Connecticut western news., 1894-11-01

gone from God that there Is no mercy for him. want to tell him there Is good chance. Why, Paul was a murder CT. He assisted at the execution of Stephen, and yet Paul was saved. The dying thief did everything bad The dying thief was saved Richard Baxter swore dreadfully, but the grace of God met him, and Richard Baxter was saved
 Wash and Be Clean.
 It Is a vast layer. Go and tell every body to come and wash in 1t. Let them come up from the penitentiaries and wash away their crimes. Let them come up from the almshouses and wash away their poverty. Let them come up from their graves and wash away their death. If there be any one so worn out ill sin that he cannot get up to the layer, you will take hold of his head and put your arms around him, and I will take hold of his feet, and we will plunge him in this glorious Bethesda, the vast layer of Gods mercy and salvation. In Solo mons temple there were ten lavers and one molten sea-this great reservoir in the midst of the temple filled with wa ter-these layers and this molten sea adorned with figures of palm branch and oxen and lions and cherubim. This fountain of Gods mercy is a vaster molten sea than that. It is adorned not with palm branches, but with tho wood of the cross; not with oherubim, but with the wings of the Holy Ghost, and around its great rim all the race may come and wash in the molten sea. Twas reading the other day of Alexander the Great, who, when he was very thirsty and standing at the head of his army, had brought to him a cup of water. He looked off upon his host and said, "I can not drink this; my men are all thirsty, " end he dashed 1t to the ground. Blessed be God, there is enough water for all the host-enough for captains and hostl "Whosoever will may come and take of the water of life freely" layer broad as the earth, high as the heavens and deep as he'll.
 It Is Cleansing or Death.
 But I notice also, in regard to this layer of looking glasses spoken of in the text, that the washing in it was impera- tive and not optional When the priests came into the tabernacle (you will find this in the thirtieth chapter of Exodusl God tells them that they must wash in that layer or die. The priest might have said: Cant wash elsewhere? wash ed in the layer at home, and now you want me to wash here" God says: No matter whether or not you have washed before. Wash in this layer or die. !" ''But," says the priest, "there is water just as clean as this. Why won tthat do?' .Wash here, says God, Tor die" So it is with the gospel of Christ It is inn perative. There is only this alternative keep our sins and perish, or wash them away and live. But, says some one, "Why could not God have made more ways to heaven than one?' I do not know but he could have made half a dozen. know he made but one. You say, tWhy not have long line of boats running from here to heaven?" can not say, but simply know that there is only one boat. You say, "Are there not trees as luxuriant as that on Calvary, more luxuriant, for that had neither buds nor blossoms; it was stripped and barked?" Yes, yes, there have been tall CT trees than that and more luxurtant, but the only path to heaven is under that one tree. Instead of quarreling be- cause there are not more ways. let us be | thankful to God there is one, one name given unto men whereby we can be | saved, one layer in which all the world may wash. So you see what radiant Q
 gospel this is I preach. rdo not know how man can stand stolidly and pre- sent 1t, for it is such an exhilarant gos. pei It is not mere whim or caprice. | It is life or death. It Is heaven or hell. You come before your child. and you have present in your hand You put your hands behind your back and say;
 (Which hand will you take? In one
 hand there is treasure; in the other
 there is not" The child blindly chooses. But God our Father does not do that way with us. He spreads out both hands and says: "Now this shall be very plain. In that hand are pardon and peace and life and the treasures of heaven. Ir that hand are punishment and sorrow
 and woe. Choose, choose for yourselvesp'
 ''He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned" +F
 The Unsearchablo Riches.
 Oh, my dear friends, I wish I could
 coax you to accept this gospell If you could just take one look in this layer oi f looking glasses spoken of in the text, you would begin now spiritual ablu tion- The love of Christi dare not,
 toward the close of my sermon, begin tc
 tell about it. The lore of Christi Dc
 not talk to me about mountain; 1t if
 higher than that, Do not talk to me
 about sea; it is deeper than that
 | An artist in his dreams saw such g splendid dream of the transfguration oi | Christ that he awoke and seized hii
 pencil and said, "Let me paint this and
 die" Oh. have seen the glories o1 | Christi I have beheld something of the
 beauty of that great sacrifice on Calva,
 ", and I have sometimes felt would
 be willing to give anything if might
 just sketch before you the wonders oi
 that sacrifice. I would like to do il
 while live, and I would like to do fl
 when I die. Let me paint this and
 die" He comes along, weary and worn,
 his face wet with tears, his brow crim.
 son with blood, and he lies down or
 Calvary for you. No mistake Moth.
 ing was as comfortable as that A stone
 on Calvary would have made soft pill.
 low for the dying head of Christ. Moth.
 ing so comfortable as that He does not
 lie down to die; he stands up to die,
 his spiked hands outspread as if to em.
 brace world. Oh, what hard end fo,
 those feet that had travelled all over Ju.
 dsea on ministries of mercyi What 6
 hard end for those hands that had wiped
 away tears and bound up broken hearts
 Very hard, O dying Lamb of God, and
 yet there are those who know 1t and
 who do not love thee. They say: "What