The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1900-05-12

nNaA Wv - hN "a I'M NAtAh
ing them to hope on that by climbing
many years they may after awhile
come up within sight OF the place
where he now stands. tell you plain
IL that a roaring, REGISTERING, bouncing
sinner il not so repulsive to me as
that higher life malformation. The
former may repent; the latter never
gets over his pharisaism. The young
er brother OF the parable came back,
but the senior brother stands outside
entirely oblivious to his own defiu.
quencies and deficits. ~pronouncing his
own eulogium. Oh. how much easier
il Is to blame others than to blame
ourselves! Adam blamed Eve, Eve
blamed the serpent, the senior brother
blamed the younger hrother, snd none
Of them blamed themselves
Again, the senior brother Of my text
stands for all those who are faithless
about the reformation OF the dissipated
and the dissolute. In the very tones Of
his voice you can hear the fact that he
has no faith that the reformation Of the
younger son is genuine. His entire man
ner seems TO say: That boy has come
back for more money. BE got a third
of the property; now be has come back
for another third. He will never be
eontented to stay on the farm. He will
fall away. | would go In too and rejoice
with the others il l thought this thing
were genuine; but il is a sham. That
boy is a confirmed inebriate and debAu.
chez" Alas, my friends, for the
incredulity in the church Of Christ In
regard TO the reclamation Of the rec
reantl You say a man haAbeen a strong
drinker. say, Yes, but he has re.
formed" oh" you say, with . lugu-
brious face, II hope you are not mis-
taken; hope you are not mistaken"
You say: Don't rejoice too much over
his conversion, for soon be will be Vi
converted, | fear. Don't make too big
a party for that returned prodigal OF
strike the timbrel too loud; and, II
you kill a calf. kill the one that is on the
commons and not the one that has been
luxuriating in the paddock" That is
the reason why more prodigals do not
come home to their fathers house, II
is the rank infidelity in the church Of
God on this subject. There Is not q
house on the streets Of Heaven that
has not in 1t a prodigal that returned
un1 aNutA hama TAaRa analI ka 80
rolled before you a scroll Of a hundred
thousand names-the names OF prodi-
gals who came back forever reformed.
Who was John Bunyan? A returned
~prodigal. Who was Richard Baxter7
A returned prodigal. Who was George
WhiteGeld, the t%hunderer? A returned
prodigal. And l could 20 out in all the
aisles OF this church to-day and find on
either side those who, once far astray
for many years. have been faithful,
and their eternal salvation is as surf
as though they had been ten years
in Heaven. And yet some Of you have
not enough faith in their return.
An invalid went to South America
for his health and one day sat sun
ming himself on the beach when he
saw something crawling up the beach,
wriggling toward him, and he was af-
frighted. He thought it was a wild
beast OF a reptile, and he took his pis-
tol from his pocket. Then he saw it
was MOI a wild beast. II was 4 man,
an immortal man. a man made in Gods
" image, and the poor wretch
crawled up TO the feet Of the invalid
and asked for strong drink, and the in
valid took his wine flask from his
pocket and gave the poor wretch some-
thing to drink, and then under the
stimulus he ros up and gave his his
tory. He had been a merchant in Glas-
gov, Scotland. He had gone down I'M
der the power of strong drink until he
was so reduced in poverty that be was
living in 4 boat just of the beach.
why" said the invalid, II knew a
merchant in Glasgow once, a merchant
Of such and such a name" And the
poor wretch Strengthened himself and
said: 81 am that mani" LET him
that thinketh he standeth take heed
lest he fan"
Again, | remark that the senior
brother Of my text stands for the spir'
it Of envy and Jealousy. The senior
brother thought that all the honor
they did to the returned brother wa,
a wrong to him. He said: IL have
staid at home, and ] ought to have had
the ring, and l ought to have had The
banquet, and 1 ought to have had tn,
garlands." Alas for this spirit Of envy
and jealousy coming down through th'
ages! Cain and Abel, Esau and Jacob
Saul and David, Haman and Aordecai
0thello and isgo, Orlando and Angel
lea, Caligula and T~orquatus, Csesal
and Pompey, Columbus and the Span
ish courtieFs, CambyEes and the broth
er he slew because he was q bette
msrksman. DionySius and PhiloIenius
whom he slew because he was a bette
singer. Jealousy among painters
Costerman and Godfrey Kneller, Hud
son and Reynolds. Francia, anxious L
see a picture OF Raphael, Raphael send
him a picture. Francia, seeing IL, fAIl
in a fit Of jealousy, from which he dies
Jealousy among authors. How seldom
contemporaries speak OF each other
X%snophon and Plato living at the sam,
lime, but from their writings you neTei
would suppose they heard Of each 9th
er. Religious jealousies. The NOLAN
medans praying for rain during
! droughti no rain coming, Then W
Christians begin TO pray for rain, AM
the rain comes. Then the Aohamme
dams met together TO account for this
, and they resolved that God uas so vel
: pleased with their prayers No kept ii,
drought on so as TO keep them praying
: but that the Christians began to pray
and the Lord was so dikguSted will
: their prayers that He sem rain RICH
. away, 80 he would not hear any NOR
p Of their supplieatiOn.
! 4 wrestler was 30 envious Of TheOg
enes, the prince Of wrestlers. that b
D could not be eonsoled in any way
I and after Theogenes died and q ststu
) was lifted to him in a public plso
, his enyiouS antagonist went out ever,
c night and Hrestled with the statue
. until ons night he threw II, aud
3 fell on him and crushed him 10 death
Z So Jealousy is not only absurd. but
= is killing to the body. and II 10 kin
n ing 10 the soul. How seldom II II yoI
2 find one merchant speaking well OF
= merchant in the same line Of business
. How seldom 1t is you hear a physical
: speaking well Of a physician on tn
e same block. Oh, my friends. the worl
+ IL lArge enough for all Of Va, Let u
rejoice ~ the success Of others.
I Besides that " Ne do not get a
:. much honor and as much attention a
: others, we ought to congratulate oul
= selyes on what We escape IN the va
: OF assault, The French general ridln
ON horseback al the bend of his troOu