The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1909-02-26

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| mate friend, or your classmate. IL
| you have any great JOY you must tell
Simon. Simon is so near you. so dear
| 10 you, such a large part OF your life.
IL you read good book, you lend 10
| 10 him; II YOU see a good play, YOU
| tell him about IL; IL you get new
| light on any subject, you talk IL over
with him. Joseph finds happiness
and honor in Egypt. but the moment
! he has an opportunity he says: "ie
shall haste and so up and tell my
| father of all my glory in Egypt" So
! the woman OF Samaria had 10 go
straight into the village and tell the
| people all the things Christ had told
! her
The next thought shall be one OF
| boundless encouragement. One thing
! that Andrew did outweighed thou
sand times all the other good accom-
plished by his whole life-his hand
caught Simon. and brought about that
! change OF name at which all the an
gels in heaven are still rejoicing.
Jesus looked upon him and said:
| Thou art Simon, the listener, the
wanderer, the useless. Thou shalt be
! called Cephas, Peter. the rock, and
! upon this rock | will build My church,
/ against IL. Jesus read the charac.
ter OF Peter by divine wisdom, per-
! ceiving all his strength and his in
firmity. To Peter there must have
! been. in the simple words, something
! like lightning and the thunderbolt.
! for he recognized one who had put
! the finger on the weak spot of his
nature, and had pointed him TO the
method Of securing the one quality he
| needed-firmness like the rock, gran
! ite consistency.
OF the Twelve, Peter stands fore
most. However different bodies OF
! Christians may be opposed in their
/ ideas OF Peters dignity, nothing less
can be said of him than that on the
! foundation of his faith and courage
| the fabric of Christendom rests, while
| every believer on earth to-day is In a
| sense his child. But the great fact
! is that Christ did not directly draw
Peter, but that Andrew found him
! and brought him TO Jesus. What
| JOY had Andrew all his life, and what
! joy has he to-day, and what Joy
! will he have 10 all eternity Christ
! could have secured Peter in a thou
! sand other ways, but Andrew was
allowed the honor, in part. no doubt,
| TO encourage all the weak and the
| poorly qualified TO labor with an
! abundant hope.
often Andrew is a woman. You
/ remember Monica's prayers and tears
! at last drew her mighty son, whom
! the church OF all later ages reyeres
! as St. Augustin, TO the Christ she had
! herself already found. And there
! was another woman, keeping coun-
| try tavern in England, believing that
! her son possessed the power TO be
useful for Christ, and cramping her
! self TO send him 10 a classical school
! and then TO Pembroke College, OK
| ford, and at last giving the world the
| renowned evangelist, George White
| field.
Andrew had only to touch one who
! sat next him at the family board.
| Your hand may have to stretch very
| far to find the man who Is waiting
| for you. At great missionary meet
/ ing / met those whom love for Christ
| had sent to the heart of Africa, 70 the
! great cities OF China, "to India's coral
strand Sometimes the arm gathers
strength as il stretches and makes
wider and wider sweeps There was
| DR.. Grenfell, the medical student i'm
/ London, who became convinced that
his religious life had been a humbug
As he reached out he found some
ragged lawless boys in the slums.
Them he brought TO the Master. The
arm reached farther and embraced
the deep sea fishermen around the
/ English coast Then the arm
stretched all the way across the At
| lantiC and took i'm the seamen and
/ their families in Newfoundland and
Labrador.
Let me add two general counsels.
I'm leading others TO Christ, begin
. with those dearest 10 you. When
Jesus commanded His disciples to 90
10 all nations, He added, "bpginning
at Jerusalem Return 10 thine own
house and show how great things God
hath done unto thee"
There is one argument you can al.
ways use with immense power. Say
TO the careless, 10 the men and the
women who reject the Gospel without
really knowing anything about It, say
to them. Give Christ a fair trial
To Andrew and John following Him.
Jesus said, What seek ve?" And
when they replied, Rabbi. where
dwellest Thou" He answered, Come
and see In that same spirit of con.
HIeh't, lie meets an luqurlng WOri1
to-day.
He welcomes all who will come
The honest inquirer who would know
His claims and on what rests the sal.
vation lie bestyws, is cordially in.
vited. The Nazareue does not now
travel along dusty roads; lie trnads
the sapphire payements, yet still IL
He tender and sympathetic toward
the darKened and inquiring spirits as
when He walked on the beach al
Galilee. His cry still is. "If any man
thirst, let hin come unto Me
The Gospel has nothing 20 conceal:
10 courts Investigation; n asks for the
most rigid scrutiny. Come and see.
So the believer to-day SAYS, "One
thing / know, that whereas was
blind, now ] see:" one thing I know,
her ways are ways OF pleasantness. "
Jesus Christ has given attraction 70