The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1901-11-27
Copyright, 1901. ]


Immoral Gravitation - Helpfulness of
copyright, lsUl.l
WASHINGTON. D. C.-In this discourse
DR.. Taimage depicts the struggle OF
man who desires liberation from the en-
thrallment OF evil and shows how he may
be set free; text, Proverbs XIII, So:
when shall I awake? l will seek 1t yet
again"
With an insight into human nature
such as no other man ever had, Solomon
in these words is slletching the mental
process of man who has stepped aside
from the path OF rectitude and would like
to return Wishing for something better,
he says: "When shall I awake? When
shall I get over this horrible nightmare
OF iniquity" But seized upon by un,
eradicated appetite and pushed down NIL
by his passions he cries out: Il will IL, seek
1t yet again. will try it once more.
About a mile from Princeton, n. j.,
there is skating pond. One winter day,
when the ice was very thin, farmer h'-
! ing near by warned the young men OF the
danger of skating at that time. They all
took the warning except one young man.
! He, in the spirit OF bravado. said, Boys,
: one round more" He struck out on his
skates, the ice broke and his lifeless body,
was brought up. And in all matters OF
temptation and allurement it Is not a
prolongation that is proposed, but only
! Just one more indulgence, Just one more
sin. Then comes the fatality. Alas, for
! the one round more. II will seek it yet
again" =, .,.
Our libraries are adorned with elegant
! literature addressed to young men, polnt-
| ing out to them all the dangers and perils
of life. Complete maps OF the voyage OF
| Gfe-the shoals, the rocks, the .qulcksands.
| But suppose young man IS alreaay snip
wrecked, suppose he is already OH the
track, suppose he has already gone astra!,
how can he get back! That Is queSSeloin
that remains unanswered, and amid all
the books of the libraries find not one
word on that subject. To that class OF
persons this day address myself. -,
You compare what you are now Win
what YOU we're three or four years ago,
and are greatly disheartened. You are
ready with every passion OF your soul 70
listen to discussion like this. be OF good
cheer! Your best days are yet to come
I offer you the hand OF welcome ana res res
cue. I put the silver, trumpet OF the gJ gosJ,
rel to nv lips and blow one long, loud
blast. saving. "Whosoever will, let HI HIM
come. and let him come now; Inc
church of God is ready to spread BAN
ouet upon YOUR return, and all the ME-
rarchs of heaven fall into line OF ban
nered procession over your redemption.
Years ago, and while yet Albert barnes
was living. I preached in his Is, pulpit one
night to the young men OF fh1laueiIPitmt1G; mG
In the opening of my discourse sag ~ "
close of the service Mr.. Barnes intro
duced a young man, saying, This ls the
Young man you prayed for" But see see
now it was a too limited prayer. offer
no such prayer to-day. 1t must take IN
wider sweep. "Lord, give US all these
souls today for happiness and heaven!
So far as God may help me propose 10
show what are the obstacles to your re.
turn, and then how you are to surmouht
those obstacles. The first difficulty. IN the
way of your return is the force OF moral
grayy;tation. m@y Just as there is natural
law which brings down to earth anything
YOU throw into the air, so there IS cor
Responding moral gravitation. l never
shall forget a PRAYER I heard a young man
make in the Young Mems Christian Asso'
c;ation of New York. With trembling
voice and streaming eyes ne sad: ~
| God. Thou knowest how easy 1t IS for me
to do wrong and how hard it is IL tor me TO TO
| do right! God help me-! That man
knows not his own heart who mas never
felt the power of moral gravitation.,
In your boyhood you had good asso.
c;ates and bad associates. Which most
impressed you? During the last few years
YOU have heard pure anecdotes. and I'm.
nure anecdotes. Which the. easiest stuck
to your memory? You have had good hao'
its and bad habits. To which, did your
soul more easily yie.d? But that moral
gravitation may be resisted. just as YOU
NAV pick up anything from the earth and
| hold it in your hand toward heaven; gus!
so, by the power OF Gods grace, lanetl
soul NAV be lifted toward peace, toward
nardon. toward salvation. The force OF
moral gravitation is in every. one OF us
hut also mower in Gods grace to overcome
that force.
The next thing in the way of your re-
turn is the power of evil habit. L know
there are those who say it is very easy 1or
them to give up evil habits. / cannot De-
lieye them. Here is a man given to lnt2H'
ication, who knows it is disgraclng ms
family, destroying his property ana rum.
ing him body, mind and soul. II tna1
man, being an intelligent man ana loving
his family, could easily give give IN that ma nao.t
would he not do so? The fact that ne
does not give it up proves that it is hard
to give it up. 1t is very easy thing to
sail down stream. the tide carrying YOU
with great force. but suppose you turn
the boat up stream-is it so easy then tc
row it? As long as we weld to the evil IN;
| clinations in our heart and to our BAD
habits we are sailing down stream, but the
moment We try to turn we put our ooat
in the rapids just above Niagara and trJ
to row up stream. :,
A physician tells his patient that he
must quit the use of tobacco, as it. is de,
stroying his health. The man replies, ~
can stop that habit easy enough" He
quits the use of the weed. He goes
around not knowing what to do with him,
self, He cannot add up a column OF
figures: ne cannot sleep nights. 1t seems
as if the world had turned upside down
He feels his business is going. to rum
Where he was kind and obliging he, Is
characterized him has given way to fret
full restlessness. and he mas become, a com
plete fidcet. What power is it that has
rolled wave of woe over the earth and
shaken a portent in the heavens? He has
quit tobacco. After awhile he says: 81
am going to DO as I please; the doctor
does not understand my case, | am gong
back to my old habits" And he returns
Everything assumes its usual compoSITe
His business seems to brighten. Inc
world becomes an attractive place to live
in. His children. seeing the difference
| hail the return of their fathers. genial dis;
position. What wave Of color has dashed
Blue into the sky and greenness. into the
mountain foliage and the glow of sapphire
into the sunset? What enchantment has
lifted a world of beauty and JOY on his
soul? He has resumed tobacco.
The fact is we all know in our own eS
perience that habit is taskmasterr. As
lone as we obey it. it does not chastise us
But let us resist it and we. find that we
are lashed with scorpion whips and bound
with ship cable and thrown into the
track of bone breaking Jnggernauts.
In Paris there is a sculptured represen
tation of Bacchus, the god of reyelry. He
is riding OIL a panther at full leap, On
how suggestive! Let everv one who is