The Tupelo journal., 1902-10-10

ASaAs IN Oit iiaoii
such declarations of God as: "All our
righteousness are as filthy rags"
'There is none that doeth good. They
are all gone aside, they are all to-
gether become filthy: there is none
that doeth good, no, not one" And
the New Testament lays bare the aw-
full condition of the human heart and
life. its desperate need, when it de-
clares: "Men shall be lovers of their
own selves, %covetous, boosters, proud,
blasphemers, disobedient to parents,
unthankful, unholy, without natural
affection, trucebreakers, false accus-
ers, incontinent, fierce, despisers Of
those that are good, traitors, heady,
highminded, lovers of pleasures more
than lovers of God" This long and full
enumeration by Paul is but the differ
ent manifestations of Che condition of
the human heart and life, which is one
OF deafness, until it is called into life
in Gods workshop; for we are all "dead
in trespasses and SINS"
Let Ezekiel. the prophet, supply us
with a metaphor which he applied to
the house of Israel, likening them to
a valley full of dead and dry and bleach
ing bones. The blackness and silence of
death there. Heaps on heaps of hid
eous, grinning skeletons, but no life,
no activity, no usefulness there. Such
is the condition of the world. A great
valley full of the deafness and black
ness of sin. The world does not see it.
for it loves darkness rather than the
light because its deeds are evil. But
the Holy Spirit, the Active Agent of
Gods workshop, is out in the world
trying to convince it of its dead con-
dition. If you will let Him present
His overwhelming arguments to your
soul He will convict you of your con-
dition and your need.
The very best salesman in the world
with an article of the most pronounced
merits would not be able to sell it I'M
less he could secure an audience with
the prospective buyer. The need of the
latter might be most pressing, and the
argument of the salesman unanswer-
able, yet it all would be of no avail if
he should refuse to listen. The Holy
Spirit is pressing upon the human
heart on every hand for an opportunity
to present His claims and secure raw
material for Gods workshop. Let Him
clarity your vision and you will be able
to see the dry bones all about. And
can these bones live? Is it possible
that out of such hideous and revolving
material can be made a saint to shine
eternal in the heavens? Is it possible
for that black and jagged rock before
the smelter door to yield the pure, un-
furnished gold? Is it possible for the
blocks of steel and brass in the factory
to yield the perfect little %timepiece,
ticking off the vanishing minutes? Is
it possible that that blackish tar, that
foul-smelling refuse of the gas plant,
a yield under the proper processes
the pure white paraffine? Is it pos,
sible that Mother Nature can take the
cold, black earth with its offensive fer
tilizer and pour into your lap the
golden grain and the ripened fruit +!
All, how wonderful! But how infin-
itely more wonderful is it that God can
tohC INV LIS Wolh SIoD III raw IIdtS-
rial of mans failure and recreate him
in Christ Jesus.
The Power of Choice.-But suppose
the gold quartz should refuse to yield
to the refining process. the steel and
brass should not submit to lathe and
drill. the black offensive tar should
persist in flowing to waste instead OF
into the retort where its different ele-
ments could be chemically separated,
or Mother Nature should disdainfully
turn from the rich. black loan to the
glistening white hard sand OF the sea
shore? No bright and shining gold. no
busy ticking watch, no white parafine
the plants established to carry OF
these processes. So is it with man
Unless he lets the Holy Spirit have him
to take into Gods workshop. there tc
carry on the wonderful Transforming
work, the infinite love and power Oh
God cannot be manifested in him. Man
can say to the quartz. the steel and the
brass. and the coal tar. you must. But
God does not GO to the human heart
with any such imperative summons
He has given to man the power Oh
choice. He must decide himself wheth.
er to enter Gods workshop and submit
to the molding of the Divine hand and
will.
The workshop of the Almighty in
the dawn of the worlds history
throbbed and pulsated with the mighty
activity which brought the atoms OF
dust together and formed the flesh and
bones and organism of the human
body. His breath filled the ~nostrils OF
the lifeless clay. and the lung cells be.
gan to rise and fall with the quicken
ing of feshly life. With the giving OF
life was bestowed the freedom OF
choice. All good was placed at the
disposal of man, and as long as he fed
upon the right fruit his life ran paral
lei with that of his Creator. But in
and ate of the forbidden fruit the seed
of death entered into his soul. Mans
way thereafter lay apart and led away
from God. The feshly life of mar con
tinued as it continues to this day, but
the seed of death in the soul wrought
eternal separation from God. Para
disc was lost through the freedom OF
choice, Paradise is regained by the
exercise of the same Divinely-giver
privilege.
But now see how the love of God has
been manifested throughout the ages,
for before the foundation of the world
the workshop of God was busy work.
ing out a plan of redemption whereby