The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-11-17

Is speeding on bad ways understand he it not riding a docile and we'll broken steed, but that he is riding a monster wild and bloodthirsty and going at death lean 's
 I have also to say if a man wants to return from evil practices society rerllscs him. The prodigaL wishing to return. tries to take some professor of religion by the hand. The professor of religiOn looks at him. looks at the faded apparel and the marks of dissipation. and instead of giving him a firm grip of the hand of- fers him the tip end of the longer fingers of the left hand which is equal to strik- ing a man in the face. Oh. how few Chris tian people understand how much Soe- pei there is in a good, honest handshak- ingi Sometimes when you have felt the need of encouragement and some Chris tian man has taken you heartily by the hand have you not felt thrilling through every fiber of your body mind and soul an encouragement that was just what vou needed?
 Lift Up the Fallen.
 The prodigaL wishing to get into good society. enters prayer meeting. Some good man without much sense greets him bV saying: Why are you here2 You are about the last person that expected to see in a prayer meeting. Well, the dying thief was saved, and there is hope for you" You do not know anything about this, unless you have learned that when man tries to return from evil
  pulsions innumerable.
 We say of some man, ''He lives block or two from the church. or half mlle from the church.. m all our great cllles there are men who are 5000 miles from the church-vast deserts Of indifference between them and the house of God The fact is we must keep our respectablnty though thousands perish. Christ sat with publicans and sinners, but If there come to the house of God a man with marks or dissipation upon him people are almost sure to put up their hands in horror as much as to say, "Is 1t not shocking!
 How these dainty, fastidlous Christians in all our churches are going to get into heaven I do not know unless they have an especial train of cars cushioned anu upholstered. each one car to himself They cannot go with the great herd or publicans and sinners. o ye who curl your lip of scorn on the fallen. l tell you plainly that if you had been surrounded by the same influences instead of sitting today amid the cultured and the refined an dthe Christian you might have been a crouching wretch n stable or ditch cov- cred with filth and abomination! It is not because we are naturally any better, but because the mercy of God has protected us. Those that are brought up in Chris tian circles and watched by Christian percentage should not be so hard on the fallen.
 I think also that men are often hindered 1 from returning by the fact that churches arc anxious about thai' membership too | anxious about their denominations, and 1 they rush out when they see man aboui | to give up. sin and return to God and ask ! him how he is going to be baptized | whether by sprinkling or immersion, and | what kind of a church he is going to | ioir. It is a poor time to talk about Presbyterian catechism and Episcopal lit l urgies and Methodist love feasts and Bap- i tist immersions when man IS about to | come out of the darkness of sin into the glorious light of the gospel
 Helpfulnsss of Religion.
 Why. it reminds me of man drowning | him. and the man in the boat says te | the man in the water. Now. if you get ! ashore are you going to i've Tn my | strcet?" First get him asnore ana men 1 talk to him about the nonessentiais oI re- | Iieion. Who cares what church ne )olns | if he only joins Christ and starts TOT | heaven? Q you, my brother ot lllumlne'l 1 face and q hearty grip Tor every oht that tried to turn from his evil way take ! hold of the, same hYmnhook with hlna ! though his dissipation shake the book | remembering that he that cohVerteth n q 1 sinner from the error or hi9 ways sI!i ,ti l save a soul from death and hide muih tudc of sins. | Now. l have shown you these obstacles l because 1 want you to understand khoW l all the difficulties in the way. Iilt ! an | ruH going to tell you how Hannibal may ! sculc the Alps and how the shackles may | h. unriVeted and how the paths of Nlft i' | forss Een may be regsined. First Of all
 throw yourself oniGod. Go to him frankll i and earnestly and tell him these habits | you have and ask him if there is any hell in all the resources of omnipotent love tC 1 .-ivr it to you. Do not go on with loni 1 Tlamarola. which some people call prayer m1ds SD of ohs and ahs and forever ant l forever amens. Go to God and cry fo | help.
 | remember that in the Civil War was l at Antietam with other Members of tn | C,,,-tetia7, Commission to look after tn, | sounded I went into the hospital after l the battle. and said to man. 'Wher are you hurt?' He made no answer, bu