The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-12-06


Of religion to the world. Do you suppose
that Mary, in her conversation with
Christ, lost her simplicity? or that Paul,
laundering from Mars Hill, took the pull
pit tone? Why is it people cannot talk as
naturally I'm prayer meetings and re-
iigious subjects they do in worldly cir
Cles? For no one ever succeeds in any
kind of Christian work unless he works
naturally. We want to initiate the Lord
Jesus Christ, who plucked a poem from
the grass of the field. We all want to imi-
tate him who talked with farmers about
the man who went forth to SOW, and talk
ed with the fishermen about the drawn net
that brought in fish of all sorts and talked
with the Vine-dreSSer about the idler in
the vineyard, and talked with those new
ly afftanced about the marriege-supper and
talked with the man cramped in money
matters about the two debtors, and talked
with the woman about the yeast that leav-
ened the whole lump, and talked with the
shepherd about the lost sheep.
Oh, we might gather even the stars of
the sky and twist them like forget-me-nots
in the garland of Jesus. We must bring
everything TO him--the wealth of language
the tenderness of sentiment, the delicacy
of morning dew the saffron of floating
cloud, the tangled surf of the tossing sea-
the bursting thunder-guns of the storm $
commandment Yes, every star must point
NDF''A ~ liAi ever ueltOlIOpe must DTed IN
his praise, every drop in the summer show
er must flash his glory. all the tree
branches of the forest must thrum their
music in the grand march which shall eel
citrate a world redeemed.
Now, all this being so, what is the com
mon sense thing for you and for me to do?
What we do | think will depend upon
three facts-three great facts:
The first fact, that sin has ruined us.
1t has blasted body, mind and soul We
want no Bible to prove tnat we are sin
ners. Amy man who is not willing to ac-
knowledge himself an imperfect and
sinful being is simply fool and not to be
argued with. We all feel that sin has dis
organized our entire nature That is one
fact. Another fact is that Christ came to
reconstruct, to restore, to revise, to cor
rect, to redeem. That is a second fact.
The third fact is that the only time we
are sure Christ will pardon US is the pres
emit Now, what is the common-sense
thing for us to do in view of these three
facts? You will all agree with me to quit
sin. take Christ, and take him now.
Suppose some business man in whose
skill you had perfect confidence should tell
you that tomorrow, Monday morning,
between eleven and twelve o'clock, you
could by certain financial transaction
make five thousand dollars, but that on
Tuesday perhaps you might make 1t, but
there would not be any pOsitiveness
about it, and on Wednesday there would
not be so much, and Thursday less, Fri
day less. and 50 on less and less-when
would you attend to the matter? Why,
your common sense would dictate I'm
mediately l will attend to that matter, be-
tween eleven and twelve O'Clock to-mor-
row, Monday morning, for then / can sure
'ly accomplish it, but on Tuesday 1 may
not and on Wednesday there is less pros
pect and less and less. l will attend to
II tomorrow Now, let us bring our
common sense in this matter of religion
Here are the hopes of the gospel. We
may get them now. Tomorrow we may get
them and we may not Next day we NAV
and we may not. The prospect less and
less and less and less. The only sure time
Eow-now. | would not talk to you in this
way If L did not know that Christ was able
TO save all the people. l would not go into
a hospital and tear off the bandages from
the wounds if 1 had no balm to apply. I
would not have the face to tell "A ma. p,
is sinner unless 1 had at the same time
the authority for saying he may be saved.
suppose in Venice there is a Raphael
faded picture. great in its time, bearing
some marks of its greatness. History de-
scribes that picture. 1t is nearly faded
away. You say, "Oh, what a pitv that so
wonderful picture by Raphael should be
nearly defaced!' After a while a man
comes up, very unskilful In art, and he
proposes to retouch it. You say, Stand
OH! L would rather have it just as il is
you will only make it worse" After
a while there comes an artist who was the
equal of Raphael. He says, Il will re-
touch that picture and bring out all its
original power" You have full confidence
in his ability. He touches it here and
there. Feature after feature comes forth
ana when he Is done with the picture il is
complete in all its original power.
Now God impresses his image on our
race, but that image has been defaced for
hundreds and for thousands of years, get
ting fainter and fainter Here comes up
divine Raphael!-I shall call him di-
vine Raphael He says, 81 can restore
that picture" He has all power in heaven
and on EARTH He is the equal of the on.,
who made the picture, the equal of the
one who drew the image of God in our
soul. He touches this sin and il is gone
that transgression and it is gone, and all
the DETACHMENT disappears and where
sin abounded grace doth much more
abound VIII you have the DETACHMENT.
or will you have the restoration? I am
well persuaded that if I could by a touch
OF heavenly pathos in two minutes put
before you what has been done to save
your SOUL there would be an emotionai
tide overwhelming.
Mamma, said a little child to her
mother when she was being put to bed
at night, mamma, what makes your hand
so SCARED and twisted and unlike other
peoples hands?' well" said the mother
my child, when you were younger than
you are now, years ago, one night, after
l had put you to bed, | heard a cry. a
shrek upstairs. / came up and found the
bed was on fire, and you were on fire. and
l took hold of you and tore off the burn
ing garments, and while 1 was tearing
them off and trying to get you away.
burned hand bac hoe
and twisted ever since. and hardly looks
any more like hand; but I got that. NV
child, in trying to save you"
O man! woman! l wish to-day
could show you the burned hand of Christ
burned in plucking you out of the fire.
burned IN snatching you away from the
flame. Aye also the burned foot ana Inc
Lurnal LrAN- nd tL, h,,,.r,..l