The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-02-11

royal conservatory. No, it is the atm
ers orchard and everywhere there are
bars that we may let down anu e"e~
that we may swing open
In my boyhood, next to the country
school house, there was an orcharo oA
apples, owned by very lame Ine1'
who, although there were apples IN the
place perpetually decaying, ana py
scores and scores Of bushels, never
would allow any of US to <oucn the
fruit. One day, in the sinfulness OF a
nature inherited from our first parentss
who were ruined by the same tempta-
ton. some of US invaded that orcnaro'
but we soon retreated, for the man
came after us at speed reckless VI
making his lameness worse. and cr1ed
out: Boys, drop those apples or
set the dog on you'll!
Well, my friends, there are CHRISTIAN
men who have the church under severe
guard. There is fruit in this orchard
for the whole world; but they have
rough and unsympathetic way or ac-
costing outsiders, as though they mao
no business here though the Loro
wants them all to come and take the
largest and ripest fruit on the premises
Have you an idea that because you
were baptized at thirteen months OF age
and because you have all your life been
under hallowed influences, that there
of the Lords table, spreading yourself
out and taking up the entire room!
tell you no. You will have to haul In
your elbows, for I shall place on either
side of you those whom you never eX-
pected would sit there; for, as Christ
said to his favored people long ago,
so he says to you and to met "Other
sheep I have which are not Of this
fold"
Macdonald. the Scotchman, has four
or five dozen head Of sheep. Some OF
them are browsing on the heather,
some of them are lying down under the
trees, some of them are in his yard;
they are scattered around in eight or
ten different places. Cameron, his
neighbor, comes over and says: II see
you have thirty sheep; I have just
counted them" mo" says Macdonald,
II have a great many more sheep than
that. Some are here and some are else
where. They are scattered all around
about. have four or five thousand in
my Aocks. Other sheep have which
are not In this fold.''
So Christ says to US. Here is knot
OF Christians and there is q knot OF
Christians but they make up a small
part of the flock. Here is the Episcopal
| fold, the Methodist fold, the Lutheran
fold, the Congregational fold. the Pres
| byterian fold, the Baptist and the Pedo-
| these last two being the mode of sheep
| washing; and so they are scattered all
| over; and we come with our statistics
| and say there are so many thousands OF
the Lords sheep; but Christ responds
| mo, no; you have not seen more than
| one out of thousand of my flock. They
| are scattered all over the earth. Other
sheep I have which are not OF this
| fold
Christ, in my text, was prophesyine
the conversion of the Gentiles with az
much confidence as though they were
already converted, and he is now. in
the words of my text. prophesying the
coming of a great multitude of outsid.
| erS that you never supposed would
come in, saying to you and saying tc
me: "Other sheep have which are not
of this fold
| In the first place, 1 remark, that the
| heavenly Shepherd will find many OF
his sheep among the non-church goers
| There are congregations where they
are all Christians. and they seem to be
completely finished, and they remind
| one of the skeleton leaves which, by
| chemical preparation have had all the
| greenness and verdure taken off them
| and are left cold and white and delicate
nothing wanting but a glass case tc
| put over them The minister of Christ
has nothing to do with such Christians
! but to come once a week and with ost-
| rich feathers dust off the accumulation
! of the last six days, leaving them bright
and crystalline as before. But the
other kind of a church is an armory,
with perpetual sound of drum and fife
| gathering recruits for the Lord of Hosts.
We say to every applicant: do you
want to be on Gods side, the safe side
| and the happy side? If SO, come in the
armory and get equipped. Here is q
bath in which to be cleansed. Here are
sandals to put upon your feet. Here
| is a helmet for your brow. Here is a
breast plate for your heart. Here is g
sword for your right arm, and yonder is
the battle field. Quit yourselves like
men,
There are some here who say: 81
stopped going to church ten or twenty
| years ago" My brother, is it not
strange that you should be the first
man I should talk to to-day? I know
all your case; I know it very well. You
have not been accustomed to come into
| religious assemblage, but I have a sur.
prising announcement to make to you
you are going to become one of the
Lords sheep. "Ah," you say, sit is i'm.
possible. You don't know how far ]
am from anything of that kind" ]
| know all about it. 1 have wandered ur
and down the world and understand
| your case. have a still more startling
| announcement to make in regard tc
you; you are not only going to become
one of the Lords sheep, but you will
become one to-day. You will stay after
this service to be talked with about
your soul. People of God, pray for that
man! That is the only use for you
here. I shall not break off so much as
crumb for you, Christians, in this SER
mon, for I am going to give it all to
the outsiders. "Other sheep I have
| which are not of this fold
When the Atlantic went to pieces on
Mars Rock, and the people cIambered
upon the beach. why did not that heroic
minister of the Gospel, Of whom we