The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1896-04-09

have that lid ungra,eful.
How ~ Der than n serpents tooth It IL
To havI thankless child.
That is n ,kespearc "A foolish son IL the
heavness his MOTHER That is the Bible.
Well, my fNends. have not some of us been
cruel prod nls2 Have we not malireated our
! Father Ia such Father! Three times a
day Sas III I'D thee. He has poured sunlight
into thy d. and at night kindled up all the
street lam OF heaven. With what varieties
Of apparel e hath clothed thee for the sea-
sons VIII eye watches thee? Whose hand
defends III 2 Whose heart sympathizes with
thee2 WI gave you your children? Who is
guarding Dur loved ones dcparted2 Such n
Father s loving. 80 kind. II lie had been
u strangerfif He had forsaken us, II He had
! flagelated dus, II He had pounded us and
turned ustiut OF doors on the commons. il
would nd1 have been so wonderful-our
treatmentbf Him-but He IL II Father, SO
loving. 80 lind, aud yet how many Of us far
our wanddlngs have never apologsed. II
we say afrt hing that hurts our friends feel
ings, IL wedo anything that hurts the feel
ings OF those In whom we are interested,
how quickly we apologizel We can scarcely
wait until We get pen and paper to write II
letter OF apology. How easy IL II for any one
who is intelligent, righ. hearted, TO write an
apology or make An apologyl We apologize
for wrongs done 90 our fellows but some Of
us perhaps have committed ten thousand
times ten thousand wrongs against God aud
never apologized.
remark still further that this resolution
OF the text was founded in a feeling OF homc-
sickness. 1 do not know how long this
young man, how many months, how many
years, he hal been away from his fathers
house, but there IL something about the
reading OF my text that makes mo think IN
was homcsick. Some OF you know what
that feeling Is. Far away from home some
times, surrounded 10y everything bright and
pleasant plenty OF frends--you have said,
II would give the world to be- home to-
night" Well. this young man was home
sick for his fathers house. / have no doubt
when he thought of his fathers house he
said, "Now perhaps father may not be-
living" We read nothing in this story -
this parablc-founded on everyday life: We
read nothing about the mother. II SAYS
nothing about going home to her. | think
she was dead. | think she had died OF a
broken heart Mt his wandcrings, or perhaps
he had gone into dissipation from the fact
that he could not remember n loving and
sympathetic mother A man never gets over
having lost his mother Nothing said about
her, but he Is homesick for his fathers
house. He thought he would Just like to 20
and walk around the old place. He thought
he would Just like to go and see II things
were as they used TO be. Many man after
having been oil n long while has gone home
and Knocked at the door. and a stranger has
come. II Is the old homestead, but "A stranger
comes to the door. He nnds out father l.
gone. and mother is gone, and brothers and
sisters are all gone. think this young man
Of the text said 10 himself. perhaps father
may be dead" Still. he starts TO lind out.
He is homesick. Are there any here to-day
homesick for God. homesick for heavcu2
sailor. after having been long ON the
sea, returned TO his fathers house. and his
mother tried to persuade him not to go away
al. - H.. l. Ia
stay AT home. Don't 90 away. We don't
want you 10 go. You will have 1t u great
deal better here" But II made him angry.
The night before he went away again to sea
he heard his mother praying in the next
room, and that made him more angry. He
went far out on the sea, and u storm came
up, and he was ordered to very periious duty,
and he ran up the rat-lines, and amid the
shrouds Of the ship he heard the voice that
he had heard in the next room. He tried To
whistle II of, he tried to rally his courage,
but he could not silence the voice he had
heard In the next room, aud there in the
storm and darkness he said: 40 rord, what
u wretch l have been. What n wretch am
Help me just now. Lord God" And
thought in this assembage to-day there
may be some who may have the memory ofa
fathers petition or a mothers prayer press
ing nightly upon the SOUL and that this
hour they may make the same resolution |
find in my text, saying, III will arise and go
TO my father"
A lad at Liverpool went out to bathe; went
out into the sea, went out too far, got be-
yond his depth, and he floated far away.
ship bound for Dublin came along ana took
him on board. Sailors are generally very
generous fellows. and one gave him cap
and another gave MIN jacket, and another
CAV him shoes. A gentleman passing along
ON the beach at Liverpool found the lads
clothes unI took thppn hama unl tla fuf la
was heartbrokcn, the mother was heart
broken, NJ the loss of their child. They had
heard nothing from him day after day, and
they ordered the usual mourning for the sad
event. But the lad took ship from Dublin
and arrived In Liverpool the very day the
mourning arrived. He Knocked NJ the door.
The father was overioyed and the mother
was overjoyed at the return of their lost son.
| Oh, my friends, have you wadel out too
! deepi Have you wadcd down into sin? Have
| You waded from the shJrey viii YOU
come backI When you come back, will you
! como in the rags OF your sin, or will you
come roDed in the Saviour's righteousness
| believe the latter Go home to your God
| to-day, He Is waiting for you. Go hOmc'
But remark the characteristic OF this res-
olution was, II was Immediately put into eX-
| ecution. The context says, I'll" arose ana
came to his father" The trouble in nine
! hundred and ninety-nine times out Of "a thou
]
| ing because we make them for some distant
| time. II j resolve to become II Christian next
| year, that amounts TO nothing at all. If / re-
! solve at the service this day to become "a
| Christian, that amounts 10 nothing at all. II
j resolve after go home to-day 20 yield my
| heart to God, that amounts To nothing at all.
The only kind OF resolution tat amounts to
| anything Is the resolution that is Immediate
| lyput into execution.
There Is man who had the typhoid fever.
He said "Oh. II could get over this terri
BILE distress, II this fever should depart, II
could be restored TO health. | would ali the
rest Of my life serve God" The fever de-
parted. He got we'll enough to walk around
the block. He got well enough to go over
to business. He Is well to-lay--as well rs he
| ever was. Where Is the broken vow! There
is a man who said long ago. IF | could live
to the year 1896, by that time will have my
! business matters all arranged. and | will
have time 20 attend TO religion. and | will be
u good, thorough, consecrated Christian. "
| The year 1896 has come. January, Fcbru-
AIRY, March, April-a third OF the year gone.
| Where Is your broken vowG "Oh," says
some man, "Pll attend to that when |