Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1901-01-19
ENTERING THE GATE.
Or. TALMAGE TELLS HOW HEAVENS
PORTAL WILL OPEN.

Exultant Admission VIII Avail
Those Who Have Lived For other.
While the Bigot and the Penuriou
Will Barely Squeeze Through.
WASHINGTON, Jan 13.-In a ver1
novel way DR.. Talmage In his discours,
describes what may be expected In tn,
next world by those who here bend al
their energies In the right direction
text, ii Peter |, II, For so an entrance
shall be ministered unto you abundant
ly."
Different styles Of welcome at the
gate Of heaven are here suggested. We
all hope to enter that supernal capital
through the grace that is ready to
save even the chief of sinners. but not
now. No man healthy Of body and
mind wants to go now The man who
hurls himself out of this life Is either
an agnostic or is demented or finds
life insufferable and does not care
where he lands. This is the best world
we ever got into, and we want to stay
here as long as God will let us stay.
But when the last page of the volume
Of our earthly life Is ended we want
enrolment in heavenly citizenship. We
want to get in easily. We do not want
to be challenged at the gate and asked
to show our passports. We do not
want the gatekeeper In doubt as to
whether we ought to go in at all. We
do not want TO be kept in the portico
of the temple until consultation is
made as to where we came from and
who we are and whether 1t is safe to
admit u.s. lest we be discord In the |
eternal harmonies or lower the spirit |
of heavenly worship. When the Apos-
tie Peter in the text addresses the peo-
pie. For so an entrance shall be ad- /
unto you abundantly," he |
implies that some will find admission
into heaven easy, rapturous and ac-
while others will have to
squeeze through the gate Of heaven, IL
they get in at all. They will arrive
anxious and excited and apprehensive
md wondering whether 1t will be
Gomez or Cor The Bible speaks
of such persons as scarcely sayed"I
and in another place as Saved as by
ire" and In another place as escaped
by the skin of the teeth"
A Difficult Entrance.
Carrying out the suggestion OF my
ext, propose to show you what class
IS Of Christians will get into heaven
With a hard push and those who will
'ound In amid salutatons infinite. In
he first class put that man who gets
nto the kingdom of God at the close Of
life all given to worldIlness and sin.
ears ago he made the resolution that
e would serve himself and serve the
Torid until body. mind and soul were
xhausted and then. Just before going .
ut of this life. would seek God and
repare to enter heaven. = He carries
ut his resolution. He genuinely re-
ents the last day or the last hour or =
he last minute of his life. He take.
le last seat In the last car of the last p.
ain bound heavenward. His released d
nd immortal spirit ascends. Not one u
ing bears down toward him with a Il
elcome. No sign of gladness at his .
rival. None there obligated to him v
# kindness done or aims distributed L
spiritual help administered. He will L.
I'd some place to stay. but | do not "
IVY that man his heaven. He got In, VI
1t it was not an abundant entrance. VI
in our pulpits we give q al
rong turn to the story Of the dying III
ief to whom Christ said, This day &C
alt thou be with me in paradise" Ut
e ought to admire the mercy of the az
lrist that pardoned him in the last er
ur, but do not let US admire the dy- vi
2 thief. When he was arrested. | ~
Ink his pockets were full of stolen Id
In. and the coat he had on his back es
IS not his own. He stole right on I'M ca
he was arrested for his crimes. He Oh
)ented and through great mercy ca
,se to paradise. but he was no exam yi'
to follow. What gigantic mean ne
IS to devote the wondrous equipment sti
brain and nerve and muscle and int
ne with which we are endowed, 10
Sc miracles of sight and hearing and INT
'ech, to purposes unworthy or pro- sa.
10 and then tbrouoh bostv ronan.. his
,e at the last, enter heaven. Cheat Iai
God all ones lifetime and then TAX en'
advantage Of a bankrupt law and ual
de free Of all liabilities. l should
1k that some men would be asham- 7
to enter heaven. tho
Grace Saves the Bigot. tho
gain, the bigot will not have what life
text calls an abundant entrance inf
has his bedwarfed opinion as to adr
1T all must believe and do In order Sue
,ain celestial residence. He has his tho
ID In one pocket and his catechlsm livi
another pocket, and it may be a ere
creed and p good catechism. but Of
Uses them as sharp swords against AnC
;e who will not accept his theories wh'
must be baptized in his way or glol
e to him through apostolic success tha
or be foreordalned Of eternity or ton
are In an awful way. He shrivels new
md shrivels up and becomes more ono,
netic until the time Of his departure was
hand. He has enough Of the salt hou
race to save him. but his entrance tow
heaven will be something worth sion
ching. What do they want with askt
in heaven, where they have all lum
into eternal catbolicity. one grand pers
ninglng Of Methodists and Bap. ten
and Eplscopallans and Lutherans wlvt
Congregationalists and Presby. the
ms and a score Of other denomina. Penn
just as good as any have men the
ID? They all join In the halleluiah Mas
US. accompanied By barpers on eve