The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-01-15

pang Of the soul. 1t Is pleasant to have our
friends gather around US and tell US now
sorry they are. and try to break up the lone
illness, but nothing but the hand OF Jesus
Christ can take the bruised soul ana put II
in His bosom, hushing 1t with the lullaby OF
heaven. o brother! o sister! The grave
stone viii never be lifted from your heart
until Christ lifts it. Was it not the loss OF
your friends. or the persecution OF your enc
mics. or the overthrow Of your worldly es-
fate-was it not an earthquake that startled
you out to ask this stupendous question OF
my text?
But I remark again, characterize this
question of the agitated Jail keeper as hasty,
urgent and immediate. He put it on the
run. By the light Of his torch as he goes to
look for the apostles, behold his face, see the
startled look and see the earnestness. No
one can doubt by that look that the man is
in earnest. BE must have that question an.
swered before the earth stops rocking, or
perhaps he will never have it answered at
al. Is that the way, my brother. my sister,
you are putting this question! Is it on the
run? Isit hasty? Is 1t urgent? Is it imme-
diate? II it Is not, 1t will not be answered.
That is the only kind Of question that is an
swered. 1t is the urgent and immediate
question of the gospel Christ answers. A
great many are asking this question, put
they drawl 1t out, and there IS lndlllerence
in their manner. as il they do not mean II.
Make it an urgent question ana tnen You
will have It answered before an hour passes,
before minute passes. When man with
all the earnestness of his soul cries out for
God. he finds Him, and finds Him right
away.
who are postponing until the last hour OF
living the attending to the things OF tho soul2
I give it as my opinion that ninety-nine out
of the one hundred death-bed repentances
amount to nothing. or all the scores Of per-
sons mentioned as dying In the Bible. OF how
many do you read that they successfully re-
pented in the last hour? OF 5O' No; oi 4O!
OFFS? No. OIL? Only one, barely one, as
If to demonstrate the fact that there is bare
possibility Of repentance in the last hour.
But that is improbable, awfully improbable,
terrifcally improbable. One hundred to
one against the man. II, my brother,
my sister, you have ever seen a man
try to repent In the last hour, you
have seen something very Sad. do not
know anything on earth 80 sad Us to see
man to repent on deathbed. There Is not
from the moment that life begins to breathe
in infancy to the last gasp such an unfavor-
able. completely unfavorable, hour for re-
There are the doctors standing with the
medicines. There is the lawyer standing
with the half written will. There is the
family in CONSERVATION as to what ts to be-
come of them. ALL the bells Of eternity ring
ing the soul out of the body. All the past
rising before us and all the future. Oh, that
man Is an infinite fool who procrastinates to
the deathbed his repentance!
q My text does not answer the question. 1t
only asks 1t, with deep and importunate ear
nestness asks 1t, and according to the rules
Of sermonizing you would say Adjourn
that to some other time," but ! dare not.
What are the rules of sermonizing to me
when am after souls?i What other time
could I have when perhaps this is the only
timer This might be my last time for
preaching; this might be your last time for
hearing.
After my friend in Philadelphia died, his
children gave his church Bible to me, and
read It, looked over 1t with much interest.
saw in the margin, written In lead pencil,
"Mr. Talmage said this morning that the
most useless thing in Gods universe Is that
any sinner should perish" did not remem-
ber saying it. but 1t is true. and lsay 1t
now whether said It then or not-the most
useless thing in all Gods universal Is that any
sinner should perish. Twelve gates wide
open. Have you not heard how Christ bore
our sorrows. and how sympathetic He Is with
all our woes! Have you not heard how that
with all the sorrows of heart and all the
agonies of hell upon Him, He cried, "Father.
forgive them, they know not what they 90"
By His feet biistered of the mountain way,
by His back whipped until the skin came OF,
by His death couch of four spikes. two for
the hands and two for the feet; by His sepul-
cher, in which for the first time for thirty
three years the cruel world let Him alone,
and by the heavens from which he now
bends in compassion, offering pardon and
peace and life eternal to all your souls, Leg
of you put down your all at His feet.
Isaw one hanging on o tree
In agony and blood, ..
Who fixed His languid eyes on me
As near His cross I stood.
Oh, never till my latest breath
Will forget that look,
It seemed to charge me with his death,
Though not a word He spoke.
In the troubled times of Scotland Sir John
Cochrane was condemned to death by the
King. The death warrant was on the way.
Sir John Cochrane was bidding farewell to
his DAUGHTER Grizel at the prison dooT. ne ne
said: "Farewell, my darling child l must
die." His daughter said, "No, father, you
shall not die." "But." he said, ''the King is
against me. and the law is after me.
and the death warrant Is on its way, and
must die; do not deceive yourself, my dear
child" The daughter said, "Father. you
shall not die" as she left the prison gate. At
night, on the moors of Scotland, disguised
wayfarer stood waiting for the horsemsn
carrying the mailbags containing the death
warrant. The disguised wayfarer. as the
horse came by. clutched the bride and
shouted to the rider-to the man who car
ried the mailbags, "Dismount!' He felt for
his arms and was about to shoot. but the
wayfarer ierkei him from his saddle. and he
fell fiat. The wayfarer picked up the mail
bags, put them on his shoulder and vanished
in the darkness, and fourteen days were thus
gained for the prisoners life, during. which
the father confessor was pleading Tor the
pardon Of Sir John Coohrane.
The second time the death warrant ts on
its way. The disguised wayfarer comes
along and asks for little bread and a little
wine, starts on across the moors, and they
say "Poor man, to have to 90 out op such
a stormy night. 1t Is dark and you will lose
yourself on the moors." ""Oh. no." he says,
IT will not" He trudged on and stopped
amid the brambles and waited for the horse
man to come carrying the mailbags contain
ing the death warrant Of Sir John Cochrane.
The mail carrier spurred on his steed, for he
was fearful because Of what had occurred on
the former journey, spurred on his steed.
when suddenly through the storm and
through the darkness there was fash OF
firearms and the horse became unmanage,
able, and as the mail carrier discharged
his pistol in response the horse flung
him, aud the disguised wayfarer put his foot
on the breast Of the overthrown rider and
said. "Surrender now!' The mali cnrrier
surrendered his arms, and the disguised
wayiarer put upon his shoulders the mail
bags, leapei upon the horse and sped away
into the darkness, gaining fourteen more
days for the poor prisoner. Sir John Cooh-
rane. and before the fourteen DAYS had ex-
pired pardon had come from the King. The