The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1901-03-29

and the other is 40 years OF age. will
have more confidence In the profession
of religion OF the one 10 years OF age
than the one 40 years OF age. Why?
The one who processes at 40 years Of
age has 40 years of impulse in the
wrong direction to correct, and the
child has only ten years in the wrong
direction to correct Four times ~
are 40. Four times the religious pros
pect for the lad that comes into the
kingdom of God and into the church
at 10 years of age than the man at 40.
Sin Against Holy Ghost.
Oh, am afraid to say anything
against revivals Of religion or against
anything that looks like them, because
/ think 1t may be a sin against the
Holy Ghost, and you know the bible
says that sin against the Holy Ghost
shall never be forgiven, neither in this
world nor the world to come. Now,
If you are a painter, and l speak
against your pictures, do I not speak
against you? II you are an architect
and l speak against building you
put mp. do not speak against you?
II revival be the work of the Holy
Ghost and / speak against that revival,
do not speak against the Holy Ghost?
And whose speaketh against the Holy
Ghost, says the Bible, he shall never
be forgiven, neither in this world nor
in the world to come. l think some
times people have made fatal mistake
In this direction.
Many of you know the history Of
Aaron Burr. He was one Of the most
brilliant men of his day. l suppose
this country never produced stronger
intellect. He was capable Of doing
anything good and great for his coun-
try or for the church Of his God had he
been rightly disposed, but his name Is
United States government, which he
tried to overthrow, and with libertin-
ism and immortality. Do you know
where Aaron Burr started on the down.
ward road? 1t was when he was in
college and he became anxious about
his soul and was about to put himself
under the influences of revival, and
a minister of religion said: Don't go
there, Aaron; don't go there. That's
a place Of wildfire and great excite
ment No religion about that. Don't
go there" He tarried away. His seri-
GUS impressions departed. He started
on the downward road. And who Is
responsible for his ruin for this world
and his everlasting ruin in the world
to come? Was 1t the minister who
warned him against that revival?
When I speak Of excitement in reviv-
ais / do not mean temporary derange-
ment of the nerves, | do not mean the
absurd things of which We have read
as Transporting sometimes in the church
of Christ, but mean an intelligent, in
tense, all absorbing agitation of body,
mind and soul in the work Of spiritual
escape and spiritual rescue.
Goodness of the Objector.
Now I come to the real. genuine
cause Of objection to revivals. That
is the GOODNESS of the objector 1t is
the secret and hidden but unmistaka-
Bile cause in every case, low state
of religion in the heart. Wide awake,
consecrated, useful Christians are
never afraid Of revivals. 1t is the spir-
itually dead who are afraid Of having
their sepulcher molested. The chief
agents of the devil during great
awakening are always uncovered
professors of religion. AS soon as
Christ's work begins they begin to gos-
sip against it and take pail Of water
and try to put out this spark of re-
ligious influence, and they try to put
out another spark. Do they succeed?
AS we'll when Chicago was on fire
might some one have gone out with a
garden water pot trying to extinguish
it. The difficulty is that when re-
vival begins in church it begins at
so many points that while you have
doused one anxious soul with a pail
of cold water there are 500 other anx-
ious souls on fire. Oh, how much bet
ter it would be to lay hold Of the
chariot of Christ's gospel and help
pull it on rather than to fling our
selves in front Of the wheels, trying
to block their progress. We will not
stop the chariot, but We ourselves will
be ground to powder.
An Unconverted Ministry.
But l think, after all, the greatest
obstacle to revivals throughout Christ
endom is an unconverted ministry.
We must believe that the vast major
ity of those who officiate at sacred al
tars are regenerated, but l suppose
there may float into the ministry of
all the denominations of Christians
men whose hearts have never been
changed by grace. They are all an
to revivals. How did they
get into the ministry? Perhans Soma