The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1902-04-18

ter. And the widest, the haughtiett, lnt
most ungovernabe man ever created by
the grace OF God may be subdued and sent
out on ministry OF kindness, as God sends
an August thunderstorm TO water the wilo
flowers down IN the grass. Peter, WITH
nature tempestuous as the sea that ne
once tired 70 walk, az one look iron
Christ went out and wept bitterly. hsh
harvests of grace may be grown on the
summit o; the jagged steep, and focks OF
Christian graees may ind pasturage II
fields of bramble and rock.
Though your disposition may be all
a-bristle with fretiulness, though You
have a temper a'gleam with quick hight,
nings, though your avarlce be like that y
the horse leech, crying, "Cive'' Though
damnable impurities have wrapped you IN
all consuming fire, God can drive that
devil out Of your soul. and over the chaos
and the darkness He can say, Let there
be light"
Converting grace has lifted the drunkard
from the ditch and sratched the knife
from the hand of the assassin and the
false keys from the burglar, and in the pes
tiferous lanes of the city met the daughter
of sin under the om lamplight and scat
tered her sorrow and her guilt with the
words. Thy sins are forgiven; go, and
sin no more" For scarlet sin a scarlet
atonement.
Other persons apologize for rot enter
ing the Christian life because OF the In
consistencies of those who profess religion.
There are thousands OF poor farmers.
They do not know the nature OF soils CT
the proper rotation of crops. Their corn
is shorter IN stalk and smaller in the
ear. They have ten less bushels to the
acre than their neighhors. But who de
clines being farmer because there are
SO many poor farmers There are thou
sands Of incompetent merchants. They
buy at the wrong time. They get cheated
l.. a hal. II
goods is 10 them q bale of disaster. They
fail after awhile and go out of business.
But who declines 10 be q merchant he
case there are so many incompetent
merchantsy There are thousands of poor
lawyers. They cannot draw a declaration
that will stand the test; They cannot re-
cover Just damages. They cannot help
defendant escape from the injustice OF his
prosecutors. They are the worst impedi.
ments Fgdln1t any case IN which they are
retained But who declines 10 be a lawyer
because there are so many incompetent
lwyersy Yet there are tens of thousands
Of people who decline being religious he
c1ysc there are so nany unworthy Chris
tians
The best place for a skillful doctor is in
reighborhood where there arc all poor
doctorS, the best place for an enterprieng
merchant to open his store is IN place
where the bargain makers do not under
stand their business, and the best place
for YOU who want to become the illus
trious and complete Christian, the best
place for you is 10 come right down among
us who are so incompetent and 80 incol'
sistent sometimes. Show US how. Give
us an example.
Exudations from poisonous trees in our
neighbors garden will make very poor
balm for our wounds.
Sickness will come, and We VIII be
pushed out toward the Red Sea which di.
vides this world from the next, and not
the Inconsistency of Christians, but the
rod Of faith, viii wave lack the waters
as a commander wheels his host. The
judgment will come, with it' thunder
shod solemnties. Oh, then we will not
stop and say, There was mean Chris.
tan; there was an impure Christian"
In that day as now, III tnou be wise, .hou
shalt be wise for thyself, but If thou
scorncst thou alone shall bear II" Why,
my brother, the inconsistency OF Chris
tians, so far from being Cn argument to
keep you away from Gcd, ought to be an
argument TO drive you TO Him.
No time 10 b. religious here! You
have no time not TO oe religious. ! You
might as well have no clerks in your
store, no books in your library, no com
pass on your ship, no rife IN the battle,
no hat on your head, no coat for ycur
back. no shoes for your feet.
Better travel on toward eternity bare
headed and barefooted and houseless and
homeless and friendless than 10 60 through
life without religion.
Did religion make Raleigh any less of
statesman or Havelock ary less OF
soldier or Grinnell any less Of a merchant
or West any less of a painter?
Why, my friends, religion is the test
security in every bargain; II is the sweet
est note IN every song; II ~ the brightest
gem IN very coronet. No tire TO be re-
hgiousy Why, you will have TO take time
TO be sick, 10 be troubled, 10 die. Our
world is only the wharf from which we
are TO embark for heaven.
No time to secure the friendship Of
Christ? No time TO buy lamp ald trim
it for that walk through the darkness
which otherwise will be iilumined only
by the whiteness of the tombstones; No
time 10 educate Che eye for heavenly splen-
dors or the hand for choral harps or the
ear for everlasting songs or the soul Tor
honor, glory and Immortality? One would
think we had time for nothing else.
Other pers )ns apologize tor not enter.
ing TIE Christian life because II ls time
enough yet. That IL very like those per.
sons who send regrets and say, II viii
come in perhaps at ii or II O'Clock; j
will not be there at the opening Of the
banquet. but / wall be there at the close"
Not yet Not yeti Now, ! do not give
any doleful view OF this life. There is
nothing IN my nature, nothing IN the
grace OF God, that tends toward a dolciul
.yiew OF human life.
/ have not much sympathy with Ad-
dlson's description OF the Vision Of
Mira" where he represents human lie
as being bridge of hundred arches and
both ends OF the bridge covered with
clouds and, the race coming on, the most
OF them falling down through the first
span and all OF them falling down through
the last span.
1t Is very dismal picture. have not
much sympathy with the Spanish prOvCfb
which says, The sky is good and the earth
Is good; that which is bad Is between the
earth and the sky."
But, while we az Christian men are
bound e. take a cheerful view Of lie, we
must also confess that life ~ q great un.
certainty and that man who says, j
can't become a Christian because there ~
time enough yet" ~ running risk IN
finite.
You do not perhaps realize the fact that
thl. descending grade Of sin gets steerer |
and sleeper and that you are gathering |
up a rush and velocity which after awhile |
may not answer tc the brakes.
BE not among those who give Their |
whole life 10 the world and then give their |
corpse 20 God. IL does not seem fair that |
while our pulses are ia full play OF health |
We serve ourselves and serve the world |
and then make God al last the present OF |
a coffin. II does not seem right that We
run our ship from coast 20 coast carrying |
cargOes for ourselves and then, when the |
ship j. crushed IN the rocks, give 20 God |
the shvered timbers. IL - great thing |
for a man on his dying pillow 70 repent
better that than never at all; but how /
much better, how much more generous, u |
would have been u he had repented hfty /
years before, Ny friends you vail never \