The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1912-02-08

friends urge him to look and live, but
he refuses saying. II am net elected.
predestinated, not foreordained TO
lie saved" Ito refuses to look and
In consequence dies. Whose fault
was It? Why" you say, his own
Yes, OF course. and 1t will be your
own fault IL you refuse to look to
Jesus Christ, who was nailed to the
cross for you, and live. IL you are
lost. you. and you alone, will be to
blame. God has done all that an ON
nipotent creator can do, For God
so loved the world land you are part
CT it, that he gave his only begot-
ten son that vhosoevcr land that
means YOU'D will believe In him need
not perish but have everlasting life"
Suppose you and l and others were
locked in prison tonight, we we're
sentenced for life, but the governor
Of the state should come to our pri-
son, tomorrow morning and offer each
one OF US a pardon. Would you ex-
pect to be set free II you refused that
pardon? God offers to pardon every
one who will forsake Sin and ask
for mercy. But IL you refuse that
mercy and reject that pardon what
chance have you to be saved? You
can do absolutely nothing in this life
without the action of your will. You
cannot lift your hand, open a book.
rise to your feet, come forward, or
leave this rccm without willing TO
do so. That will of yours is the only
thing in the universe that God
never touches. 1t is the one thing
that makes you higher than the
beast. God made US free moral agents,
he has delegated to US tho right to
accept or refuse even the pardon
CT God himself. He forces no one
TO do wrong. he coerces no one to
do right. He urges US to do right,
he tells US Of his love, he promises
Gs untold blessings here and here
after II we do choose the right and
Eo warns us Of the awful conse-
quence OF sin II we do wrong, but
he leaves the choice to us. Before
there can be any new birth, justifi-
cation, or regeneration, before God
can do anything for us, there must
be yielding of our Wills to his will,
a filial surrender of our all to God.
God is pleading with you here to-
night, he 10 urging you to forsake
sin and believe on Jesus. You can
do this If you will. 1t is up to you.
You have no right to think you
are not amcng the elect for in 2
Peter 1:l0 VIC arc told to give dill
gence to make our calling and cleo
ton sure. You have something to do
and you win never know that you
are among tho elect until you DO
your part by yielding your all 10
God, and you are just as able to o.
hey God as you are to obey the rules
Of this school and the laws Of this
state and naticn. 1t is just as much
your duty to yield your will in low
ing obedience to God as 1t is to D.
hey your parents, or the laws of
the land. and II you refuse to do
il and make tho excuse that you
are not elected you are n rebel a.
gainst the authority Of Almighty God
who commands all men everywhere to
repent. You will all agrco to the
fact that VIC are Gods creatures,
living in his world. eating the food
he provides, dressing in the clothes
that he gives us power to produce,
breathing his air. using his gold and
silver. We brought nothing into the
world and VIC can take nothing out
but character. All material thing
belong TO him. II this is true, do
we not owe him loving obedience
and service? Every influence that
draws us toward God, the songs, the
prayers, the testimony. tho personal
invitation and the sermon are all in