Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1905-05-04


the way he will condemn Our sins.
physical necessities supplied. Aye, al
most all Of us have had more than the
necessities. God has given to US many
luxurles as we'll When we entered
into sin we went there to seek pleas.
ure, and not for the necessities Of food
and clothing. We sinned because We
wanted to sin, and not because in one
sense we felt We had to sin to live.
The Training Lots wife HAD.
Like Lots wife, arc we? Most Of us
aye, all-have felt the gospel inspiration
Of Christian home. know not wheth-
er this woman was born in a godly
cradle and reared In a pious home. I
know not whether In her younger days
she was taught to say her evening
prayers ut her mothers knee But do
know that as soon IA she married she
was taken to q godly home. Lot. her
husband. was Abraham's foster child
and nephew. His father died when Lot
was very young. Abraham aud Sarah
had no children; therefore they adopt
IDENTIFY dead--and brought him up as
their own son. No sooner did Lot bring
home his young bride than. methinks, I
con sec this old gray haired patriarch
Abraham welcome her TO his home. I
can see him place his hand upon her
head and say: "My child. welcome
thee In the name of the Lord. I vel.
come thee as my daughter" Methinks
I can see Sarah take the young girl in
her arms and press her to her heart
and place holy kiss upon her fresh
young lips. That night, as usual, the
aged couple have family prayers. Lot
and his bride kneel by the old folks
side. Step by step Lots wife Ia taught
to trust God and to live for God and to
be one Of Gods little children. She Is
not cannibal on the Kongo, taught
from her infancy that the best banquet
she can have Is the quivering flesh Of
captive whom her husband has
brought home In chains. She Ia not nm
Aztec Indian, who thinks the best Of
bleeding heart Of human sacrifice
torn out from the ribs of a pleading
suppliant She is child Of the cove
nant, having lived at least for years
amid the highest and noblest Of godly
surroundings. She was destroyed be-
cause she refused to obey the teach
ings of God which she learned from her
father-in-law and mother-in-law.
Lots wife's doom awful. you soy.
Yes, but shall not God condemn more
severely those who have deliberately
wandered forth into the ways Of sin
and who have once lived in Christian
homes than those who have never
heard the name Of Jesus except in bias
phemy? Shall not God more severely
condemn you and me for our sins than
he would our companions in evil whose
mothers were like Delilah, Jezebel or
Rahab instead Of like Sarah or Esther
or Ruth? Indeed, so strong is the In
fuence Of our parental Christian
homes that they are Juggling at our
hearts today in spite Of present sins.
We cannot drown their echoing calls IL
we would.
Inluence Of the Old Home.
Some time ago dear friend of mine
was out in a mining town. There at
that time was a miner noted for his
sins. Gambler. drunkard, blasphemer
and peddler Of filthy stories was be-
My friend met him one day and said
Are you as, bad man as you make
out to be? You say you are going
home this spring to visit your mother
VIII you get drunk there as you do
here? Will you tell her the vile stories
you tell here?" The man looked ut my
friend q moment and then said mo,
sir! would sooner cut of my right
arm than let my mother or my sisters
see me as am. I came from a Chris.
tan home. and the old truths which
were taught me there are still plead
ing with me to be a good Christian
man" oh, my friends. when Lots
wife went astray she did not sin in
ignorance. Like ourselves. she once
lived in a godly home Like yonder
miner. she had, as we have. the pray
ers Of her pious loved ones pleading
with her to keep pure and true and
upright. as she ought to have been.
Will you continue to disregard the
Christian teachings Of your youthful
days?
But do the lessons Of Lots wife end
here3 No. Drawing near today to the
Abrahamic encampment we hear
great strife and turmoil. The herdmen
Of Lot and the herdmen Of his uncle are
In bitter strife. Perhaps the cause of
the quarrel was down at the we'll when
the men were drawing water. Perhaps
the struggle was due to one shepherd
persisting In his claims that he had a
right to all the grass in one valley.
Anyway. the row was on. and the elm.
ployees appealed to their masters for
settlement Of the difficulty. That even.
ing Abraham and his foster son deter.
mined to part They came to the con.
clusion that as their focks were so
great and the pasture SO scant they
had better separate and each 20 his
own way. But Abraham. with the one
parental spirit. said to his foster son:
my boy, you can have your choice Of
the land for your future home. Then,
after you have made your selection. I
viii make NINE"
Then what happens? The Bible says
that Lot went to Sodom because the
grass was rich and the pasture good.
But reading between the lines I think
l can tell other reasons for the choice.
That night when the great shepherd en-