The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1902-09-06

gives us two remarkable pictures of
souls coming into the presence of God.
One is in the vision of Isaiah and the
other is found in the twenty-second
chapter of Matthew in the para BILE of
the marriage supper. One portrays a
soul coming, during the earthly life,
into the presence of GOO, the other of
one who has come after the earthly
life into the marriage supper of
the Lamb, without the wedding gar
ment of preparation. Isaiah, this side
the grave, realizes the righteousness
of God and his own sinful condition,
and cries out: "Woe is me! for l am a
man of ~unclean lips, and | dwell in the
midst of a people of unclean lips; for
mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord
of hosts" And when the soul comes
to God with that cry, He does for it
what the live coal from off Gods altar
did for Isaiah. He cleanses from all
sin.
But the man without the wedding
garment on, having refused to hear
Gods voice in this life and prepare to
meet Him, stands speeches. in His
presence. Isaiah was able to utter a
cry for mercy, but the man without
the wedding garment, having sinned
away the day of grace, is face to face
with judgment.
Face to face with God means some
thing. And because of its solemn and
eternal import, we come to II fourth
point. We need preparation to meet
Him. "Prepare to meet thy God"
There is escape even yet for the way
ward children of Israel, and follow
ing this solemn call of God to them as
voiced by our text there comes in the
fifth chapter the tender pleading:
"Seek the Lord, and We shall live" A
last chance of preparation before
Judgment falls and they come face
to face with God. In the recent coro-
nation of King Edward you could not
help but be struck by the Importance
attaching to every one in attendance
being in proper dress. Every detail Of
4 the dress of every rank and every per-
sonage there was weighed with the ut
most care, and failure to provide the
garment designated would have ex-
cluded from the brilliant browning
scene in Westminster Abbey.
Even in unconventional America
great importance is unconsciously at
tached to appropriateness in dress.
The laborer in silk hat and patent
leather shoes would attract instant
attention and become the mark for the
irreverent street urchin. The bank
president with overalls on as he sat at
his desk during banking hours would
be adiudged insane and sent to the
ASYLUM. The lady with the party
dress who would don her finery to go
to the store to do her marketing
would set all the gossiping tongues
of the neighborhood to wagging. We
do not realize how conventional we
really are until some irregularity in
dress forces it upon the attention. TIC
have on the proper garment is really
very essential. 1t is absolutely essen
tial that the soul should be clothed
upon with the proper garment in prep
~aration for meeting God. The mai
who had not on the wedding garment
was cast out from the feast. So viii
you DC Sust put thS I'NS
ence of God if you have not on thu
!. garment of His Righteousness fur
nished in Christ Jesus. All our owl
garments Tor righteousness, as 1saial
calls them) are as filthy rags. A re
, pentant heart must strip the soul o
! self. David cries: "a broken and
contrite heart, oh God, Thou wilt no
t despise." Here is the first step il
S preparation for meeting God. Con
I seriousness of sin and a repentan
t heart. John the Baptist came bearing
that message. Christ began His min
I istry with that cry upon His lips
That is the message of the Gospel to
day. Repent, for "the blood of Jesu
t Christ cleanseth from all sin" AM
as we hear that message and believe ]
we become stripped of our w right
t eousness and become clothed in tn
spotless garment of Christ's righteous
t ness. Then we are ready to meet ou
God.
If noilv prenaration.-In connectio
It ul;,b tbis text is a beautiful though