Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1905-08-04
THE FLOOD.
BY Rev. A. heIdrum.

AAN NV ASAN SAo eAN0
Noah, Come thou and all thy house
into the ark; for thee have 1 seen
righteous before me in this genera
ton" Genesis II.
In the 9th, 7th and 9Th chapters Of
Genesis, we have the best accoun Of
the greatest flood this world has ever
seen. | say the best account, for we
are not entirely dependent upon the
divine record concerning this awful in
undation. For, be it remembered, that
the peoples of the earth, whether popu-
lating the plateaux Of Persia, the
mountains Of India, the prairies Of
have had handed down to them, by
the past generations, the tradition of
the Great Flood. Tablets, ~excavated
from the debris Of dead cities, corrobo-
rate the Mosaic account. The fossil
lied mOllusks and brachipods, found
upon the mountains, tell Us that once
their tall tops were submerged in wa
ter, and that they undoubtedly owe
their colossal grandeur to an aqueous
origin. Hence the famous Scottish,
geological genius was forced to ex-
claim, ''The evidence is in the rocks"
The building of the Ark must have
furnished a vast amount of jokes for
the jester, talk for the tattler, and
questions for the curious. Imagine
for a moment, If you please, an i'm
mense timber yard on a great plain.
Beams piled here, and boards there,
kettles of boiling, smoking pitch stand
ready for use, while the constant
clang of busy hammers announces the
work begun. And Noah, Shem, Hem
and Japheth are laying the keel, and
building the bulwarks Of the biggest
boat of the ancient world. 1t Is not
surprising that those faithless antedi-
~luvians should look on in amazement
first, then Indifference, then ridicule
and disgust. Year after year they
came, and steadily the ark grew in
bulk and beauty. More and more en-
thusiastic did the preacher plead with
the people, emphasizing repentance,
with every blow that fell upon the tim
bers. But, like many a sermon Of the
present day, the message was unheed-
ed, and Noah closed his n hundred
and twenty years mission without a
single convert.
Noah loaded the ark according to the
commandment of God, and then he,
and his wife, and his three sons, and
their wives went in and God closed the
door of the ark.
God has declared that He will again
destroy this world, and the wicked
that dwell therein. But, according to
his promise, We look for new heavens
and a new earth, wherein dwelleth
righteousness" Water will not be the
element Of destruction the mex time,
but fire. 1.-The heavens that now are
and the earth, by the same word have
been stored up with fire, being reserv-
ed against the day of Judgment and de-
struction Of ungodly men," God has
given the world a foretaste Of its i'm
pending doom, by the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah.
As Noah warned the anteuiluvians
to cease to do evil and learn to do well,
so l call upon you, in the name Of the
Master, to quit your meanness and
prepare to meet your God. o fellow
sinners, be warned! Think not to say
within yourselves, 1--WE have no need
Of Jesus" For l declare unto you that
no arm but Christ's can deliver you,
no power but his can save you and no
blood but his can redeem you. Turn
your back upon sin and all its delu-
sions. Flee from the wrath to come
and take refuge in the arms of Jesus,
and he will save you with an everlast-
ing salvation.