minister at the altar
With the present ministry in the present
temperature o. pietY the world will never be
envelcped with revivals. While the pews on
one side the altar cry for mercy the pulplts
on the other side the altar must cry for
mercy. Ministers quarreling. Ministers
trying to pull each other dowA Ministers
struggling for ecclesiastical place. Ministers
lethargic with whole congregations dying
on their hand. What spectacle
Aroused pulpits will make aroused pews.
Pulpits aflame will make pews afame.
Everybody believes in a revival of trade,
everybody likes a revival in literature, every
body likes a revival in art, yet great multi
tude cannot understand q revival IN matters
of religion. Depend upon it. where you
find a man antagonistic to revlvals, whether
he be in pulpit or pew, he needs to be regen-
Grated by the grace of God.
could prove to q demonstration that
without revivals this world will never be
converted, and that in 100 or 200 years with
out revivas Christianity will be practically
extinct. It is a matter of astounding arith-
mstic. In each Of our modern generations
there are at least so, 900, 900 children. Now
add 80. 900, 900 to the worlds population, anG
then have only 100000 or 1000 converted
every year, and how long before the world
will be saved? Never-absolutely never.
During our war the President of the
United States made proclamation for 75,0OJ
troops. Some of you remember the big stir.
But the King of the universe to-day asks for
| 800, 900, 900 more troops than are enlisted,
and we want 1t done softly, imperceptioly,
gently, no excitement, one by onel
You are a dry goods merchant on large
| scale. and am a merchant on a small scale,
and I come to YOU and want to buy 1909
wards of cloth. Do you say: "Thank you !;
I'll sell you 1000 yards OF cloth, but I'll sell
you twenty yards to-day, and twenty to-
morrow, and twenty the next day, and II 1t
takes me six months I'll sell you the whole
1000 wards: YOU will want as long as that to
examine the goods, and I'll want as long as
that to examine the credit, and, besides that.
1000 wards OF cloth are too much to sell all
at once?" No, you do not say that. You
take me into the counting 70 )m, and in ten
minutes the whole transaction Is consum-
mated. The fact is, we cannot afford to be
fools in anything but religion
That very merchant who on Saturday after
noon sold me the 1000 yards OF cloth at one
stroke the next Sabbath in church will stroke
| his beard and wonder whether it would not
|
along for ten years, instead OF boiling in at
one service.
Wetalk a good deal about the good times
that are coming and about the worlds re-
demption. How long before they will come?
There is man who says 500 years. Here is
n man who says 200 years. Here Is some
one more confident who says in fifty years.
What. fifty years? Do you propose to let
Two generations pass off the stage before
the world is converted?
suprose by some extra prolongation OF
human life at the next fiftyyears you should
walk around the world, you would not in
all that walk find one personthat you recog-
nize. Why? All dead or SO changed that
Won would not knowthem. In other words,
If YOU postpone the redemption OF this
world for fifty years, you admit that the
majority OF the two whole generations snail
90 off the stage unbessed and unsaved.
fell YOU the church OF Jesus Christ cannot
consent to it. We must pray and toll and
hay, ihe revival spirit, and we must strug-
Gle to have the whole world saved before the
men and women now in middle life pass on.
ooh" you say, 'it is too vast az enter,
prise to be conducted in so shors time.
10 Won know how long it would take to save
the whole world il each man would bring an
other It would take ten years. BY cal
culation in compound interest, each man
bringing another, and that one another, and
that one another, in ten years the whole
world would be saved. If the world Is not
saved in the next ten years it will be the
fault of the church OF Christ.
Is it too much to expect each one to prine
one? Some OF US must bring more than one
for some will not do their duty. want tC
bring 10, 900 souls. should be ashamed tc
meet my God in judgment if, with my OPP
portuniues of commencing Christ to tn
people, could not bring 10000 souls. Bu