Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1896-04-09

the rags Of your sin or will you como robed
in the Saviour's righteousness l believe
the latter. Go home to your God today.
He is waiting for you. Go homel
But l remark the characteristic Of this
resolution was, it was Immediately put
into execution. The context says che
arose and came to his father
The trouble in nine hundred and ninety
nine times out of thousand is that our
resolutions amount to nothing because
Ee make them for some distant time. If l
resolve TO become Christian next year.
that amounts to nothing at all. If l re-
solve to become Christian tomorrow,
that amounts to nothing at all. II re-
solve at the service this day to become
Christian, that amounts to nothing at ALL
If resolve after go home today to yield
! my heart to God, that amounts to nothing
at all. The only kind of resolution that
amounts to anything is the resolution that
is Immediately put into execution. There
is a man who had the typhoid fever. He
said, "Oh, if I could get over this terri
BILE distress; if this fever should depart;
if could bo restored to health, l would
all the rest of my life serve God" The
| fever departed. He got we'll enough to
walk around the block. He got well enough
to go over to business He is we'll today
as well as he ever was. Where is the bro
ken vow?
To Be Almost Saved Is to Be Lost.
There is man who said, long ago, "If
l could live to the year 1896, by that
time l will have my business matters all
arranged, and will have time to attend
to religion, and will be a good, thor
ough, consecrated Christian. The year
1896 has come. January, February
March, April-a third of the year gone
Where is your broken vowP "Oh," says
some man, "I'll attend to that when get
my character fixed up, when 1 can get
over my evil habits; 1 am now given to
strong drink" Or, says the man, II am
given to uncleanness." Or, says the man:
~ am given to dishonesty. When get
over my present habits then I'll be a thor
ough Christian" My brother, you will
get worse and worse, until Christ takes
you in hand. mot the righteous, sinners
Jesus came to CALL" Oh, but you say, II
agree with you in all that but must put
it off little longer" Do you know there
were many who came just as near as you
are to the kingdom Of God and never en-
tered it? l was at Easthampton, and l
went into the cemetery to look around,
and in that cemetery there are ~ graves
side by side-the graves of sailors, This
crew, some years ago. in ship went into
the breakers at Amagansett, about three
miles away. My brother, then preaching
at Easthampton, had been at the burial.
These men of the crew came very near
being saved. The people from Amagansett
saw the vessel, and they shot rockets, and
they sent ropes from the shore, and these
poor fellows got into the boat and they
pulled nightly for the shore, but just be-
fore they got to the shore the rope snapped
and the boat capsized, and they were lost,
their bodies afterward washed upon the
beach. Oh, what a solemn day it was-I
have been told of it by my brother-when
these ~ men lay at the foot of the pulpit;
and he read over them the funeral service.
| They came very near shore-within shout
ing distance of the shore, yet did not ar
rive on solid land, There are some men
who come almost to the shore of Gods
mercy, but not quite, not quite. To be al
most saved is to be lost
Two Prodigals.
will tell you of two prodigals-the one
that got back, and the other that did not
get back. In Richmond there is a very
prosperous and beautiful home in many
respects. A young man wandered off from
| that home. He wandered very far into
sin. They heard of him after, but he was
always on the wrong track. He would
| not go home. At the door of that beauti-
full home one night there was a great out
cry. The young man of the house ran
down to open the door to see what was the
matter. 1t was midnight. The rest of
the family were asleep. There were the
wife and children of this prodigal young
man. The fact was he had come home
and driven them out He said: "Out of
this house! Away with these children! !!
will dash their brains out. Out into the
stormp' The mother gathered them up
and fed. The next morning the brother,
the young man who had staid at home,
went out to find this prodigal brother and
son, and he came where he was and saw
the young man wandering up and down
in front of the place where he had been
staying, and the young man who had kept
his integrity said to the older brother:
/ Here, what does all this mean? What is
the matter with you? Why do you act in
this way?" The prodigal looked at him
and said: "Who am l? Who do you take
me to be?' He said, "You are my broth
err" "No, I am not. I am brute.
Have you seen anything of my wife and
children? Are they dead? l drove them
out last night in the storm. l am brute.
John, do you think there is any help for
meP Do you think will ever get over
! ic of 10 coi1 hr
there is one thing that will stop this
The prodigal ran his fingers across his
throat and said: "That will stop it, and
will stop it before night. Oh, my brain !
can stand it no longer" That prodigal
never got home. But will tell you of a
prodigal that did get home. In England
two young men started from their fathers
house and went down to Portsmouth,
have been there--a beautiful seaport.
Some of you have been there. The father
could not pursue his children-for some
reason he could not leave homeland SO he
wrote letter down to Mr.. Griffin, saying:
"Mr Griffin, wish you would go and
see my two sons. They have arrived iN
Portsmouth, and they are going to take
ship and going away from homo. wish
| you would persuade them back"
The Pardon of the Gospel.
| Mr.. Griffin went and tried to persuade
| them back He persuaded one to go. He
went with very easy persuasion because he
was very homesick already. The other
young man said: II will not go. l have
had enough of home. I'll never go home"
"Well," sold Mr.. Griffin, "then if you
won't go home I'll get you respectable
position on respectable ship" "No,
you WON'T" said the prodigal; ''no you
won't. I am going rs private sailor; as
common sailor. That will plague my
father most and what will do most to tan
talize and worry him will please me best. "
Years passed on and Mr.. Griffin was seated
| In his study one day when a messenger
An Affidavit.
This is to certify that on May 11th,