The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1904-05-29


sin of coyetousness' is a summer
stlol through woods filled with the
aroma of wild flowers. 1t is The fanta-
sizes of the diseased brain of the opium
eater. which the sinful Imagination can
place almost within the grasp Of the
dreamer Ii Is the most gorgeous OF
air castles, the most beautiful OF Tito
pias, the sweetest of songs. 1t is the
soft couch under the shadows Of the
overhanging tree branches, over which
the satanic spiders are spinning a few
beautiful silken threads which can be
snapped in a day, but which in time
may become as strong as links of steel.
All, Achan on that fatal night may
not have gone forth with the premedi-
tated idea of stealing that g0odly Bab-
yionish garment and the 200 shekels
Of silver and the wedge of gold, bet
after his eyes had rested on the gold
and the silver and the goodly garment
desire was awakened. and his longing
to possess them became irresistible.
"0h," he said to himself, II wish had
that garment. How beautiful it would
look hanging from my shoulders.
wish | could have that lump Of gold.
1t would protect me against poverty
all the days of my life And why
should not have them? There are 50
many spoils of war here these few
treasures will not be missed"
Is not Achan, going TO the place Of
execution, the history of almost every
sinner? Eye sin" first step; "coyet-
Gus sin" second step. What we would
like to do nearly always precedes what
we will ultimately do If we get the
chance. BejaZct. the sultan of the OF
toman empire, was defeated by Tam
erlaue in the famous battle of Angora
After the battle the Tartar eonQuerOr
called Bejazet into his tent and asked
him how he would have treated Tam
erIane if he had won. Like a dog
said the captured sultan. 81 would
have made you my footstool when
mounted my saddle, and when your
services We're not needed | would have
chained YOU in a cage like 4 wild
beast" Then Tamerlane replied, "ln-
stead of treating you like dog | shall
show you mercy ana treat you like
king" But all the kindness of Tam
erlane went for naught. AS were Be
ja2ets thoughts. so We're his ultimate
actions. He betrayed the noble kind
nesses Of Tamerlane and plotted his
assassination. Then tradition has it
that Tamerlane commanded that Be
jazct should be treated like dog and
chained in a cage like a wild beast
SO, my brother, like Achan of my text
you and | can trace the dcgencracy of
our lives, If they are degenerate. by
our evil thoughts, which always pre-
code evil actions. What we think, we
will ultimately speak; what we desire,
we will ultimately do.
Hard TO Resist.
Oh. the evil sin of covetOusness. Be
ware Beware, Evil thoughts are
only step from evil actions. Are we
not all in danger of the covetous sin?
Would you tell a lie for 10 cents?
mo" you emphatlcallg answer, mo,
Of course not-of course not" Would
you tell lie Just one little lie, for
500? "No," you answer again, but not
SO cmphatically. Would You tell a lie
for Sl0,0O0-a lie which in one sense
would not hurt anybody? You look at
ne in Il Quizzlcal way and say please
don't ask me-" Wen, | do ask you.
ask you, not for the purpose Of giving
YOU Tire offer, but Of finding ont what
Is the condition Of Your thoughts
Achan coveted 200 shekels Of silver
and a wedge Of gold, which must have
been worth at least $4,000 in our
money. lie coveted them without the
idea Of hurting any one else, yet for
that sin of coyetousness, which was
the fOrerunner of other sins, Achan
had to die Beware. O man, how you
allow your evil thoughts TO live
Achans "eye sin" was followed by.
Achans "covctous sin" Evil thoughts
will ultimately be the parents of evil
actions.
But now. in following the four fatal
stages Of Achan's sin. we find that his
third step-the finger step changes
him before the world from an honest
into n dishonest man. No sooner does
Achan hide that Babylonish garment
under his soldiers cloak and hug that
wedge Of gold and bag of silver under
his arm than before man. as we'll rs
God, he becomes amcnahc to human
law. once he was Il criminal mt heart,
but not criminal i'm act in his own
thief. but before his fellow men an
honest upright man. No one knew
that under that fair and respectable
exterior there lurkcd the plundcrcr
Like Or. ,IekyIl i'm Stcvenson's famous
alegory, lie gave no sign of that de-
mOniac personality which he harbored
within him But once the boundary is
passed. and the evil thoughts and evil
desires have taken shape IN acts, he is
under the ban Of justice, and ultimate
", like Edward Everett lIalc's well
known character. he becomes Il man
from whom all but men HE himself
shriuk-"a man without country"