St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1904-03-26


1f NMIFI77; ting an honored
EkAks= guest within the
SE5@@ heart, partaking q
the hospitality
tnere offered, and then becoming in
turn the gracious host and setting be.
lore the soul delectable feast of good
Things fresh from His Fathers store
mouse above. Jesus standing without
brings the shadow Of a possible soul
tragedy, for irresistibly the question
springs forth for answer: Will the
door be opened ere the waiting one
departs? or will 1t remain closed and
smut and barred forever? Jesus within
sharing in the feast brings the vision
o. that larger, more glorious feast
around which the great company of the
redeemed are to gather some day in
the Fathers House. Behold" saith
the Lord. and well may man contem-
plate all that these two pictures mean
Doors shut against the Son Of God and
the Saviour Of men, and doors opened
10 give Him entrance. Before the shut
door Jesus stands patiently, knocks
persistently and pleads lovingly
Through the opened door Jesus enters
quickly and blesses richly. Shut doors
ana opened doors. The shut doors hold
imprisoned within the sin-darkened
chambers Of the heart the precious i'm
mortal soul. the opened doors admit
the Light Of the world, and the thrill
OF new life and hope is felt with the
Divine presence.
HE heart prison house or the heart
guest chamber. The heart crowd
ed with the perishable things of this life,
or the heart making room for Christ and
the eternal riches which are found in
Him. The heart trying to find joy and
satisfaction in the things which the
world can offer, or the heart finding that
true JOY and satisfaction which Heaven
alone can give. The heart listening to
the music of this life or the heart learn
ing the first strains Of that Heavenly
music which will swell in ever increas-
ing volume until 1t mingles some day
with that mighty chorus of the redeemed
In Heaven. The heart feeding on the
husks Of this life and never being salts
Ned, or the heart feasting on the Bread
Of Life and having its hunger appeased.
The heart drinking the worlds nectar
and never having its thirst quenched, or
the heart drinking the Water Of Life
drawn from the well OF salvation and
finding 1t has become a satisfying
draught, springing up into everlasting
life. These are the two conditions which
we find, the one because the door is shut
against the knocking Saviour, the other
because the door Is opened to admit Him.
Certainly these differences are startling.
They present contrasts as great as that
between darkness and light, time and
eternity, death and life And the differ
ence all arises because of the position OF
the door to the heart, whether it is shut
or whether it is open; whether Jesus is
without or Jesus is within. =
NUR text is part of the appeal to the
~ back-slidden church OF Laodicea,
which has become worldly and rich in
perishable gold, but which is poor
and blind and naked" in the eyes
Of God. It was lukewarm in its
love and devotion to its Lord, and be-
cause 1t was neither cold nor hot" the
Lord declares: Il will spew thee out Of
my mouth" But following this declara-
ton OF rejection, Jesus goes on to plead
with the individual members of the
church to repent, for Behold, stand
at the door and knock; If any man hear
NV voice, and open the door, I will come
In to him and will sup with him, and he
with Me-" Jesus is dealing with the in
dividual. Primarily our text is adj
dressed to the back-slidden Christian.
Jesus has been crowded out of the heart
and the life by the "cares OF this world
and the deceitfulness of riches" but He
longs to come back again. and so he
stands Mt the door and knocks for adj
mission. But 1t is equally true that He
seeks out the unsaved sinner and as per-
sistently and lovingly knocks at the
door Of his heart. To the one who has
never accepted Christ as Saviour, He
comes and pleads: Behold, l stand at
the door and knock; II any man hear My
voice. and open the door, l will. come in
To him. and will sup with him and he
with Me-" And 1t is to such we want to
hiring a message We shall have word
- say to the Christian who is keeping
His Lord without the chamber of his
heart where some pleasure, some ambi-
tion some sin is being harbored. and in
duleed. but first of all we desire to pre-
cont Gods claim to the unsaved. to try
- bring them to see who is standing
w,thout their heart knocking for admit
rance. to endeavor to show them what
the shut door means and what the open
door.
rrRST of all what is the door which
when shut proves an impossible bar
~,er to Jesus? What is it that keeps
Ts~.,s IN the outside? What is 1t that
crsvents His bringing the hope of saliva
t,on. and the Joy Of His presence into the
hsart and life? 1t is that tremeE-
do,,s something which we call the
a.,ll." It has pleased God to en-
49, man with such faculty as
ths will. And this will Of man has the
u - 10 lift him up to Heaven or cast
- down to hell. II the will shuts out
- CHRIST and declares that it does not
80 rim and can get along without Him,
.ss aonI is rejecting Gods claims and
, -. it, only hope OF salvation and
sternai life. Il the Will is yieldeo 70
49, christ. and He is permitted to
. -, the heart and rule in the