The Monitor-register., 1897-07-30

cuperated and built up for time and for
eternity. God will keep many of you
cramped in money matters until the day
of your death unless you swing out into
larger generosities.
A Great Promise.
People quote as a joke what is
divine promise, "Cast thy bread upon
the waters, and it will return to thee
after many days" What did God mean
by that? There is an allusion there. In
Egypt when they SOW the corn it is at
time when the Nile is overfiowing its
banks, and they sow the seed corn on
the waters, and as the Nile begins to
recede this seed corn strikes in the earth
and comes up harvest, and that is the
allusion. 1t seems as if they are throw
ing the corn away on the waters, but
after awhile they gather it up in har-
vest Now says God in his word, "Cast
thy bread upon the waters, and it shall
come back to thee after many days.
1t may seem to you that you are throw
ing it away Oh charities. but it will
yield harvest of green and goldv-a
harvest on earth and harvest in heav-
en-. If men could appreciate that and
act on that, we would have no more
| trouble about individual or national
| finances.
Prescription the third, for the cure of
all our individual and national fnan-
cial distresses, great spiritual awaken
ing. 1t is no mere theory. The mer-
chants of this country were positively
demented with the monetary excite
ment in 1851 There never before nor
since has been such a state of financial
depression as there was at that time
A revival came, and 500, 900 people
were born into the kingdom of God
What came after the revival? The
grandest financial prosperity we have
ever had in this country. The finest
| fortunes, the largest fortunes in the
United States, have been made since
1857. "Well," you say, "what has
| spiritual improvement and revival to
do with monetary improvement and re-
vival?" Much to do. The religion of
Jesus Christ has direct tendency to
make men honest and sober and truth
telling, and are not honesty and sobriety
and truth telling auxiliaries of material
prosperity?
If werould have an awakening in this
country rs in the days of Jonathan Ed
wards of Northampton, as in the days
of DR.. Finley of Basking Ridge, as in
the days Of DR.. Griffin Of Boston, the
whole land would rouse to a higher
moral tone, and with that moral tone
the honest business enterprise of the
country would come up. You say a
/great awakening has an influence upon
the future world. tell you it has di-
rect influence upon the financial well
| fare of this world. The religion of
Christ is no foe to successful business.
1t is its best friend And if there should
come a great awakening in this coun-
| try, and all the banks and insurance
companies and stores and offices and
shops should close up for two weeks and
do nothing but attend to the public
worship of almighty God, after such
spiritual vacation the land would wake
up to such financial prosperity as we
have never dreamed of. Godliness is
profitable for the life that now is as
we'll as for that which is to come. But,
my friends, do not put so much empha-
sis on worldly success as to let your
eternal affairs go at loose ends. 1 have
nothing to say against money. The
more money you get the better, if it
comes honestly and goes usefully. For
| tho looly Of II ciokpocc 1ioo 1rifbo,t
medicine, and hunger finds its coffin in
an empty bread tray, and nakedness shiv
ers for clothes and fire All this canting
TRADE against money as though it had
no practical use, when hear man in
dulge in it, it makes me think the best
heaven for him would be an everlasting
poorhouse. No; there is practical use
in money, but while we admit that we
must also admit that it cannot satisfy
the soul, that it cannot pay for our fer
riage across the Jordan of death, that it
cannot unlock the gate of heaven for
our immortal soul.
Shipwreck.
Yet there are men who act as though
packs of bonds and mortgages could be
traded off for mansion in heaven, and
as though gold were legal tender in
that land where it is so common that
they make pavements out of it. Saliva
tion by Christ is the only salvation.
Treasures in heaven are the only incor-
ruptible treasures. Have you ever ciph-
cred out that sum in loss and gain,
"What shall it profit man if he gain
| the whole world and lose his soul?"
You may wear fine apparel now, but
| the winds of death will futter it like
| rags Homespun and threadbare coat
have sometimes been the shadow of
robes white in the blood of the Lamb.
All the mines of Australia and Brazil,
| strung in one carcanet, are not worth
to you as much as the pearl of great
price. You remember, l suppose, some
years ago, the shipwreck of the Central
America? A storm came on that vessel
The surges tramped the deck and swept
down through the hatches and there
| went up hundred voiced death shrek
The foam on the jaw of the wave. The
pitching of the steamer, as though it
| would leap a mountain. The glare of
the signal rockets. The long cough of
| the steam pipes The hiss of extin-
guished furnaces. The walking of God
on the wave. Oh, it was stupendous
| spectacle But that ship did not go
down without struggle. The passen-
gers stood in long lines trying to bail it
out, and men unused to toll tugged un-
til their hands were blistered and their
| muscles were strained. After awhile
sail came in sight. A few passengers
got off, but the most went down. The
ship gave one lurch and was lost.
SO there are men who go ON in life
fine voyage they are making out of it.
All is well till some euroclydon of
business disaster comes upon them, and
they go down. The bottom of this COM
mercial sea is strewn with the shat
tered hulks. But because your property
goes shall your soul go? Oh, no. There
Is coming more stupendous shipwreck
after awhile. This world-God launched
it 6. 900 years ago, and it is sailing on,
but one day it will stagger at the cry
of .'Firep' and the timbers of the rocks
will burn, and the mountains flame like
masts, and the clouds like sails in the
Judgment hurricane. God will take a
good many off the deck, and others out
of the berths, where they are now sleep
ing in Jesus. How many shall go down?
No one will know until it is announced
in