The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-28
Not Hopeless Field.

Not Hopeless Field.
 Well, my brother what you say may be true Ephraim may be welded to his sins. But. when you go forth to SOW gospel seed and are tempted to leave Ephraim's land unsown, be very sure that 1t is really swamp land. Perhaps you may be making a mistake. Perhaps you are hastily pass i ing judgment of condemnation upon men whom God has not yet given up as hope less. What I do know is this: If you had lived in Christs place many of the sinners and the outcasts with whom he talked you would never have spoken to for fear of defiing your garments. Many of the thieves and robbers and the liber- l tines and the moral lepers whom he lifted up out of their sins you would never have , touched. You would have said: "It is useless. They are degenerates. They are Ephralms welded to their sins. Leave them alone" You had better be careful when you refuse to scatter the gospel seed in the shrveled heart of an outcast Even there Christ will bless your seed planting. Yes, he will bless you when you plead with devil possessed Mary, or with a libertine and murderer like David, or with a hard hearted tax collector like Zacchaeus or with even an adulteress like the woman of Samaria. Your gospel seed planting will never go astray. No matter how unpromising the human field which you SOW, those seed will never be lost Cast thy bread upon the waters for thou shalt find 1t after many days" Among the lowest and the most de- prayed characters there is always hope of salvation if we go forth with faith in Jesus Christ and scatter the right seed. Has not Christ saved many who, like Paul. have been the chief of sinners? Cannot he then save others from their sins? An impressive parable found among the Hndoos is the following: Many years | stolen money in his hand and sentenced to die The night before his execution he devised this novel plan for rescue He called the jailer into his cell and said, "Go tell the king that if ] can come to him l can tell him how to grow gold" The intelligence was carried to the king, and he said Let the culprit be brought before me-" When the thief entered the royal presence he produced a piece of gold and said: Your majesty, if this piece of gold be planted in the soil it will grow into tree every branch of which will be laden with gold, as an orchard with fruit. But this golden seed must be planted by a hand which has never been stained by dishonest act. Of course I am a thief and cannot plant this seed. My hand Is not clean, so l pass it to your majesty" The king looked at the gold a moment; then he said: "I would plant it if I could; but, alas, my hand is not clean! will pass 1t to my prime minister" The prime minister's hand was not clean, so he passed it to the governor of the citadel. The governors hand was not clean, and he passed 1t to the high priest. The high priests hand was not clean, and he passed it on to an other.
 An Ancient Legend.
 Thus the golden seed went from hand to hand. Then the thief said: Your majesty, if no mans hand is clean why should l alone die for the crime?" You are right" said the king. "If you are to die, then I must die also" Then the con- scious-stricken king pardoned the culprt because he and his officers were all sin ners alike Is the story mere legend, a fable? I think not. We say certain men are degenerates and beyond the pale of gospel hope. Are they? Are our own hands morally clean? Have we always