St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1904-05-28


vofiI, riendship that is basedsupon
| selfishness. But Jesus is not such .
friend. Jesus died that He might prove
His friendship He tells us: Greater
love hath no man than this, that he
lay down his life for his friend Ben
.inck, the noble Batavian, proved his
friendship for William, Prince of Or
ange, when the latter passed through
the scourge of smallpox. Notwithstand-
ing the loathsome disease, notwith-
standing it meant sickness from the
same disease and perhaps death, he re-
NAMED at Williams bedside and nursed
him through the long weeks of Illness.
He proved his friendship And how in
fnitely greater is it true that Jesus has
proved his friendship for sinners! His
life was devoted to them and then will
i1gly laid down that the sinner might
escape the just penalty of his evil deeds.
Jesus coming and mingling with sim
lers!s Staying with them II all their
waywardness and sin, In order that at
last He might win them from sin to
righteousness!
r IKE tells us that after Matthew had
l. been called as Jesus disciple he
made feast for Him and then invited
all the publicans and sinners he could
reach to come and take dinner with
him. One sinner won to Jesus seeking
to bring others to Him. For Jesus to go
to that house where SO many of ques-
tionable reputation were gathered was
to bring down upon Him the denuncia-
ton of the Pharisees and scribes, but
Jesus did not go there to become one Of
them, but to make them one with Him.
That is, His association with them was
not that He might have good time in
their company. but it was that
He might lift them to the high
er fellowship with Himself. Mat
thew invited his erstwhile friends
to meet the One who had done so much
for him And If there was more of that
kind of feaEting and sociability to-day
instead of the social functions and din-
.ner parties given for selfish gratifica-
ton it would be more to the hoIoring
Of God and the saving of souls. Mat
thew wanted to present his Lord as the
Friend of sinners, and SO he made a
feast aud got all the worst sinners he
could together When you make feast
who is it you invite? The most polished
and cultured you can find. You invite
those who will be able to make dim
ner party in return some time and invite
you to attend But it was not so with
Matthew II it had been do you suppose
Jesus would have been able to attend?
No, He would have had business at the
other end of town saving the soul OF
some poor wretch who was eager to
know Him as the Friend OF sinners NO,
Matthew filled his house with publlcans
and sinners, and. Jesus was there. He
made sure of Jesus presence first and
then invited the crowd to meet Him.
Oh, that there were more devoted souls |
like Matthew to make Jesus the hon.
ored guest in the home, and then in |
vite the sinners ALI about to come ana
receive blessing at His hands!
r TAVE you ever wondered what that
l odd assortment Of humanity talked
about that day? Well, l have. l should
like to have been . member OF that
company. Tshould Hike to have looked
into those faces. l believe there was
many sob there that day, that there
vas many q tear-sta1ned face turned to-
ward the Saviour as He talked to them
If sin and deliverance from sin, and OF
he better life Sin is an awful thing,
md some of the guests Of Matthew
must have realized it as they came into
he presence of the sinless One and
became conscious of the fact that He
vas there not to condemn them. but to
ave them. Who would think Of call
ng one his friend who had nothing
,ut condemnation and denunciation for
lin because he had done wrong? Who
would feel drawn towards the man
Who would pick all the flaws he could
md never in sympathy and love try to
[raw from those sins and faults to
,etter and purer life? And we would
lot feel that Jesus was our Friend II
III He held before us was our sins and
III we heard was condemnation be-
ause we were sinners. No, Jesus does
lot declare His friendship in that way.
lie shows that He is the sinners Friend
" pointing the way of deliverance.
A PARTY of settlers was seeking to
Aescape the bands Ct hostile Indians
Which were lurking on every hand, but
ot knowing the country. they were
ompletely at a loss as to which way
0 turn. Darkness came on while this
ilemma confronted them, and with
he darkness came deliverance. There
uddenly rose from the grass in their
lidst an unarmed Indian. He pro-
essed friendship. He said he had crept
q unbeknown to the other Indians,
Tho were plotting their destruction.
o as to show them how they might
scape How could he prove that he
vas a friend? Not by telling them of
II the hostile Indians that lurked
,ithout the camp, but by showing
hem the way of deliverance. Some
,ere afraid to trust him, but Drawer
carts said: at is our hope They ]
Slowed the Indian through a trail
hey never could have found for them
elves and escaped the threatened dam
er. b They knew then that the Indian
,ho had come to them that night was
real friend He had proved it by
ointing the way of deliverance. And ,
esus in fuller, higher sense proves
lis friendship by pointing the sinner
, the way of escape from sin and its
IN soruoncoc And 1asue' talk that ,