The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1901-03-29

| children and young people are brought
| into the church, and they do not know
what they are about. II has been my
observation that the earlier people
come into the kingdom Of God the more
usefaI they are. Robert Hall, the
! prince of preachers, was converted at
l. years of age. 1t is likely he knew
what he was about. Matthew Henry,
| the commentator. who did more than
any man of his century for increasing
| the interest in the study of the Scrip
lures, was converted at II years of
age; Isabella Graham. immortal in the
! Christian church. was converted at ten
! years of age: DR.. Watts. whose hymns
will be sung all down the ages, was
| converted AT nine years of age. iona
| than Edwards, perhaps the mightiest
| intellect that the American pulpit
ever produced, was converted at seven
years of age, and that father and
mother take an awful responsibility
when they tell their child at seven
| years of age: You are too young TO
be a Christian" or You are too young
TO connect yourself with the church"
That is a mistake as long as eternity.
If during \ revival t7,u persons pre-
sent themselves as candidates for the
church and the one is ten years Of age
and the other is 40 years of age. will
have more confidence i'm the profession
OF religion of the one ten years of age
! than the one 30 years OF age. Why?
/ The oIS who Processes AT 80 years of
age has 40 years Of impulse in the
wrong direction 10 correct. and the
child has only ten years in the wrong
direction To correct. Four times ten
are 30. -Four times the religious pros
pect for the lad that comes into the
kingdom of God and into the church at
ten years of age than he man al 40.
am very apt 10 look upon rcvivals
aS CONNECTED with certain men who
fostercd them. People who i'm this
day do not like reyivaiS nevertheless
have not words to express their admi-
ration for the rcyiyaliStS OF the past.
for they were reVivalists-Jonatha han
Edwards, John Wesley. George Whit
field. Fletcher. Griffin. Davies. Os-
borne. Knapp. Ncttlcton, Moody and
many others whose names come 10
my mind. The strength OF their in
tellcct and the holiness Of their lives
make me think they would not have
had anything To do with that which
was ephemcral. Oh. il Is easy TO
talk against revivals,
man said To Mr.. Dawson: II
Ike your sermons very much. but
the after meetings ! dcSpisc. When
the prayer meeting begins always
go up into the gallery and look down,
and | am Disguised" Well" said
Mr.. Dawson, the reason is YOU 20
on the top Of your uelrhbOr's house +
and look down his chimney 10 exams
inc his fire. and of course YOU get
only smoke in your eyes. Why done /
you come in The door and sit down /
and warm"
Oh. ! am afraid Ia say anything |
against reviyals OF religion or against
anything that looks IKE them. be-
cause ! think II may 5c "a sin against
I'll" Holy Ghost. AMI YOU know the /
Eible says that a sin against he HOLY (
Ghost shall never bc forgiven. neither ,
in this world nor the world to come +
Now. il You are a painter and | speak !
against your pictures. do | not speak |.
against Won? II you are an archi- f.
tect. and speak against binding /
you put up. do not speak aeainss !
Won? II a revival be The work of h /,
Holy Ghost. and ! speak against that /
revival, do not speak against the /
Holy Ghost? And whose Spcakcth I,
against the Holy Ghost. says the |
Bible. he shall never he forgiven. I,
neither in this world nor in the world I
Ia come. | think sometimes people /
have made fatal mistake in this di- /
rcctIon.
Cow | come &c the real. genuine /
cause of objection TO revivals That /
is the GOODNESS of the obicctor. 1t * /
the secret and hidden but unmi>tal- /
able cause i'm every case. low state /
OF religion in the heart Wide awake. /
consecratcd. useful Christians arc I
spiritually dead who are afraid Of I
having their sepulcher molcstcd. The I,
chief agents Of the devil during I
great awakening are always uncon- I
verted professors Of religion. As soon /
as Christ's work begins they begin I
10 gossip against il and take pail /
of water and try TO pat out this !
spark OF religious influence, and thev |
try 10 put out another spark. Do |
they succeed? As well when Chicago |
was on fire might some one have |
gone out with garden water pot |
trying 10 cytinguish il. The difficulty |
is that when revival begins in a !
church il begins at so many points |
that while YOU have douscd one anx-
ious soul with n pail of cold water /
there are 500 other anxious souls on /
fire. Oh. how much better IL would ,
be 70 lay hold Of the chariot OF /
Christ's GosTcl and help pull it on
rather than to fling ourselves in front |
of the wheels. trying to block their |
progress. We will not stop the /
chariot. but we ourselves will be !
ground TO powder.
But | think, after all, the greatest
obstacle to revivals throughout |
Christendom is an urconvcrtcd minis
try. We must believe that the vast |
ajority of those who ofIiciatc at
sacred affairs are regenerated. but | !