The Iola register., 1898-05-06

Again: Christianity will produce a
revolution in commercial circles. Find
me 80 merchants, and you will find
that they have so standards of what is
right and wrong You say to some
one about a merchant. "Is he honest?"
80, yes" the man says, "he is honest;
but he grinds the faces of his clerks.
He is honest; but he exaggerates the
value of his goods. He is honest; but
he loans money on bond and mort
gage, with the understanding that the
mortgage can lie quiet for ten years,
but as soon as he gets the mortgage.
he records 1t and begins foreclosure
suit, and the sheriff's writ comes down,
and the day of sale arrives, and away
goes the homestead. and the creditor
buys 1t in at half-price." Honest?
when he loaned the money he knew
that he would get the homestead at
half-price. Honest? but he goes TO the
life, and tells the doctor that he Is
we'll, when he knows that for ten
years he has had but one lung Hon
est? though he sells property by the
map, forgetting to tell the purchaser
that the ground is all under water;
but IL is generous in him to do that.
for he throws the water into the bar
gain.
You build house, and you put into
1t rotten beam. A mechanic stand
ing by says, 1T will never do to put
that beam in; it will ruin your whole
building" But you put it in. The
house is completed. Soon it begins to
rock. You call in the mechanic and
ask, "What is the matter with this
door? What is the matter with this
wall? Everything seems to be giving
out" Says the mechanic, "You put "a
rotten beam into that structure, and
the whole thing has got to come down" 4"
Here is an estate that seems to be all
right now. 1t has been building a
great many years. But IS years
ago there was a dishonest transaction
in that commercial house. That one
dishonest transaction will keep on
working ruin in the whole structure,
until down the estate will come in
wreck and ruin about the possessor's
ears-one dishonest dollar in the estate
demolishing all his possessions. Ihave
seen it again and again; and so have
you.
The religion of Jesus Christ will
produce revolution in our churches.
The nou-committal, do nothing policy
of the church of God will give way to
spirit of bravest conquest. Piety in
this day seems to me to be salted down
just so as to keep. 1t seems as il the
church were chiefly anxious to take
care of itself; and If we hear of want,
and squalor, and heathenism outside,
we say, what u pityw and we put our
hands in our pockets, and we feel
around for two cent piece, and with
great flourish we put it upon the
plate, and are amazed that the world
is not converted in six weeks. Sup
pose there were great war; and there
were 100000 soldiers, but all of
these 300, 900 soldiers, excepting ten
men, were in their tents, or securing
their muskets, or cooking rations. You
would say, "Of course, defeat must
come in that case" 1t is worse than
that in the church. Millions of the
professed soldiers of Jesus Christ are
cooking rations. or asleep in their
tents, while only one man here and
there goes out to do battle for the
Lord.
But" says some one, 1--WE are estab-
fishing great many missions, and |
think they will save the Masses" No;
they will not. Five hundred thousand
of them will not do it. They are do
ing a magnificent work; but every
mission chapel is a confession of the
disease aud weakness of the church.
1t is making a dividing line between
the classes. 1t is saying to the rich
and to the well-conditioned, 'If you
can pay your pew rents, come to the
main audience room" 1t is saying to
the poor man, "Your coat is too bad,
and your shoes are not good enough.
If you want to get to Heaven, you will
have to go by the way of the mission
chapel" The mission chapel has be-
come the kitchen, where the church
does its sloppy work. There are hun
dreds and thousands of churches in
this country-gorgeously built and sup
ported-that, even on bright and sun
shiny days, are not half full of wor-
ShlpcIS' anu yeJ lney are Dullulng
mission chapels, because, by some ex-
pressed or implied regulation, the
great masses of the people are kept
out of the main audience room
Now | say that any place of worship
which is appropriate for one class is
appropriate for all classes. Let the
rich and Door meet together, the Lord
the maker of them all. Mind you that
| say that mission chapels are a neces-
sity, the way churches are now con-
Quoted; but may God speed the time
when they shall cease to be a necessity.
God will rise up and break down the
gates of the church that have kept
back the masses; and woe be to those
who stand in the way! They will be
trampled under foot by the vast popu.
lations making stampede for Heaven.
Revolution! The pride of the church
must come down. The exclusiveness
of the church must come down! The
financial boastiugs of the church must
come down. IL monetary succass ,vara