Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1907-07-26


~ and Overwhelmingly driving home
TO the sinful heart mans direct respon.
sibility 10 God. He was saving.
Christ came to save you. Christ will
save you. Christ will save Won now.
BY his help will you come forward ana
sign the pledge and make n covenant
with CHRISTI" He did NOT hotbe,.
much about prohibitive laws. He did
not work much through Legislative
mans. But he tried to bring the sinful
neart OF man In close touch with low
Ing and forgiving Saviour.
Now, we have been hearing n great
deal about the temperance work of
this day. We have heard about the
prohibition movement and the anti
saloon movement and the women's tenn
perance organizations, and they are all
good. No one wished all these differ
ent movements godspeed more than
did Francis Murphy. But. though
Francis Murphy was In sympathy with
any movement that would helm stop
the liquor evil. he put the chief en-
phasis of his labors upon bringing the
individual man in touch with Christ
and saving man as an Individual and
not in the bulk. And Francis Murphy
was right. This world will never be
saved from the curse of intoxicating
drink through the legislative halls of
our state and national capitals. If It
is to be saved at all. 1t must be saved
by the saving power of Christ and the
influence of the pledge. Do you sup
pose you could make this Christian
nation merely by passing strict Sab
batic laws or by building new churches
on every street cornerP No. Tenn
perance laws are right in themselves.
But, after all, the mightiest work of
the temperance reformers OF the future
is to do what John B. Cough did and
Jerry McAuley did and Samuel Had
ley did and Francis Murphy did, and
that is to bring sinful man by the old
fashioned pledge in touch with the
saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He Set Them to Work.
But there is one more thought that
forces itself upon us. Francis Murphy
became the successful temperance re-
former he was because no sooner did
he win a convert and get man to sign
the pledge than at once he got that
man on his feet and brought him to
the platform and made him go to work
and save other drunkards. No sooner
did Francis Murphy get q Gospel grip
upon man than a once he pulled him
upon his feet and made him go to work
for temperance. My brother, can we
not today learn that divine lesson2
Can we not learn that we are develop
ed spiritually not more by what Christ
s1nnc, l.,
ing to do for Christ?
How many of those whom Francis
Murphy brought to Christ must have
been on the other side to greet him!
Perhaps that welcome is best pictured
in dream which his daughter had the
night when he was about to pass
away. She dreamed she was looking
up into the heavens. 1t was n beauti-
full, clear night and the twinkling stars
seemed to be everywhere. Every star
seemed to her TO represent the shining
face OF some immortal whom her IA
Their had won to Christ. oh, there were
thousands and tens OF thousands OF
these smiling facesl And right In the
center OF all she saw her fathers face.
1t was lighted up with the sweetest of
NAA'''NN'- -hhN AiiNiC ut WAS,
by constellation of shining faces.
each one star in his crown.
Have we met here simply to say
Few pleasant words about our departed
loved oneI Nay. If might not seem
irreverent would say that we should
feel In this service as the disciples OF
old must have felt when they were I'm
the upper chamber in Jerusalem await
Ing the coming OF the Holy Spirit after
the ascension of Christ from Mount
Olivet. They were not there to mourn
their departed Master. They were
there to get inspiration for their work
80 Ii should be with us when any sue
cessful worker drops out of the ranks.
His labor is finished, but the work is
not completed. Who will take IL I'M
and carry 1t forward? May we conse-
crate our lives to the great temperance
work as never before. May we saw.
God helping me, 1 will live for the
purpose of saving men clear down In
the mire of sin, as have never done
before" Do you say that? Then. INV
friends, 1 think the spirit OF Francis
Murphy Is descending upon us.
Copyright. 1907. by Louis Klopsch.l