The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-03-11

took the food, and Martin Luther knelt ao#n
and prayed as only he could pray. anu CON
Valescence came, and Martin Luther wen,
back a2d said to his friends, "God mas saVeo
the life of Philip Melanchthon IN dlrece an,
swer to my prayer" on: the power VI
| prayeri Have YOU tested 1t?
Dr. Prime. of New York, in his beautiful
| book entitled "Around the World de-
scrired mauso'eum in India which it took
! &c. 600 men twenty-five years to buiid-that
and the buildings surrounding-and he
says: "Standing in that mausoleum and
uttering n word, it is echoed back from a
height of $50 feet not an ordinary echo,
but prolonged music, as though there
were angels lowering in the air." And every
word of earnest prayer we utter has an echo,
not from the marble cupola OF an earthly
from the wings of angels as they hover. cry.
| ing, "Behold, he prays" Oh, test IT.
Mighty sickle for reaping this gospel harvest;
the sickle of prayer!
1t does not make so much difference about
the posture you take, whether you sit, stand
or kneel, or lie on your tace, or In your
physical agonies lie On your back. 1t does
| not make any difference about the physical
posture, as was shown in hospital, wnen
the chaplain said as he looked over the psus
OF the suffering: 'sLet all those wounaeo
men here who would like to be prayed ZOE
lift the hand! Some lifted two hands, otners
lifted one hand; some with Rands ampu'aIeo nea
could only lift the stump OF the arm. one
man. both his arms amputated, could give
no signal except to say. "Me! Me-" On, 1t
does not make any difference about the
rhetoric of your prayers; it does not maze
anv difference about the posture; 1t does mol
make any difference whether you can lift
hand or have no hand to lift. God Is ready
to hear you. Prayer Is answered. God Is
waiting to respond.
cliff up your eyes upon the fields, for they
are white already to harvestI" How many
have YOU reaped for Gotl3 Do you ask me
how many have reaped for God2 I cannot
say. Now can You say how many you have
reaped? I hope there are some who have
been brought into tho kingdom OF God
through your instrumentality. Have there
not been? Not one? You, a man thirty-fye,
forty, fifty years of age and not one? 1 see
souls coming up to glory. Here Is Sunday
school teacher bringing ten or fifteen souls.
Here Is tract distributor bringing in forty
or fifty souls. Here is man you never heard
OF who has been very useful In bringing
souls to God. He comes with $50 souls.
They are the Sheaces OF his harvest. How
many have you brought? Not one-can il
bep What will God say? What will the
angels say? Better crouch down in some
corner Of heaven and never show yourself.
Oh, that harvest is to be reaped now! And
that is this instant! Why not be reaped for
God this hour?
.Oh," says some man, "I have been going
on the wrong road for thirty, or forty or
fifty years. have gone through the whole
catalogue Of crime and must first get myself
fixed up" All. you will never get yourself
fixed up until Christ takes you in charge.
You get worse and worse until he comes to
the rescue. "Not the ighteous-sinners.
very worst case thore is. II there is man
here who feels he is all right in heart and
life, am not talking to him. fer he Is prob
ably hypocrita. will talk to him some
other time. But il there Is man who feels
himself all wrong, to him I address myself.
Though you be wounded in the hands ald
wounded in the feet and wounded
in the heal and wounded In the
heart, and though the gangrene Of eternal
death be upon you. one drop OF the elixir OK
divine life will cure your soul. Though you
feet have gone in uuclean places, though you
have companioned with the abandoned and
the lost, one touch Of divine grace will save
your soul.
/ do not say that you will not have strug-
giles after that. Oh, no! But they will be
different kind OF struggle. You 20 into that
battle and all hell is against you, and you
are alone. and you fight and you fight.
weaker and weaker. until ut last you faR
and the powers OF darkness trample on your
soul. But in tho other case you SO into the
battle and fight stronger and stronger and
stronger, until the evil propensity goes
down and you get the victory through our
Lord Jesus Chlst. Oh, come out OF your
sins! Have you not been bruised with stu
long enough? Have you not carried that
load long enough? Have you not fought
that battle long enough?
invite any one the most infldel, any one
the most atheistio, invite him into the
kingdom Of God with just as much hearth
ness as those who have for fifty years been
under the teaching of the gospel and believed
ii all. When was living in Philadelphia.
gentleman told me Of Il scene in which he
was q participant. In Callowhill street, in
Philadelphia, there had been q powerful
meeting going on for some time. and many
were converted, and among others one OF
the prominent members Of tho worst club
house in that city. The next night
the leader of that club house, tho presi-
dent of It, resolved that he would endeavor
to get his comraie away. He came TO the
door, before he entered he heard Christian
song, and under its power his soul was
Before he came out he was subjecs OF con-
verting mercy. The nOXt night another
comrade went to reclaim the two who had
been lost to their sinful circle. He went.
and under the power OF the Holy Ghost be-
cam" & changed man, and the work went on.
they we're all saved and the infamous club
house disbanded. Oh. it is 4 mighty gospel.
Though you came here child & sin, you
can go away q child Of grace. you can SO
away singing:
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved q wretch like me!
Ionce was lost, but now an found
Was blind, but now sec.
Oh, give up your sins! Most of your life
Is already gone. Your children are going
on the same wrong road. Why do you Eot
stop? "ThiS day is salvation come to thy
house" Why Eet this moment look up into
the face OF Christ and say:
Just as am, witnout one plea
But that Thy blood WIS she'd for me.
Ana that Thou bid'st me come to Thee
o Lamb Of God, come, come.
God is going to save you. You arc going
to be among the shining ones. After the
tolls Of life are over, you are going up to tho
everlasting rest. you aro going up to join
your loved ones, departed parents and de-
parted children. "Oh, my God" says some
man, show can come to Thee? 1 am so far
off. VINO will help ne, an so weak? 1t
seems such great undertaking" Oh, my
brother, it is Il great undertaking! 1t is so
great you cannot accomplish il, but Christ
can do the work. He will correct your heart
and He will correct your life. "Oh," you say.
Il will stop profanity" That will not save
you. "Oh," yeu say, Il will stop Sabbath
breaking" That will not save you. There
is only one door into the kingdom Of God,
and that is faith; only one ship that sails for
heaven, and that is faith. Faith the first
step, the second step. the hundredth stop,
lkl. Al l..nk fni 4 Ia