Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-09-30
SUNDAY SAYS THE MAN rs FOOL
THAT WILL SHEER AT A REVIVAL

stirring up people to better faith.
This is my way of filing the empty
and depleted churches. This is my
way of calling men and women
from sin to salvation. If you don't
like it l don't give a picagune,
will do it anyway"
So you will show you are fool,
whether you are a preacher or a
lay-member of the church, if you
sheer at a revival. l wouldn't give
much for you. l don't care who
you are. l don't care to know you.
A minister said to me there was
nothing he dreaded-nothing that
he loved to see so much as re-
vival, although the statement might
seem a paradox, because he said
that what would be a savior of life
in one case would be death in an
other, and while this meeting will
stir multitudes to love Jesus bet
ter. and be loving and Yirtuous and
honest, it will make others so mad
they will curse and damn and they
can't say mean enough things
about it. So this revival is pro-
ducing two opposite effects. The
same sun melts ice and hardens
clay, and so, while this revival may
melt the hearts of some and bring
them to Jesus Christ, it will make
others hard and more bitter. But
that is nothing new. 1t only
shows some are fools. that's all.
But there are lots of people to-
day that would rather go to hell
than be converted in the taber-
nacIe. You would be surprised how
many people who have sense about
other things are absolutely ignor-
amuses and fools when it comes to
religion. Absolutely! They are
intelligent people about other
things in the world. But here they
placed undue reliance in human
aid, not that you mustn't place re-
lance, for Gods cause has been
propagated through men and Wom-
en- that he can find to spread his
word up and down the land and we
are in a cause that demands hu-
man laborers, and if you don't do
Gods work it won't be done.
God could send angels down
here to preach and sing, but he
doesn't. God puts that in human
vessels, and il you don't do it it will
never be done. Therefore, God
isn't Strengthening himself. He
has power, and is strengthening his
people through whom his power
must be manifest. If they are not
right then you put the handouts
on the Lord. Now, they placed IN
due reliance in human aid
You have your best chance TO
show your grit on Jesus Christ
that you ever had in your life. I
have just given you a chance to get
your mental adjustment here for a
couple of weeks. But Christ will
never come to this or any other
city until his redemptiYe power
until the entire family of God go
out to meet him. But If God had
to wait for every preacher in this
town and every church member to
be absolutely in harmony and sym
pathy with this movement before
he saved a soul, you would be in
hell in 48 hours. He don't do it.
So God will take those that will
get right, and do want something,
and through you he will save
people.
Oh God, how the church is tying
the Lords hands nowadays instead
of getting out and doing what she
ought to do. If the entire family
of the redeemed would go out to
pray and 10 work, and TO do per-
sonal work, oh, how you would stir
not only this city, but this nation.
They had a personal interview
with Jesus. Every sinner must
come as an individual. l cant save
you and you can't save your hus-
bands. Religion is a personal mat
ter, the same as everything else is
a personal matter-food, and air,
and water, and medicine. All the
medicine that / might take if you
were i'll wouldn't cure you. 1t is
personal matter between me and
that bottle of medicine. And l
can't step in. There is no proxy
business in that, neither is there
any in religion.
Now, Lazarus was dead, and if he
was going to be raised someone
must see Jesus. Now, | believe in
societies. believe in organiza-
lions. l believe in evangeIists. |
believe in seminaries. | believe in
the pastorate. But what is needed
today is personal contact on the
part of the individual with jesus
Christ. There is too much depend
ing on the preacher to do it. There
seems to be a perpetual sign hang
ing around in every church,
Wanted, a recipe by which our
work can be accomplished by
proxy" And so you are dropping
money into the plate while God