Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1909-01-07

feelings or the Intellect; It Is not
what man knows, or what he feels,
but what he Wills to be and do, that
makes him Christian and a man!
If you want something that is going
to push you Immediately up to the
higher levels of life and give you a
kingly attitude before God and man,
listen to this: You are what your
will Is, not your knowledge or feel
ings. At the Battle of Waterloo.
both Napoleon and Wellington knew
that the old farmhouse at Hougou-
mont was the strategic point in the
conflict; whoever held Hougoumont
would win Waterloo! So man wins
moral rule over the world just as he
Is in possession of his will and its
conscious exercise. To lose his will
Is to lose the most divine element In
his nature; to lose It Is to be insane.
A friend Of mine in good circum-
stances-good enough to take me
riding in his own carriage-got the
Wall Street fever; he presently sold
out his business and went on the
STREET." but the "Street" soon sold
him out! That's Wall Streets way.
The man was beside himself. When
met him, he explained how 1t was.
He said: "The one difficulty Is that
I have no will; I have lost my will,
not my reason, not my love for my
family, or ny interest in life, but my
will" I urged him to hold on, to
attempt the exercise of choice: but It
was of no help to him, and to-day
he Is in an insane asylum, where he
will probably remain for the rest OF
his life. So every man who has lost
his will Is practically insane. too; just
as every man who has the power to
will has the power to win In the bat
ties of life and assert his manhood
under any circumstances.
The true Christian Is the kingly
man everywhere in the world, In
Japan and America alike!
When you begin to talk about
man, 1t Is a question of his will, not
of his ignorance or his unbelief II
a man is not Christian 1t Is because
he is unwilling to give up sin. 1 will
tell you-although you know 1t your.
self, God knows 1t and the devil knows
it-your sin, something in your life
you are unwilling to give up, alone
keeps you from God; 1t ia something
that lies deep down in your heart,
and you don't want to drop 1t out.
II man has the habit of SHINING
he may become so used to 1t that he
sins mechanically, and may cease to
regard 1t as sin. If religion Is to be
real and practical, a man must say u
will will give up my SIM"
The second thing I want to talk
about Is, "Unwillingness to do Gods
WILL" When you know the will OF
God you begin to see the hideousness
of sin, and you will curse the hour
that you turned your heart away
from God and good; you will wish
you had never seen the vision or His
love. Think of the grand message of
God to man, Of it's beauty, Of it's ten.
derness. and you'll wish you never
you turn from your sin. Here 1t is:
"Whosoever will. may come" IF
man will, he may take Of the Water
of Life" And the most pathetic
words Jesus ever uttered are these:
"Ye will not come unto Me that we
might have Life!" Oh, how black is
sin when it will draw forth such
words from the Son Of God. When
you left the wife and the home, and
went away to meet sin, you put your
foot out and crushed the beautiful
flower of the Fathers love! We
think of such a case; she told us of n
herself. l had married them myself.
She was a beautiful Christian girl;
but he had gone away to sin, and
had come home again and damned
her whole physical life. l do not
think there is a hot enough corner
in hell for that man who Is willing
to wreck the soul of wife and child
and faint their blood with the conse
quences of his sin!
In closing, let me speak to you Of
the highest and holiest experience in
my life. One Sunday afternoon some
months ago l was in Jerusalem, with
leisure to do as pleased for ten days
or more. So / went through the
Damascus Gate that day, and climbed
to the crown Of Calvary, that green
hill outside the wall OF the city.
There | read the whole story OF re.
deeming love, prayed over 1t, wept
over It,; then I went to the fooy OF
the Mount of Olives and into the
Garden of Gethsemane, where, to my
uellSHt, lOuuu llySell dlOne, FROM
thence | passed down the Damascus
Road along which they brought my
Lord, and through the gate once more
into the city, and over the Via Dolor-
osa to Pilates Judgment Hall. In
Imagination. l saw the soldiers bring
Him before His judge, followed by
the priests and city rabble; and
heard their voices demanding His
crucifixion, though PLATE said, II
find no fault in Him at ALL" l heard
them clamor for the release of Bar
abbas, and saw PLATE surrender Him,
the King of Glory, to their cruel will.
Barabbas they freed; but Jesus they
crucified on Calvary! This is the
question before you men to-day:
Jesus or Barabbas' holiness or
sin! Every man who turns his back
to-day on Jesus Christ takes Barabbas
and lives in his sin! Which will you
choose?