Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1896-02-08

viii stop ever and anon to wash in the
water that stands in the basin Of the
eternal rock.
Aye, at almost every step of the jour
ney yon will be crying ont. Create
within me clean heart = II you have
no such aspirations as that, IL proves
that you have mistaken yonr way, and
If you win only look up and see the
finger board above your head, you may
Tead upon it the words, There is a
way that seemeth right unto q man, bat
the end thereof is death. = Without holi-
ness no man shall see the Lord. and If
you have any idea that yon can carry
along your sins. your lusts, your world
illness, and yet get at the end of the
Christian race, you are SO awfully mis-
taken, that, in the name OF God, shat
ter the delnsion.
How 70 Find the Right Way.
Still further. the road spoken Of is a
plain road. The wayfaring men, though
fools, shall not err therein. y That is, If
a man is three-fourths an idiot, be can
find this road just as well as If he were
philosopher. The imbecile boy, the
laughing stock Of the street, and follow
ed by mob hooting at him, has only
just to knock once at the gate Of heaven,
and 1t swings open; while there has
been many man who can lecture about
pneumatics, and chemistry and tell the
story OF Faraday's theory of electrical
polarization and yet has been shut out
of heaven. There has been many a man
who stood in an observatory and swept
the heavens with his telescope and yet
has not been able to see the morning
star. Many man has been familiar
with all the higher branches of mathe-
matics and yet could not do the simple
sum, What shall it profit man if he
gain the whole world and lose his own
soui?" Many man has been a fine
reader of tragedies and poems and yet
could not read his title clear to man
sions in the skies -
Many a man has botanized across the
continent, and yet not known the Rose
OF Sharon, and the Lily of the Valley. :"
But If one shall come in the right spirit,
asking the way to heaven, he will find
it plain way. The pardon is plain
The peace is plain. Everything is plain.
He who tries TO get ON the road to heav-
en- through the New Testament teaching
will get on beautifully. He who goes
through philosophical discussion will
not get on at all. Christ says, Come to
me, and will take all your sins away,
and will take all your troubles away. =
Now what is the use of my discussing
it any more? Is not that plain? If you
wanted to go to some city, and point
ed you out highway thoroughly laid
out, would be wise in OBTAINING you by
geological discussion about the gravel
you will pass over, or physiological
discussion about the muscles you will
have to bring into play? No. After this
Bible has Pointed you the way to heav-
en-, is it wise for me to detain you with
any discussion about the nature of the
human will. or whether the atonement
is limited OF unlimited? There is the
road-2o ON it. 1t is plain way. "This
is faithful saying. and worthy of all
acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into
the world to save sinners. And that is
you and that is me. Any little child
here can understand this as well as
can. UNLESS you become as a little
child, you cannot see the kingdom Of
God. If you are saved, it will not be
as a philosopher, it will be as little
child. ''Of such is the kingdom of heav-
en-" Unless you get the spirit of little
children, you will never come out at
their glorious destiny.
Faith In God.
Still further, this road to heaven is a
safe road Sometimes the traveller in
those ancient highways would think
himself perfectly secure, not knowing
there was lion by the way burying
his head deep between his paws, and
then when the right moment came, un-
der the fearful spring the mans life
was gone and there was a mauled car
cass by the roadside. But, says my
| text, "No lion shall be there. :" wish
could make you feel your entire Sc
curity. tell you plainly that one min
ute after man has become child of
God he is as safe as though he had been
! 10000 years in heaven. He may slip +;
he may slide; he may stumble, but he
cannot be destroyed. Kept by the power
of God through faith unto complete sal
walton. INCREASINGLY safe. The severest
trial to which you can subject a Chris
tian man is to kill him, and that is
/ glory. In other words, the worst thing
that can happen child Of God is heav-
en-. The body is only the old slippers
that he throws aside just before putting
ON the sandals of light His soul, you
cannot hurt it. No fires can consume
it. No floods can drown it. No devils
can capture it.
Firm and unmoved are they
Who rest their souls on God:
Fixed as the ground where David stood,
Or where the ark abode.
His soul is safe. His reputation is
safe. Everything is safe. ''But," you
say, "euppose his store burns up?"
Why, then, it will be only change of
investments from earthly to heavenly
securities. But" you say, suppose
his name goes down under the hoof of
scorn and contempt?' The name will
be so much brighter in glory. Suppose
his physical health fails?" God will
pour into him the foods of everlasting
health, and it will not make any differ
ence Earthly subtraction is heavenly
addition. The tears of earth are the
crystals of heaven. AS they take rags and
tatters and put them through the paper
mill and they come out beautiful white
sheets of paper, so often the rags of
earthly restitution, under the cylinders
of death, come out a white scroll upon
which shall be written eternal emanci-
patton. There was one passage of Scrip
ture, the force of which never under
stood until one day at Chamounix, with
Mont Blanc OH one side and Montanvert
on the other, opened my Bible and
read, Gas the mountains are around
about Jerusalem SO the Lord is around
about them that fear him. The sur
ronndings were AN omnipotent COM
mentary.