The record-union., 1897-03-08

pie as applied to himself. Once he
was against the Christians. One of
them was condemned for his goodness
and the bitter enemies stoned him to
death. While this was going on Saul
was holding the coats of those that
stoned Stephen to death. After his
conversion Paul regarded himself as
being one of the murderers of the mar
tyr Stephen. He had cast no stones,
nor had he done anything directly to
hasten this death, but he was present,
holding the garments, conSentlng TO the
death. He saw the persecution without
uttering a word of protest against it
All around are a vast number that are
just in this way prosecuting the church
of Christ to-day.
A connivance, a Winking at other
mems sins, silence when they are being
committed, a failure to lift our voices
in protest makes us before God par
takers of them and renders us guilty.
And though We know our protest will
avail nothing to stop the crimes and
evils, because of a strong current that
favOrs sin; still, as witnesses for the
right, as educators against the wrong,
for clearing ourselves before the bar
of conscience, we should protest
against every form of sin. We owe 1t
to society, we owe it to ourselves, to
the cause of truth and right, and to
the cause of the holy religion of Jesus
Christ
1t is a high ground of duty this that
we should occupy to clear ourselves be-
fore God of the responsibility for other
mems sins. We want no share in these
iniQuities, and unless our protest is
clear and strong we are in a measure
guilty of them. We owe it to God and
ourselves to say: ''These are not my
sins; I condemn them; I wish no re-
sponsibility for them" This is no more
than the heather would do. PLATE
wished not to be responsible for
Christ's death and took water and
washed his hands before the multitude,
saying, I am innocent of the blood OF
this just person; see ye to it.
In the case of a murder among the
Jews, the murderer unknown, the di
vine law required the elders of the city
to slay a heifer and to wash their
hands over it, saying: Our hands have
not shed this blood, neither have our
eyes seen it, Here they disavoWed
the guilt, showed abhorunce of the
crime and in Gods sight We're set free.
And we are guilty too of sins which
we encourage. He who does q thing
through another does it himself" Any
one who by example, language, teach
ing, influence, business pursuit, leads
others to sin, makes himself guilty of
their sins. They were influenced
through him to sin, and he must be
held responsible. That skeptic who
plants the seeds of doubt in other s
minds of the great truths of God;
the libertine who tempts to impurity;
the prOfane man who leads others into
blasphemy; the desecrator of the
Lords day who influences others by his
example to do likewise; the evil COM
panion who leads an associate into
| wicked habits; the author who, by his
writings, teaches false principles of
morals and religion; the vender Of
strong drink whose business it is for
the sake of money to place before men
that which he knows may incite them
to every crime; all these are influencing
to sins and Will be partners in the
crimes committed. Human codes. even
them guilty.
As far as our influence over our fell
low men goes, we are responsible for
their conduct. If they do we'll because
Of our influence, We share in the glory
Of their well doing both from God and
man. If they do wrong, we share in the
guilt. Here is a moral partnership of
souls, for good or i'll, of which we shall
never rid ourselves. They may ask:
Am / my brothers. keeper" Are not
others free to do as they will?" And
try to rid themselves in this way of re-
sponsibility, but still it remains and
will not leave. God continues to hold
them accountable, and if at last these
under our influence go down to death
in shame God will say: The voice of
thy brothers blood crieth unto thee
from the ground"
And this partnership in other mems
sins is not ended with this life. Infiu-
ence is immortal; it is deathleSs. The
man living a life of sin sets going a
train of influences that, like some great
river, will deepen and widen during all
coming ages, and while time endures.
VIII contiue to lead men to sin and
1 eternal death. See, then, how a bad
man, or a man not positively good, be-
comes patners of the sins of multi
tudes who are not now born; of thou
sands, who in the coming cycles, long
after he has been in the grave and for
gotten, and his body gone back to
mother earth. Think of it, that through
the influence he has left behind he has
partnership in the oaths uttered, in
tie infidelity that is harbored, in the
/ impurty practiced, in the intemperance
/ INDUCED, in all those many sins that
shall be practiced and that shall lead
the souls of men to eternal separation
from God. Stilll Will the Jaw of hered-
ity go on asserting itself forever
Friends, stand at the judgment bar of
this fact on this first Sunday of Lent,
and test yourselves by these great
neral principles concerning RESPONSE
| bility of character and actions and
final destiny of our fellow men, and you
at once become conscious of guilt.
Neither be partakers of other mems
sins" But we have been partakers of
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