The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1894-05-18
whom I baptized in their infancy.

whom baptized In their infancy.
There is not one person in this church's
board of session or trustees who was
here when came. Here and there in
| this vast assembly is one person who
heard my opening sermon in Brooklyn.
but not more than one person in every
500 now present OF the seventeen per-
sons who gave me a unanimous call
when came only three. believe, are
living
But this sermon is not dirge; it is
an anthem. While this world is appro-
pirate as a temporary stay, as an
eternal -aSidence it would be dead
failure. 1t would be dreadful sem
tence # our race were doomed to re-
main here a thousand winters and a
thousand summers God keeps us here
just long enough to give us an appetite
for Heaven So you may we'll take my
text ca. of the minor key and set it to
some tune in the major key. ''One
generation passeth away and another
generation cometh."
Nothing can rob us of the satisfac-
ton that uncounted thousands of the
generation just passed were converted.
comfOrted and harvested for Heaven
by this church, whether in the present
building or the three preceding build
ings in which they worshiped The
two great organs of the previous
churches went down in the memorab BILE
fires, but the multitudinous songs they
led year after year were not recalled or
injured There is no power in earth or
hell to kill hallelujah. 1t is impossi-
bic to arrest hosanna What s. It's
faction to know that there are many
thousands in glory on whose eternal
welfare this church wrought nightly!
Nothing can undo that work. They
have assembled, the multitudes who
served God in that generation. That
chapter is gloriously ended But that
generation has left its impression
upon this generation. A sailor
was dying on shipboard and he said
to his mates: MY lads, l can only
think of one passage of Scrip
ture, The soul that sinneth it shall
die and that keeps ringing in my ears
The soul that sinneth it shall die,
can't you think of something else in
the Bible to cheer me up?" Well, sail
ors are kind and they tried to think of
some other passage of Scripture with
which to console their dying comrade.
but they could not One of them said:
Let us call up the cabin boy. His
mother was Christian. and guess he
has Bible. The cabin boy was called
up, and the dying sailor asked him if
he had Bible. He said, Yes" but
he could not exactly find it, and the
dying sailor scolded him, and said:
'Aint you ashamed of yourself not to
read your Bible?" So the boy ex-
plored the bottom of his trunk and
brought out the Bible, and his mother
had marked a passage that just fitted
the dying sailors case: THE blood of
Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth from all
sim" That helped the sailor to die in
peace. So one generation helps an
other, and good things written, or said,
or done are reproduced long after
ward.
During the passing of the last gener-
alton some peculiar events have unfold
ed. One day while resting at Sharon
Springs, \. ", l think it was in 1870,
the year after my settlement in Brook
lyn, and viii e walking in the park of
that pace, l found myself asking the
question: Il wonder if there is any
special mission for me to execute in this
world? If there is may God show it to
me!' There soon came upon me a great
desire to preach the gospel through
the secular printing press. l realized
that the vast ma ority of people,
even in Christian lands, never enter a
church and that it would be an oppor-
tunity of usefulness infinite if that
door of publication We're opened.
And so l recorded that prayer in
a hand book. and offered the prayer
day in and day out until the answer
came, though in a way different from
that which had expected, for it came
through the misrepresentation and per-
Secution of enemies, and have to re-
cord it for the encouragement of all
ministers of the gospel who are mis-
that if the misrepresenta-
ton be virulent enough, and bitter
and continuous enough. there
is nothing that SO widens ones field of
as hostile attack, if you are
really doing the Lords work. The
bigger the lie told about me, the big
ger the demand to see and hear what
really was doing. From one stage of
publication to another, the
work has gone on. until week by week,
and for about twenty-three years,
have had the world for my audience.
as no man ever had. and to-day, more
so than at any other time.
In this, my quarter-century sermon.
l record the fact that side by side with
the procession of blessings has gone a
procession of disasters. ] am preach
ing to-day in the fourth church build
ing since began in this city. My first
sermon was in the old church on Scher-
merhorn street, to an audience chiefly
OF empty seats, for the church was al
most extinguished. That church filled
and overflowing, we built larger
church, which after two or three years
in flame Then we hnilf