Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1897-12-11

up and down our Streets that at mid
night men would knock at your door,
asking how they may get those treas
ures. Instead of that many OF us put
our hands behind our back and walk up
and down in front of tho mine Of eter-
nal riches and say, "Well, if 1 am to
be saved will be saved, and if am to
be lost l will be lost, and there is moth
ing to do about it.
Why, my brother, do you not do that
way in business matters? Why do you
not tomorrow go to your store and sit
down and fold your arms and say, IF
these goods are to be sold, they will be
sold, and if they arc not to be sold they
will not be sold; there is nothing for
me to do about it. - No, you dispatch
your agents, you print your advertise
ments, you adorn your show windows,
you push those goods you use the in
strumentality. Oh, that men were as
wise in the matter of the soul as they
are wise i'll the matter of dollars and
cents
Not One Conscript.
This doctrine of Gods sovereignty,
how it is misquoted and spoken of as
though it were an iron chain which
bound us hand and foot for time and
for eternity, when, so far from that, in
every fiber of your body, in every facul-
ty of your mind, in every passion OF
your soul, you are a FREQ mnn-a free
man-and it will no more tomorrow be
matter of choice whether you shall 60
to business through Pennsylvania ave-
nue. or some other street, it will be nc
moro matter Of choice with you to-
morrow whether you shall go to Phila-
delphia or New York or stay at home,
than it is this hour matter of free
choice whether you will accept Christ
or reject him
In all the army of banners there is
not one conscript. Men are not to be
dragooned into heaven. Among all the
tens of thousands Of the Lords soldiery
there is not one man but will tell you:
Il chose Christi wanted him. de-
sired to be i'll his service. am not a
conscript-I am a volunteer. Oh, that
laen had the same common sense i'll the
matters of religion that they have in
the matters CT the world, the same con-
! centration, the same push, the same en-
thusiasm-in the one case 4 secular en-
thusiasm, in the other q consecrated
enthusiasm
Again, remark we want more COM
mon sense in the building up and ell
larging Of our Christian character.
. There are men who have Tor 10 years
been running the Christian race and
they have not run q quarter of mile.
No business man would be willing tC
have his investments unaccumulativo.
If you invest dollar, you expect that
dollar to come homo bringing another
dollar on its back What would you
think of man who should invest $40,
0r0 in monetary institution, then &c
oil fer five years, make no inquiry in re-
| gard to tic investment, then come back,
step up to the cashier of the institution
and say, Have you kept that 80, 0oC
! safely that l lodged with you?" but ask
| ing no question about interest or about
dividend: Why, you say, "That is nc
common sense Neither is it, but that
| is the way we act in matters of the soul.
| We make far more important invest
ment than $40, 600. We invest our soul.
Is it accumulative? Are we growing IN
! grace? Are we getting better? Are we
getting worse? God declares many divi.
dends, but we do not collect them; VIC
do not ask about them; We do not want
| them. Oh, that in this matter Of ac'
emulation we wero as wise i'll the mat
| tiers of the soul as we are in the matters
Of the world!
| The Purpose of the Bible.
[ How little common sense in the read.
ing Of the Scriptures We get any other
book, and wo open it, and we say
CHOW, what does this book mean tc
| teach me? 1t is book on astronomy; II
will teach me astronomy. 1t is book
on political economy; it will teach me
| political economy" Taking up this Bi
BILE, do wo ask ourselves what it means
to teach? 1t means to do just one thing
get the world converted and get US al
! to heaven. That is what it proposes tt
do. But instead of that we go into the
Bible MS botanists to pick flowers, Oh
we go as pueilists to get something tt
fight other Christians with, or we &C
as logicians trying to sharpen our NEIL
tai faculties for better argument, ant
we do not like this about the Bible. anc
we do not like that, and we do not like
the other thing. What would you thinl
of man lost on the mountains? Nigh
has come down, he cannot find his way
home, and he sees light i'll noun
tain cabin. He goes to it. He knocks a
the door. The mountaineer comes ou
and finds the traveller and says: WELL
he:e l lave lantern You can take il
and it will guide you on the way
home !" And suppose that traveller
| should say 81 don like that lantern.
don't like the handle of it. There art
10 or . things about it don't like
If you can't give me better Lantern
than that l won't have any?''
Now, God says this Bible is to be
lamp to orr feet and a lantern to oul
| path, to guide us through the midnigh
of this world to the gates of the celes
tial city. We stop ard say wo do no
like this about it, and we Go not lik'
that and we Go not like the other thing
Oh, how much wiser VIC would be If BY
it's holy light we fond our way to oui
everlasting home Then we 60 not reei
the Billie as VIC rcaG ether books W.
read it perhaps four or FIVE miiintes jus
I before wcre:ire at hight. We aie wear.
aud sleepy so somnolent we hardl,
i:uow which end CT the book is up. w
,.rcp our eye perhaps or the story q
samson and the foxes, or upon some
genealogical table, important in it;
place, but stirring no more religious
emotion than the announcement that
somebody begat somebody else, and he
I 49, Il ;pctoo1 IF omen.