The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1899-06-07

be, what its conservation ought to be, what
its sympathy for the poor ought to be,
what its devotion to all good ought to be.
That is on one side. That side comes
down, and the church, not being able to
stand the test, rises In the balances. 1t
machinery. A church Is built
for one tting-to save souls. II 1t saves g
few souls when 1t might save multitude
OF souls, God will spew 1t out OF His mouth.
Weighed and found wanting!
So we perceive that God estimates ma
ttons. How many times He has put the
Spanish monarchy into the scales and
found 1t insufficient and condemned itf
The French empire was placed on one side
Of the scales, and God weighed the French
empire, and Napoleon said: "Have I not
die the glories OF the Champs Elyees2 Hsye
Inor adorned the Tuieries? Have not built
the gilded opera house? Then God weighed
the nation, and He put on one side the
scales the emperor aud the boulevards and
the Tuileries and the Champs Elysees nd
the gilded opera house, aud on the other
side He puts that mans abominations,
that mans libertinism, that mans selfish.
ness, that mans goddess ambition. This
last came down, and all the brilliancy Of
the scene vanished. What Is that voice
found wanting!
People say there is a day Of judgment
coming. My friends, every day is a day OF
judgment, and you and to-day are being
canvassed inspected, weighed. Here are the
balances Of the sanctuary. They are lifted,
and we must all be weighed. Who Will
como and be weighed first Here Is q
moralist who volunteers. He is one Of the
most upright men in the country. He
comes. well, my brother, get in-get
into the balances now and be weighed"
But as he gets into the balances I say.
"What is that bundle You have along with
your" "Oh," he says, "that Is my reputa-
tion for goodness and kindness and charity
and generosity and kindliness generally!'
"Ob, my brother, We cannot weigh thatf
We ure going to weigh you-you. Now
stand in the scales-you, the moralista
Paid your debts2" eyes," you say, paid
all my debts" "Have you acted in an
upright way in the community" eyes,
yes" "Have you been kind to the poorr
Are you faithful In thousand relations in:
lite?" eyes" $50 far, so good. But now,
before you get out Of this scale want to
thoughts always been rightp" NO" you:
say; "no." Put down one mark. "Have
you loved the Lord with all your heart and
soul and mind and strength" "No," you
suy. Make another mark. "Come now, be-
frank and confess that In 1000 things you
have come short, have you not?" "Yes."
Make 10000 marks. Come now, get me
book large enough to make the record OF
the moralist's deficits. My brother. stand
In the scales, do not fly away from them. I
put on your side the scales all the good
deeds you ever did, all the kind words you
ever uttered. But on the other side the
scales put this weight which God says
must put thereon the other sidethe scales
and opposite to yours put this weight.
SPY the deeds OF the law shall no flesh liv-
ing be justified" Weighed and found WANT
lngl ,
Still, the balances Of the sanctuary are
and We are ready to weigh my
who come. Who shall be the next. WE'LL
here is Journalist. He comes and he gets
into the balances, and as he gets In l see
that all his religion Is in genufectton and
in outward observances. As he gets into
this pocket2" "Ohl" he says, "that is q
Westminster assembly catechism." I say;
every good. What have you in the other
pocket7" "Ohl.' he says, "that is'the
Heidelberg catechism." Very good
What is that. you have un Ter your arm.
standing in this balance Of the sanctuary"
"Ohl" he says, "that is church record"
"Very.good. What are those books on your
side the balances?' "Oh!" he says, "those
are 'Calvin's Institutes My brother,
we are not weighing books, We are weigh
ing you. It caunot be that you are de-
pending for your salvation upon you-
orthodoxy. Do YOU not know that the
creeds and the forms OF religion are merely
the scaftoJdlng for the building? You GER
tainly are not goiEg to mistake the scaf-
folding for the temple. Do you not know
that men have gone to perdition with
eatechism in their pocketf' "But," says
the man, II GROSS myself Often" "Ahf,
that will not save you" But" says the
man, "I am sympathetic for the poor"
"That will not save you" Says the man,
II sat at the communion table," "That
will not save you" "But," says the
man, II have had my name on the
church record" THAT will not save you"
"But have been professor OF religion
forty years." "That will not save you.
Stand there on your side the balances. and
I will give you the advantage-I will let
you have all the creeds, all the church rec
ords. all the Christian conventions that
were ever held, all the communion tables
that we're ever, built, on your side the bal
ances. On the other side the balances
must put what God says must put there
I put this 1000, 900 pound weight on the
other side the balances, Having the form,
Of godliness, but denying the power there.
of.n@ Weighed and found wanting!
Still the balances are suspended. Are
there any others who would like to be
weighed or who will be weighed? Yes3
here comes a worldling. He gets into the
scales. I can very easily see what hta
whole life Is made u? OF. Stocks, dividends
"buyer ten days." buyer
thirty days" "Get in my friend, get into
these balances and be weighed-weighed
for this life and weighed for the life to
come" He gets in. I find that the two
great questions in his life are. HOW
cheaply can buy these goods?" and HOW
dearly can sell them2" I find he ad-
mires heaven because 1t Is a land OF gold,
and money must be "easy." find, from
talking with him, that religion and the
Sabbath are an interruption, a vulgar In.
church to drum up new customer
All the week he has been weighing
fruits, weighing meats, weighing Ice,
Goals, Weighing connections,
worldly and perishable commodi.
lies, not realizing the fact that He himself
has been weighed. "On your side the
balances, o worldly! I will give yol full
advantage. I put on your side ell the
banking houses, all the storehouses. oil
he cargoes, nll the insurance companies,
al the factories, all the silver all the gold,
Ill the money vaults, all the safe deposits
all on your side. But 1t does not ADD
,ne ounce, for at the very oment we are
you on your fine house and
,pon your princely incoAe God and the
angels are writing In regard to your soul:
Weighed and found wantingP"
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