Arizona republican., 1911-09-11

on, the fig leaves or human ueNls- ing to which men have ever resorted to cover up their souls nakedness. Well nigh every unsaved man has his loom: and with this loom he is busy weaving, weaving a garment which he hopes to wear in the great day-a garment of good resolution, q garment of morality, a garment of ceremonial ism. a garment of charity; and in these garbs of his own making does he hope to find entrance into the so- ciety of the redeemed.
 Poor deceived souli How blind he is Worthy resolutions we eacn should make and do our utmost to keep; a moral life must everyone seek to live; to be baptized and to become a mem Der of church is the duty of every child of grace; a charitable use of means is a duty every one who can must gladly perform. But these things can no more constitute a robe of righteousness fit for heavenly entrance than the fig leaf aprons of our fore parents would be viewed as a becom- | ing garb for their entrance into hu- man society now.
 But why speak thus? Sometimes it ! seems almost useless for the pulpit to warn against the futility of man made schemes of salvation. For when the sermon is done you will always find some who are ready to jump up and say: Well if I do the best I can. if I join church and attend ser vices. if I treat my fellow men fairly, | if I be true to my resolution to do unto others as I would have them do unto me. if do all this think I will be properly clothed for the coming of the Bridegroom"
 Did you ever consider, my friend. that truth is truth no matter what you | think about it?
 ] There was time in my life when I did not seem to know that. My mother cautioned me not to put my tongue to l the frosted hatchet I did not know that my attitude to the truth would not change the truth. So I placed my tongue to the hatchet. and got loose only by the application nf warm water to the part that persisted in sticking.
 Even Abraham Lincoln seemed once to ignore the great principle that ones view of truth does not alter the truth. As I was reading again the history Of the stirring days of the sixties I was | surprised to learn that plot was put on foot to take the great mans life en route to the inauguration at Wash ington. Some friends warned the new | ly elected president that his enemies in Baltimore were preparing to slay him as he went through Lincoln would not listen at first. and he in sisted on passing through Baltimore on the hour first arranged. But when
 warned bv second party. who inde- pendent of the first had learned about the plot he changed his mind. feeling that it would not he the part of wis dom for the nations executive to run such unnecessary risk. Consequently the schedule was changed. and the en-
 emy were outwitted.
 Now Lincoln might have persisted in his belief that he would he un- harmed He might have adhered to his first plan. hut if SD he would doubt 'ess have been slain at the outset of his presidential experiences instead of on April 14. 1865. by the bullet of John Wilkes Booth For truth is not de-
 termined by what men think: truth is what is. whatever men think, or whether they think at all.
 Now my friends you may be honest
 in your belief that the garments of your own weaving will constitute a I II ~1nVfe f.a hr worn in His eternal presence. But your belief does not make it so any more than LincOln's belief would have made him safe when death was turk ing in the way There is a way that
 seemeth right unto man but the end
 thereof is death"
 2.-The robe of Christ's righteousness
 is sufficient because it is woven from within outward It begins with the heart where the real trouble lies. The garment of mans works is insuffi- cient because it is woven from with out inward It seeks to change the
 heart by controlling the tongue. re- straining the hand and directing the
 feet And you can no more do that
 that you can anchor a ship in mid air.
 One day a big. rugged looking man
 who had been very profane and a hard drinker claimed conversion. The min
 ister felt that it behooved him to ex- ercise special spiritual oversight over
 the new convert So he went as ire quently as his duties would permit out to the farm where the man lived. On one of these visits he failed to find the brother. and going to a christian neighbor he inquired as to how the new christian was coming on. 70. he
 is just doing grand said the neigh bor. Yesterday he was blowing the
 field adjoining the one on which
 was working. and his horses got to acting so mean that I trembled, fear ing that the old habit of swearing
 would prove too strong for him. Fi-
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