The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1915-04-09

their neighbors. If at the close
of this service tonight [ went
out and got drunk, the people OF
this church would not allow me
to preach here again, and every
person in town would know all
about what had happened before
tomorrow night.
The newspapers would come
out with big headlines, Preacher
Gone Wrong: Evangelist Jones
got drunk while conducting a
series of meetings. This would
be- copied in all the newspapers
where l have ever held meet
lngs; 1T would travel faster than
all the sermons | have ever tried
to preach.
"But might come to your
house tomorrow and spend the
afternoon gossiping about a
brother minister or about your
neighbor across the street and
yet be looked upon as consist
ent Christian and remain in
any church in town in good
standing. If l had to choose be-
tween two evils, [ would rather
be a drunkard and have my nose
as red as this hymnbook, than
to be a gossiper gadding about
the community sowing the seeds
Of hell.
''In a certain Pennsylvania
town where | conducted meetings
some years ago. there was a
large class of people who claimed
to be entirely sanctified. The
acid test Of this state of grace,
according to the scriptures, is
the tongue, therefore l said to
these persistent brethren, Stick
out your tongue and | can soon
tell whether you are sanctified.
Are you a busybody? Do you dc
light in whispering bits of scan
dial? Then you are not sanctified
for as the Divine. Writer said,
LII any man among you seem
to he religious, and bridleth not
his tongue, that mans religion
is in vain.'
"Some Of you church members
think it a terrible sin tO % IN
the movies or attend a respect
able theater and yet you would
gladly rehearse some morbid
scandal or suggest some un.
charitable motive for Mrs. So.
and So 3 going to Fargo. 1 have
known of husbands and wives
to he separated and children
scattered because of one or two
gossips in a community. Young
men have become disheartened
and young women have been
driven to despair because of old
Mother Grundy and her allies.
Christ referred to class of pao-
pie who went about with :in un-
der the tongue as a. sweet NOR
sci, and if you are at all in doubt
as to whether you belong to this
class Of evil-doers, it can readily
be determined b your anxiety
to tell others what they say and
Of course all this you learned 'on
good authOrity.
IF Your salvation don't save
you today, it won't save you in
the sweet bye-and4bye. | would
not give four cents for this Bible
and the religion that We pro-
claim if it didn't make me good
man today and help me to over
come these miserable traits Of
character which destroy not only
the happiness of life but the
souls Of men. The highest con-
ception some people seem to
have of Christianity is that Jes-
us died a long-time-ago to save
us from hell away off in the fut-
ure. But the real truth is, Chri:
is saving men every day from
these sins which so easily be-
set us and He declared that if
we follow Him day by day we
shall not walk in darkness but
shall have the light Of life He
did not say if we assent to
some creed or phase of religion,
but he that 'followeth Christ is
certain of the reWard.'