The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1909-06-09
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a SERMON ASGA
81 TAE REV. MX&
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
Theme: To-day.

text, PSalm 1911. lo-uds.
that entertaining and stimulating
volume Orthodoxy" Mr.. Gilbert
Chesterton delivers himself OF tnls
pungent remark: Gall Christianity
concentrates on the man at the cross
roads," For, says he, "The true phl-
losophy is concerned with the In
slant. The instant Is really awful.
Nothing is truer, nothing more Vi
tai. r.
What a multitude Of sermons are
preached to hetheme, Where willyou
spend eternity?" What a host there
is looking toward the hereafter, How
many there are who are hoping for
tomorrow and planningfor the years
to come. Far be it from me to mini
mize the value or the need for
thought and talk about the life Of
that, undiscovered country from
whose bourne the traveller no more,
entering, returns. We can not too
much direct the attention Of men
and the times to eternity. Would
that we might be as s~trenuously abb
stract and spiritual and forethought-
full in our thinking and preaching as
we are coldly practical. The king
dom of heaven truly is here or no.
. where, but for US it is more there
! than here. This life Is but a seq
ment Of that wonderful and illimit-
able eternity to which God ever calls
us on. AS Keats so beautifully sings:t
"The One remains, the many change and
pass;
Heavens light forever shines, earth's
shadows fly;
Life, like a dome of many colored glass,
Stains the white radiance of eternity, I
Until death tramples it to fragments.
i Longer shall we live there than
here. Here we %sojourn, there in the
|, providence Of God we shall abide.
To-day is important none the less.
The measure of our living here con1
ditions our living there. Our talent-
using in this life indicates our value
in the next. How we see God here
determines our vision of Him in the
heavenly abodes. To-day Is impor-
tant. The instant is impressive.
"Now" Is indeed noteworthy. 4To-
day." says the Psalmist, IF ye will,
hear His voice." +
%Be wise to-day; tits madness to defer; Y
Next day the fatal precedent will plead;
Thus on, till wisdom is pushed out of life.
Procrastination is the thief Of time;
Year after year it steals, till all are fled,
And to the mercies of q moment leaves
The vast concerns of an eternal scene" ?
May we, as Edward Young, per-
ceive the wonder and the awfulness
Of the divine responsibility that rests
or us ~momentarily to be careful to-
ward the concerns Of the ages.
The future depends on to-day.
~Defer not tillto-morrowto be wise"
Eternity rests upon our present
choice. There can be no tomorrow
till there has been to-day. The char-
acter Of tomorrow lies helpless In
the grasp Of to-day. The sins and
progress Of the men who are alive
will mar or make the future Of the
generations yet unborn.
The day that Esau sold his birth.
right to assuage the gnawing Of his
hunger that day he marked his char
acter forever, and Jacob left an ever
lasting explanation to be made.
When Moses set his face steadfastly
! away from the leeks and garhcs and
the honors OF, an alien court in that
moment the face Of history was
changed. When Abraham Lincoln
came up out Of the valley Of decision
| the slave was free.
Every choice Is decisive. Each
moment, is momentous.
Happy the man, and happy he alone,
+ He who can call to-day his own;
He who, secure within, can say,
Tomorrow, do thy worst, for I have lived
to-day.
God and the thoughtful know the
value Of to-day. It's use is a fine
art. Its value is Unreasonable. Its
possibilities are infinite. It's appeal
Is heart-searching. Its misuse Is q
crime and a g%rievous sin.
We ought to utilize to-day with
care. It means much how we face
Satan and stand firm for God. Weak
! and unimportant a We may judge
ourselves to be alone, yet our aggre-
! gated decisions are impelling and our
compounded use of time has an ever
lasting bearing. Perchance the &C.
! lions of one of US may determine the
course of the onward march Of men.
Most important is to-day in the
life Of the soul. To-day alone Is
ours. The future, as the past, is with
God. Let US say with Wesley:
"Lo! on a narrow neck of land,
Twixt two u~nbounded seas I stand"
Let US decide for eternity Let US
use to-day for the good of the days
that are to be. for the happiness OF
our hearts forever.
When to Be Most Glad.
Has Christ become TO us such /.