The Raymer enterprise., 1912-08-15

times apart. AS
= personalities, each
recognizes that
there Is some obligation to seek each
other, yet the obligation on Gods
part to seek man Is somewhat din.
cult to understand. Man obviously
ought to seek God, he ought to be
asking the question, Where shall 1.
hnd him" but God anticipates man
In this search and comes frequently
and asks. as In the text, Where art
thou" This being the case. there is
presented for our consideration in the
text as whole: (D God seeking man;
(2) Man keeping, away from God, by
hiding or otherwise: (3) The soul.
experience that compels him to move
to God.
l. God is seeking man. This Is not
'he normal situation, for man ought
10 be seeking God with the whole
heart. everything else being as moth.
Ing In comparison. God is seeking
man, not with the intent apparently
that he sought Adam in the Garden
OF Eden, which was for the purpose
OF reproof. or punishment. God not
only is seeking man. but wishes to be
sought for by man. as the hymn writer
Faber 80 beautifully sings:
God loves TO be ionged for. he loves TO
be sought
For h. sought US himself with such
longing md love,
And he died for desire OF us. marvellous
thought,
And he ycarns for-ps now 10 be with
his above"
There Is not man away from God
but for whom God longs. and will go
any distance TO find.
There were ninety and nine that safely
lay
In the shelter OF the fold.
But one was out on the hills nway.
Far on from the gates OF gold
Away on the mountains wild and bare,
Away from the tender Shepherds care.
Lord. thou hast here thy ninety and
nine;
Are they not enough for thee7
But the Shepherd made answer: This OF
mine
Has wandered away from me.
And although the road be rough and
steep
] go 10 the desert to And my sheep"
2. But Just as prominent as the
search OF God for man Is mans con.
stant refusal to be found. AS Adam
fed from the Lord. as Jonah tried to
get away from the obligation to
preach at Nineyeh. as the prodlgal
fed to a far country and wasted his
substance In riotous living. 80 man
does today. Touched by the Spirit OF
God. the church. through Its many
agencies. Is putting forth effort to
reach man. Its doors have always
been open. and rarely Is the church
found that does not welcome all
classes to its services. In recent
years Gods people are going out after
men In all places where they may be
found. The gospel Is preached in
places not dedicated to divine wor-
ship-in tents, on street corners, and
elsewhere. and 1t Is difficult for a man
within christendom to get beyond the
invitation Of the gospel, and yet he
will not yield to II.
3. But there Is reason for this as
suggested In the text; It is the con.
sciousness OF shame, II was naked and
| hid myself" 1t must be conceded
that there are multitudes who do not
seem to have God In any OF their
thoughts. they live apparently as the
beasts OF the field. they seem to have
no consciousness whatever that they
are more than creatures Of day,
mere ephemera. But the man or
woman who may be beguiled to read
these words Is not such a person. In
some way he senses God. He has an
intuition. as We might say. which prob.
ably teaches him his personal respon.
sibility.
Is that a misfortune? Far from It.
It Is the dawn Of hope. It is the soul.
pain that tells Of possible return to
spiritual health secured through per.
feet communion with God. Grateful
should the man be who thus becomes
uneasy. yea, faces God and talks with
him. In this day the grace OF God 10
seeking man. not to reproye him only.
not to punish him. but TO bless him;
be is not willing that any should per.
ish.
It may be said that the man who
Is discovered by God. discovers. or
finds. himself; he comes to himself
as the prodigal did. and Is then not
far from starting back to the Fathers
house. As the cry recently has been
with many Back to Christ" we
night say that the cry should now
| rather be Back To 9od."