The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1909-07-02

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streets the mar
Gospel to the wicked and irreli-
glous. He opened the gates of heaven,
that he might entice his people into
the Fathers house. He opened the
gates of hell that they might see the
fire that is not quenched," and the
worm that dieth not" IL was Jesus
who did this-not Milton nor some
medieval monk. And he did 1t be-
cause love prompted him to be faith
full and tell the whole truth. He went
into every department of human life,
from the cook mixing the meal in
the kitchen to the king on his throne
inviting to his sons marriage, that he
might get an illustration, handle by
which the people might take hold of
the truth. Let us come after Jesus
in his methods
In fishing there must be skillful
adaptation. There are fish that you
cannot catch singly. They go in
schools. They do not bite hooks. If
you ever catch a fish of that kind
the whole school, There are people
like these fish. They are fond of
crowds. They go together They will
come to the great assembly, and when
they hear witnesses testify for Christ
they will believe the testimony. When
they see people so into the after
meeting they will go with them; when
hr.ic
they will be encouraged to confess.
You can reach that class of people
only through the crowd. They are So
cial beings and you must touch them
in their social nature.
There are other fish that do not go
in schools. Like the brook trout, they
hide in out-ofthe-way places. They
Gco timid and wary A fly out of sea-
son has no attraction for them. The
fisherman must keep out of their
sight, and ii he breaks a stick he has
lost his chance OF catching that fish
There are men of this kind. They
dislike the crowd They are timid.
They do not like the personal APP
proach. If you go in the open you will
wisdom of God in tactful approach,
that we may say just the right word
and speak it in the right spirit. Nico-
demus could hardly have been won in
a crowd-that meditative. thoughtful,
inquisitiye mind. He wanted the quiet
of the midnight hour. ana whisper
in the quiet was more TO him than a
httn in 10
could not have won the woman at the
we'll in a crowd. If Jesus had spoken
to her in the presence OF others she
would have been embarrassed and per-
haps embittered. The eunuch had
been in the crowd in Jerusalem. He
had doubtless heard the apostles
preach, but it took the quiet chariot
ride with Deacon Philip at his side.
talking in conversational tone, To win
him to the Lord.
There are others that you must
win in more heroic fashion. Saul of
Tarsus could never have been won
in quiet way. To have mentioned the
fact that you wanted him to become a
Christian would have led TO your ar
rest. 1t took the light from heaven.
the fash from God; it took the blind
ing and the dark to bring him To con-
slider and make him pray
Edward Payson, with his tones OF
tender love, put people to sleep What
they needed was Jonathan Edwards
with a thunderbolt against sin in
every paragraph. Gypsy" Smith. with
his fascinating gypsiness that has in
it the fragrance of the wild flowers
and the sweetness of the birds song
in the woods, is very attractive to
some, and they are glad TO hear the
Gospel as he breaches it.
You do not fish for trout as you do
for sturgeon. Try your trout bait on
sturgeon and you will get no fsh: try
your sturgeon bait on trout and you
will not fill your basket So do not
criticise the trout fisher because he
refuses to use the sturgeon method,
and do not criticise the sturgeon fisher
because he refuses to use the trout
method. by all means save some"
A word as to process. Come We
after me and will make you to be-
come fishers of men" II you arc not
soul winner Christ can make you
one. Just transfer the experiences OF
your business to the spiritual realm
and see how 1t works. You are
merchant? Come ye after me-" says
Jesus, and I will make you a mer-
chant of men. will help you TO deal
In goods that do not perish with the
usinQ---ln merchandise hetter than
gold" Are you a carpenter? Come
ye after me and I will make you a
carpenter OF men, building structures
OF character that will outlast marble
and granite Are you a sculptor?
Come We after me and l will make
you a sculptor OF men. chiseling into
shape that will stand after the mar.
BILE of Phidias has crumbled into
dust" Whatever your occupation. let