The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-08-08
DR.. CHAPMANS SERMON
A SUNDAY DISCOURSE BY THE NOTED
PAsToR-EVANcELlsL

Enemy % Most f'au-Two Ways fnto
Heaven-wenith and Power wan Not
Avail the sinner ON Judgment DAY.
New YORK CRY The Rev. j. Wilbur
Chapman, the popular pastor of the Fourth
Presbyterian Church, whose reputation as
m evangelist is second TO none, has pre-
pared an interesting sermon upon the sub.
ect, "A Novel Race, which is preached
from the text, Proverbs IL. ~, "There Is
4 way which seemeth right unto a man.
but the end thereof are the ways OF
ieath"
Some time during last summer the Rev.
Joseph Parker, the pastor OF the City
Temple in Boston. was asked TO take the
editors chair OF the London Sun. lie was
given full liberty to print just what he
wished in the paper or TO keep out OF the
columns what in his judgment was not
conducive to make an ideal paper. One day
in the place of the racing news which the
readers of the Sun had been accustomed
10 peruse he printed under the caption Of
"A Novel Race Record" a description of
the race Of life, and for each point made
emphatic il the lives of those who fire.
luent the race course and follow racing as
a business he presented q passage of Scrip
ture. This was, to say the least, startling.
One of our New York papers, quoting
from his utterings in the London Sun,
printed the following:
A NOVEL RACE RECORD.
London-The Rev. Joseph Parker prints
in the Sun to-day in place of the usual rae
ing column what he calls a corrected race
record, as follows
The Eternity Stakes.
The Start-Born in sin, etc. Psalm IL: s.
The Racial gone out Of the way, ETC.
Romans III: II.
The Finish-After death the Judgment,
etc. Hebrews TX: q.
The Weighing Room-Thou are weighed
in the balances and art found wanting
Daniel ". q.
Settling Day--For what shall it profit
man If he shall gain the whole world and
lose his own soul Mark VIII: 36.
This outline for sermon has been in
nay mind since first my eyes lighted upon
it, and to the great London preacher l
am indebted for the suggestions of this
sermon, and yet / am quite free to confess
that the only reason | have chosen the
outline, and indeed the only reason /
preach the sermon is that | have a great
desire that those of you who are running
the race of life should lay hold upon eter-
nal life. It is a great mistake for men to
preach without giving their hearers an OPP
pOrtunity to confess Christ. When Mr..
Moody first began his public ministry in
Chicago he went through a course of ser
mons on the life of Christ and came at
last to the crucifxion, when the most pro-
found impression had been made He felt
as If he ought to give an invitation, but
neglected to do so. The audience was dis.
missed never to come together again, for
that night the great confagration in Chi
cago was upon the city, and many of his
hnevors Y.Yto1v1gv
and so while | present this novel race rec
ord present it only that you may run the
race with Christ.
If had the time in this connection I
might say some words concerning the book
in which the text is found. 1t has been
said by some one that there is no part of
the Bible which more thoroughly proves
the inspiration of the Scriptures, for no
mere man could have written these wise
sayings; another has suggested that the
thirty-one chapters in the book contain
lesson for each day of the month. and no
/ man would find himself failing so frequent
! ly if he should imbibe the wisdom of these
| sayings. Indeed, there is not condition
4 Of life that is not met by the wisdom of the
writer of this book. l might also suggest
| the different figures which are used in the
| Bible which describe a human life 1t lie
! spoken of under the figure of a voyage
with its days of calm and nights Of storm,
its south winds blowing deceitfully against
us, and telling of prosperity that never
! comes and its hurricane which almost
! drives us against the rocks and to death,
but one of the best figures is that of a race
for no man walks when he races, but runs.
/ He must be desperately in earnest, and no
! one really makes a success of his life with
out this same thing is true of him. There
Is little place for the laggard in human
life to-day. We must run if we would
win, and no race is permitted without con-
testants. In this race of human life which
we start there are three contestants which
strive earnestly to defeat u.s. The first is
self-the greatest enelCy that the most of
us have is self. Other men fight battles
and rest when the victory is won, but no
man has ever yet been able to rest in the
struggle with himself The Bible is true,
| Greater is he that ruleth his spirit than
he that taketh city," and many a man
has been a hero in the battlefield and
made a miserable failure with his struggle
with himself. The world is generally
against us. "Woe be unto you when all
men speak well of you" and if no one op-
| poses you It is we'll to stop and see where.
in you may be wrong, but possibly the
greatest adversary Of all is the devil, the
third one Of this trinity of contestants, for
he tiatters and deceives until at last the
strongest character is made weak and the
purest soul tainted; but am not so much
concerned about the running of the race
Just at this time as the preparation for the
end. The text is a striking one. "There
is way which seemeth right unto man:
but the end thereof are the ways oil
death. ''There is way that seemetf
right" | take it that none of us have de-
/ termlned deliberately to be lost Oui
mothers memory is too sacred and oul
fathers example too powerful to permit Il.
deliberately to choose death instead of life
We are merely procrastinating. We have
chosen little more of the worlds pleas
IRE, falsely so-called. and determine t.
have little more Of the worlds honor
and the way seemeth right, for some day
we may be saved and yet no one has
certain prospect Of salvation if be negleet!