Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1900-05-10
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stood at the corner of the house hug
cling himself in admiration. We hear
a great deal in our day about the high
er life. Now, there are two kinds OF
higher life men. The one Is admira-
BILE, and the other is most repulsive
The one kind of higher life man Is
very lenient in his criticism OF 9TH
ers. does not bore prayer meetings
to death with long harangues, does
not talk a great deal about himself,
but much about Christ and heaven.
gets kindlier and more gentle and
more useful until one day his soul
spreads awning. and he flies away to
| eternal rest, and everybody mourns
his departure. The other higher life
man goes around with a Bible conspic-
uously under his arm. goes from
church to church. q sort OF general
evangelist. is a nuisance to his own
pastor when he is at home and a nuis-
ance to other pastors when he Is away
from home, runs up to some man who
is counting out a roll Of bank bills
VI uP INV "a hbNhS 20
and asks him how his soul Is. makes
religion dose Of ipec acuanha. Stand
ing in a religious meeting making an
address, he has a patronizing way, as
though ordinary Christians were
clear away down below him, so he had
to talk at the top Of his voice In order
to make him hear, but at the same
time encouraging 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 plainly that a roaring. roistering.
bouncing sinner is not so repulsive to
me as that higher life malformation.
The former may repent: the latter
never gets over his pharisaism. The
younger brother of the parable came
back, but the senior brother stands
outside entirely oblivious OF his own
delinquencies and deficits. pronouncing
his own eulogium. Oh, how much east
er It Is to blame others than to blame
ourselves! Adam blamed Eve. Eve
blamed the serpent, the senior brother
blamed the younger brother, and none
Of them blamed themselves.
Again. the senior brother Of my text
stands for all those who are faithless
about the reformation OF the dissipat-
ed 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 manner seems to say: That
boy has come back for more money
He got third Of the property; now
he has come back for another third
He will never be contented to stay on
the farm. He will fall away. would
go In too and rejoice with the others
II thought this thing were genuine;
but 1t is a sham. That boy is a con-
firmed inebriate and debauchee." Alas.
my friends, for the incredulity In the
church of Christ In regard to the re-
clamation of the recreant! You say a
man has been a strong drinker. say.
Yes. but he has reformed" "oh."
you say, with lugubrious face. Il
hope you are not mistaken; I hope you
are not mistaken" You say: Don't
rejoice too much over his conversion,
for soon he will be unconverted,I fear.
Don't make too big party for that
returned prodigal or strike the timbrel
too loud: and, II you kill 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 Of the church Of God on this
subject. There Is not a house on the
streets Of heaven that has not In 1t a
prodigal that returned and staid
home. There could be unrolied before
you a scroll OF hundred thousand
names-the names of prodigals who
came back forever reformed. Who
was John Bunyan? A returned prodi-
gal. Who was Richard Baxter? A re-
turned prodigal. Who was George
Whiteheld, the thunderer! A returned
prodigal And could go out in all the
aisles Of this church today and find
on either side those who. once far as
tray for many years, have been faith.
full, and their eternal salvation Is as
sure as though they had been ten
years in heaven. And yet some OF
you have not enough faith in their re-
turn.
Greeting tho ProdigaL
You do not know how to shake
hands with a prodigal. You do not
know how to pray for him. You do
not know how to greet him. He wants
to sail into the warm gulf stream Of
Christian sympathy. You are the ice.
berg against which he strikes and
shivers. You say he has been a prod
igal know 1t, but you are the sour
unresponslve, eensorious. saturnine.
cranky elder brother. and IL you are
going to heaven one would think some
people would be tempted to 60 to per-
dition to get away from you. The
hunters say that II deer be shot the
other deer shove him out Of their COM
pany. and the general rule is-away
with a man that has been wounded
with sin. Now. say. the more bones
a man has broken the more need he
has OF an hospital, and the more a man
has been bruised and cut with sin the
more need he has to be carried into
human and divine sympathy. But
for such men there is not much room
come back after wandering.