The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1910-02-04
9bort 9ermona
For
aunNap DaIf-Ec1,
Theme:
GODS SECOND BEST.
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BY REV. DR.. C. A. JOHNSTON ROSS

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Text: I. Samuel 22; "For the Lord
will not forsske His people for His
great names sake because II hath
pleased the Lord to make you Hls
people. Moreover as for me, God for
bid that ! should sin against the Lord
In cessine to pray for you; but ! will
teach you the good and the right way.
Only fear the Lord and serve Him In
truth with all your heart; for consider
how great things He hath done for
you. But " ye shall still do wickedly.
ye shall be consumed, both you and
your King"
II man has blundered and played
the fool in the management OF his
life, missing his chances and throw
ing foulness about his spirit, how far
may that man, il anxious to do well,
look for the recovery OF lost ground
and the renewal Of opportunity? That
is the question which ] purpose to
deal with tonight or course the un.
teachable fool must simply look for
ing Of a man anxious to redeem his
life, and the question / want to dis.
cuss is this: Is there for such a man
a second chance? For all know such
man may have come into this church
tonight; and how long he may have
been worried with this question, and
in how many churches he may have
tried to get light upon it, God alone
knows. But II there is secC nd
chance for the man II is tremendously
important that the man should know
Its nature and extent II man has
been depressed by failure and is real
ly ashamed OF his foolishness he has
almost a right to be made aware of
the existence Of the process Of divine
repair. II such a process really exists.
And it is equally important that he
should understand the limitation Of
such process OF divine repair for SAL
walton, lest he should be too tempted
to count upon divine indulgence,
which does not, as matter of fact,
exist. or else he should be temr'ed
to count upon the providential re0r-
dering OF his life, which will not tNEe
place.
What. precisely. does forgiveness
meant What does 1t involve? If u
means that when one is sorry for sin.
God is glad to hear OF II, that i6 a
very ereditsble representation of God.
But surely it means more than that.
Does II mean that God not only up
proves the mans penitence. but as
sists him! Does forgiveness involve
the recovery of lost ground? That is
what We want to know. Is It leeiti-
mate for a man to look forward, II ne
accepts Christ, to a real restoration Of
life, strength and hope? II is on the
rock of that question that the message
Of religion is most often split, either
on being mispreached or misunder-
stood. Men see for themselves that
life becomes more and more tangled;
that habit grows in power; that il is
impossible to put the clock back;
that wrongdoing sticks and clings and
ones COMMISSIONS and failures tend to
lose their negative power and In time
become stumbling blocks, and we are
in the entanglement produced by sin.
and then we hear the message OF sal
vation. Woe betide the religion which
then holds out false hopes to the man.
Thousands OF men are asking: What
do you preachers mean precisely by
the forgiveness of sin! Personally,
believe with all my heart and soul in
the forgiveness OF sin. There is a GER
tain process, q principle. to whic" I
want TO call your attention. and
want to give that principle certain
name, which name. ! warn you, is not
absolutely accurate, but which Is brief
and approximate to accuracy. 1t is
not my thought; have borrowed IT,
The name iH this: Gods second
best" believe. II we are to under
must hold this truth OF Gods second
best" | will try To illustrate this.
First of all, the Bible shows that the
Jewish people were designed to stand
before the nations OF the world ns
the people of God, being obviously led
and guided by the immediate spiritual
control of the one true God. As q
scholar, now dead put II, Israel was
to De 80 passiOnately devoted to God
ana to be 30 sensitive to the divine
will that Israel was to need no hu-
man rule OF government to compel
them to do right. They were TO live
In the immediate intercourse with
God" Israel had no king at the be-
ginning They we're under Co.'s
care and they were to stand before
the world as an object lesson.
That was IsTaeis first best. The
books Of Judges and Samuel tell the
story Of I1aePs degeneration from
this flypt best. There came a time
when the people said 1t was absolute
ly necessary that they should have a
king. Bamuel was grieVed at this de-
nbeyate Pronunciation of Gods frSt
best, and demonstrated. But the peO
pie pressed him, and he prayed 10
Jehovah, and when he had done 30 he
A. .Nt II l. ~.