The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1905-10-05

the divine mercy. All OF THIS is ~
! tractive as speculation. The truth is.
there is no adequate warrant in the
Holy Scriptures for any such hopes.
God says. BE not deceived" God in
SiSts that the eternal life is har-
vest following seed sowing.
In practice, 100, there are dangerous
theories. for "as man thinketh IN
his heart. so is he" If he makes him.
self believe that everything is coming
out al right. irrespective Of his con-
duct, his belief will affect his conduct
II a man argues himself to feeling that
if Gcd cannot receive him iEto heaV-
! en,y realms, He will put him out of
his misery. annihilate him. the ten
de.ncr will be for him to throw himself
into the food Of activity. whatever its
character, which promises him the full
est and most satisfactory return to his
present selfish ambition. Such atti-
tlpfes of mind, with their baneful re-
suits. are all too common. The thought
of the judgment Of God in absolute
equity in the eternal existence Of the
soul is a most admirable and effective
check upon all such human presunlp-
ton. Well may We pray with the
Psalmist. Keep back thy servant also
from presumptuous sins; let them not
have dominion over me-"
The baneful results referred to have
Illustrations in every field of endeavor.
IL no other way can I account for the
astonishing attitude Of people whom
1 am meeting often-not bad, vicious
people. either-but folks who are utter
" careless and Indifferent in relation
to this duty or that: the moral and
RELIGIOUS instruction Of their children,
Sabbath observance, the payment Of
bills due, the speaking Of the unblem-
ished truth. the holding of malice
against fellow Christians; in perfect
calmness men will argue in extenuation
of any sin in the catalogue. Then,
there is popular feeling that a man
to get along must have a pull" Char
acter, ability, the whole moral and
ractical capacity of the individual, are
discounted. This feeling is so current
that you may hear it expressed any
where. It has come to me recently
from different sources, in one case ex-
pressed by a man, in the other by a
woman. In both instances, children
are being reared. reared and trained
by professed Christians in that atmos-
phere. Most emphatically, l resent
and condemn such all attitude on the
part of any, especially Christians. It rs
specious, vicious, disastrous. "Pnil"
may secure place among men. Due
character and ability only bring honor.
Some men may be tardy in recognizing
worth. God is not. His judgments
are based on character. Again. in busi-
ness it has come to pass that too often
any legal means is considered justifia-
BILE. According as you put something
in, the greater will be your dividends
of salvation" one man of enormous
wealth and extensive business inter-
ests is reported to have said. That
something which you put in is not
money, or words, or deeds. These, one
or all, may be a symbol of that "some-
thing" The thing put in must be
self-surrender to God, an acceptance
of the Divine will as our standard OF
conduct. If Mr.. Rockefeller is desti-
tute Of this disposition Of moral self
surrender, all his great gifts are not
sufficient to win Divine approval.
None can buy the gift of God. God is
too rich to sell, and man is too poor to
buy. Any mans gifts may indeed be-
come an obstacle to favor with God
in that they may promote concelr OF
self-righteousness such as certain an
cient Pbarisees had 1t is worse than
useless for 4 man to make the church
his hobby if he gouges his fellow-men
in business every chance he gets. BE
not deceived" Remember the harvest
and be heedful of the sowing.
There are men active in political life,
professed Christians, who, according to
rurlor-in some instances the runor
has been proved fact in court-are the
recipients of peculiar favors popularity
known as graft" It's custom. 9th
ers do it. they say. Yes, and it's il.
legal, dishonest; it's perjury. too. Sec
retary Bonaparte does we'll to insist
that this species Of dishonesty is
crave menace to the nation. The book
saws. "Be not deceived" I speak to
Young men. Some of you MAY hold
political position, as you now hold ousl-
ness places Of responsibility. l speak
forcefully, for, I know your possible
temptations. f.bhor any moral COM
promise in politics, in business or in
social life. The man who LEADS
double life is a doomed man. He may
not be condemned to prison by Jury
Of his peers; his integrity may escape
question because of prevailing laxltF
or personal shrewdness. But. BE not
deceived: God is not mocked." BE
sure YOUR sin will find you out All
souls reap, gathering rs they have
sown. Thank God, there are men,
many of them here and everywhere,
who are above reproach. May their
tribe increase.
So we deceive ourselves. In our sell.
deceive ID state, we may find sort OF
comfort; we are with the crowd; cur
chances are as good as anothers; we'll
turn over a new leaf. now or hereafter.
God is not mocked." We cannot treat
God contemptuously, as we may our
fellows. AS truly as seed brings Ike
harvest, so truly our deris!on OF Goa
resolves itself into despair. The insult
to Deity always reverts to the insulter.
Men must not find comfort in the
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