The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-02-01

AnEOu III 0OL ~ u5 SPCAa III OdA NAAA4G
in taking care Of a few people, and when
the command comes, $50 into the world"
say practically: "No, l annot go. / have
here a few choice cases, and / 4 am busy
keeping off the flies" We need, as
churches, to stop ~bombarding the old iron
clad sinners that have been proof against
80 years of Christian assault and take
aim in other directions.
ExcIusfveness I'm Religion.
Years ago 1 visited a New England fac
tory village. / went up to the door Of a
factory, and / saw on the outside the
words, N a~dmittance." OF course 1
went in, and, coming to the second door,
] saw the words, "No admittance." Get
ting clear on into the factory, / saw they
were making pins, useful pins, and moth
ing but pins. So I think there is some
times an exclusiveness among some Of the
churches. The outside world comes up
and looks at the door, and there is some
thing which seems to say, n admit
tance," and the world comes up to the
pew door and sees written over it, "No
admittance," and looks at the pulpit, and
there Is something there which seems to
say, "No admittance," while we stand in
side of the same churches hammering out
our little niceties Of religious belief, max
ing pins. Oh, for deeper appreciation OF
the sentiment Of M text, "Other sheep /
have, which are not of this fold."-
l have to remark that the heavenly
Shepherd will find many sheep amid the
nonchurchgoers. There are congregations
where they are all Christians, and they
seem to be completely finished, and
they remind one of the skeleton leaves
which by chemical preparation have had
all the greenness and verdure taken off
them and are left cold and white and del.
icate, nothing wanting but a glass case to
put over them. The minister of Christ
has nothing to do with such Christians
but to come once a week and with ostrich
feather dust off the accumulation of the
last six days, leaving them bright and
crystalline as before. But the other kind
of church is an armory, with perpetual
sound Of drum and fife, gathering re.
cruits for the Lord of Hosts and saying
to every applicant: "Do you want to be
on Gods side, the safe side and the hap.
py side? If so, come in the armory and
get equipped. Here is q bath in which to
be cleansed. Here are sandals to put up
on your feet. Here is a helmet for your
brow. Here is a breastplate for your
heart. Here is a sword for your right
arm, and yonder is the battlefield. Quit
yourselves like men"
There may be some here who say, 81
stopped going to church 10 or 20 years
ago." Is it not strange that you are
among the first that I address today? ]
know all your case. You have not beer
accustomed to going into the house OF
God, but / have a surprising announce
ment to make to you. You are going tc
become one of the Lords sheep. "Oh,'
you say, sit is impossible. You do MOI
know how far l am from anything OF
that kind" l know all about it. l have
wandered up and down the world, and
understand your case. 1 have n still
more startling announcement to make il
regard to you. You are not only going tc
become one of the Lords sheep, but you
will become one now.
Send Out the Lifeboat.
When the steamer Atlantic struck
Mars rock and the people clambered uI
on the beach. why did not Mr.. Ancient
that heroic minister of the gospel, OF
whom we have all read, sit down and
take care of those men on the beach
wrapping them in fannels, kindling fire
for them and seeing that they got plenty
Of food? All. he knew that there were
others who would do that. He says
"Yonder are men and women freezing il
the rigging of that wreck. Launch the
lifehoat." Now / see the oar blades benz
under the strong pull, but before they
reach the wreck q woman was frozen anc
dead. She was washed off, poor thing
But" he says, there is a man to save
And he cries out: give minutes longer
and I will save you. Steady, steady! Give
me your hand. Leap into the lifeboat
Thank God, he is saved!" So there arr
those who are safe on the shore of God.
mercy. They are as safe as though they
had been a thousand years in heaven
kept by the power of God through faitl
unto salvation" But there are some wht
are freezing in the rigging of sin and sur
rounded by tempest. Pull away, my lads
Let us reach them. Alas, one is washed
off and gone. There is one more to BIZ
saved. Let US push out there for that one
Clutch the rope. D dying man; clutch il
as with q death grip. Steady, now, on the
slippery places! SteadyI They are saved
saved, just as / thought, for Christ ha:
declared that there are some still in thu
breakers who shall come ashore. "Othe
sheep i have, which are not of this fold
Christ says that ministers Of the COS
pei are to be fishers for men. Now
when i 60 fishing | DO not want to tst
in anybody else's pond. / do not wan
to go along Hohokus creek. where Their,
are half a dozen men fishing, and droI
my line just about where they drop theil
lines. The lines would get tangled.
should like to get in a Newfoundland
fishing smack and push out to sea 81
miles beyond the breakers. l do no
think the church of God gains a grea'
deal when you take sheep from one fol-
n put them in another fold, and We
you and | have sometimes seen pastor:
fishing in other peoples ponds. The,
throw a line into one pond, and they jerl
out a Methodist; they throw a line int
another pond. and they jerk out a Pres
byterian, or there is a religious row in
some neighboring church, and q Who'll,
school Of fish swims off from that pond
and we take them all in with one sweep
Of the net. What is gained? Absolute
~ nothing for the cause of Christ. 1t is
the lost sheep on the mountains that you
want to bring back-the lost sheep or
the mountains. And they are coming
now Won oro fhiS hnur in fha tide nj