Newport weekly independent., 1902-09-05


 Amos 4:12
 A Message for To-Day.-These words are addressed to Israel by the prophet Amos, after the nation has consistently refused to hear and heed the message which God has sent unto them. The days of grace are past and judgment has fallen. No longer does God stand pleading that Israel will repent and turn from it's sin, but the thunder-tones of His wrath send forth the message: "Prepare to meet thy God" In these five short, simple words flashes the keen, two-edged sword of Gods Spirit, and, falling, pierces "even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit" God has patiently borne with His people. He has sought by every circumstance of life to arouse them to a sense of their obligation to Him. He sent scarcity of food and famine, yet have ye not re- turned unto Me-" saith the Lord. He sent drought, and then let rain fall on one city and not on another, upon one piece of ground, and not upon another section lying adjacent thereto, so that two or three cities were compelled to go unto one city to drink water, yet have ye not re- turned unto Me-" saith the Lord. He sent the mildew and the blasting upon the growing grain; and the devouring worms ruined the gar dens and vineyards and fig and olive trees, 'yet have ye not returned unto Me-" saith the Lord. The pestilence of disease had swept over their land, and in conflict with the nations about the young men had been slain with the sword, and the scandals and evils growing up out of the military camps had shocked the whole nation, yet have ye not returned unto Me-" saith the Lord. The iniquity of some in the nation was so great that God had to de- stroy them as He overthrow Sodom and Gomorrah, and those who es- capped the fire of Gods wrath were as brands plucked out of the burn ing, "yet have ye not returned unto Me-" saith the Lord.
 Therefore (because all this is true) thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, o, Israel"
 'For, To, He that formeth the noun tains, and createth the wind, and de- clareth unto man what is His thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, the Lord, the God of Hosts. is His name."
 This is the message which God sent to His self-willed and self-seek- ing children by the hand of His prophet Amos. We read it. We readily see the >iniquity and sins of the children of Israel. We marvel at their indifference to the solemn warning and pleading of God. We see them rejecting the message of Gods prophets and doubting the truth of their words. While the ter rible judgments of Gods wrath are hanging over them they refuse to be- lieve anything but that they will con- tinue to eat, drink and be merry and yield to every desire in the days to come, as they have in the past. We see the certain judgments of God fall upon them after they have persist ently and willfully refused to hear Gods last call. We see the awful scourge of war sweep over the land' we see the wives and children, the young men and maidens wearing the yoke of their conquerors and gong into captivity, all coming to pass just n as God said it would. We see all this We know that when God speaks ii standing the ease and luxury of ou1 homes, and the influence of our friends and the prominence of our position 1T society, and our business and profes slonal success, and the size of our bank account; notwithstanding our vigo1 of health, and our fullness of joy as We delight ourselves in the attractions and luxuries of the world. We know that nothing we have or are, that nothing which our friends have or are Chat not even the loved ones in Heaver who are awaiting our coming car change one jot or tittle of Gods wort ana prevent His judgment falling upor us II we refuse to hear and heed. Ant knowing this, let us stop in the mat rush of life and reason together ou ol God's Word, so that we shall not b' Jaught as thief in the night when oul nofd comes and exacts final account Ing with us.
 - E ace to Face with EternitY.=DO vol