Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1901-11-13
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there are men who are 1,UuU miles from
Chureh-vast deserts Of indifference be-
tween them and the house of God. The
fact is we must keep our responsibility
though thousands perish. Christ sat with
publicans and sinners, but if there come
TO the house of God a man with marks
of dissipation upon him reople are almost
sure to put up their hands in horror, as
much as 10 say. rs it not shocking"
How these dainty, fastidious Christians
IN all our churches are going to get into
heaven | do not know. unless they have
an especial train of cars cushioned ard
upholstered. each one car to himself.
| They cannot go with the great herd of
rubii"2rs and sinners Oh. We who curl
Jar lip OF scorn ON the lallen! | tell you
plainly that if you had oeen surrounded
Ds the same Influences instead of sitting
to-day among the cultured and the refin-
ed, and the Christian you might have
been crouching wretch in stable or
ditch covered with filth and abomination.
y is not because we are naturally any
better, but because the mercy of God has
protected us. Those that are brought up
in Christian circles and watched by
Christian parentage should not be so
! hard on the fallen
| think, also, that men are often hin
dered from returning by the fact that
churches are anxious about their mem
bership, too anxious about their denomi-
nation. and they rush out when they 81
a man about to give up sin and returi. 70
God and ask him how he is going to BE
aptzed-whether by sprinkling or inn
mersion-and what kind of church he is
going to join. 1t is poof time to talk
about Presbyterian catechism and Epis-
copal liturgies and Methodist love feasts
and Baptist dimensions when a man is
about to come out of the darkness of sin
into the glorious light of the gospel
First Get Ashore.
Why, it reminds me of q man drowning
in the sea. and lifeboat puts out for
him, and the man in the boat says to the
man in the water, "Now, if / get you
ashore. are you going TO live in my
street," First get him ashore, and then
talk to him about the non-essentials of re-
ligion. Who ares what church he joins
if he only joins Christ and starts for
heaven? Oh, you, my brother of illumin-
ed face and hearty grip for every one
! that tries to turn from his evil way, take
hold of the same hymnbook with him,
though his dissipation shake the book. re-
membering that he that ''converteth a
sinner from the error Of his ways shall
save a soul from death and hide multi
tude of sins"
Now, l have shown you these obstacles
because want you To understand l know
all the difficulties in the way. But l am
NOW going to tell you how Hannibal may
scale the Alps and how the shackles may
be unriveted and how the paths of virtue.
forSaken may be regained. First of all,
throw yourself on God. Go to him frank
ly and earnestly and tell him these habits
you have and ask him, if there is any
help in all the resources of olpnipotent
love, to give it to you. Do not go on
with long rgmarole, which some people
call prayer made up of obs and abs and
| forever and forever amens; Go to God
and cry for help.
/ remember that in the Civil War / was
at Antietam, with other members of the
Christian commission, to look after the
wounded | went into the hospital after
the battle, and | said to a man, Where
are you hurt?' He made no answer. but
held up his arm, swollen and splntered
| saw where he was hurt. The simple
fact is. when a man has a wounded soul
all he has to do is to hold it up before Ii
sympathetic Lord and get it healed. 1t
does not take any long prayer. just hold
up the wound. 1t is no small thing when
man is nervous and weak and exhaust
ed, coming from his evil ways to feel
that God puts two omnipotent arms
about him and says:
Young man, / will stand by you. The
mountains may depart and the hills be
removed, but will never fail you" And
then, as the soul thinks the news is too
good to be true and cannot believe it
and looks up in Gods face, God lifts his
right hand and takes an affidavit. makes
an oath, saying, las / live" saith the
Lord God, Il have no pleasure in the
death of the wicked" Blessed be God
for such gospel as this! Cut the slices
thin" says the wife to the husband, for
there win not be enough to go around for
all the children. Cut the slices thin"
Blessed be God, there is a full loaf for
ever one that wants it. Bread and
enough to spare! No thin slices on the
Lords table!
Healing Balm for Wounds.
remember that while living in Phila-
delphia, at the time | spoke of a minute
ago, the Master Street hospital was open
ed, and telegram was received, saying:
''There will be 300 wounded men to-
night Please take care of them" From
my church there went out twenty or thir-
ty men and women. As the poor wound
ed men were brought in no one asked
them from what State they came or what
was their parentage. There was wound
ed soldier, and the only question was
how to take off the rags most gently and
put on the cool bandage and administer
the cordial. And when a soul comes to
God he does not ask where sou came
from or what your ancestry was Heal
ing balm for all your wounds pardon for
all your guilt; comfort for all your trcl
bles!
Then, also, | counsel you, if you want
to get back. quit all your bad associates
One unholy intimacy viii fill your soul
with moral distemper. In all the ages Of
the church there has not been an instance
where n man kept one evil associate and
was reformed-among the 1,600.000.000
of the race, not one instance. Give up
your bad companions or give up heaven.
II is not ten bad companions that destroy
a man nor FIVE bad companions nor three
but one counsel you also to seek Chris
tian advice Every Christian man is
bound to help you. If he declines to
help you he is not Christian. Now
gather up all your energies of body. mind
and soul and appealing to God for sue
cpSs declare this dlv pTerla sting war