THE LIBRARY - OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES IN MEMORY OF MRS. VIRGINIA B. SPORER V V FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN ; AS VIEWED IN THE SERMONS, BIBLE. READINGS, AND REFORM PAPERS REV. A. P. GRAVES, EVANGELIST. "FOR HERE WE HAVE NO CONTINUING CITY, BUT WE SEEK ONE TO COME." Heb. xiii. 14. TWENTIETH EDITION. CHICAGO : FAIRBANKS, PALMER & CO. 1886. COPTBIOHT, A.D. 1877, BY A. P. GRAVES. BT DoNOHP & HKNNEBKBRY, CmCAOO. TO MY PIOUS PARENTS, 'WHOSE FAMILY ALTAR HAS EXERTED A HALLOWED INPLUKNCE OTKE ALL THE YEARS OF MY LIFE, THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED, BY THE AUTHOR. 2040742 TO THE READER "THE grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you." Yielding to the judgment and request of many friends, I send forth this volume, hoping that its pages may lead every reader to the enjoyment of this benediction. The sermons, addresses and Bible readings herein contained were taken down by a stenographer verbatim, and -^vised by myself. In revision and correction I hav been assisted by Prof. H. C. Leland, who has been my efficient associate in Evangelistic work during the past year. I have not aimed in the slightest degree at liter- ary merit in the preparation of the work; therefore no table is spread for the feasting of critics. As in every effort of my Gospel meetings, so in every line of this book, endeavor has been made to bless somebody with spiritual blessings. I feel that I have but one life to live, and it will soon be over. X I am glad to give these productions to the public in this form, hoping that while I may be earnestly labor- ing to win souls in one place, the book may be at work in another, helping to swell the number of those who (7) 8 TO THE READER. shall go along with me " from earth to heaven." Will the reader now join the author in this prayer? O Lord, we are very weak and unworthy of Thy great love; but wilt Thou magnify thine own grace in us, and bless the reader, bless the author, and bless every person who shall come under the influence of the truths of this book, both in the reading and the hearing^ and bring us all to heaven at last, for Jesus' sake. Amen. A. P. G. CONCORD, Minn., September, 1877. CO^TEI^TS. PARE SHELTERED BY THE BLOOD, - . . - -27 Vital Doctrine. What the Sinner did. What God did. Slave Converted. Cain and Abel. Blood on the Door Posts. No remission without Blood. Blood means Life. Skeptical Doctrines. Consecration by Blood. Blood purges the Conscience. Victory by the Blood. Cowper's Hymn. ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN, 48 City desolated. God designs rebuilding. Alarming times of Temptation. Club Rooms. Horse Racing. Faro Bank keeper Converted. Personal Experience. Reasons why. Be sure you are right, then go ahead. Right road. STOP. Bad associates. Take care of your Soul. Crown of Queen of England. Parental Influ- ence. Profanity. Christian Ministry. Intemperance. A Student commits Suicide. Time enough yet Fu- neral Sermon. Decide now. BIBLE WORK, 72 Professor Finney's Statement. Present interest in the Bible. Bible witnesses. Henry Varley. The great Commission. Daniel Webster. Jeremiah. Schools and the Bible. Skeptical Young Man. The Bible Man's need. Moses and the Israelites. Bible in Revivals. Holy Spirit and the Bible. Personal Work. Costly Churches. Ministers and the Bible. Plea to all Chris- tians. 10 CONTENTS. PAOB GETHSEMANE, 80 Place and object of Jesus' sufferings. Worldly Pro- fessors. Lady converted by a servant's Prayer. Jesus' prayer of Agony. Little girl and Infidel Father. Win- ners of Souls will shine as the Stars. Soul agony for Kindred. Personal Testimony. Moses and Aaron. Ministers in the closet. Great Revival. The sleep of Sorrow. A wife in Agony. A husband Converted. VALUE OF THE SOUL, 96 Vast Comparison. What would you exchange. Per- sonality of question. Fact Revealed. Great Evidences. Heathen Lands. The Quaker. Tenacity of Belief. . Man who was Convinced. Testimony of the Unsaved. John Knox. Queen of Scots. If I only had! Capacity of the Soul. Joshua. Firemen's Monument. Will you save your Soul? FAITH THAT GOD ACCEPTS, Ill God is not pleased without Faith. Sources of Faith. Member of a Baptist Church. Jesus' Word Authority. Man and Note. Witnesses of Christ's ability. The Cross an Argument. Jesus at the Lake. Peter Fishing. A Union Meeting. Humility. Object of the Fishing. Leaving all to follow Jesus. EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION, 124 Conversion a vital change. Submission to God. A. Lawyer Converted. Burden removed. One passage to illustrate Conversion. Love to Christians. Church Let- ters. Man who left the Church in Anger. Two wrongs don't make a right. Ruth and Naomi. Spirit of Be- nevolence. Sectarianism. Blood of Jesus. Liberty of Christ. Saving others. Believe in Christ now. Con- verted children should join the Church. CONTENTS. 11 PAGE EIGHTEENTH CHAPTER OF MATTHEW, - - 148 Often misplaced. Chapter of Love. Unsaved Souls Disciplined. Carefully studied. A little Child. Hu- mility needed. Proud Judge. Christ reigns within. Love of Self. Self Abandoned. Angels. Ninety and Nine. Controlling Love. Rules for Discipline. Testi- mony. Agreement of Saints. Extent of Christian for- giveness. Great Love in Discipline. Laxness. Legality. Power of the Cross. ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES, .... 157 Words of Jesus. They are of great value. What is implied. Culture of Young Ladies. Extravagance in Dress. Christian Mothers and Dancing Schools. Single thing above all others needful. No failure. Perpetual Blessing. Humility. The Contrast. Counsel. Marriage. Influence of Prayer. Young Lady Saved. Death Scene. Will you choose now? ASSURANCE, 176 Path of the Just. Christians need not Backslide. Abraham Lincoln. Sinner freed from Bondage. Jesus conquers Satan. The Devil tempts in the weakest point. Consecration. Jesus defends Believers. Our High Priest. Pray boldly. The believer married to Christ. No divorce. Jesus dwells in us. Our everlasting name. Peaceable Habitations. Crucified with Christ. Christ's Inheritance. The Gospel comes in four things. Holy Persuasion. The Saints' Inheritance. Two things of immense value. HIGHER CHRISTIAN LIFE, 193 Highway of Holiness. Higher life defined. The Gift and the Giver. Christ the Governor of the Soul. The Christian Christ's bride. Full Consecration. Higher life not Sinless. Perfect salvation now. Progress in Holiness. George Mueller. Charles Cullis. Self Re- nunciation. Conquering Faith. Winning Souls. 12 CONTENTS. PAOE FAMILY RELIGION, - . 201 Personal Appeal. Process of Divine Welfare. Con- version of Whitefield's brother. Husband and "Wife Converted. French Prison. Wives should pray with their Husbands. Lady near Boston. Family Prayer. Personal Testimony. A Wife's Prayer. Backslidden Parents. Child lost. Ruined Children. This way Pa. Dear ones in Heaven. UNITED EFFORTS IN REVIVALS, ... 215 Nature of them peculiar. Approved of God. Chris- tians strengthened thereby. Ministers encouraged. Spiritual Liberty. Young Men's Christian Associations. Sunday Schools. Temperance Revivals. Ordinances no real hinderance to united Christian labor. Evangelists. Are a blessing to the Unconverted. Criticisms Dis- armed. Power of Prayer increased. Elder Knapp's Testimony. Gospel Monuments. One accord Christians. Personal Testimony. GOOD TIDINGS, ... 226 First proclamation of Jesus. Classified Meetings. Men especially need the Gospel. The Deacon's Testimony. Bondage Removed. Man in Bankruptcy comforted by the Gospel. Gospel brings great joy. Little girl in Albany saves a drunken Father. Naaman Cured. Joy for Drunkards. A Drunkard Saved. Secret Societies. The swearing Farmer Saved. Gospel fits us to Live. The Deacon and Infidel. Commendation of Religion. Personal Testimony. Peaceful dying by the Gospel. SECRET SOCIETIES, 244 Reasons why. Hints. Guarding. No controversy. Object of these Societies. Proper place for Christians to work. What is the Church ? True work of Reform. Families and Secret Societies. Detriment to personal piety. Question Answered. CONTENTS. 13 PAQK IMMEDIATE SALVATION, 349 Two needful things. The dying thief. Zaccheus. Line of Freedom. Testing the Will. Submission to God. Repentance. Boy and his Mother. Trusting. Re- ceiving Christ. Coming. Young Man and rich Uncle. Believing. Frank believed and was Saved. Confession. Source of help. Causes of Backsliding. How to stand for Christ. Commit yourself. SOCIAL AMUSEMENTS, 264 Our Creation. True Happiness. First Parents. Law of Christ. Lifting up the World. World longs for Christian society. True Holiness wanted. Dancing. Theaters. Card playing. Home recreations commended. Rules of Conduct. Ask Jesus. UNPARDONABLE SIN, - 271 Christ's Words. Proves his Divinity. Holy Spirit first agent. Hypocritical Ministers. Momentous Sub- ject. Evidences. Soul conscious that there is such a Sin. Fear in the Heart. Adam. Two tilings can hush the fear. Death of Evangelist's wife. Power of Jesus' blood. What the Sin is. Old man who had com- mitted it. Dr. Alexander's Hymn. THE HOLY SPIRIT, . 291 Personality of the Holy Ghost. He is not a bare influence. Incidental Visitations. His work in Con- version. He convinces of Sin. His awakenings precede the washing of the Blood. His residence in the Church. Day of Pentecost. Prayer Meeting. Great Revival. Fruit of the Spirit. Do not quench the Spirit. For- malism and Pride. Fine Churches. Church Fairs. Pray for the Spirit. Gift of the Spirit promised. THE BLOOD OF JESUS, 308 The Doctrine. Man a Sinner. Liberal teaching. Rich provision. Christmas Evans. Blood in the Basin. Defi- 14 CONTENTS. PAGE niteness of Cure. Mute Saved. Completeness of the Work. Out of Bondage. Dr. Watts' Hymn. Blood can save now. Personal faith imperative. George H. Stuart and the Countersign. HEAVEN, 324 God's Residence. God looks down. Man looks up. Martyr Stephen. Many Mansions. Heaven a prepared place. Jesus coming to take the Saints there. Heavenly Treasures. Rich man dies a Pauper. New birth impera- tive. Heaven a city of Light. Angels bear Saints away Recognition in Heaven. Services of Heaven. The new Song. Our names written in Heaven. FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN GLIMPSES OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. WHEN, at the earnest request of dear friends, I con- sented to publish this volume, I did not intend to give in it any part of ray personal experience or statistics of my* labors. But having been urged to place in this book some record of my life and relig- ious experience, a part of which was published in tract form several years ago, and thinking it might prove a blessing to many readers, I consent to do so. I was born of pious parents, in Hopkinton, Mid- dlesex County, Mass., June 23, 1829. When I was but nine years of age my father died. I was absent from home at the time of his death, and on returning the following day, learned that his dying words for r 3 were, " Tell Albert to prepare to meet me in heaven." These words have exerted great power over me to this day. My father and mother were both very devoted Christians. After my father's death I lived several years in the family of Amasa Southwick, in Leicester, Mass. They were a very excellent family, and made me a fine home. Their influence and counsel were good, and went far to- ward shaping my character for a life of usefulness. They being members of the " Friends Society," I usually attended religious service with them. At the 3 (17) 18 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. age of seventeen I went to Boston with an idea to gc to sea. But having sailed in a small coasting vessel, I soon returned to Boston, gave up the notion, and engaged as an apprentice at the iron founder's trade. At this time I was strongly convicted that I ought to return to the religious interest which I had felt before. But I soon got into bad company, my con- victions lessened, and I entered a life of sin. In this way I continued several years, growing worse and worse. After my apprenticeship ended I left the city, and spent several months in Nashua, N. H., and White River Junction, Vt., working at my trade. My life of sin in Boston consisted in profanity, gam- bling, intemperance, Sabbath breaking, and kindred evils. At this time I had great struggles to over- come these sinful associations, for I was impressed very strongly to do so. After several months I concluded to cease work, and attend school for a term at the Methodist Semi- nary in Newberry, Vt. I hoped by doing so in some way to be relieved of my sad state of heart. Here I felt my accountability to God as never before. My religious interest of years before was greatly revived, and I consecrated myself to Jesus and His service. I was blessed. At the close of the term I went to work at my trade in St. Johnsbury, Vt. After stud}dng the Bible several weeks, I felt that I must be baptized and unite with the Church. It was a memorable day. I was buried with Christ in bap- tism August 10, 1851, in the Passumpsic River, four miles below St. Johnsbury, Vt. GLIMPSES OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. 19 When I was raised from that liquid grave my heart was deeply impressed, as by a voice, that I ought to preach the Gospel. I believed then that God called me to the ministry, and have never doubted it to this hour. I immediately entered school at New Hampton, N. H., to prepare for the work. A year after, this institution removed to another state, and I went to Madison University, New York, to pursue my education for the ministry. I was ordained in Truxton, N. Y., as pastor of a church with whom I enjoyed a very fruitful and blessed ministry more than three years. I was sub- sequently settled, for brief periods, as pastor over churches in Lacon, 111., Lake City, Minn., Keyport, N. J., and Brooklyn, N. Y. In all these places God greatly blessed my ministry, and gave me very pleas- ant and harmonious relations with the brethren. Early in my public life I was married to Miss Elvira L. Bonney, of Georgetown, N. Y. Her unas- suming life of holiness was greatly blessed to me. I have realized its power all the years of my ministry. Three sons were born to us, one of whom died in infancy, and two are yet spared.* About six years after the death of my first wife, in December, 1861, f I was married to Miss Matilda F. Randolph, of the City of New York, who has ever since accompanied me in my labors and been my efficient helper. About the time of my first settlement as pastor, I was deeply impressed that Jesus would have me do " the work of an evangelist." I felt that I could * See page 87. f See page 285. 20 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. not enter such a work, and struggled hard against my convictions for a long time. But my impressions increased until the convictions became painfully severe. At length I yielded,, being fully persuaded that it was the Lord's will. I have now been an evangelist about eleven years, and have held more than two hundred series of revi- val meetings in as many different towns and cities. I have kept no accurate statistical record of the results of my labors, but have reason to believe that in my Gospel meetings many thousands have pro- fessed conversion, and about two thousand persons have united with the churches v. here I have labored the past year. Thus God has been pleased to crown my feeble efforts with very great blessings, of which I have felt entirely unworthy. HIGHER LIFE EXPERIENCE. In the Spring of 1865, after having enjoyed a spiritual refreshing in revivals through the Winter, I was impressed, as never belDre, that there was something in Christ for me which I had never re- ceived, and that He was proffering to me the bless- ing. This conviction was attended with deep search- ings of heart ; and the more I examined my heart, the more I saw its vileness. My soul was panting for the fullness of Christ's love. The words of Jesus : " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest," GLIMPSES OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. 21 came fresh to my mind. " Well," said I, " He spoke them for the sinner, and I have been giving them to the sinner these dozen years ; they are not for me." But a voice continually whispered, " They are for you" These feelings of desire and trial to do some- thing to satisfy my thirsting soul continued for months. At length the words above referred to pressed my heart so much, that I began to make a personal application of them. I said, " What is this idea of rest as presented by Jesus ?" It was thut illustrated to me : Suppose I, wearied from toil., return home and say to my friends, "I am very weary and will retire to rest." I professedly take my bed for this purpose, but spend the night agitated in feelings, with disquiet and tossings. Now can I rise in the morning and say I have had rest? So it seemed in my soul I had professed to be a Christian, and no doubt had possessed a good hope, which has been as an anchor of my soul for many years, but had not rest. Like Martha, I was cumbered about much serving. The waves were rippled ; I did not rest by simple trust in Jesus. I felt deeply conscious that greater heights in spiritual things were attainable ; but to reach them was my difficulty. It seemed I would give all the world did I possess it, or do anything if I could but enjoy the fullness of that peace that passeth all un- derstanding. I tried again and again, with heart, lips, and pen, to consecrate my all to Jesus, and His service ; and 22 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. for months my daily cry was, " Oh, for a subdued heart ! " But, with all my doing, something would frequently whisper: Cast your deadly doing down, Down at Jesus' feet ; Stand in Him, in Him alone, All glorious and complete. The labor of my hands at this time greatly in- creased. Inquiring sinners and rejoicing converts multiplied daily. Never did my ministry seem more responsible or important, and never did I feel so un- fit to perform it. I dare hot tell any one the state of my own heart. But oh, what trials as I felt my- self the sad want of faith that weighed down my soul ! When I directed sinners to believe in Christ, some still voice within would say, " Why don't you believe yourself?" Again and again did I try to " cast my deadly doing down." I wrote out a full conse- cration of my all to Jesus, and in solemn prayer signed it upon my knees. I tried over and over again to examine my heart as with a " lighted candle," but all to no purpose ; and I daily found that I was " trying many things of many physicians," and was nothing better, but rather grew worse. u Oh ! " said I, " it is so hard for a Christian to let go and simply trust Jesus." After spending several months in deep searchings of heart, a friend put the little tract The Living Christ into my hand. The reading of each line awakened increased interest in the matter of believing, trusting. The way appeared GLIMPSES OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. 23 plain ; but to do the thing was a seeming impossi- bility. " Oh for a subdued heart ! " was the constant language of my soul. Daily I felt that I could not go and preach to my dear people again ; that it was almost wicked to stand up as a public teacher with such a hard, unbroken state of heart. I determined to appoint a day of fasting and prayer, hoping that by this means I might obtain liberty to my captive soul. I did appoint it ; but thank God when the time arrived I was compelled to turn it into a day of thanksgiving. Before my soul deeply panted for the " baptism of the Spirit," I had heard through kind friends of the meeting at Dr. Palmer's, and was invited to attend. I concluded to do so before the appointed day for fasting arrived. I went. The experiences related somewhat illustrated my case. I felt interested, and measured every word. I stated my exercises of mind to the meeting, and was told to try and " trust in Jesus." I said, "I have been trying a long time to believe ; but the thing is to do it" Again I fell upon my knees, and endeavored to give up all and " trust," but to no purpose. Still my heart was hard and unrelenting ; and again I cried, " Oh, for sweet rest in Jesus !" I felt so unworthy and so rebellious that I was tempted to conclude that I ekould never enjoy this blessed experience. But a \oice sweetly whispered, " Jesus has promised you the blessing ; trust Him, accept it." Wearied, anxious, and still unbelieving, I re- turned home. While on the way, something seemed 24 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. to say to me in a most signal tone, " Cast thy bur- den on the Lord." This precious passage never appeared so to me before. It came as the healing balm. I quickly said, " I will. Lord, if it ' be selfishness, unholy ambition, worldly pride, the will of man, any thing, every thing, whatever may hinder my simple ' trust in Jesus,' I surrender all to Thee." Still the passage was like a "bright light" before me ; and I felt a consciousness that I had cast all at Jesus' feet, and that in His own way and time He would emancipate my burdened soul. I retired to rest, leaving all to Him. At an unusually early hour I awoke. The room was silent and dark ; but in an instant the darkness passed away, and a bright light filled the room. The light of life seemed to be all around me, and Jesus appeared, not altogether in the form of a person, but as filling immensity with His presence. I never had such a view of Christ or experienced such feelings before. All the hardness of my heart was broken up instantly, and my soul launched out into Christ, like launching a boat upon the bosom of a smooth lake. Just now that blessed Scripture, " Bring ye all the tithes into the store-house, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it," appeared to me in all its fullness. I said. " I can not surely contain this." Oh, how my soul was filled with the fullness of Christ's love ! GLIMPSES OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. 25 The tears freely flowed, and my pillow was wet as with the dew of the morning. Christ was " all in all." "I was filled with the Spirit," and I felt that, after traveling a long and tedious journey over path- less wastes and through burning sands, I had now arrived at the golden gates of the city; yea, had entered and now dwelt in the bright mansions of love. All was peace. I arose, and made a record of gratitude to God for His infinite and unspeakable blessing. Imme- diately I found every thing changed concerning my faith in Christ, and my relations to Him as a full and complete Saviour. Never did He appear so much the unchangeable One, "the same yesterday, to-day, and forever." *'His yoke became easy, and His burden light;" and, on reflection, I could hardly believe that I had lived and toiled so long without this precious bless- ing of " sweet rest in Jesus." I have been led to. believe, judging somewhat from appearance, as also from my own experience, that this blessing is the great want of the Church now ; that all alike, ministers and laymen, impera- tively need the baptism of the Spirit "of fire," and of power from on high, that they may convincingly and with conquering power witness for Jesus. Ye need no learning of the schools To prove your faith divine. Witnessing from the heart is the world's great need. Let Christians everywhere consecrate them- 26 , FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. selves to the great work of bringing out the experi- ence and power, and pointing to the ultimate end of the " inner life of Christ in the soul," and the whole aspect of evangelizing the world will change. There's something wrought within you shows That Jesus saves the world. It is now many years since God gave me the special blessing recorded in the foregoing experience. My whole religious life and usefulness have been shaped and intensified under its influence. This I wish to record to the praise of God's grace. I have found it to be a portion not to be lost in a day, or a month. Year by year I have been deeply conscious of human weakness, but have been equally conscious of Jesus' ability to save to the uttermost. In the experience then entered into, I became possessed of a conquering faith that has been a mighty power for victory in all the work of my ministr3 T . By it I learned to take God at His word, and to ask and expect blessings as I never cotild before. And having so long associated with all denominations of Chris- tians, I am thoroughly prepared to reaffirm my con- viction of the blessed reality of the higher Christian life, and that this is the present imperative need of the Church of Jesus Christ, BIBLE BEADING. SHELTERED BY THE BLOOD. Delivered in the Dutch Reformed Church, in Newburgh, New York, in January, 1876. WE have now gathered to consider one of the most vital of all doctrines. Please open your Bible to Genesis iii, 7, 21. We read : And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked ; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them. There is revealed in these verses, first,what man did for himself as soon as he became a sinner ; sec- ond, in the twenty-first verse, the first thing that God did for man after he became a sinner. In the seventh verse, you will notice, it is said that man undertook to make himself a garment sewed fig leaves together, and made aprons. You can all see at once that this was only a partial covering ; these fig leaf aprons only covered a small part of the body. When they made an attempt to cover themselves, and have garments, they made a failure, and only did a partial work. Now that is the way it haa (27) 28 FEOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. always been with man when he has undertaken to do anything for himself as a remedy for sin and' its consequences. Sinners undertake to get a remedy to improve their moral nature. It is illustrated in this instance, when it is said, " The man made an apron of fig leaves." He made a failure. There was only a partial work. In the twenty-first verse we find what God did for man ; and mark what God did took blood. Where did God get those skins of which he made garments to cover those persons? Every- body gets an idea that when he made those garments and put them on those persons, He covered them all over. He did a complete work, a work of satis- faction in covering the nakedness, and clothing them. Where did He get those skins ? A victim was slain, and they were the production of blood. So the very first thing that God did for man when he became a sinner took blood. There you will see very clearly where man makes his mistake and his failure. Perhaps the best way I can illustrate it is this : It is said that before the war, in the days of slavery, there was a slaveholder who had a slave who was a very hard case ; he could not manage him. Hearing that the Methodists were having a camp-meeting, he thought that if he could take Jack down, and get him converted, he would behave him- self. So he took Jack down, and under the influ- ences of prayer and preaching, and the, varied exer- cises of the meeting, very soon he was convicted, sought the Lord, repented, and was converted. But BIBLE READING. 29 th3 master, being unconverted too, began to be in- terested, and he too began to seek pardon ; but he did not find any satisfaction. He went home and spent a month, and finally came to his slave and said : " Jack, how is this? you were an- awful sight harder sinner than I ever was, and you went to the Lord with your sins, and He saved you right off; and here I have been trying for a month, and can not get sat- isfaction. How is it ?" " Perfectly plain," said the slave. "How is it?" "It is true I was a fearful sinner, and I just took my old garments of sin off, and put on the garments of Christ. But you are so good ; you are trying to patch up your old garments. If you find a little spot you put soap on it, and try to wash it out ; and if you find a little rent you try to patch it up ; and you are trying to keep your old garments ; but if you take them right off, and put on the garments of Christ, you will be satisfied." That illustrates the work of man. When he un- dertakes to make himself a Christian by his own efforts, or by any genius of the human mind, he makes a failure every time. But when he takes the garments of righteousness that God gives, then he is satisfied. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering. But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. Genesis iv, 4, 5. By this you see that Cain brought the fruit of the ground. I suppose if he had lived in our day, 30 FROM EABTH TO HEAVEN. he would have brought potatoes, beets, turnips and various vegetables. But God did not have any re- spect to that. It is said that Abel brought the firstlings of the flock, and God had respect to that. Cain brought of the fruit of the ground, an earthly offering, not a blood offering; and God. could not take it. But Abel brought a blood offering and presented it to God, and God accepted it. I shall look at this again presently. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. Exodus xii, 7. I want to call your attention for a moment to the first part of this chapter. It is said, God told Moses to go out and get an offering. In the second verse he says, " This month shall be unto you the begin- ning of months ; it shall be the first month of the year to you." Some good men have thought that in this there was the type of the beginning of a new life conversion, regeneration, being saved by the blood of Christ. In the third verse it is said : Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for a house. Mark then that this selection of the lamb was on the tenth day. Now, look at the sixth verse : And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. Notice, the lamb was selected on the tenth day and BIBLE READING. 31 then kept up until the fourteenth day of the same month. I believe that that lanib was kept in a pro- cess of preparation for the sacrifice, during these four days. In the sixth verse it is also said, " And the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it." Kill what ? The lamb. Now, the seventh verse says, "And they shall take of the blood, and strike it upon the two side posts, and on the upper door posts of the houses, wherein they shall eat it." And the thirteenth verse reads : And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are : and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. In these last two verses is where we find the center of the doctrine, "Sheltered by the Blood." It takes us right to the Cross. Here it is declared that when this victim was slain, they were to take the blood and put it on the door posts of their houses where they were, and that blood, put on those door posts, was to be the badge of security and refuge for these people, who had trusted in this sacrifice that was made. What then? It is said in the last part of the seventh verse, "wherein they shall eat it." Now, the idea is, that when the lamb was slain, the blood was put on the door posts, and the carcass was taken inside of the houses, and there they were to feast upon the victim that was slain. Now, that takes us right to the Cross. Let me add just here that every body who ever has an idea of Calvary, 32 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. typified in this portion of God's word, always looks up. I will defy any body, in a gospel sense, to even think of the Cross of Christ without looking up. Historians tell us that when Christ was crucified, Simon bore the Cross, and they went up to the garden. The Cross was laid down upon the ground ; Jesus was stretched upon it; the nails were driver into His hands and feet; the crown of thorns, with the thorns turned inside, was put upon His head ; then the crucifiers dug a hole in the ground, raised up the Cross, put it on the side of the hole, and pushed it in, causing a jar to make the pains the more excruciating ; and Jesus was lifted up. Now, if you will think a minute of the twelfth chapter of John, thirty-second verse, you will remember that Jesus said, himself, " I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto me." The idea of the cross, then, is always upward. Now then, the soul that trusts the blood of Jesus Christ, always realizes that he is under the blood. The blood that was poured out there from the Calvary victim is our voucher, our passover, our atonement, our refuge. So it is in keeping with this seventh verse, where it is said the blood was to be put on the door posts of the houses where they were ; then they should take the victim within, wherein they should eat it. Let me tell you now that every true believer who accepts Christ, from the day he believes, if he enjoys religion, does not have to run off to the dance or the theater to feast his soul or to satisfy it. He feasts on Christ, the Calvary victim. He dwells within the taber- BIBLE READING. 33 nacle of the Most High by faith, wherein he shall eat the victim of Calvary by living faith,' the same as is set forth in this glorious type. He is always satisfied. There is nothing in genuine Christianity but that will satisfy the soul ; in other words, the Christian is satisfied with Christ. Notice the last part of the thirteenth verse, " And when I see the blood I will pass over you." When who sees the blood, the sinner? By no means. When God sees it. The sinner has passed under the blood. He is forgiven. His sins are washed away, and he is now trusting the victim and feasting upon Him. God means, when I (God) see the blood, I will pass over you. Then when the believer is dwelling there, away under the shadow of the wings of the Most High, tabernacling in God in Christ, feasting upon Jesus, he is perfectly secure. Now God says of that person in the house with the blood on the outside and who is feasting on the victim He is not going to hurt him. He will pass over every house which has blood on the door posts. God don't want to see the sinner any more. He wants to look on the blood, in which the sinner is trusting ; and that blood is His voucher. If you have any doubt about that, look at the 21st, 22d, and 23d verses of the same chapter. Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto lliem, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood 3 34 FKOM EAKTH TO HEAVEN. that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the basin ; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. Now you will see very clearly that it is the blood, from beginning to end, that is the voucher of the sinner. How does that agree with those persons who tell you that you must be baptized, and go to communion, and go to church, and mix up a thou- sand things ? There is not a single allusion to them here. It is the blood, from beginning to end, that is the grand center of cleansing, of security, of blessing, and of eternal life. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. Hebrews ix, 22. Now if there is a moralist here to-day, I would like to have you tell me, in the light of that verse, how you are going to get to heaven on good works. A good many seem to think that if they pay a hun- dred cents on the dollar, are honest men, do a kind- ness for their friends and neighbors, God is going to respect it, and in some way, evgn if they have not been born aga.in, especially on the orthodox line, they are going into heaven, Mark the fatal mistake. " Without shedding of blood is no remission." Though you give your body to be burned ; though you go through with every mark of earthly respect, though you have the highest consideration and regard for everything that is good ; unless you have BIBLE READING. 35 faith and trust in the blood of Christ, there is no such thing as taking away sin. Turn now to Hebrews xii, 22, 23, 24. In this instance, it is said that the Church in the wilderness had come to a large experience of certain things. But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable com- pany of angels. To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect. And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. Now that is what is said to the believer. He has come u to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant, and the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." When reading a few minutes ago we found those two brothers, Cain and Abel, standing side by side. Cain brought in his fruit of the ground : God rejected it. Abel brought his blood offering, the firstling of the flock : God had respect for it. Then it is said that Cain slew his brother. By and by God returned, and said, " Where is your brother ? " Cain undertook to turn it off with a little irony, " Am I my brother's keep- er?" "I know where your brother is. You can not deceive me. Your brother's blood cries to me from the ground. You have killed your brother," said God. Now it is said here we have come to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. What did Abel's blood cry ? It cried vengeance. And let me tell you, friends, it is the 36 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. same old voice of human impulse, and the human heart. The blood of man never cries any thing but vengeance. If a man should strike me in the face, human nature would tell me to knock him down. That would be my first impulse. Put it where you will, the blood of man cries vengeance. But it says here that we have come to the blood of Jesus that speaks better things than that of Abel. What does the blood of Jesus cry ? Pardon, pardon, pardon ! and never cries any thing but pardon. How I love that precious old verse of Charles Wesley's : Five bleeding wounds He bears, Received on Calvary. They pour effectual prayers, And strongly plead for me. Forgive him, oh forgive! they cry Nor let that ransomed sinner die. That is what the blood of Jesus cries. It is always crying pardon ! It says, Don't let the sinner be lost. Oh, that every sinner here would let Jesus in ! Sprinkle the blood in your heart, and thus be released, to have the cry of " Pardon," for your eternal security. For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar, to make an atonement for your souls ; for it is the blood that inaketh an atonement for the soul. Leviticus xvii, 11. Mark, " The life of flesh is in the blood." Now, my dear friends, what is this idea of blood ? It is life, and it is nothing but life. Let me give you an illustration. I will suppose I had come in here to-day, and as I entered I saw a white handkerchief BIBLE BEADING. 37 hanging somewhere here. Six weeks ago a victim had been killed and blood had covered half of that handkerchief. I cast my eye up and see that blood. I get the idea of life, and I can not get any other idea. Even though I might think the victim was dead, the first primary idea I would get would be life. Now this is where it comes in to save the sinner. He is dead in trespasses and sins ; and the blood of Christ, the great atonement, comes to bring him back to holy living, and holy experience : what Jesus calls " eternal life." Jesus uses the term " salvation " very seldom in the New Testament ; but again and again He speaks of the new experi- ence as "eternal life ; " " everlasting life ; " and He puts that word life to the idea of regeneration, or conversion, oftener than to any other. It is because the blood has been applied, and the sinner has been brought into the new life. Now, in the same place, God says, " I have given it to you upon the altar, to make an atonement for your souls." What altar, pray ? The altar of Calvary. This statement here is a type of the Cross, and Christ just as surely died upon that Cross, as any lamb anciently with the children of Israel was placed upon the altar, and made a sacrifice there. Now, I say again, that when God says, " I have given the blood to you upon the altar, to make an atonement for your souls," it points directly to Calvary where the believer may come, and stand, and by faith believe, and realize that he is sheltered by the blood ; " for it is the blood tba> 38 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. maketh an atonement for the soul."- Now, I want to offer another illustration. Do you see that finger move ? Do you see that hand move ? Do you see that arm move up and down ? What makes it move ? "Oh," you say, "it is your will." Grant it for an instant. My will, in connection with my sympa- thetic nerve, tells that finger to move ; tells that arm to move up and down ; but suppose there is no blood circulating ; suppose my blood had ceased to do its natural work, and my arm hangs here paral- yzed by my side ; and then my will says to my arm, Go up. Will it go ? No. The blood is not in its proper state. Then I declare to you that the power of the action lies in the blood ; and it no less lies in the blood of my physical system, than it does in the blood of Jesus, for all the moral workings out of the believer's salvation. It is the blood, from begin- ning to end, nothing short of this. A young man said to me a short time agd, " What is this blood you talk about ? Is it the love of Christ ; the sympathy of Christ ; or is it the literal blood that was shed on Calvary?" Said I, " It is the literal blood, just as literal as literal can make it." I want now to illustrate to you, so you can not mistake on this thought; for I believe it is vital. We have just passed our centennial year of the American Republic. More than a hundred years ago, away down at Concord, Lexington and Bunker Hill, there was an actual revolution. This land was under the bondage of a kingly power. As a people, we wanted to be set at liberty ; brought out from BIBLE READING. 39 that bondage. War was begun, and blood was shed, and at Concord, Lexington, and Bunker Hill, and other places, there were men who shed literal blood to purchase the liberties of our country. Now here we are to-day, all full of active industry. Every man can vote as he pleases, men can make plows, and enter into all kinds of manufacture ; going here and there with perfect liberty. Every man can do according to the dictates of his own conscience, sitting, as it were, under his " own vine and fig tree." Whence this liberty ? It is the price of blood ; of the blood shed at Concord and Bunker Hill, as an atonement for the liberties that we are enjoying to-day ; and had we not passed the channel of that blood we could not enjoy the liberty that we do to-day. But you say, " Sir, you never saw that blood." Certainly not ; and that is where the secret comes in. I never saw it. But I read in American history of the blood, and my faith rests firm on what I learn ; and I believe in that blood, to-day, because I have the record. And, dear friends, it don't take any more of a stretch of my faith to take up the Bible, and believe what it says, that the blood of Jesus Christ, shed eighteen hundred years ago, cleanses us from all sin, than to believe, on the record of the American history, that the blood of the Revolution was shed a hundred years ago, to purchase the liberties of our land and its inhabitants. Yoit will see, by this time, that this subject is exceedingly vital to the Christian Church, and to 40 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. every true believer. This is where our Unitarian friends make their sad mistake. Mr. A , of Boston, a few years ago, stood up in a convention, and said, with heaven-daring audacity, " that the blood of Jesus was no more than the blood of cock robin." It is no wonder to me that those churches that call themselves Universalist, and societies thai call themselves Unitarian and Spiritualist, and infidel societies of various forms, do not have any prayer meetings. They don't know how to pray ; they have no spiritual life in Christ. In the moral world they are like these old, dead carcasses, down in the swamp, that the birds feast on. If we depend on them for morality and life, our people will all go down in the darkness of sin. But, my dear friends, it is belief in the blood, and acceptance of the real life-giving energies of the blood of Jesus, that builds us up in prayer ; builds us up in hope ; builds us up in spiritual life ; vitalizes all our moral natures ; brings us back to God, in the fullness of divine love and power. Now I wish you to turn to Romans xii, 1. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. There are multitudes of people who don't have any idea of consecration of the body. They think if they have the soul consecrated, and get that washed in the blood of Jesus, they are all right, even though the world should never know by any- thing said or done that they had passed from death BIBLE READING. 41 to life. Like a girl in Lexington, Ky. One day when I was there in a meeting, a young lady asked a friend if she would not become a Christian. " Why, I have been a member of the Episcopal Church two years!" said she. Nobody would ever have mistrusted it unless they happened to see her at the Communion table, or when she was confirmed; she was so full of all manner of worldliness. Now, I want to show you that God wants the body conse- crated, and I believe as much in the consecration of the body by the blood as in the consecration of the soul by the blood. Now, let us read Leviticus viii, 22, 23, 24: And he brought the other ram, the rain of consecration: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram. And he slew it; and Moses took of the blood of it, and put it upon the tip of Aaftnra right ear, aim upuu. the thumb 01 ins rigm hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot. And he brought Aaron's sons, and Moses put of the blood upon the tip of their right ear, and upon the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet; and Moses sprinkled the blood upon the altar round about. Moses brought up the ram, and Aaron came and put his hands on its head. Then came the sons, and they put their hands on its head, as much as to say, "We are willing to be consecrated by the blood of this ram." Then Moses took the ram and slew it, and took the blood and put it on the tip of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the great toe of the right foot. Can any body tell me why he put the blood on the right ear, the right hand and right foot? Why didn't he put it on the 42 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. left? It is because the right member of every person is the member of power. Now take a person who is deaf and who wants to hear, and let the deafness be alike in both ears ; you will never see him put up his left hand, but he almost always puts his hand to his right ear. Which hand is generally used the most ? In some exceptional cases a person may be left handed ; but, almost invariably, the right hand is used. It is the great weapon of power. Take an illustration: David said, "Let my right hand forget her cunning, if I forget thee, O Jerusa- lem." Why didn't he say the left hand? The right hand was. the member of power. It was the member that he used on his instrument to play with. So it is with your foot. Which foot do you gene- rally step first with? You always put your right foot first ; and the right member of man's body is always that of the greatest power. Now, Moses was going to consecrate the bodies of Aaron and his sons by blood. So the victim was killed, and he took the blood and put it on the tip of the right ear and I believe if there were more right ears conse- crated in our churches, there would not be so many of these little gossiping stories believed, and so much trouble made in various, ways, by little gossiping lies that don't amount to any thing, and the Gospel would be heard more effectually. And if there were more thumbs consecrated, there would be more work done for Christ; and if there were more great toes consecrated, there would not be as many dancing Christians as there are, and so BIBLE HEADING. ib many going off to circuses, and in by and for- bidden paths; and there would be more walking in the highway of holiness. Oh, for bodies conse- crated to Christ, by His precious blood ! I should not dare for one day, in the sight of my God, to think that my soul was consecrated, if these eyes were not permitted to work for Christ, by weeping ; this heart, to be burdened for sinners ; this tongue, to speak for my Lord, consecrated by the blood ; and I tell you to-day, my dear friend, I would not give the turn of my hand for that professed Christian who barely has an idea of eternal life in the soul, without the body's being all given up to the same power. You might as well look out on the railroad and see the engine idle there, with the steam inside what is it good for? I tell you we want the machinery to work ; and the steam is good when you put the machinery to moving, and not other- wise. So, God wants not only your soul sprinkled by the blood, washed and cleansed ; but all the body to be put under this consecration, and put in motion, to carry out, in this world, the living power of the Gospel. Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with cor- ruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers ; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 1 Peter i, 18, 19. I understand that what is said here about " cor- ruptible things, as silver and gold," means what the world would call ritualism outside forms. No such 44 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. thing can take away the sins of the soul. You may have sacraments ; going to church ; and a thousand forms God forbid that I should say anything against them, so far as they are helps to spiritual and eternal life but not one of them can take away sin, and redeem the soul. " We were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, * * * * but with the precious blood of Christ." That is it, and that alone. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh, How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the Eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God ? Hebrews ix, 13, 14. Notice in the first place it is said, " How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the Eternal Spirit offered himself to God purge your consciences." You remember, in the Bible reading on " The Holy Spirit," I taught you that Christ was introduced into this world by the Holy Spirit. It is said in this fourteenth verse that He " offered him- self through the Eternal Spirit," and I believe that the Holy Spirit conducted Jesus to the cross when he died, and shed his blood there for you and me. Now turn to Numbers xix, 17. And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel. You will find in this nineteenth chapter that where there was a clean and an unclean person, the BIBLE READING. 45 clean person would take a heifer, and slay it. Then he would burn the heifer, horns, hoof, hide, and all to ashes. Then he would take the ashes, and mix them with water (about as you would make a prepa- ration of soap and water to clean anything) to wash the unclean person. And he was thus to be pre- pared, and be presented to the whole camp. Thus God says, if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanc- tifieth (sanctify here means set apart to purity) to the purifying of the flesh ; how much more shall the blood of Christ * * * * purge your con- science. What is the work of the blood then ? It is not to cleanse the body. It has primarily to do with the conscience, and that alone. Now let us explain a moment. What was it that put man out of Eden ? It was sin. But what was it that sinned ? God told the first parents that they could enjoy the paradise home if they lived thus and so; but if they transgressed this law they must leave the gar- den. They transgressed, and were thrust from the holy abode. What was it that sinned ? Was it the hands, the feet, the eyes, or the tongue ? No. It was the conscience ; the affection powers ; the moving center of the moral sensibilities. The thief steals your goods. What is it that sins ? The hand that takes them or the conscious sensibilities that dictates the crime ? You can all see that it is the conscience that sins, while the hand performs. Now this is what Adam did ; and it is what the sinner always does. And the blood comes to deal with the 46 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. conscience, the moral nature. It proposes to fit man to go back, and live forever in the holy para- dise of God. If you will look at Isaiah, first chap- ter and eighteenth verse, you will see what God means by the work of the blood. " Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord : Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow ; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." These ladies -present know how fast these colors are and how difficult it is to wash them out. And the Lord shows here, that in taking away sin, blotting out the guiltiness of the conscience, noth- ing is too hard for the blood. Hence it is said, " the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." Another thought is expressed in this four- teenth verse. The blood shall " purge your con- science from dead works to serve the living God." Then we are not saved barely to join the church, be baptized, go to communion, sing, and go to heaven ; but to service. And how much all Chris- tians should recognize and realize the life power of the tylood ; and have their whole lives filled up with the impulses of holy activity. Turn now to Revelations xii, 10, 11, and see the blessedness of the last Scripture we shall examine on this most vital of all subjects. Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our breth- ren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony ; and they loved not their lives unto the death. BIBLE READING. 47 Here, then, is set forth the victories of the Cross. It is said here that the Church of God has not only salvation, but strength, and the divine kingdom, by which the devil, the accuser of the brethren, is con- quered. And tlit by the blood of Jesus we over- come. Dear, dying Lamb, thy precious blood Shall never lose its power, Till all the ransomed Church of God Are saved, to sin no more. ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEK Delivered in the Presbyterian Church, and repeated by request in Muscatine, Iowa, in December, 1876. THE words from which I shall address you, young men, are in the book of Zachariah, second chapter and a part of the fourth verse : "Run, speak to this young man." If you will examine this prophecy of the prophet Zachariah, you will find that the land had become desolated on account of evil, and the sins of the fathers. All had been laid waste, and a most sad picture was presented; but God had thoughts of mercy. He desired to have the land and the city restored and rebuilded. In prosecuting this design, a young man was directed, through the prophet, to go with a measuring line and prepare for the rebuilding : I suppose, to do what you would call in this city a work of surveying. While the young man was pursuing his course, two angels or messengers were directed to go and give him counsel. While on their way, one said to the other, " Run, speak to this young man." Now, I want to ask every one of you young men, was there ever a time in the history of all the world, when there was more need of using the words of this text, than to-night? espe- (48) ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 49 cially this little word, run hurry up hasten speak to the young man. I bear you record, I do not believe it. Never, since the Antediluvian age, was there a time when there were such maelstroms of death ; vortexes of hell and ruin ; never a time when such dangers and temptations beset the path- way of 3 r oung men, as to-day ; when there were so many drinking saloons, billiard halls, so many of these little, ensnaring, club-rooms in the city and country ; houses of lewdness and vice ; horse races at the county fairs, one of the greatest abominations of the age, drawing down our young men by the whole- sale. It has got so now that a Christian man can not take his potatoes, and oats, and give them an exhibi- tion at a county fair to encourage agriculture, but he must be mixed up with gambling and horse racing. What do you want horse races for ? Any decent horse will carry you six to ten miles an hour when necessary ; and you do not want blooded stock to draw your dra\^s. This whole thing is just a scheme of gambling, and is corrupting the young men of our land. And so, in every conceivable form, you will find that the maelstroms of death are open for our young men. A young man came to me a while ago : " Mr. Graves, do you think there is any hope for me ? " " Yes," said I, " if your character is as black as hell there is hope for you. Jesus Christ came into the world to seek and save that which which was lost ; even the darkest character ; but what have you been doing?" He said, "I have been ux> to Minneapolis, at the fair, and I was led to 50 PKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. gambling, and lost my money; and, for the first time in my life, I was led to drinking ; got drunk ; and have come home disgraced." How glad I was to lead that young man ; to point him to the better way, and the rock upon which he could stand. In Kentucky I addressed the young men one night, and after the address I said, " We will have an inquiry meeting." The doors of exit were on each side of the pulpit. They began to go out. I took them by the hand, one after another. One choice young man came along. "Will you stop ?" "No sir." He hurried out; but as he got out of the door he stopped, and in the deepest conviction said to a lady near, "Will you go in and pray for me? " I shall never forget how I saw them enter the door ; and she knelt down and offered such a prayer as I never heard escape female lips before nor since. The next morning at sunrise he went to his part- ner for they kept a faro bank and told him of his decision to abandon the business. Since he had been nine years of age, he had been drawn off into gambling, and had just got home from the races at Lexington, where he had lost four hundred dollars. He was a choice young man, but going down with wicked and dissolute habits. He gave up his business; came into the meeting, and was speedily converted. That young man is to-day preaching the Gospel. Oh, how many there are who are going down the steeps of death all over this land, because the maelstroms of death are wide open every where. Now, some of you may ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 51 say, " You seem to be very earnest ; why is it ? " I will explain. When I was a boy of nine years, it" pleased God to take my dear father away to the better land, and I was thrown out upon the chilly influences of this wicked world. Since then, these hands and the grace of God have gotten me my education, and made my way in the world. But, some time after my father's death, I went into the City of Boston. I was led astray, into profanity, intemperance, and gambling, from which I was saved when a little past twenty-one years of age, right from the very verge of present and eternal death. From that day until this my heart has burned within me I can not use a tamer term for the young men of our land, and I have held hundreds of such meetings as this all over the land. This is the reason that I am here to speak so earnestly to you to-night ; hoping to accomplish some good for your welfare. Now, I will first give you three reasons why I would " Run and speak to this young man." The first one is : Because now while you are young, you are susceptible of habits and training that will either bless or curse you in the days to come, as you will never be again in all your life. Who is it that form habits ? Do the old men do it ? That old, gray- haired sire of seventy has his habits all fixed. He will never change them. But, young man, you are forming habits to-day which in their influence will follow you while life shall last. Perhaps the best thing I can say to you to-night is this : When I was 52 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. preparing for the ministry, there were about forty young men in my class. Professor Osborne came in one morning, took his seat, ran his eye over the class, and said : " Young men, as long as you live, whatever you undertake, first be sure you are right, then go ahead." "Ah!" I said, "that is grand!" And I treasured it up in my heart. I give it to you to-night: "As long as you live, whatever you under- take, first be sure you are right, then go ahead" Young men, you can not afford to do wrong. Some of you will say, perhaps : " That is certainly good advice; thank you for that reasoning and counsel; but, sir, I have already started out in the wrong way." And, perhaps, some will say: " Sir, I have frequented billiard rooms, and almost always billiard tables are right in sight of the bar they go hand in hand generally ; and I knew the temptation, and I knew I was wrong when I was playing there." Another may say: "I have already played cards, and I have an impression that that is a downward course, which often ends in utter ruin." Others still may say: "I have neglected my Bible for months, have not read it at all, and I have been conscious that that was wrong." Some of you, per- haps, are saying this minute : " I have not been on my knees in prayer for a year, and I know I ought to be a prayerful young man." And so in various things ; and perhaps you are asking me : " What shall I do to get right now?" If that is what you ask me, I can help you. I am a stranger in this place. I do not even know the points of the com- ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 53 pass ; but I will suppose there is a town out here ten or fifteen miles, called Williamsburg. I enter your city to-morrow morning, and ride down the street, and meet a young man and say: "I want to go to Williamsburg ; can you tell me the right road?" "Yes, sir; go down this road, follow it about a mile, and you will come to a place where there is a large white house on the left and a red barn on the right side of the street. Pass on beyond the barn, and you will see a road turning to the right; turn down that road and follow it about three-quarters of a mile, and you will^cross a stream, and a little beyond that there is a road to the left ; pass along that road and follow it on to Williams- burg." I go on, supposing that I am going right ; pass down to the white house and the red barn, and turo to the right ; cross the bridge and go to the left, and up that road about a mile, and I come to a fork in the road. Now, I say, " I don't know which of these roads go to Williamsburg." I look this way and that. By and by I say, "I guess I will take this road at the right." I go perhaps a mile, and meet a gentleman, and say : " Sir, I want to go to Williamsburg. Is this the road?" "No, sir; you ought to have taken. the other road, back at the fork." Now, young man, what would you advise me to do under such circumstances ? Methinks, I hear every one of you say : " Sir, I should advise you to stop, turn around, go back and get into the right road." What do you think I will say to you ? STOP ! and do it now, right here, in this 54 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. chapel this memorable night between eight and nine o'clock. Stop! You can not afford to go another inch in the wrong road. Now, I know where some of you will meet me. The devil is always busy. He generally goes to church, and gets there before the minister and deacons. I suppose he got here before one of these young men did to- night, and he is here with all his insinuations. There is not a young man who is free from temptations to lead you to resist the calls of God and man to-night. So, I presume some of you are saying, " Now, that is really a very fine thing ; cer- tainly I ought to stop and get out of danger." But down in your heart you are saying, " Well, suppose I do, what will I do with Bill ? What will George say ? What will Mary and Jane, my associates, say if I should stop now, turn about, get out of the wrong way of sin and wickedness? When T go out on the street to-morrow, Bill would say, 'Ha! Jack, you are running after that evangelist, are you? You will be preaching yet. Are you going to be a Christian ? ' : That will be the way. I venture, since I began this discourse, there have been hun- dreds of good resolutions formed in this room ; but iliey will be as a man of straw unless you take a stand and be firm as a rock. Courage, young man ! Courage ! I do believe to-day that the baleful influences of bad company more than anything else destroy the affections and morals of young men. As choice young men are before me to-night as God ever made, or ever gave a pious home. But ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 55 many such will leave their homes of piety and will go into town among strangers. They must have society. Young men's minds are active ; they are not going isolated through this world ; they will "have somebody to associate with. So they come into a town which they do not know anything about, and walk along down street ; and there sit a lot of boys on the corner whittling, telling stories, cracking their jokes and rolling out words of profanity occa- sionally. The young man stops a minute, and looks around. Presently he drops a word in. Somebody replies. Then he sits up on the box and chimes in in the conversation. He never had any intention of falling into bad company. Presently somebody says, "Come, boys, let us have a smoke." He has not courage enough to resist, and he "sails in." The next time that he falls in with the crowd, some large-hearted boy, of generous impulses, talks a while. " Come, boys, let us have a drink; come on boys." In he goes again, though he had no more idea, a day or two ago, of ever drinking than he had of committing suicide. But in he goes. "Well, stranger, what are you going to have?" "Oh, I will take some lemonade." It goes along very well, but it won't be many days before his "lemonade" is "played out." "What will you have this time?" " Oh, I will have some lemonade." " Well, you will have a stick in it this time, won't you?" Then they will pour in the stick ; and, positively young men, you know it, and I know it, hundreds and thousands are drawn down just in that way. Oh, 56 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. how sad the picture ! I went through this. I know. I remember well, when down on the corner of Fourth avenue and Broadway, in South Boston, the first glass was put into my hand that had the " stick " in it. Lemonade had answered my purpose for a little while, but that man had pressed " the stick " to my lips, and I went down ; and when the time came for my reform I needed what I offer you to- night, courage. When my mind is made up, I am not very easily turned, and I know very well the struggle there was to get out of the meshes of sin ; and many of you may find the same. Perhaps you will ask me, "How can I do it?" I will tell you. Some of you have known or heard of a friend of mine, who fell, but afterward became a great cham- pion of reform. He got into the wrong path when he was a young man, and went down. He signed the pledge, and resolved, and did everything to reform, but he made a failure. One day he was walking up Broadway, New York, between two friends, arm in arm. In his heart he was debating the condition that he was in : and, suddenly, whirl- ing on his heel, he exclaimed, " RIGHT ABOUT FACE ! " "There," said he, "you can go with me if you please, but I don't go with you another step." That turned his course; and he was soon saved by the blood of Jesus. And my advice to you, young man, is, ''Right about face!" Have courage. Let others laugh if they will. I want to tell you this ; I would not give the snap of my finger for a man or a woman who would scoff at a young man because he turned ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 57 to do right. Their friendship is not worth the turn of your hand. There was a young man, who was one of my associates. He was as promising a young man as ever lived, I believe. I said to him, " Will you come with me?" "Graves, what a fool you are," he replied, with an oath. Who was the fool? Let us see. A few years after I visited Massachusetts and got off the cars. There sat a dissipated young man, in a slouch hat, and seedy clothes ; blear eyed, with disheveled hair and haggard face ; a scene of abject wretchedness. In a moment I recognized him. "Oh! Frank," said I, "is that you?" "Oh! Graves," said he, "would that I had done as you did." That young man fills a dishonored grave ; but the result of my decision and subsequent career is before you. Is it worth while to turn "right about face," young man? I ask you to do it, then. Leave your bad company, cultivate habits that will bless you, and save you in days to come. Now, there is another reason why I would " run and speak to this young man," and that is : Because you have a soul to save ; that is of immense value, and its care demands your immediate attention. Oh, my friend, have you thought since the sun rose upon you this morning, that you have a soul of immense value? A Philadelphia merchant three years ago visited Windsor Castle, and the keeper of the jewel room invited him to come -in and see the jewels. He went in. There lay on the table the jeweled crown that was put on the head of Victoria when she was 58 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. crowned Queen of England. He looked at it a moment. It was made of solid gold, bedecked with sparkling jewels. He turned and said to the keeper, "How much did that crown cost?" "More than twenty millions of dollars," was the reply. He looked at it a moment with curiosity, passed on, and went out. The next day he visited an orphan asylum. Just as he was going up to the door, he saw a little boy, ten years of age, bare-headed, bare- footed, with disheveled hair, and dirty face and dress. He looked at him a minute, and said, " There is something about that little boy that is worth more than all the jeweled crowns the world ever knew." Do you believe that, young man ? do you ? Oh, you have a soul within you that shall live forever in heaven or hell ; and you will soon be there. You can not afford to stain your soul with all the sin and pollution that the temptations of this day are rolling around you. I beseech you, then, this night, J'oung man, take care of your soul ; see' to it that that soul within you, which shall live forever in heaven or in hell, has your immediate attention and care. Now, there is another reason why I would " Run and speak to this young man." While you are young, parental influence has more power over you than it will ever have again in all your life. Perhaps you will say to me, " Do you think I will ever forget my father's love, or my mother's love? Never in this world." But I will tell you one thing, young man ; it never will have such power over you in the days to come as it has now. I stand here to-night as ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 59 happy a man as can probably be in this place ; and one great source of my happiness is, the remem- brance that God gave me a praying father. When I was young, he passed away to the better land, and left upon my memory impressions that were hal- lowed by prayer and hope. And this very night it seems as if I can lean upon a father's prayers. But those influences have 119 such power over me now as they had when I was a young man. I was six miles away from home when my father died. I stepped into the house about sundown, and the lady of the house said, "Albert, I have some sad news for thee." " What is it ? " " The messenger has just been here thy dear father is dead ; he died very sud- denly." Oh, how ,1 felt it! I dropped my head quickly, turned around, went through a little hall into the adjoining room, sat down, and put my elbows on my knees, folded my face in my hands, and wept as only a fatherless boy of nine years can weep. By and by I went up to my bed, and wept myself to sleep. In the morning I prepared myself, and went home. Little did I dream of the rich legacy that my father had left me. Would that I had never abused it! I entered the house. My dear mother sat on the opposite side of the room with her children and a few friends around her. She arose and came to me, put her arms around my neck, and kissed me as only a loving mother can kiss an orphan boy. The first words she breathed into my ears were these, " Your dear father's last words were, ' Tell Albert to prepare to meet me in 60 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. heaven.' ' I wish that I had never abused those golden words, or trampled upon the love of that dear mother ! She lived to be nearly eighty. Two years ago, when I was away down in New Orleans, just going into the pulpit one night, a message was put into my hands "Mother died last night at eleven o'clock." I sent back word as soon as I could : "Tut my dear mother in the vault until I can come and see her face once more. " I laid her in the grave ; but positively, young man, the saddest impression of my heart with my dear father and mother's memory is that I abused their love. It is said sometimes that " this is an age of disobedience to parents." How many young men there are who abuse and trample on the best affections that God ever allotted to a young man a mother's love. A young man came to me in the vestibule of the church a short time ago, and said, " Won't you kneel right down here, and pray for me? Oh ! I am so bad, I don't know whether God can bless me. I have cursed my father and my mother right to their faces." Young man, you don't know what you are doing when you speak lightly to your father or mother ; and I am here to urge upon every one of you to see to it that you regard the kindness and the love of the dearest friends that God ever gave you on earth. Now I shall go on in a miscellaneous way for a little while, to address you from these words. " Run, speak to this young man." What young man? 1 would speak to that profane young man. Young man ! ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 61 what made you swear so out there on the street to-day ? Did you think any body would think any better of you for it? Did you really think any better of yourself for it? Then won't you stop ? It is a burning disgrace to a young man to pour out the blasphemous oaths that often fall from his lips. They are against the laws of a holy God. Promise me here to-night that you will not swear again. " Run, speak to this young man." What young man? / would speak to that young man who is neglecting the Bible ; the word of G-od. " Where- withal shall a young man cleanse his way ? By taking heed thereto, according to Thy wor'd." Positively, I would as soon think of advising the mariner to launch his ship, of hundreds of tons burden, upon the pathless ocean, freighted with priceless cargo, mast and sail studding the air, with- out chart, helm or compass, as I would advise a young man to embark upon the ocean of life without a Bible. If there is a Bible Society in your town, I advise you to go there to-morrow and get a New Testament, if you haven't any. You can buy one for ten cents, not larger than a common pocket-book, that you can put in your pocket. Then get you a Bible. If you can not do any better, buy a twenty- five cent, leather-covered Bible. Put it in your chamber, and read it every day, if not more than three verses. Grasp a morsel of food for your soul from God's word every day you live. I would entreat that young man who is neglecting the word of God I o do so no more. 62 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. " Run, speak to this young man." What young man ? I would speak to that Christian young man. My brother, are you here to-night ? Give me your hand, that I may lead you. Listen to a word of counsel. The first thing I want to say to you is, be an earnest, consecrated Christian young man. Let that be the first aim of your life. Don't wrap your- self up in a little, contracted, sectarian coat and act and talk as if you thought nobody was going to heaven unless they went through your church. Don't be like a deacon's wife whom I knew a while ago. I went to a town to have some meetings, and all the ministers came to me and wanted to know if we could not work together in a general work for the town. Arrangements were made, and I told the deacon's wife that all were going together, and hoped to do a great deal of good. She drew a long breath, " Well, I would rather have only a few con- verted, and have them join OUT church." Not very much of the spirit of the religion of Jesus Christ in that idea. No, my friend, if you are a member of the church and you ought to be be a head taller Christian than you are a sectarian. Let every body feel that your first business is, to show the world the way to Christ ; to make them Christians ; to lead them in the way to heaven; to walk in the light of God. Live in such a way that every where the world itself shall feel toward you as the heathen did toward Adoniram Judson, when they used to call him " Jesus Christ's man." Oh ! my Christian brother, be consecrated to Christ. Let your heart be ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 63 large enough to embrace the vast numbers whom you are so deeply anxious to rally to the Cross. Now, another thing, my dear brother. I want to speak to you to-night in reference to the Christian Ministry. It would be nothing strange if I am talk- ing to some young men who may have been Chris- tians several years, and perhaps some who have been recently converted, and who have impressions in their hearts that they ought to preach the Gospel. Now, I have a word to say to such young mejj Don't shrank from that idea. If God has put in your heart an impression to go out and tell the " old, old story," go forth ! Don't shrink from it because it is a life of self-denial, or because some ministers are meagerly supported. I never knew one in my life who settled down as a minister of Jesus Christ, that came out what would be called by the world a rich man ; and I never expect to. But, young man, there is the grandest experience in the calling to preach the Word, which is the richest mine of wealth that the world ever knew. The privilege which God gives to a minister he never has given to an angel. I can not feel as some men do. I have heard minis- ters say that they did not want their sons to preach the Gospel, because they would always have to be poor. I have heard rich men say that. I pity them. An unconverted man said to me, " Graves, how foolish you are ! " Said I, " What do you mean ? " " Why," said he, " I knew you when you entered the ministry, and if you had put half the earnestness into business that you have put into the ministry, 64 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. you might have been worth a hundred thousand dol- lars by this time." The tears leaped into my eyes, and my heart melted. I looked up at him a moment, and said : " Sir, you don't know anything about it. A hundred thousand five hundred thousand what odds, when you put it by the side of my coffin, and compare it with the blessed life that I have already had for a quarter of a century in this noble calling ; besides the remaining prospects of future useful- ness? " Said I, " I have more wealth than you could put into all the banks between the lakes .and the gulf." " Where is it ? " " It is in the hearts of young men all over the continent of America." There is many a mother to-day as happy as a mother can be, because I have been the means of blessing her family. I tell you, dear friends, there is nothing like scat- tering the truth of God blessing the world. It is worth at least one thousand dollars to have the priv- ilege of addressing such a congregation as this, for the purpose for which I am addressing you. Of course, if I had a political meeting, or had some worldly aim, I don't know as it would be worth so much. But oh! young man, would that I could open my heart to you at the anticipation I have. I just as much expect to walk the golden streets with young men who came in here unsaved, as I expect to live. I expect there are young men here to-night who will bless a great many others. God may not make you evangelists ; but, in the simplest manner, it is noble to preach the Gospel. Oh, don't shrink ! ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 65 Sometimes you safe " I don't know how I can get the education." God will take care of that. He will give you strength enough to earn it by sawing wood, if He chooses to. He will give you friends, if He chooses to. But in some way go forth to tell the story of Jesus and His love. There is another thing. " Run, speak to this young man." What young man ? / would speak to that intemperate young man. Are you here, my friend ? Very likely there are some saloon-keepers here to- night. Likely you think you are going to catch it now ; but you are not. I have no unkind word to say to you. While I have held meetings in saloons all over this land, and have invited the keepers to my meetings, I am not aware that I ever spoke an unkind word to them. I pity them too much. I am the last man who would harrow up their hearts by harsh words. When I was in M last Spring, the saloon- keepers, with one exception, closed up for one of my young men's meetings. He began to find that the frowns of the whole community were upon him. He invited me to come and hold a meeting in his saloon. I went down and looked at it. He had a long room ; and there were his billiard tables and his bar ; and he said : " Ii you want to have a meeting, you shall have every thing your own way not a glass shall be sold, and no billiards played while you are here." Said I, " If I have a meeting, I am not going to have this place filled up with a lot of curious Chris- tians, looking' on to see what is going on. Mr. Le- 66 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. land will come in with perhaps ^enty of his choir, and I will have men stationed at the door, and no- body will be allowed to come in but the men who come here to play billiards and drink." Said he, "I want you to understand I don't keep the worst place in the community. I keep the best of wines. I don't allow anybody to get drunk." Said I, " Stop. I would a thousand times rather have you tell me you had this place filled twice a week with red noses, packed clear up to the ceiling, and filled with the worst rot-gut whisky you could get in Chicago. Your course is the most baneful that could be. That is the way young men are made drunkards. They will come in here and say, ' Oh, we get wine here we don't get anything bad.' And you cultivate their tastes. But if you had all the old topers around, and filled them up with bad whisky, the young men would not dare to come near. Sir, you keep the very worst place in the city ; there is no doubt about it. But I am not here to abuse you, or to speak harshly. You will have enough suffering in hell, by and by, when you are there, and they are gnash- ing on you, and saying, ' You made me a drunkard, and here I am because of you.' ' How terrible! I appointed the meeting. The next day at four o'clock I went into that saloon, and really, in all my life, I never saw the power of God as I saw it there. It seemed as if the very power of the Highest filled that place. One man had come into that city with thirty thousand dollars and a cer- tificate to call on the bank for. all he wanted ; but ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 67 he was led astray, and in that very saloon had gone down. He was there, reformed, and stood up and made his statement. There were others there. One traveling man who had been in the depths of de- bauchery, and who had been saved before in one of my meetings gave his testimony ; and oh, how many young men there were in the room who were cut down. One young man dropped on his face, right near my feet, and called on God for mercy. Oh ! I am so glad to-night, my friends, that I can speak to the intemperate young man, and say, there is hope for you. Oh, saloon keeper, I ask you to stop that nefarious business. " But," perhaps you say, " this is the way I get my living." Is that it? Is that what you are selling liquor for ? Well, there is not a great deal of money in my pocketbook, but there is some, and, before God and these witnesses, if you will stand up before this congregation and pledge yourself to go from this meeting to your saloon, roll out your barrels, knock in the heads, and stop this dreadful business of ruin- ing these young men, I will give you my pocket- book ; and when that is expended for the bread your family needs, inform me, and if there is no other way for you to get an honest living, I pledge myself here to give up my business, if necessary, and beg from door to door to support your family, if you will only stop ruining these young men by wholesale. In the university where I studied years ago there was a bril- liant young man who graduated with honors. During his student course he had fallen into the habit of 68 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. drinking. The appetite became fixed. He sat down in despair and said, " It is no use, I must either stop drinking or I might as well die now as any time." He made up his mind to stop, and got along very well for three months. At the expiration of that time a young man, who had graduated with him, came from Philadelphia to visit him, and brought a basket of bottled liquors. He led Charley astray. They had a spree. He went back. Charley sat down in utter despair ; took a paper and wrote on it, " You will find me dead in the hotel at S ," and signed his name, and directed it to the man with whom he was reading law, thinking that he would not come to the office till the mail came in, and he would have time to get his poison, go to S , nine miles distant, and commit suicide. He got his poison and took the stage. It happened that a little while after the man with whom he was reading law entered the post-office and found the note. He dispatched the sheriff at once for the stage. He overtook it, arrested Charley, brought him back, and telegraphed to his father in T , " Your dear son is a suicide." How do you suppose that father felt ? No young man on this floor can tell. God has given me two sons, whom I love. I trust they are both in the kingdom praying boys. But positive!^, to- night, with their present state, I would rather be obliged to stand on the railroad track and see a train of cars five miles long run over both of them and tear them all to pieces, than to have a messenger enter that door with a telegraphic dispatch, " Mr. ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 69 Graves, your boy is a suicide by intemperance." Oh! young man, you may think to-night that I speak with a warm heart. I can not help it. And I am here to-night to ask you to stay your steps. The father telegraphed back, " Bring my boy to me." The sheriff went on to T . The father stood near the cars as they got off, put up his arms, took his boy to his bosom and kissed him. The boy had a letter in his pocket then that his mother had written three months before on her dying bed the last letter she ever wrote to him. The father took him by the arm, and they walked down the street with the sheriff. Charley said, " Father, let me step around the corner a minute while you talk with the sheriff. I will be back." He let him go, but he never came back alive. They searched the city- They telegraphed in every direction. The next day a telegram came from Chatham saying that a young man answering the description came there the day before, complained of being a little ill, took a glass of liquor and went up to his room. Half an hour after, the landlord, thinking he might be very ill, came to the door and knocked, but got no answer. The door was broken open and there lay Charley in the bed, with a bottle of prussic acid in one hand and the stopple in the other. He had drank enough to eat through his entire vitals, and was gone. Young man, will you tell me what did that? Just that little tippling that you have been having in these saloons to-day, just that little occasional glass. Oh ! you say, "I can stop when I have a mind to." 70 PEOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Perhaps you can, and perhaps you can not. Oh! young man, may I go down into the chambers of your soul to-night, and ask you if you won't stop. Stay thy step ! Do not look on the wine when it is red again. "Touch not, taste not, handle not" the dreadful cup that brings down dishonor and ruin upon you. " Run, speak to this young man." What young man ? 1 would speak to that young man who is say- ing, "I know I ought to be a Christian; but there is time enough yet." Who told you that there was time enough yet ? Has God commissioned me to tell you to-morrow you may have an opportunity to attend to your soul ? Never ! While I have no sympathy with eccentricities in the work of revival, there was a time, a few years ago, when I did one thing that seemed to be eccentric. I stood speaking in a church where there was a broad aisle down through the center. In the midst of my sermon I felt deeply impressed, and I stopped and said, " I believe I am preaching the funeral sermon of some person in this house." If a thunderbolt from a clear sky, at twelve o'clock, had struck my congregation, I do not believe they would have been more startled. It threw per- fect consternation among the people ; but I could not keep it back. I felt that I must speak, though I did not know why. As soon as the people settled down I went on. At the close of that address an aged mother, a widow, arose and walked up the aisle and said to me, " Sir, will you pray for my dear son ? " He was a young man of twenty-four, the ADDRESS TO YOUNG MEN. 71 only dependence of a widowed mother. I stepped right from the desk and took him by the hand, and said, " Will you attend to your soul now ?" He re- plied, " I thank you for your kindness, but there is time enough yet." I pressed it upon him. Said I, " Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salva- tion." He put me off. That young man was the one whose funeral sermon I preached that night. Just thirty-six hours from that time, I heard a noise from my window. I looked out and saw six men bearing the body of a seventh toward the depot. I ran out as quickly as I could to the depot. They had just laid him down upon the floor. He looked anxiously from his dying eyes. As I stood over him for I recognized at once it was the same young man he acted as if he wanted to speak. I dropped on my knees and put my ear down by his lips, and he said in a dying tone, " Oh ! Mr. Graves, I wish I was a Christian." These were the last words he ever uttered, and he is now in eternity. Young men ! " Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation." Oh that this night you would surrender your heart to Jesus ; lay up your treasure in heaven ; become a noble, Christian young man. Then you are ready to live or to die. BIBLE WOKE:. I VISITED Prof. Finney some time before his death, and in conversation on revivals he stated that during his last visit to England, nearly twenty years ago, he met a man who had just published a book. He could not remember the name of the book or the author. But the drift of the contents was this, that the next great religious awakening in the world would be, emphatically, a Bible revival ; that atten- tion would be turned to the Book of God as never before. And, said he, with evangelists, pastors, and teachers we are now having this wonderful Bible work. It is true that the history of the world has never seen such demand for Bibles, and such atten- tion turned to the study of the Word of the Lord as no\fr. I have been in this work of winning souls for a quarter of a century, and I never have felt such pantings in my own soul for the Word of God as at the present. Nor have I ever seen such interest in the Bible, on the part of others, both in the Church and out of it, as within the last two or three years. "Our God is marching on." And not only has He declared that His word shall not return to Him void, but He is showing His determination that it shall be known to the ends of the earth. " His knowledge shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea." (72) BIBLE WORK. 73 The Book of God only needs to be read and studied to be known and believed. It carries evi- dence of its own truth on every page. Wherever infidels have ever undertaken to examine and over- throw it, they have made in the course of their argu- ments some wonderfully convincing concessions, that show its genuineness. And, in spite of all opposition, this book of bless- ing never had such a hold upon the world as it has to-day. It never comforted so many saints, saved so many sinners, or had such a strong hold upon the work of reform in every sense, and every possible way, as it has now. And what hope there is in this. A short time ago, Mr. Varley, the great English evangelist, recommended that Christian men in large numbers go through the streets of London, and stop at every corner, and simply read in a loud tone a few passages of Scripture. No doubt its influence would be mighty ; and who can tell but that a greater re- vival would follow than when Jonah went crying through the streets of Nineveh ? It is fast becoming a known fact that the Word of the Lord only needs to be known to have its great power felt upon the human heart. Its proclamation is the world's great need. There is no power like this. It is no marvel that the Apostle Paul said, "It is the power of God unto salvation." And this was never more true than at this moment. And Jesus' great commission was, " Go preach the G-ospel to every creature," not preach philosophy, science, human opinions or sensations, but " the Gospel." 74 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. And the great weakness of pulpit and pew is so little knowledge and proclamation of Bible truth. It is said that Daniel Webster once declared " that the ministers took their texts out of the Bible, but their sermons out of the newspapers." It would seem that many have not forgotten how to do this yet. O for more ministers who in all their pro- clamations could say with the godly Jeremiah, " Thy word is like fire shut up in my bones ! " And with all our learning and high appreciation of edu- cation, there is reason to believe that in our schools there is too much drifting away from the direct use of the Bible the grand foundation of all our ex- perience, our work, and our success as a text book. While the world is being flooded with books, we need to cling more to the one book. And I believe, if in all our colleges and schools of learning there could be at least one recitation a day from the Bible, as much as from any other branch of study, it would be much better for the land and the world. Ib would not . surprise me if, at no distant day, this should be the case. God is surely leading the people in " a way that they know not " in the work of the Bible. I met a young man a few weeks ago whose heart seemed like a flint, and whose prejudices were very bitter against the Bible. I put him to the test to absolutely accept this Word as true, or reject it. He revolted. More earnestly than ever I preached to him its truths. He soon relented and said he would believe it if I would show him that it was true. I told him I did not expect to live long BIBLE WORK. 75 enough to understand the whole of the Bible ; that I did not believe any person on this earth ever did understand the whole of it ; but that, many years ago, when I was tempted with doubts about the divine authenticity of the Scriptures, I settled it in this way : I said, " I will give the Bible another careful reading, and if then I can persuade myself to cast it off, I will do so, and have nothing more to do with it." I read it again, but the internal evi- dences were too overwhelming, and I was compelled to accept it as divine truth, though I could under- stand but a comparatively small portion of it. Arid since then I have been able to understand enough to bless my own soul, and also enough to use for the blessing of others. The young man was enlightened by this simple statement. We need to spend less time in speculations and more in taking the simple Word into our hearts. Never was there a book made that has so universally blessed mankind as this. Only a line of it has sometimes been a seed thought to the saving of multitudes. And Christians every where will do well to at least recognize the call of the Holy Spirit to its study. The hearts of men every where are looking to this beacon light for guidance. They want neither experience, song, or even prayer itself, so much as they do the Word of God. Never did hungry men require bread more than do millions of hungry souls demand the Word of Life. So many have mistaken feelings, human actions, and circumstances for the foundation of hope, that they now say, give us a firm foundation. 76 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. How much then should Christians, who know that the foundation of God standeth sure, be ready to give to lost souls THE WORD OF THE LORD ! The history of the world never presented such golden moments for Bible work as now. Men, women and children, everywhere, crushed down by sin, are longing for deliverance. The voice of inquiry is heard on every hand. The secular and religious press, the pulpit and pew, alike, are sending forth the call to repentance and eternal life. Response comes from every quarter: "What shall we do?" These souls in sin and darkness must have help. But how? Shall we tell them of human feelings and actions; of baptisms, confirmations and sacra- ments ; of patching up our moral nature by outward forms and a bare professional Christianity ? No, no J We must lead them to the Word of God, as much as did Moses the bitten and poisoned Israelites. When they would be delivered and saved, God said : Put a serpent of brass upon a pole, and " every one that is bitten when he looketh shall live." It was the word of the Lord that saved them : that is, if God had not uttered this, there would have been no way opened for them to escape. It was imperative that they should know this to be saved from their danger, suffering and death. So with the sinner. To be effectually saved he must know what God says to him about this very thing. Would you save the carnal minded, the prayerless, the self-righteous, the profane, the libertine, the drunken, the harlot, the broken in heart, and those who sit in the very BIBLE WORK. 77 region and shadow of death ? Give them the Word of God. I do not mean barely give them a Bible ; but read it to them, and lead them to read it to themselves. There are far too many sealed, parlor- table Bibles. Let the Book of God be opened and its contents poured down into the soul. I once made this remark to a Christian friend : " When I used to preach at my day meetings, but few would attend ; but since I adopted Bible readings, the people throng them. What is the reason?" His reply was, " Because God's word is worth more than yours." This, I have been convinced, is true. And I should as soon think of a soldier fighting in battle successfully without arms ; a bird flying with- out wings ; a man living without breath ; or a ship sailing on dry land, as to efficiently work for Christ and souls without a Bible. It is true there are numerous commentaries and helps to the study of the Word of the Lord ; but what all Christians most need is thoughtful perusal of the naked truth of God. Much can be gathered in strength and know- ledge by a careful study of the Bible itself. What our souls need is to drink in the spirit as well as knowledge of this "mind of God to man." It is well to have our intellects filled with knowledge, but we immensely need to have our souls imbued with the spirit of the Gospel. And this can be attained in no way so well as reading the Bible. Another thing: Let me urge that those who would know the Word, seek to read it by the Holy Spirit. Ask God to give you the 78 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Holy Spirit to especially understand the Bible when you read it. This will often throw floods of light upon the mind, and give great refreshment to your soul from the Gospel. We live in an age when every Christian should be up and at work with his Bible. All Christians, old and 3'oung, should take their Bibles to church with them. Yea, a small Testament, at least, should be carried constantly in the pocket of every person, so that reference to some verse could be made at any moment, for the benefit of themselves or others. And it would be well if there could be more exposi- tory Bible readings introduced into the public ser- vices of our churches. The minister's reading is often dry and unmeaning, because he seems to have so little of it in his own soul, and takes so little pains to put it into the souls of others. How much more could be done to make the Word of God a power in our churches. The great source of weakness among Christians, and the fruitful source of backsliding in the church, I believe, is more attributable to a neglect of the Bible than to any other one thing. And what a need there is that every Christian should arm him- self with the Word of Truth, for the special pur- pose of " sowing beside all waters," and giving, in some form, a portion to every person he meets. The demand is great, and new methods will have to be adopted before the Gospel will be given to every creature. Costly and gorgeous meeting houses, rent- ed pews, and a select fashionable few to occupy BIBLE WORK. 79 them ; artistic music, with plenty of ear and voice, but no soul, have utterly failed to reach the masses of the people with the Gospel. The formal manner of preaching, which not a few ministers have, also fails to arrest the attention of the people, while many godly, earnest ministers find it impossible to "feed the multitude," for want of "helping hands" from the ranks of the soldiery. Then, while the opportunity and needs are so great, I wish to plead with every Christian, whose eye may rest upon this paper, to go to work with your Bible. Do not delay an hour. God is calling, souls are perishing, and you will soon be called to your account, whether your work is done or not. BIBLE BEADING. GETHSEMANE. PLEASE open your Bibles to Matthew xxvi, 36. Then comcth Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sifr ye here, while I go and pray yonder. Gethsemane was the place where Jesus suffered for sinners, and every Christian who is a winner of souls must have sympathy with him. Isaiah tells us that, " As soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children ; " implying that if sinners were con- verted, Christians must be interested for their salva- tion. How many there are in our churches who do not seem to have any idea that God has a work for them to do, as lights in the world, in leading sinners to Jesus. But some will run to the minister " Do you -think it is wrong for a Christian to dance ? Do you think, really, that it is wrong for a Christian to go to the circus, or the theater ? " frittering away their lives trying to find out just how much they can sin and not be lost. Do you mean to tell me such a person is in a proper attitude to lead sin- ners to Christ ? There is something wrong in him. Another thought : The idea that I want to lay on your hearts, in this Bible-reading, is illustrated by (80) BIBLE BEADING. 81 an incident that occurred in Boston, some years ago, where a friend of mine was preaching. At the close of a meeting one night, a lady arose and said, " Sir, can I have the privilege of reading a letter that I received to-day from my old home in Wales, where I was born and brought up, and united with the church? " Permission was given, and this was the extract : There had been a special religious interest in that town. At the beginning of the services, the minister stood in his pulpit one day, and announced the meetings. Then he said, " Brother, will you take such a soul to pray for?" he was a man who knew the town well and " Sister, will you take such an one? " And so he went on through his congregation, giving, as she supposed, each a soul to pray for, and directing that they should not cease praying until that soul was saved. He dismissed the meeting. As he was going down the aisle, a humble servant girl looked up into his face and said, " Pastor, you did not give me anybody." "Didn't I? I thought I gave evary one a soul to pray for. Is your mistress converted ?" " No that will do, pastor." She went out, attended to the domestic matters at home, and the mistress retired to her room, and the servant girl to hers, as was supposed. In the night the woman awoke, and said to her husband, " I never had such impressions about my sinfulness nor my soul's dan- ger as I have now ; won't you get up and go for some Christian to come and pray for me ? " " This is very strange,' said the husband; "you never had 6 82 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. such feelings as these before. Can not you wait un- til morning ? " She said, " I will try." He went to sleep again, but there was no sleep for her. By and by she awoke him again and said : " This pain is so great, it seems as if I would die and be lost forever. Can not you go and get some- body to pray for me ? " " Well," said he, " isn't our servant girl a Christian?" "I believe she is," said the mistress." " Well, we will get up and go to her room," said he. So they got up and put on their clothes and went to the servant girl's room, but there was no servant girl there, and the bed was undis- turbed. They were disconcerted for a moment. Then the mistress said: "Sometimes she goes up into the upper room and, perhaps, she has gone up there and fallen asleep; we will go up there." They went up, and as they approached the door they heard these words: "Oh God, my mistress is very dear to me, have mercy on her soul ! Oh God, my mistress is very dear to me, have mercy on her soul!" There that dear girl, for hours, in the darkness of the night, had been offering that earnest heart prayer. She was in the garden of Gethsemane, in her heart, with Jesus. " My husband," said the mistress, " this is the trouble." The door was opened, and they entered ; and you may be sure salvation came there. Now that little incident illustrates the doctrine that we want to get hold of this afternoon. Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death : tarry ye here, and watch with me. BIBLE HEADING. 83 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O ray Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me : nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. Matthew xxvi, 38, 39, 42 and 44. In these four verses you will notice that Jesus offered one prayer three times ; and it was a prayer of agony, of sighing, of heart travailing. What was it for? It was for the salvation of sinners. This was one great deep-seated impression in His heart, "Father if Thou be willing let this cup pass from me : nevertheless not as I will but as Thou wilt." I believe that every Christian who ever does any- thing that is worth the mention in saving sinners will go into the garden and learn this lesson of Jesus. He will put his heart right by the side of Jesus' heart, that he may thus cry to God in agony for lost souls. That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death. Philippians iii, 10. Notice particularly in this passage, " The fellow- ship of His sufferings." Now you will see that the apostle here says he wants to be found in Christ, that he may know Him, and the fellowship of His sufferings. Now that is entering the garden with Jesus. It is as much as to say, I want, as a Chris- tian, to go to the garden and the cross ; I want to have fellowship with the sufferings of Jesus in His 84 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. death for sinners, and if you and I ever do much for sinners, we must go into the garden with Him. We must have times of sorrow, times of heart agony. A year ago, when I was in Michigan, Dr. E said that twenty-five years ago, in the State of New York, a minister gave him this inci- dent: There was, in his church, a very pious and wealthy lady. Her husband was an infidel. They lived in a large mansion with everything at their command that wealth could give. They had an only daughter, a beautiful little girl. This mother had a Bible that she used to always carry to meeting with her. Soon she took sick and died. Before she died she called her little daughter to her bed and said : "My child, I am going to leave you, you will be alone now, with only Jesus to help you, and I want to give you this Bible with my dying blessing. It has been such a comfort and blessing to me all through my life." Some time after, she carried her Bible to meeting. The spirit of God arrested her attention, and she was brought to the light and the happiness of the Gospel. Her father heard her singing at home. His ire was aroused. He, in his heart, hated God, and ministers, and Jesus, and the Bible, and religion. That night he said : " My daughter, I heard you singing, perhaps you think you have become, a Christian." "Yes, papa; I am so happy; I think I have been converted." I don't suppose he would have spoken an unkind word to that child for anything but religion. "My child," said he, " I hate God, and I hate the Bible, and I BIBLE HEADING. 85 won't have religion in my house. I have everything that you need, and money to give you as good a home as your heart can wish; but, if you are going to have religion you must leave your home. You can take your choice. Let me know to-morrow morning whether you will give up religion or your home ; one or the other you must do." She went up into her chamber and knelt down and opened her Bible, and her eye rested on this passage : " When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up." In a moment, it seemed as if God helped her to a decision. She said : " I will go with my Lord." She came down in the morning. " Well, my daughter, what is the decision ? " " Papa, I love you, and I love my home, but I love Jesus more, and I have concluded to go." He opened the door angrily: "There is the way." The darling child dropped her head and -went out, not knowing whither she was going. She walked down the street some distance, and by and by, inadvertently, turned in toward the bushes. In a little space she found a log, and there she bowed in prayer to God for that hard-hearted infidel father. By and by, seeing what he had done, his heart began to relent. I have no doubt God was in it, for in His Word He says, " a little child shall lead them;" and He has a great ' many ways for little children to lead them. He soon followed her. As he passed down by the wood he heard the sweet voice of his daughter. He followed it, and found her praying. He stepped over the log, got down by her side, put his arm around her 86 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. neck and kissed her in the midst of her prayer. That was her Gethsemane. That illustrates the doctrine that we are considering here to-day. Now look again at that verse, " And have fellowship with his sufferings." Show me a woman anywhere, whether she leads her husband to Christ, or leads her daughter to Christ. Show me a minister in the pulpit, or a deacon in the pew, or a Sunday school teacher, or a Christian who ever leads a soul to Christ, and I will show you a Christian who knows, in his or her heart, the Gethsemane of the Lord Jesus Christ. You ought to thank God for the privilege of working in harmony with Jesus in winning souls. If you want to do anything to glorify Jesus, you must not be found in the loose company of the sad and sinful, acting as if you loved it as much as anybody. You will not win sinners in that way. Ami they that be wise, shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars' for ever and ever. Daniel xii, 3. If you want to shine, here is a chance. The Bible does not say that the President is going to shine, or that a great banker, or rich man, or a king is going to shine. And this is the only place in the Bible that tells us that anybody is going to shine in the future. You know everybody wants to shine. They that turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars forever and ever. If you want exaltation in the light of God, and Jesus, and every thing that is BIBLE BEADING. 87 holy, then my advice to you is, to seek to win souls to Christ. For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. Isaiah Ixii, 1. There is a state of heart that represents this blessed experience. That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ, for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh. Romans ix, 2, 3. Here is the state of heart that Paul was in when he did such an immense work of turning sinners to righteousness. And many a man has had that same experience. For a long time, it may be, his heart has been crushed down with anxiety for his kindred ; and after this you frequently find them coming into the kingdom. Several years ago, this was the experience of my own heart with my eldest son. Since the death of his mother, when he was quite young, I had often prayed for him. But there came a time when I felt great pain for his conversion. He was nearly fifteen hundred miles away from me. I went to the Fulton Street daily prayer meeting, and asked others to help me pray for my dear child. Never shall I forget how three Presbyterian elders, one after the other, prayed for my son. Soon after this I visited him, and found him inquiring the way to be saved. He was soon converted and baptized into the church. Some time after, he went astray, but again I went to Gethsemane in his behalf, and 88 FKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. he was restored, and is now walking in the light of God. And if parents would see their dear ones con- verted, they must agonize, must go into the garden with Jesus. God don't answer easy prayers. I found this true also in the conversion of my youngest son. It is not many months since I visited him. He is now a boy of eighteen. His mother died when he was but two and a half years of age, and he has been kindly cared for since then in the family of Deacon Taylor, in Concord, Minnesota. I have done every thing I could for his education and welfare, and year after year, by night and day, I experienced untold agony of soul for his redemption. Two years ago I rode with him forty miles in a carriage to visit his mother's grave. After convers- ing with him about his salvation, I said to him, "Will you kneel on that side of the grave?" He knelt, and I knelt on the other side. I poured out my soul to God, and when I had asked God to bless him, ajid answer his mother's prayers, I said, " Can you pray, my child ?" Never in my life shall I for- get that prayer. He prayed, "O, God, answer my mother's prayers ; give me a new heart and save me !" A little while after I received a letter commencing thus : " My dear father, I have good news for you : my prayer is answered, and Jesus has forgiven my sins." It was my privilege a short time ago to baptize that dear son into the church. On my arrival here the other day, I received a letter, and he says in it, "I pray God to bless you in your work." Oh ! it seems to me sometimes, dear friends, that J BIBLE READING. 89 can read out volumes of experience in that language of the apostle, "I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ, for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh. v I do not expect these worldly fathers and mothers are going to see their children converted, or these worldly wives will see their husbands converted, until they get down into the valley ; till they get into the garden with Jes T , and, oh, when you find your peace in fellov ohip with the Son of God, for your kindred according to the flesh, you will see the dear ones brought in. And it carne to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin : and now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin. And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if Thou wilt forgive their sin ; and if not, blot me, I pray Thee, out of Thy book which Thou hast written. Exodus xxxii, 30, 31, 32. Now, the instance of this prayer was very strik- ing, and, I had about said, wonderful. Moses, that good minister of God, went up on the mountain to write the decalogue. He appointed another minister to take his place, and take care of his people. He was gone a long time. By some means, Aaron got backslidden, alas, that ministers should ever get backslidden, but sometimes they do, and it makes very bad work with the people, who will generally fol- low their leader. By and by, while Aaron was in this backslidden state, the people said to him, "We don't want to pray any more, we don't want to wor- ship that God any more, can not you make us a 90 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. God ? " They wanted to be idolaters. Aaron said, " Yes, give me your jewelry." Off go the chains, and the rings, and the bracelets, and all the jewelry that they had upon them, and they nve them to Aaron, and he melted them up, and made a golden calf. After a time, Moses came back and found his people in that predicament. He was very sad, and by and by he could not bear it any longer, and he went to God and said, "O, God 5 blot my name out of the book if need be, but save my people ; send me to hell if need be, but save my people." And there are a great many ministers who have that same experience. It has really seemed to me sometimes that I should die if salvation did not come to Israel. And I have no doubt that there are many ministers that the people know little about who go into their closets and there have the greatest agony, as if they would die if the cloud of mercy did not break. Moses was in just that condition when he said, " Lord, save my people, or blot my name out of the book." When I was holding meet- ings in Pennsylvania some years ago, a gentleman called upon me and said, " My name h so-and-so. I am pastor of such a church, and I have come to see if you can not come and help us in some meetings." " My dear brother," said I, your heart the idea that you, sir, stand personally and alone to dwell forever in heaven, or forever in hell. And what else has he said? " So then every man shall give an account of himself to God." Oh, think of that ! I saw half a dozen young men sit- ting yonder the other night (probably with as good purposes as any young men of their age ever had), debating the question whether they would decide as if one was leaning over on the other. I tell you, young men, if you are in this room to-night, you are not going to lean on each other at the judgment. You have a personal responsibility there. There is a personality that God is pressing to your heart from this text. Now, I propose to examine with you a few of the evidences that the soul of man is of im- mense worth. The first evidence that I would like to have you look at is this fact : This Bible reveals the fact that man has a soul of immense value. Now take the text itself. What did the Great Teacher mean ? What could he mean when he uttered the two-fold interrogation of my text? I bear you record, it could mean that and nothing else. Another scrip- ture says, " Fear not him who is able to destroy the body but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." On the very face of that text, to my mind there is immense evidence of the great value of the immortal soul. Then, beyond this, there is evidence of the great worth of the soul, in the fact that all men, everywhere, of all natures, conditions, and kinds, so much believe this wonderful 100 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEtf. doctrine. Go to heathen lands if you will. Why do I see that wife burned on the funeral pile of her husband ? Why bringing out her child, and casting it under the wheels of Juggernaut ? Why do I see those loving mothers putting their children into the waters of the Ganges, and the Nile? There is a future world ; and, wrapped up within their inmost nature, a consciousness of immortality. Go to the red man of the forest. Speak to him of his being. He will at once talk to you of the Great Spirit, and breathe out conscious impressions of his immor- tal being. Go any where, amid the wickedest ranks, and you will find the greatest possible evidence that man himself is conscious of an immortal being. Once in a while you meet a man who is just foolish enough I don't know what else to call it to say that he has no soul ; that what this text proclaims has no truth in it. Like one young man I heard of, who, in the presence of an old Quaker friend, was proclaiming aloud, " I haven't any soul ; I know I haven't, because I haven't seen it." The old Quaker looked at the fallacy of his argument, and at him, and said, " My friend, has thee ever seen thy brains?" "No.". "Does thee believe thee has any ? " A dear little girl in the presence of a doctor, once heard him crying out against the existence of an immortal soul. He did not believe there was any because he had never seen it. " Doctor," said the little girl, " have you ever seen a pain?" "No." "Did you ever smell a pain?" "No." "Did you ever taste a pain?" VALUE OF THE SOUL. 101 "No." "Have you ever heard a pain?" "No." " How do you know there is any such thing as pain ? " " Because I have felt it." " That is the way I know I have a soul," she said. All the inmost recesses of her moral nature, the sensibili- ties of her undying affections were witnesses ; and so it is with you. You might as well tell me that a man could live twenty-four hours with- out breathing, as that he could live without a conscious impression that he has a soul that can not die. The evidence is latent, and yet revealed and developed in all the consciousness of the deepest recesses of affection. I say then, the fact that men, everywhere, of whatever character or condi- tion, to so great an extent believe in this doctrine, forces us to this conclusion. Now, there is another evidence to your heart, and mine, that the soul is of immense value, and that is because so many, in all lands, who have cared for the soul so much the more believe in the doctrine. Why are these Christians here to-night? Why these gray haired fathers scattered through these seats, with all the intentness of hallowed experi- ence, faith, and hope growing stronger and stronger every day? Why do I see trophies of Christ be- ing gathered on every land ; converts multiplied, and churches being erected by the thousands all over the continent of America; choirs of singers gathered ; ministers preaching ; ten thousand organ- izations of every conceivable character put in operation, and all increasing as the successive days 102 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. roll their wonted rounds? Why do you look in my face to-night and know me to be a man, who twenty-five years ago embraced the Christian religion right out from the very depths of dark- ness and sin, having enjoyed every thing that a man of dissolute habits can enjoy : circuses, dancing, thea- ters, the tastes and enjoyments of high and low circle ; everything that heart could wish in a life of sin, yet I turned around and gave up every thing that seemed to stand in the way of holiness. Why haven't I given holiness up long ago ? Why don't I turn back? If I had found myself mis- taken, wouldn't I have given it up ? You know a burned child dreads the fire. But my whole being is becoming daily intensified with increasing blessing and earnestness in caring for the soul. Why this? Nearly twenty years ago, when there was not a foot of railroad in the State of Minnesota, I went as a missionary to that State. I landed in Lake City, on the banks of Lake Pepin. I found a church there of seventeen members, worshiping in a little hall. I said to the friends, " We must have a meet- ing house." In their poverty, they said, "You can not raise $300." Said I, " We can try." We went at it. In three months we had a meeting house that would hold nearly two hundred people, all completed, painted, grained, and dedicate^ to God. On the memorable day of that dedication there sat an old lady yonder. Her hairs were gray, her form was tremulous, her cheeks were furrowed, she was all VALUE OF THE SOUL. 103 bent over. The sermon was preached in the morn- ing. In the afternoon wehad a testimony meeting. She paid the largest subscription toward that house. Out of her small means she gave us, I think, twenty- five dollars. She arose in that meeting and put her hands on the back of the seat in front of her. Then she looked around : " Sixty-five years I have been a member of the church of God, and I am not tired of the way yet." Why didn't she give it up long before? I tell you, dear friends, it was because there was in her heart a growing conviction that she was not mistaken ; and I tell you it is true, wher- ever you go, that Christians, when they become true Christians, will believe more and more in the great fact that this religion is not a myth or a mistake. Now, my dear sir, there is another evidence that the soul is of immense value, and that is, those persons who do not take care of their souls do not and can not rid themselves of the great fact that the soul is of immense value. I sat in a seat, last night, with an inquirer. I should say he was a man fifty-five or sixty years old. He tried at first to impress me that he was unsettled in his convictions. " Oh," said I, " then you would like to have all the Bibles and churches burned, and all the pastors dismissed." "Oh no, no, no!" said he. "Why not?" "Be- cause," said he, "it is better to have them." "Well said I, " if it is good for one man, it is good for } r ou, isn't it ? " " Yes." " Now," said I, " you see where you are, your convictions are as strong as mine." It matters not who it is, nor where you find a wicked 104 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. man in affliction, even the worst infidels on the earth, if you press them 4 owr i with this one great thought, " the value of the soul," they will confess it in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, and even with that they may go on down to destruction with- out preparation. Some of you have read of that wonderful man John Knox. You have also read of Mary, the " bloody queen " of Scots. You know how she hated Christ and religion ; and seemed bound, as far as she could, to wipe out the very existence of hallowed experience and religion in the realm of Scotland. You know that John Knox, in all his piety and consecration felt the force of it, and it is said, that at one time fleeing to prayer and to God he went down to the Brakes, and somebody followed him. By and by they lost sight of him, and they waited. After along time, away yonder in the thicket, they heard his voice going up to God three times, " O God, give me Scotland or I die ! O God, give me Scotland or I die ! O God, give me Scotland, or I die!" Did God give him Scotland? Let the Free Kirk of Scotland answer to-da} r . I suppose there is not a realm upon the face of the whole earth where there is more depth of Bible truth and experimental religion than in Scotland. The Roman Catholic Church has hardly ever been able to get a foothold there. God did give Scotland to John Knox. But what became of that " bloody queen?" By and by she was called to lie down upon her bed of death, and just before she died, it is said, she clasped her hands and cried, " My kingdom VALUE OP THE SOUL. 105 for a moment of time ! " Young man, what did she want that minute for ? Have you any idea ? She wanted it to take care of her soul. That same per- son who would banish forever from her realm this blessed knowledge of Christ and salvation, neglect- ing her own soul, now comes at the last moment to ask for a single moment that her soul might be cared for. Oh ! my friend, will you care for your soul ? I say that men who do not care for their souls can not rid themselves of this one fact, that they have a soul to care for. Then let me say again, that God has put under contribution every conceivable plan ; aye, he has put under contribution three worlds heaven, earth, and hell, that he might bring men to see what the soul itself is worth. He sends out evangelists and missionaries, religious periodicals, and, to-day, the secular press is doing more in this line, under, God's leading, than ever in the past history of the world ; and all this to tell men of the worth of the soul. Oh ! my dear friends, how blessed and glori- ous it is to us who have attended to our souls, to realize that God has not left us without means by which our souls may be cared for. Another evidence of the great worth of the soul is the great, the immortal capacity of the soul. See the wonderful endowment of man. How he is fraught with inventions, calculations, plans, com- prehensions, educational capacity, infinitely above all other considerations or ends ! A man was ap- pointed to take care of a railroad drawbridge. By and by a friend came with his boat and said to the 106 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. man, " Run off the bridge, and I will get my boat through before the cars come." " I can not do it," said he ; " my orders are strict." Soon another man, an intimate friend, came, and he over-persuaded him, and he ran the bridge off; and just as it was balanced on the pier, the whistle of the lightning train came screaming around the curve. The bridge tender saw the inevitable fate. What could he do but stand and gaze at the fearful and the fatal mistake of his life ? Just as the lightning train came crashing over the bridge, making the fatal plunge, that man was heard to cry out, " If I only had " and then his reason was dethroned. He was taken to an asylum ; and long, long years, it is said, before his death, he paced the halls and rooms of that asylum, wringing his hands and crying, " If I only had ! If I only had ! If I only had ! If 1 only had ! " evidently meaning, " If I only had done as I knew I ought to do, kept the bridge closed, all would have been well." I thought many a man will spend eternity crying, " If I only had ! If I only had ! " I wonder if I speak to one young man, or old man, or lady in this congregation, who to-night, by this Bible, sees your soul of immense worth, and will forever in despair be crying, "If I only had! Oh! that memorable night when I heard Mr. Graves speak on the worth of the soul, and I believed it, if I only had given my heart to Jesus!" I wonder if I speak to one in this house to-night who will forever be crying out with the requiems of the damned, " If I only had ! If I only had ! Oh ! that VALUE OF THE SOUL. 107 memorable Monday night ! Oh ! that oft-repeated opportunity when I might have taken care of my soul ! If I only had ! " Oh ! dear man, the capacity of that soul of thine is vast, incomprehensible ! Will you take care of it ? Did you ever think, my dear friends, of the great capacity God has given you, indicating clearly the great value of the soul ? Did you ever read the tenth chapter of the book of Joshua ? There you learn one of the most striking instances illustrating this fact that the world has ever known. General Joshua had taken the city of Ai, and was marching on Gibeon. The King of Jerusalem, desiring to hold the ground, gathered five kings to his assistance. "Now," they said, "we must march out against Joshua." Joshua appealed to his God. God said, "Fear them not; for I have delivered them into thine hand." And when Joshua entered the arena of that conflict, fearing that the sun would go down before he should gain the battle, with giant intellect and giant powers he drew him- self up in all the majesty of his soul, and cried out, " Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon ; and moon, in the valley of Ajalon." Did the sun stand still ? It did. Did the moon stand still ? It did, until that battle was fought and victory won. And it is said, " The Lord never hearkened so to any man before nor after." I have often thought that that was a grand memorial which God set up of the great capacity of the soul. " What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?" Another proof of the value of the soul, and I will 108 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. close : G-od has given Jesus, his Son. Oh ! as we go to the Cross to-night, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Dear woman, God gave his Son for your soul. Dear man, it was for you that Jesus died. A few years ago a friend said to me in the city of Brooklyn, " Wouldn't you like to take a ride in Greenwood ?" I said I would. The carriage was drawn up, and we started on our way. We entered the cemetery. Some of you have doubtless been there to that vast city of the dead which covers more than eight hundred acres. There are beautiful monuments; fine vaults, which cost, some of them, over $100,000 ; very fine walks and drives; splendid foliage; fountains throwing their water up into the air ; everything that is attractive that the hand of art could provide to beautify the place. We rode on. By and by we came to the firemen's monument. Said I to the driver, "Stop." He stopped. I looked up at that monument. I had seen it before ; but it seemed to me that I looked at it as I never did before. I said, " That is what Jesus did for me." There stands a fine monument peering up into the air, a fine iron inclosure around it, a gilt inscription upon it. You read it with interest, and look along up, and on the top, there is a fireman sculptured out in full fireman's dress : the very buttons upon his coat are life-like ; his cap is on his head ; his horn in his hand ; and, folded in his arms is a little babe, as life-like as the hand of art could make it. I said again, as the tears leaped from my eyes, "That is what Jesus did for me." VALUE OF THE SOtTL. 109 I knew the history of that scene. In the great fire in Duane Street, in 1814, it is said that great numbers had gathered from Westchester County, Newark, Brooklyn, Jersey City, and all the adjacent points ; the firemen had come, and gath- ered around block after block, as they were fall- ing victims to the flames. And as they were work- ing hard at the buildings, a scream was heard. It proved to be a female voice, and soon a woman was seen pushing her way through the crowd pushing strong men aside as, by Herculean strength, she rushed forward, put up her hands, and cried, " Oh, my child ! rny child ! It will perish ! it will perish !" Up steps a brave fireman. " What is it, madam what is it?" "Up there," she said, " I have a dar- ling child: it will perish! it will perish!" Quick as thought he grasped the ladder, and others with him put it up to the windows. He rushed up with all his might, got into the window, went into the lit- tle room, as he had been directed, and there found an innocent babe. He grasped it up in his arms and went back to the window to go out. Just as he reached the window, he saw that the floor was sink- ing, and he must go down. He tossed the babe out of the window. It was fortunately saved, but he sunk to rise no more. As I looked upon that monument, knowing that history, I said, " That is what Jesus did for my soul. While all the fires of the pit were kindling around, and all its fiends were waiting to swallow up my soul, Jesus came rushing down from the realms of 110 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. glory, and gave His life on Calvary. There, in agony, He died for me and died for you." Oh ! my friend, are you going to lose your soul, when all this has been done for you? Are you? Don't do it. I beseech you to-night, take care of your soul. Hearts of stone relent, relent ; Break, by Jesus' cross subdued ; See His body mangled, rent, Covered with a gore of blood ; Sinful soul, what hast thou done ? Crucified th' Eternal Son. Yes, thy sins have done the deed, Driven the nails that fixed Him there, Crowned with thorns His sacred head, Plunged into His side the spear, Made His soul a sacrifice, While for sinful man He dies. Wilt thou let Him bleed in vain ? Still to death thy Lord pursue? Open all His wounds again ? And the shameful cross renew ? No! with all my sins I'll part Saviour take my broken heart. BIBLE READING-. FAITH THAT GOD ACCEPTS. Now, friends, please read Hebrews xi, 6: But without faith it is impossible to please him : for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. The point I wish to have you notice particularly is, that without faith it is impossible to please God. Whatever you have, if you have not faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, God is not pleased. This is where some people make their fatal mistake. They tell you they are going to be saved by some thing they have done, or if they do "about right." Such persons have not the faith that God accepts. Now turn to Romans x, 17 : So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. I call your attention to this verse, this afternoon, that you may have anchorage ground. No man can really believe a thing unless he has some thing sub- stantial to put his faith on. There must be evidence somewhere, in which he can anchor his faith. I want to set you to-day, as a believer in Christ, on John vi, 37 : " Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out." I want to anchor your hope right (111) 112 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. there. According to this, just as surely as you come to Christ, you will not be cast out. A man whom I met recently, replied, when I asked him if he was a Christian, " Well, that I don't know. You have sifted me pretty closely to-night. I rather think I am, but I am not certain." I asked, "Are you a member of any church? " " Yes, sir, I am a member of the Baptist church." " Then, I want to anchor you so that you will never again say that you are not certain." I then led him to Matthew xi, 28, where Jesus says, " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." "Now, that is Jesus' sure word; nobody will doubt that. Have you come ? " said I. " Yes ; I think I have." "You have come, as far as you know?" " Yes." " You don't think that Jesus requires you to do any thing you can not do, do you ? " " No, sir." " Then it is a living fact that you have really eome to Jesus?" "I have." " Then, how are you going to get away from this passage? How is Jesus going to cast you out ? He says He will not do it. Can He deceive you?" The man's eyes sparkled with delight as he realized his assurance. So you see that "faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." I do not wonder that there are so many cold and dead professors, without any anchorage. They don't seem to have any faith. I call your ^attention to this verse so that you can get an anchorage ground. Let us look at it again: " Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Now then, I want to lead you another step. BIBLE BEADING. 113 I will turn now to Mark xi, 22: Au'd Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. Please look at that verse a moment, while I run over a few thoughts on this chapter. You will find that Jesus had come into Jerusalem, and then went out to Bethany, a place about two miles from the city, and took the twelve disciples with Him. As they went along " he was hungry," and evidently, as you will see by the reading, away in front of them they saw a fig tree and had an impression that they were going to get some- thing to eat when they came up to it. But they found on it "nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet." Then what did Jesus do ? He said to that tree, "Henceforth no fruit shall grow on you forever," and passed on. He spent the night; came back the next day, and they found that tree all dried up and withered from the roots. Now, the 21st verse, "And Peter, calling to remembrance, saith unto Him, Master, behold, the fig tree which Thou cursedst is withered away." What do you suppose Peter made that remark for ? I think he had a purpose in it, and I think it was as much as to say, " Jesus, what made you curse that tree yesterday ? the tree which you cursed is all withered away." Jesus answered, "Have faith in God," as much as to say, Peter, I did that on purpose to let you know what my word is worth ; in other words, I did it to let you know the authority of my word. I said to that tree yester- 8 114 FKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. day. " Henceforth no fruit shall grow on you for- ever." Now you see it is all dried up, and you see what my word is worth, and what power is in it, and that my command shall be done. If any of you have objections to that interpretation, turn to the 23d verse : For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea ; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass : he shall have whatsoever he saith. Now, I don't mean the kind of faith that the woman had, of whom I heard, who read that passage and said, " I guess I will -try it on this little mound in my yard, and if that goes then I will try the big mountain." So she went to bed, and, as the story goes, she got up in the morn- ing and looked out of the window and said, " There ! It has not moved an inch ; just as I ex- pected." That is about the kind of faith a great many have. We want something that will go deeper than that; something that will take Jesus at His word, like a little child that goes up to its father or mother and accepts a statement. How implicitly that child will believe what the parent says. Now, if you still have any doubt, look at this 24th verse: Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Now I will tell you what true faith is, and I will define it so that you can write the definition down. BIBLE READING. 115 Many have asked me, " Can you give in a definite form what true faith is? " I will. It is the persua- sion of the mind resting on evidence. Now it is true that we can carry this into a great many things among men. For instance, you came in here and sat down on that seat. I don't think you would have sat down if you thought it was going to drop and let you fall. You had faith in that seat ; you believed in it. You think there is going to be a' meeting in the Methodist church on the other side. Why ? If nothing had been said about it and the doors were kept locked, would any one of you have believed it? But it has been said that there is going to be a meeting, and your faith rests on the evidence. So with a great many other things of this life, and when we come to the deeper things of God we want to apply this same principle, so that we can not and will not doubt in our hearts. Now look at an illustration, supported by the Word of the Lord. Suppose that Mr. B. came to me and said, " I want to hire a thousand dollars for six months. Can you let me have it?" I think a minute, and then he adds, "I represent half a million dollars ; I have bank stock, railroad stock, tenement houses, and several farms. I represent property enough, but I have no money in hand just now and I need a thousand dollars. Can you let me have it?" I draw my pocket-book and say, "Yes, just write out your note and I will give you a check on the bank." So he writes out his note, "For value received, I promise to pay A. P. Graves, or bearer, 116 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. $1,000, six months from date, with interest," and signs his name. That, you say, is all straight. Now we will turn the tables. Suppose that man had come to me and said, " I want to hire a thousand dollars for six months. I don't represent any property ; I have been very sick ; I have been in the poor house for two years, but I have recovered and just got out, and I am going into business and think I shall be able to return the money in six months. Can you let me have it ? " I don't know as I should draw my check quite as quickly Why ? You have not persuaded my mind on the right kind of evi- dence. That is the point. When you told me that you had ability and would give me your word, backed up by the ability, my faith began to work with confidence. That is just the way it is with me. When God tells me a thing, first I want to know whether He said so? In the next place, is He able to carry out his word ? Has He the ability to do just what He says? I want to illustrate this. Will you notice again, Matthew xi, 28? I want you to get this, for it ought to help you all the rest of your life. It has been a help to me, and I believe it will be to others. It says, " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." That is what Jesus says to me; but I say at once, " I want to know how I may be certain that I will have rest. Has He the ability to give me rest? I want evidence." Probably neither you nor I could be persuaded to believe it without some evidence. We must have something BIBLE HEADING. 117 to impress our hearts with confidence that our souls are really to have rest. Now let us notice the evi- dences. I come along and meet old Elder Moses. Says I : " There is one Jesus, who told me that if I would come to Him, He would give me rest. Do you know any thing of Him ? " " Yes, sir." " What do you know about Him ? " " I know that ' the scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come ; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be." " Who is this Shiloh ?" " Why, sir, He is Jesus Christ." "What! you don't mean to tell me that the people of all the world are going to be gathered te Him?" "I do." I pass on a little further, and meet Brother Job- I say: " Brother Job, do you know any thing about this Prorniser who told me that if I would come to Him. He would give me rest?" " I do, sir." "What do you know about Him." "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and I shall see him for myself." That strengthens my faith. I pass on a little further, and meet that precious old prophetic nary, Isaiah. I say: 118 FKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. " Can you tell me any thing about this Promiser who told me that if I would come to Him, He would give me rest ? " "I can." "What about Him?" " Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given : and the government shall be upon his shoulder : and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." "Well, brother Isaiah, who is this wonderful child upon whose shoulder the government shall rest?" " He is that Jesus who made you that promise." My faith begins to anchor more firmly. I pass on to one of the minor prophets, and I ask him if he knows any thing about this great Promiser, and he says to me : " There shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness." " Who will open that fountain ?" " That Promiser. He will take your sins all away, and give you a peaceful heart and rest." I come back to my Lord, and I say, " Now, you have promised me great things ; can you give me any evidence that you are able to fulfill your promise? " ' All power is given unto me, in heaven and in earth." Oh ! how my soul is filled with the proclamation of this truth ! and I pass on and meet Brother Paul, BIBLE BEADING. 119 and I say, "Sir, can you tell me any thing about that Jesus who made me such a promise ? " "Yes, sir." "What is it?" " It pleased the Father that in Hun should all fullness dwell." " What else can you tell me, Brother Paul? " "By Him God made the worlds, and has ap- pointed Him heir of all things." That is enough. 1 don't want any more. I am persuaded. My faith rests now on just that word, "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Dear friends, you need not go tossed about this world like an ocean wave. The body may be wrecked, but oh, the peace of the soul ! In John xiv, 27, Jesus says, " My peace I give unto you." Now, we want to find a little more anchorage. Look at Romans viii, 32 : He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things ? Here is an argument to strengthen our faith. God's love, manifested in the gift of His Son, is an argu- ment that He will give you any thing you need. Do you believe that God has any thing in the treas- ure house of glory too good to give to His people ? Oh ! when you go to the Cross, and see there the Lord Jesus Christ, God's great gift to the world, it is an argument beyond any contradiction, upon which the greatest sinner may rest his hopes. If 120 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. God "spared not his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? " When we come to this record, there is no room for any doubt in our hearts. Please turn to Luke v, and you will find, in the first eleven verses, an illustration of living faith. Jesus was down by the Lake of Gennesaret, and the people pressed upon Him to hear the truth. You know that wherever He went, a great multitude followed Him. It is said here that He saw two ships standing on the lake, and He stepped into one of them, which was Simon's, and said, " Peter, push out a little from the land." So he pushed out a little ; and it is said that here He sat down and taught the people out of the ship. When He had left off speaking, He said to Simon, " Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught." What did he do? Dm he say, " Well, Jesus, I will be very glad ; if you can catch any thing, here is the net ? " That is not what he said. He said, "We have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing." There is not a particle of evidence that there are any fish here. What else did he say? "Nevertheless, at Thy word I will let down the net." I would that all Chris- tians could learn that lesson ! Many Christians are always resting on circumstances. I have been to many a place to labor, and the first thing they would tell me would be, what a hard town they had, and, in the next place, they would say, "There are no indications of a revival." And so I say, there are multitudes who rest on circumstances. BIBLE READING. 121 i Now let us see what follows. Simon said unto Him, " Neyertheless at Thy word I will let down the net." At Thy word! no matter what the circum- stances. Let thy sins be ever so black, and all the world rise up in opposition, Jesus is the great con- queror, and you and I are to take that Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, and rest on it, and you can no more use that word by faith or act, and rest on it without effect and fruit, than you could live twenty- four hours without breathing. This word is plowing its way through the dark, surging waves of this wicked world everywhere; though wicked men and infidels are opposing it. I suppose you have some in this town. What of it ? I don't spend very much time in opposing infidels now-a-days. I can take that word and go out to the world, and expect to see the fruit. Now let us see what occurred just after that with Peter. " And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes : and their net brake." A pretty good haul, on God's word ! "And they beckoned to their partners which were in the other ship," they were going to have a union meet- ing now, " and filled both ships, so that they began to sink." What grand results by just acting on God's word. Now look at the next verse : " When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me ; for I am a sinful man, O Lord." This shows the nature of grace. It has always been just so. When a man gets a blessing from Jesus it won't lift him up very much. It will put him down every 122 FROM BARTH TO HEAVEN. . time. I will tell you how those boastful ministers and Sunday school teachers are. Some one will come along to the minister and say, "You gave us a smart sermon this morning," and how he will go away bolstered up and tickled within himself. Take a lady teaching a Sunday school class. Little Mary will come in and say, " You have a very pretty ribbon on your hat," and she will think everybody is notic- ing her fashions and her dress. But suppose a man comes to the minister and says, " Oh ! that sermon you preached ! I never had any thing take hold of my heart as that did. Can you tell me what I can do to be saved?" He won't feel much bolstered up ; he will melt down with weeping. And let a Sunday school teacher come in, and that darling little girl say, " Teacher, what you said to me last Sunday has been in my mind all the week, and I am so anxious to be a Christian ; tell me how I can be." This is worth more than all the nice ribbons in creation, and if that teacher has any piety in her heart she will be- gin to go down in humility. She will feel a good deal like Peter when he had got that great blessing just on God's word ; just on what Jesus said. He said, " I can not bear this. Here I have been fishing all night, and have caught nothing, and you told me to put down my net and I have got such a great bless- ing, ' Depart from me, I am a sinful man, O Lord.' ' In the tenth verse Jesus said to Simon, " Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men." This sen- tence tells the whole story. What do you suppose Jesus meant by this ? I think He meant to teach a BIBLE READING. 123 wonderful lesson. Possibly some of you thought while I was running through this, that it was a kind of a "fish story," but there is a meaning in it. It was as much as to say, " Simon, I had a design in telling you to let down that net. I am going to teach you how to have revival meetings ; how to win souls. Come, put up your nets ; put up your ship." " Why, Jesus, this is the way I get my living ; I have no other way to support myself or my family." " Put up your net, I don't want you to fish any more. You have no more use for this ship or these nets. I do this to let you know how you are going to carry on the work of the Gospel, and save men. A little while hence, I am going to have a prayer meeting by one hundred and twenty of my servants and hand- maids. At the close of that prayer meeting I want you to preach a sermon and you will get more con- verts than you have fishes in this net. I am going to give you three thousand souls for one sermon. * Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men." : And I believe there is not a minister or a Christian but that, if you will study that fifth chapter of Luke, you will learn a grand lesson that will be a great help to your faith, " Nevertheless, at Thy word" rest- ing right down on that. Did they say they could not go ; make excuses ? "They forsook all and followed him." God help us to do the same ; to live, and act by living faith in His word. EVIDENCES OF CCXNYERSIOK Delivered in the Opera House, Sioux City, Iowa, Sunday after- noon, March 25th, 1877. IN 2 Corinthians v, 17, you will find these words: " Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things have passed away; behold all things are become new." That strikes, by the language of God Himself, right at the very heart of conversion, or becoming a Christian, or being in a state of salvation. It reveals just what is taught us in Ephesians ii, 10 : " For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." The idea, then, is a new creation; and I want it distinctly understood by every person whom I teach in Christ's name, that I have not one particle of sympathy with this miserable, patched- up work of morality, or of any of man's good works, as a ground of hope in saving the soul. You might as well talk about a tree bearing apples when the roots are just set out in the top of the ground, where there can be no nourishment nor vitality drawn from the heart of the earth, as to talk about a man's being a Christian barely with the surface work of resolution, or paying money, or good works: and because he does this, (134) EVIDENCES OP CONVERSION. i'a6 that, or the other thing, therefore he is goi^g to heaven. Has not the Bible told us distinctly, "By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified?" There can be no deception here. Then it is said that we are His workmanship, not our own work- manship. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but by His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost." We are His workmanship, it is said, " created." When a man is " created in Christ Jesus," the conversion is a creation of new prin- ciples. When a man is a real Christian, he is just as much newly created into holiness as he is created when he is born into this world in the natural life. Hence God says, " We are His workmanship, cre- ated'" How? Not in ourselves, but "in Christ Jesus." Now, this afternoon. I promised to show you how you may know that you are a Christian without any doubt. What I have to say on that point now will be just a few words, briefly to state that the way that a man can know that he is a Christian is by ascertaining whether he has accepted God's word or not. I will show you how you may know this. Sup- pose that, to-day, I make a promise to pay a man, to-morfow morning, at nine o'clock, twenty-five dollars ; and I have given him my word for it. Now, that man has a right, just as surely as I am able to pay it, and I have given my word for it, to accept it ; and, just as far as he can settle down on the idea of a surety in me as a human being, he 126 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. knows that he will get it. Now that is a small illustration. It is true, infinitely more, when God says a thing and your faith rests down on the two- fold belief that He is able to do it, and that He has promised to do it. God's word is sure. He says that heaven and earth shall pass away, but not one tittle of His word shall pass away, until all be ful- filled. Then, my dear friend, the way you are to know that you are a Christian is by accepting Christ in His word. And, thereby being made a new crea- ture, you are sure of salvation. Now I will give you some evidences that you can write down, illus- trating and enforcing them as well as I can. The first evidence I will put in three words : Submission to Grod, not to the minister, not to the evangelist, not to a church creed, nor to any man or any prin- ciple of men ; but submission to God. You will find the foundation of this evidence laid in the third verse of the tenth chapter of Romans, where God says, "For they, being ignorant of God's righteous- ness, and going about to establish their own right- eousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God." I like that word, submission, because it is God's word, and it is revealed right to the heart of every one who would be truly saved. Let me illustrate. In a city of ten thousand people, a short time ago, I was preaching in a church that would hold 1,500 people. At the close of the address I said, " I would like to have seats in the body pews for one hundred and fifty persons. All of you in these seats that desire to remain for prayers EVIDENCES OP CONVERSION. 127 can do so ; others will vacate. And then let the inquirers and the converts in the house come and take these seats for prayer and instruction." Just at that moment a lawyer, a man about my own age, who sat at my right, unconverted, arose and hurried down the aisle. I stepped out of the pulpit and went after him with all my might. I did not intend that he should get out of the house without at least one more invitation to come to Christ. A gentle- man, away near the door, another lawyer, an earnest Christian worker, by the time I came up, had this man folded in his arms, pleading with him to become a Christian and be saved. I took him by the hand and said, "Sir, what did you leave that seat for? Didn't you know you were doing wrong ? " "I did, sir." " Will you go back and take that seat as an inquirer?" "I will." He returned. I should think he sat there three minutes and then arose and said this : " Eleven years ago I was in a college in Pennsylvania. Professors, students and Christian friends plead with me to become a Christian. I went into the army. The chaplain and others en- treated me to seek the Lord. I came to this town, and friends expostulated with me. Since Mr. Graves came here, he has spoken to me again and again; but I would not submit." He then threw up his hands. "Friends," said he, "it has been a hard fight I surrender!" and down he went upon his knees. Now, that is what I call submitting to God, not to me, not to any human being. The con- victions of his heart had been, for eleven years, that 128 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. he ought to submit to God, and, as soon as he did, he was saved. To every Christian that has been saved there comes a time when the will must let go of every dependence. A minister was preaching at one time, and there was a judge present, and he, writhing under conviction, arose and said, " Sir, if I can not be saved without going to a Methodist altar, I will never be saved." " Very well," replied the minister, " you will probably never be saved." Not that there is any more salvation in a Methodist altar than there is in the steeple of a meeting house ; but the trouble was in his will. He had doubtless got mad at a Metho- dist minister, or a Methodist altar, and took a vow that he would never come to a Methodist altar to be saved. God could not save that man while in that state of mind. He must be willing to submit. Now that is the first evidence, and I want you to settle it here to-day ; are you submitted to God ? I do not ask you what your name is, or whether you are a member of any church, or whether you are rich or poor, but are you submitted to God ? right there in your own heart, between yourself and your Maker, have you that evidence? Now we will take another evidence. The burden of sin will have been removed, either suddenly or gradually, if you are a Christian. It is not true that every Christian knows exactly when he was con verted. I know when I was converted. I knov the place, and hour, and every thing. I was moved mightily from head to foot. All the deep waters of EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 129 my moral nature were broken up to the very depths, and I was brought into the kingdom of God in a very striking manner. But there are many Christians at whose feet I would be glad to humbly take my place any time, who never can tell when they were converted. Let me give you an illustration. In the third chapter of John, Jesus says, " Except a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God." In the eighth verse of the same chapter, Jesus gives the only illustration, directly, that He ever gave of con- version ; and I am glad that he never gave but one. Now let' us see what it is. " The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou nearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is* born of the Spirit." You can see there that Jesus takes the wind to illus- trate the work of the Spirit in changing the heart ; or in regeneration. How does the wind work ? Sometimes the wind comes in a gentle breeze, so that you can hardly tell that it is moving. By and by it comes in a harder breeze ; and then in a more powerful, sweeping way. Now suppose a case. A man comes out some beautiful moining. The sun is shining brightly. Says he, " How calm it is ; there is no air stirring this morning." Puts his hand up and waves it to see whether there is a wind blowing or not, and looks up to the little twig and sees that moving gently, and passes on. About midday he comes into the street again and the wind is blowing quite a hard breeze, so much so that he buttons his coat around him, and says, " How the wind blows ! " 130 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Toward night he comes into the street again, and looks up : " Why, how black the clouds are, there is going to be a dreadful storm a tornado!" The heavens all hung with blackness and darkness.* You see him going around picking up the loose things that would be likely to be blown away. Soon the wind bursts forth in all its fury ; the thunders roll and the lightnings flash ; and the wind goes sweep- ing down the street and o'er the field ; chimneys topple and fall, trees are torn up by the roots, and houses are overturned. What was that? It was wind, wasn't it? Was that little, gentle breeze wind? Yes. Was that harder breeze wind? Yes. Was that mighty tornado wind ? Yes. It was all wind. Now there are some people whom the Holy Spirit comes to and touches, and it may be a number of years, even, before they discern much of a change in themselves ; but there is an experience of drawing toward God. Now look in the sixteenth chapter of Acts, and you will find the record of the conversion of Lydia. It is said that this woman, as she came out to draw some water from the river, heard Paul and Silas talking to the woman ; and you read of her, " Whose heart the Lord opened, and she received the things spoken of Paul, and was baptized, and at once invited them to her house." Now there is an instance of a woman converted as with a gentle breeze, just a quiet work. But who were those min- isters ? Paul was one of them, once Saul of Tarsus, a giant Jerusalem sinner, with letters in his pocket EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 13i to drag the saints away to prison persecuting the Church of God. Suddenly he was met in the way and stricken down. No whirlwind ever tore up a tree by the roots quicker than that sinner, Saul of .Tarsus, was stricken down and torn to pieces in his moral life. Then he offered prayer, the first time, " O Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do ? " "I will have you lay there till you are converted. I ain going to make a new creature of you ; going to have you preaching the gospel, soon, at Jerusalem." Now there is the difference. That man was converted in a mighty hurricane, as it were, while with Lydia i3re was a little, gentle moving, and the Lord opened her heart and she was saved. I knew a lady twenty years ago in my church, who had been forty years a member, and a choice, excellent Christian woman, but could never tell when she was con- verted. There is not a person, who believes that he is a real Christian, but that there has been a time when he decided that he was a Christian, though he might not tell exactly the time when he received the Spirit and the Word in regenerating grace. How many there are who have no idea of believ- ing that they are saved unless their experience was just exactly like that of somebody else. My advice is, if you want to be saved to-day, look to Jesus ; don't look for great evidence, or small evidence ; don't look for great feeling or little feeling, but look to Jesus. Your salvation is just as sure, if you cast yourself on Jesus, as that Jesus lives and can speak the truth. 132 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Now take another evidence supreme love to Jesus. If you are a Christian, you love Jesus infinitely above wife, husband, brother, sister, or friend. I suppose there are many who make a fatal mistake right here, on their evidences. They think that they love Jesus, but they are not willing to part with a friend, when necessary, for Him. I have known many who. thought they were Christians, but would not give up even the smallest thing on earth. It seems as if they would cling to those with whom they associate, if they knew they were going to hell thereby. I hope church members to-day will exam- ine this point : which do you love best Jesus, or your worldly friends ; that young man, or that yci^ig lady, or that earthly pleasure? What is there that stands between you and Jesus ? If you love Christ the most, you must certainly want to please Him, and won't be willing to grieve Him. Have you a supreme love ? I say if you are a Christian you will have as far as your affections go supreme love to the Lord Jesus Christ. Another evidence. You will have a love to G-ocTs people. The Bible says, you may know you have passed from death unto life, because you love the brethren. I believe in that evidence, and I believe in it strongly ; but, I must confess, sometimes I am staggered at the evidence of some who profess Chris- tianity. God knows how it is coming out with them at the judgment I don't know. Here is a deacon, who, if he can not have every thing as he wants it, is willing to tear the church all to pieces. " I won't EVIDENCES OP CONVERSION. 138 go to communion there any more ; I won't pay any more, and won't do this, or that, if I can not have things so and so." How many times a sister, professing religion, if somebody says some word that she don't like very well " Oh, Mrs. so and so has slandered me ; " and she will run gossiping it all over town, stay away from the prayer meetings, and refuse to go to church any more, and throw a firebrand right into the inter- est of Christ's kingdom. A queer way that is to show a love for God's people. And then how many there are, all over this land, who move from one town to another, and sometimes take a letter along, and, in- stead of joining the church, put it into the bureau- drawer and lock it up. It lies there for years. And sometimes they will leave their member- ship away off where they came from, and then they have no Christian home ; so they go running around on the devil's commons, here and there sometimes people would hardly mistrust that they were Christians. I met a lady the other day who had been living in that town twenty years ; was a member of a Methodist church in Illinois, but did not bring a letter, and tried to make me believe she had been all right. As far as I could learn, there were not five persons in town who ever mistrusted that she was a Christian. My dear friends, there is something .very sad when we come to examine this matter of our alliance with God's people. I met a man in a town in Mich- igan. Said I, "Are you a Christian? " "Yes, sir," 134 FROM EABTH TO HEAVEN. said he, "I am a member of the Presbyterian church." " Oh, you are a member of this church, are you ? " " No, I am not a member here." " Where .are you a member ? " " Down in York State." " How long have you lived here?" "Two years." " And have not joined the church? " " Well, now, I will tell you, Mr. Graves; when I came here I thought I should not stay a great -while, and I thought I would wait till I settled the question." Said I, "Have you a wife and children?" "I have." " I wonder you did not set them right down on the street when you went from the depot, and say, 'Lie there; I won't get any boarding house or a home ; I don't know as I will stay here long and you can stay there two or three months, till I settle the question.' I would just as soon think of treating my family that way as I would my church- relation." I found, just as I expected, that he had been renegading through the town, from one church to another, and his influence was all vitiated. And so you will find such men. Once, in an inquiry-meeting, I saw a gentleman weeping very bitterly, and said, "'What is the mat- ter with you ? " " Matter enough. I am a member of the Baptist church, and two years ago the trust- ees got me to do a piece of work on the church, and when they settled with me I thought they did not treat me exactly as they ought to, and I said, ' I won't have anything more to do with this church won't go to communion here again.' So I went off ; and there is that dear-daughter " (a young lady sat EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 135 there, weeping as if her heart would break); "she was converted and baptized into the church just be- fore that. Now she has backslidden, and my wife has backslidden, and my home is broken, and I have no family altar, and all is sad." Said I, " My dear sir, have you found out that two wrongs don't made a right?" "Yes," said he, " I see it now." You know, there are a great many people who think, if some body does a little wrong, that if they do a little wrong, it will make it right. There are not many gray hairs in my head, but there will be a great many more than there are to-day before you make me believe that two wrongs make a right. No, no ! Said I, " What are you going to do about it?" "I am going back to the church to make a confession, and the trustees can do as they please. I am going to be right in my heart toward God and man." I should not be surprised if I am talking to some who have thus marred their lives. You may be jewels for the crown, but you have offended God's people. I may be talking to some that are members of the Methodist church or some other, and you have been running around, and your influence is all vitiated, and you don't feel as if you had any home. You are a kind of boarder. Won't you get right in the sight of God and man, and waste no more time in the face of eternity ? Have you ever read that little incident somewhere in the Book of God, where it is said that there was a man, married, settled in life, and after a time the Lord blessed him with two sons; and by and by there 136 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. came a famine in the land ? "We can not live here," said the man; "we will starve to death." So they went off to another land and settled. The boys grew up and married in that country. Soon after their marriage, the father and the father-in-law died. Then there was great sadness in that house. It is said somewhere that " afflictions never come single- handed," and very soon both of those sons sickened and died. There was the mother-in-law and the two daughters-in-law stricken and broken in the deepest affliction. By and by the mother-in-law said to the daughters-in-law, " I can not take care of you, and you had better go back to your friends." Do you know what they said? Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye, and started for her friends ; but Ruth said to Naomi, "Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee : for whither thou goest, I will go ; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge : thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." And I think that my poor heart to-day feels very much like that, and has for a quarter of a century. Oh, riiy friends, in the Church of God you may have a home ! Let me walk with the people of the living God. I regard it as one of the sweetest and the most blessed evidences that a Christian can have, that he loves the brethren. When I began my work as an evangelist, the last prayer I offered before I left my church was, " O Lord, I am going now for a life work at Thy bidding. I shall go with all the different denominations of Christians with deacons, and elders, and stewards, and Christians of EVIDENCES OF CONVEESION. 137 every grade and every type of mind. Lord, don't let. me do any harm if I do not do any good. If I must reprove siri and preach boldly, Jesus, help me to do it in love. Help me to show the people of God that I love them." And I have to-day this evidence in my heart, which is above all others: "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." . Now, another evidence : You will enjoy prayer to Grod. Oh ! it will be sweet ! and at times you will feel as if you hardly knew whether you were in this world or another, when you are communing with the I Am. Oh ! what an exalted privilege of the saint of the Most High, like Moses, to talk with God face to face ! Oh ! the blessedness and the sweet- ness may I not say, the glory there is in the soul of the man who can, as was said of John Welch, pray right in the heart of God ! There is no other experience like this between the believer and his God. Take another evidence. You will find in your heart a spirit of benevolence. I do not mean in money altogether, but I do partially. I mean the spirit of the Master, with all the interests of His kingdom, or with all there is in the condition of a fallen world. Jesus said, " If any man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of His," and you can not expect to be a Christian if you do not carry about with you the spirit of the Lord Jesus. Don't wrap yourself in a little, mean, contracted sectarian coat, and act and talk as if you did not care a fig whether anybody 138 FROM EAKTH TO HEAVEN. went to heaven or not unless they went through your church. There are people running over this land talking about the church, the church, the church ; and acting as if they did not believe that anybody would be saved unless they went through what they call " the church." I met a young man in the inquiry meeting the other night who did not believe that a person could be saved unless he was baptized. Said I, " You do not believe that all these Methodists, and Presbyterians, and others, will be lost? " " Yes I do," said he. Said I, "My dear boy, you will know more by and by if you live." And yet how many there are who seem to be all swallowed up in that little, contemptible, worldly spirit. Oh, for the spirit of Christ with Christians ; a realization in the soul that we are one with Jesus ! I would not say to any man, stand aside, because by joining the church you are going to identify yourself with a distinct name or line. Go and join the church and don't be a hypocrite about it either. In all our churches we want the spirit of Jesus Christ. Then, as to money, you will have the spirit of benevolence in that line if you are a Christian. It will be a great delight for you to send the gospel across the ocean away to the ends of the earth, or do any thing you can. I have said long since that I want to put, at least as far as I can, one brick in every meeting house in the land. I can not speak, it is true, to-day, as many business men and men of wealth. I have lived a life of trust; have not asked a man for a dol- lar for years for my support, but I will tell you EVIDENCES OFCONVEKSTON. 139 what I have done, as a little bit of experience. More than ten years ago I consecrated myself to the Lord in simple faith, as Abraham when he went up to the land of Moriah, and I said, "Lord, I will give one-tenth of every dollar that comes into my pocket for benevolent objects." If a man gives me a ten dollar bill, one dollar of it is laid out, as sacred as my Bible, and I have never been so happy in benevolent objects as I have been since I began to give in that way of systematic benevolence ; and I have learned in some respects that the liberal soul shall be made fat. As I go out to water others, the Lord sees that I am cared for ; and I believe if this spirit of benevolence should go all through the ranks of Zion, there would be more enlargement of Christ's kingdom. But there are a great many Christians who have not learned this yet. They are covet- ous. They don't know much about religion, only hallelujah and glorying. They are a good deal like a man that sat in a congregation one day. Daring the sermon he got to clapping his hands and shouting, " Glory, hallelujah ! " having a grand time. A brother near him, fearing that he would disturb the minister, spoke to him and he cooled down very suddenly. The minister noticed it, and after the meeting said to the brother, " What did you say to that man that cooled him off so quickly?" Said he, " I asked him for a dollar for foreign missions." And there are multitudes just like that. They are very happy until you say money. There seems to be such a narrow, small kind of spirit. Oh that we 140 FROM EARTft TO HEAVEN. might feel down in the depths of our hearts as the widow did ! She put in two mites and Jesus com- mended her for it. Our means may be very small indeed, but the smallest gifts will be regarded of God when they go to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth. If every Christian in our churches could feel this, in these hard times, the treasuries of our Missionary Societies would not be so embarrassed in sending the gospel all over this land, and to other lands. Oh ! how I do love the idea of giving money and prayers to save the heathen thousands of miles away. It is glorious and blessed. Take another evidence. If you are a Christian, the study of the Word of Grod will be very precious and sweet to your heart. How you will love the Bible. This is one of the grandest evidences. If you see a man sit down at the table for breakfast, and he don't eat heartily, you will think he is not very well ; has the dyspepsia, or something else. But suppose he devours his food with readiness and earnestness ; you will then think he is in a healthy state ; and you show me a man any where who eats his bread of life with eagerness, loves to be study- ing the Word to grasp the morsels of truth, and I will show you a Christian who is strong in the Lord, and strong in the service of the Lord. And you will find in your heart, if you are a Christian, a gladness in studying this Word. It will be very precious to receive and enjoy the precious Word of life. Then another evidence that I want to give you to-day is this : There will be in your heart a very EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 141 siceet experience while meditating on the Hood of Jesus. There will be nothing like it, for the reason that it is the only means that God has for taking away sin. You know, God says in His Word, " His name shall be called Jesus, because he saves His people from their sins." How does He do it? God has but one method of taking away sin, and that is by the precious blood. "The blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanseth us from all sin." Oh ! your heart will be made so glad when you think of that ! and, really, I have sometimes thought that I never heard a hymn with more preciousness than Mr. Cowper's : There is a fountain filled with blood, Drawn from Immanuel's veins; And sinners plunged beneath that flood, Lose all their guilty stains. Oh ! the preciousness there is in that one grand thought ! Then take that text in John i, 29 : Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. Then Jesus is the taker away of sin. How does He do it? He has no method but by the blood. And when a man becomes a Christian, he learns some thing of the experience and the doctrine of freedom from sin stands out in the perfect light of liberty, wherewith Christ has made him free. It is the very idea of the Apostle in the eighth chapter of Romans, where he says, " For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear ; but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father." And then this great idea that the blood itself takes 142 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. away all our guilty stains ! Christians need to learn the height, and depth, and length, and breadth of this glorious old Pauline doctrine that in being a Christian, sin is taken away. He is not burdened, crushed down, living in it ; but free from sin, and standing out a free man in Christ Jesus. I had about said, not a few are like one of these pack peddlers, who goes around the streets with a pack on his back, all bent over. Suppose that, while driving along, just out of town, I should overtake one of them and say, " Sir, you are going my way ; hadn't you better get in and ride ? " " Yes, sir, thank you." So he gets his hand up over the wheel, and climbs in, and sits down on the seat with his pack on his back ; and I look a moment and say, " Sir, your pack must be very heavy; hadn't you better take it off and set it here at your feet?" "Oh, no. Thank you very much for letting me ride ; I will carry the pack myself" That is the way it is with not a few professors of religion. They are all the time thank- ing Jesus for saving them ; but they want to carry all their sins themselves. They have no idea of rolling their burden off on to the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, that Christians would every where learn that Jesus is the burden bearer the sin bearer! and He says to you and me, " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Now, another evidence : If you are a Christian, you will feel very anxious to have sinners saved, and make efforts to that end. Be saved, and you can not be easy unless you see sinners brought to a know- EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 145 ledge of Jesus Christ. It is the very nature of Christianity. It is the very nature of love that comes from Jesus Christ, the great Fountain of love, to make efforts to have sinners saved. All the time, in the soul there will be travail and anxiousness to bring our children, our wives, our husbands, our neighbors and our friends to Jesus Christ. It will be like a man who has been in our morning prayer meetings several times, asking us to pray for his wife and children. The other night God gave him his son. Last night I prayed with a lady the last minute before leaving the meeting 1 . ' Are you a Christian ? " " Yes, sir ; to-night I have given my- self to Christ." I found that she was the wife of that man who had been praying. If you are saved, your husband is saved, your wife is saved, your child is saved, you will go for some body else. You can not live easy if you are a Christian, without seeing some body turning to Christ. Let me illustrate. More than twenty years ago I read this : T\vo men fell overboard from a boat. One of them sank very quickly, and was gone. Two men in another boat saw the other one as he threw up his hands in the water and cried for help. They made for him with all their might. By and by they came up to him, just as he was apparently sinking for the last time. They grasped him and drew him into the boat, laid him on the bottom, and pulled for the shore. They came to the shore, laid him on the beach, and rolled him back and forth, not knowing whether he would live or die. By and by his eye opened and rolled 144 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. with anxiousness, and his lip began to quiver. They thought he wanted to speak, and they waited a moment to hear what he was going to say ; and this is what he said: "Another man," the first utter- ance of his anxious lips, "Another man," meaning by that, You have saved me, but there is another man overboard; go and get him. "That," I said when I read it, " shall be my life text," I am saved, but there is another man overboard ; go and get him. I have been trying to live by that for more than a score of years. If you are a Christian, you will never feel easy, but will feel that there is another man overboard, and you must go for the "other man." May God help you all to go for the "other man" while you live, and then meet on the bright hills of glory multitudes that you have brought to Christ. Now I am dorue with these evidences ; but there may be some here who will say, " Sir, I really am a member of the church, but I don't know that I am a Christian. What shall I do?" If that is what you want to know, I think I can help you. The devil will be very likely to tell you to go to the minister and have your name taken off the church books that you have no business in the church. I would not do that. You have lost time enough al- ready, if that is the way you have been living. " Then what shall I do ? " you will say. I will tell you. When I was a pastor I had a deacon who was one of those smiling Christians not one of your sour-faced ones, who seem to think that the idea EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 145 of being a Christian is to have a very long face but he was a very happy man ; and he told me one day, as I was conversing with him on this very point, that one of his Sunday-school scholars came to him : " Teacher, I am so tempted to think I am not a Christian. What shall I do?" "Are you?" said he. "Well, I will tell you what to do. I have sometimes been tempted that way myself. The devil sometimes comes to me and says, ' Ha ! are you a deacon you teaching the Sunday-school ? You have never been converted. What business have you teaching a Sunday-school ? ' In the first place, I reply, ' it is none of your business whether I am a Christian or not ; and, in the next place, if I never have believed in Christ, I believe in Him now as my personal Saviour ; and that settles the question.' " That is what I would advise you to do. See to it, that you Relieve in the Lord Jesus Christ now. Now there is one thing more I want to mention, just at the close of this address. I believe there are a great many people here who have recently been converted to God, and have evidences of it. I ad- vise you to join the church as soon as you can. Let your light shine and live in God. Another thing I want to urge. Very likely there are children here who have been converted, and you believe they are saved. Now, Christians, I urge upon you to-day to encourage those children to take their place in the church at once. Please don't do as one father did. His little boy was converted, and said, " Papa, can not I join the church ?" " Well, 10 146 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. my child, I think you have met with a change of heart; but you are very young, and hadn't you bet- ter wait a little while, and see if you can hold out ? " The boy thought it was very hard, but he consented. It was the best he could do. A few days after, the father saw, in a flock of sheep in the pasture, a little lamb running alongside of its mother. He said, " Run up and get the sheep and lamb, and put them in the fold, so as to shield them from the storm and the cold." The boy got them, and put the mother in the fold, but left the lamb out in the yard. The father discovered it by and by. " Why, my child, didn't I tell you to put the sheep and the lamb in the fold?" " Well, I did put the sheep in ; but I thought the lamb was pretty young, and I would leave it out. and see whether it could stand it or not." The father took the hint. " My child, you can go and join the church." So I urge you to see to it that the children are brought in. When they are brought in, encourage them and cultivate them. Let them be Christian children. If my own dear boys (who, I trust, are saved) had been converted when they were five or six or eight, I should have taken them into the church, and I should expect they would want to run and jump over the fence just as much as ever. And I think I should run and jump, once, in a while, with them ; and they would want to play marbles, and the like, and be Christian children, and be very hap- py T Relieve in making home happy ; and, as I said last night, there is no necessity for any of the things EVIDENCES OF CONVERSION. 147 that will be a detriment to piety, but rather let us bring up our children "in the nurture and admo- nition of the Lord," and let them be happy and culti- vated in the church of Jesus Christ. May God help us all to live as Christians, act as Christians ; and, without the loss of one in this great congregation, at last walk the golden streets to- gether. EIGHTEENTH OHAPTEE OF MATTHEW. FOE many years I have felt that this chapter was often misplaced and misused in our church work. I hardly remember an instance, for more than twenty years, of its being used, under my notice, other than in church discipline ; and then, almost invariably, to all appearances, under the rule of an iron hand, with one, or both, or all parties concerned. To my own soul this Scripture has been a great blessing. I have feasted on it again and again, and my convictions are, that in no part of God's Word are the boundless principles of divine love enforced more than here, and my object in writing this somewhat expository paper is to correct as far as I can the perverted application of this passage in Christian discipline. How often the loth, 16th, and 17th verses are culled out, and employed, and the rest of the chapter most sadly neglected, in churches dealing with those who are out of the way. Of course the church may sometimes have to deal in discipline with hypocrites, deceivers, and unregener- ate persons. In such a case she could no more apply the spirit and principles of this chapter in their real design than she could apply them to the trial of a criminal in a court of justice. (148) EIGHTEENTH CHAPTER OF MATTHEW. 149 But usually the employment of this counsel of Jesus is to correct the faults of the brethren; of those who are accredited Christian men. And I believe if the whole of the eighteenth chapter of Matthew was carefully studied by Christians, much trouble would often be avoided. Dangers of church discipline would be averted, and the bitter troubles so often experienced would never be heard of. Hear the word of the Lord. At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven ? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Matthew xviii, 1, 2, 3. This was a simple question ana a plain answer. No person can misunderstand it. The true marks of Christian character are here set forth by Jesus himself. It is evident that this was not a babe, but a small child. Just old enough to understand, obey and act. Uusually a child is looked upon as attract- ive and harmless. So Jesus sets forth the Christian. He is to be like a little child. His spirit, gentleness and love, should be like this pattern. Whosoever shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. "Humble himself." Here then is the secret of holy living. Man is to humble himself. No other one can do it. In his own heart he becomes like a little child. The lack of this very often forms the 150 FBOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. fundamental error in the differences of church trou- bles. A judge was once invited to go to an anxious seat and bow down with some little children, that he might be blessed. He replied, " If I can not have the blessing of Jesus without this, I will go without it." By and by, better reason prevailed. He con- sented; "humbled himself;" became "like a little child," and received the spirit and blessing of Jesus. Let Christians walk in this line, and they are safe from the snares of contention. But often they are too*big. They want to be great. Then the sensitive- ness of their proud nature rebels at any seeming wrong. But when he humbles himself, and becomes nothing, Christ enters the soul and reigns within. In this state he can no more cherish unkindnesses for a length of time than a little child with his child nature. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name re- ceiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe unto the world because of offenses ! for it must needs be that offenses come ; but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh ! Thus Jesus says, when the world receives this little child, Christian in" spirit, word, and love, they commend themselves to My attention and blessing. But if they refuse them, it is grievous to Me, and will bring sad consequences to themselves. The very nature of haughtiness and self exaltation is an offense to holiness. And whenever the path of EIGHTEENTH CHAPTER OF MATTHEW. 151 sinful disobedience is pursued, a woe of bitter sad- ness must follow. Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee : it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye. rather than hav- ing two eyes to be cast into hell fire. This is very severe discipline to the soul. It tests our love to God. Jesus, anticipating the tenacity of love to self, and the honors and applause of the world, urges us to part with the best members of the body rather than be deprived of divine love and eternal life. Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones ; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. Our Lord presents here an argument why the humble child of God should not be despised of men. He has been so exalted by humility and blessing that the angels of God appointed for his care, always gaze upon the face of the Father. What nearness then the true believer has to God. And, while this is true, he should be ever regarded in the very light of the Father's glory. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. How think ye? if a man have a hundred sheep, and one of thc'in be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray ? And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. 152 FBOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. In consideration of all that has been done to gather the souls that are saved, infinite love as an experience is urged. The tender love of the Savior toward them, and the hallowed conduct of themselves, one toward the other, are insisted upon. He came to save the lost. He suffered and passed through all the dark avenues of earth to bring sinful men to God ; and now He declares, that when the sheep is gathered to the fold, he must be cared for. He must not perish. It is not the will of the Father that he should. All the love that was used to save him must be used to keep him. How often we have reason to fear that the reverse appears among the brethren. In the work of reproof and discipline there is lacking that spirit of love and tenderness which were manifest when the brethren were working hard to pull sinners out of the fire. This is wrong. Better that selfishness be buried, and this example and teaching of Jesus be adopted to the fullest extent. Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone : if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear ttiee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican. With the way prepared in the love of the gospel, EIGHTEENTH CHAPTER OP MATTHEW. 153 Jesus lays down here the course of procedure to correct the faults of Zion. All that has preceded finds a place in carrying out this plan. " Moreover." What immense meaning there is in this word and in this connection. It is as much as to say : if you regard my love and my instructions, love one another and live as brethren. There can be no other interpretation. And while I write these lines, I can but pray that every Christian reader of them may adopt their spirit and sentiment in full. In my labors as an evangelist the past eleven years, I have found many " broken bones " lying all along the borders of Zion. These scenes have stirred up my deepest sympathy for those in the church and those without. Whole bodies of Christians have been mutilated and fractured because any thing but the spirit of love which Jesus has given here, prevailed in church labor and discipline. And I wish here to urge the readers of this book to give close attention to these rules of the love of Jesus. And specially those who have come to Christ in the many towns and cities where I have held Gospel meetings, do I ask to make this scripture (Matt, xviii) your life study. Let its deep principles of love burn down into your soul daily. Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven ; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Not in the sense of the Roman hierarchv, but ot 154 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Gospel love. That which is in harmony with the Divine Spirit and mind. Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. These two verses reveal the consequences of a full experience of Christ's love in a regenerate church. It is an exhibition of complete assurance in prayer with the gathered saints, in the full agreement of faith. This is power with God and man that can not be gainsayed or resisted. In prayer, an asking people and an answering Jesus bring mighty bless- ings. Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him ? till seven times ? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. This was a vital question and a vital answer. And well would it be for the Church of God if Christians would give close -attention to Peter's question and Jesus' answer. Surely no more strik- ing lesson of forbearance and forgiveness could be found than this. The Lord must have designed a deep meaning in this scripture. It was this: To set forth the extent of our conduct toward erring Christians. And if this rule were observed, few persons would be cast off in the lifetime of this world. To be sure, this takes grace, patience and love. But our Lord anticipated it all. And if there EIGHTEENTH CHAPTER OF MATTHEW. 155 is a time when great love should prevail, it is when a brother errs. It does not require much grace or love to harmonize with good Christian conduct ; but the "seventy times seven" means deep consecration and Christian power. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshiped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him a hundred pence : and he laid hands on. him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not : but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desireclst me : Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee ? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. This chapter sets forth one of the most wonderful exhibitions of love there is given in the "Word of the 156 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Lord. It would seem that Jesus sees a need, in the lessons He is enforcing, of a double portion of this power. Hence He seizes the opportunity to arm His people with His own panoply of love. In this closing parable He leads us to the Cross. " Shouldest not thou have had pity on thy fellow servant, as I had pity on thee ? " What a question of rebuke to retaliating members of our churches! Jesus, by motives of love and mercy only, forgave and saved us. When we were "away on the mountains wild and bare," He came for us; He called us; He brought us to His fold; and now asks us to deal with our erring brethren as He dealt with us when we were astray in sin. I am not here contending for undue indulgence in the Church ; but I am earnestly contending for special cultivation of love in our hearts, when we correct the faults of erring Christians. And I believe this was the design of the Master in giving this direct law on church discipline. On the one hand, I believe the churches are becom- ing too lax in discipline, and, on the other, too legal and too summary. When occasion requires our action with an offending brother or sister, if, before visiting them with the grievance, we visit the Cross and the hour when Jesus saved us, I believe the result would generally be very different. It is easy to settle human differences when we walk with Jesus, and are able to say: Sweet the moments, rich in blessing, Which before the Cross I spend ! ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. Delivered in the Methodist Church in Romeo, Michigan, Friday evening, April 29th, 1876. IN the book of Luke, tenth chapter and forty-second verse, are these words : " But one thing is needful ; and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." Jesus uttered these words, and uttered them under the most vital circumstances, and for the most vital ends, that it could be possible for words to escape the lips of the great Teacher. Another thing I wish to add here: These words were uttered by the Master of assemblies directly to two young ladies. I do not say they had no bearing for blessing to any others, or that they never have done others good because they have; but I do now say that on this occasion His utterance was directly to two young ladies. Another thing, young ladies : The words of Jesus are worth more than those of all others put together mere than those of ministers, parents or friends. No earthly being can speak as Jesus spake ; and if I were going to address the young ladies at length upon this point, I should advise every one to regard the words of Jesus before all others. Parents can (157) 158 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. never give such instruction ; neither can the dearesn and best of earth. And I should urge every young lady, if your parents demand of you a single act, or the utterance of a single word, that will not comport with the mind of Jesus, not to regard that requi- sition. If they teach you a doctrine, or impress on your heart any thing that would thwart the instruc- tion of Jesus Christ, don't regard it. Perhaps you will say, " You would not ask me to disobey my parents, would you?" I would hesitate no more to do that than I would to ask you to eat when you are hungry, if your parents require a thing of you that Jesus could not indorse. If they ask you to believe in a doctrine that is averse to the teachings of the Son of God, to pursue a course of pleasure or sin that will hurt your life or mar your affections, do not regard it. "But," you will say, "did not the Lord say, * Children, obey your parents ? ' ' Cer- tainly ; but please give me the rest of it ? This is what the Bible says : " Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." "In the Lord" Now, nothing is required by that which is subversive of the best good of your heart your present and eternal welfare. I urge, then, that young ladies everywhere see to it that they follow the dictates of the highest teachings of Him who "spake as never man spake;" and I say again, there is no law of God or man that can rightfully demand of an im- mortal mind to follow any other course. Now, I am going to ask a question here : What is implied in this text ? ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 159 I shall answer that question in four ways, as briefly as possible. The first answer, then, that I give, is this: It is implied here that a single thing, and one alont, above all others, is needful for young ladies. I am well aware, when I make that remark, that the times in which we live demand, and press the demand, that a young lady shall be cultured in the world of letters and in music, well dressed, finely versed in the rules of etiquette presenting to the world what is considered a finished education ; mean- ing by that, that intellectually and personally she is fitted for society. But there never was a more vital mistake put into the human brain than to give a young lady the impression that this is all that is needful. Sad picture ! Show me a young lady who has nothing but that for this world and another, and I will show you a girl that is more fitted I had about said for the dark abyss of eternal night than she is fitted to live in this world ; and if there can not be any change, the quicker she gets there the better, for it would stop her influence from making others as she is. Let me say, in the old poetic strain, It is not all of life to live, Nor all of death to die. I am not a man who would say one word against lettered or musical culture, the best of etiquette, re- spectable dressing, or fitting for society, as far as the measure of truth and good sense will direct. But when a young lady has settled the question in her mind that, when she has a finished education in the 160 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. knowledge that man can give, and that is all she needs in this world, she has come far short of having the right idea of life. Now, another word I want to add right here: While I say to every young girl, get the best lettered education you can, in all the different branches ; if you have a taste for music, get the best musical edu- cation ; and, surely, you ought to be versed in those rules that would make you attractive and a blessing to society in your deportment, God forbid that I should drop a word in favor of carelessness about your dress or your person. But let me tell you one thing, one of the great mistakes of the age is in this very idea of dress and extravagance. I often see a mother who has a beautiful little girl, from four to seven years old, that angels in glory might well love, and she puts on her the most costly ribbons and dress, showing very great extravagance. I say it is wicked, and wicked in the extreme. " Oh," you will say, " if she is able to do it, let her do it." No, I would not. It matters not if she is worth her mil- lions. She is training the tastes of that girl for fu- ture life. Who can tell but that, when that girl is eighteen or twenty, some good but poor young man will offer her his hand in marriage. He don't want to go leaning on his parents to make his way in the world. He takes that girl and gives her a pleasant home ; but her tastes are all cultivated to the great- est extravagance. She must either have them grati- fied, or be exposed to suffering in her heart because she can not. And, likely as not, when her husband ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 161 is in his counting-room, seeing how he can figure to meet his bills and keep out of bankruptcy, that young wife of his at home is studying how she can get the next dress, worth one hundred and fifty or two hundred dollars, just because her taste has been fearfully perverted by her mother. I do say that mothers ought to be careful about training their girls in a way that may not be- maintained. There are many such scenes of dis- tress in our land to-day. Then there are mothers who send their daughters to dancing-schools Christian mothers at that. In my work of win- ningi souls to Christ, about the hardest task I have found is a girl of ten, twelve, or fourteen years, whose mother has sent her to the dancing-school, though she may be the wife of a deacon or an elder. You would not like to have me tell you that that girl is demented ; you want me to look at her as a brilliant girl. If she is, she knows her mother has not sent her to that danc- ing-school to prepare her for a holy life. She has sent her there to fit her for the pastime of social society, and nothing else. That girl knows well enough there is pleasure in dancing ; and I know it, and you know it. It is one of the most fascinating things of this world in the pastimes of social society, and that girl is not going to give her heart to Christ when she has it all led toward the ball-room. I tell you, Christian mothers, who are before me to-night, you make a mistake when you encourage your daughter to go to the dancing- 11 162 FROM EABTH TO HEAVEN. school. There is a better way for her to be fitted for society. Now what is this one thing that the text re- veals ? The best men that I know anything about Christian men, commentators, interpreters of the Word all agree that the " one thing needful " is what we call the religion of Jesus Christ, the sal- vation of the soul what Jesus Himself calls eter- nal life. I have another way that I want to answer that question What is implied in this text ? It is implied here that this one thing has been sought and found. I am very thankful that God has not called upon me to stand up before this assembly and ask young ladies' to seek this blessing when there is any prospect of a failure. It is not true. Jesus did not say Mary made an attempt to secure this blessing and failed; but He says Mary has it; she has chosen that good part " which shall not be taken away from her." There is another way that I want to answer that question What is implied in this text? and that is : When this blessing is secured, Mary must choose it. Mary has to choose it ; and while I yield to no man in recognition of God's sovereignty, I believe one of the very first things that God did for man after his creation was to give him the power of choice. With all there is in my heart of love and regard for the sovereign moral government of God, ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 163 I have no sympathy with any doctrine of election which denies the freedom of man to choose. A woman said to me last night, " God has to con- trol all this matter, and all that we can do is to wait." You might as well tell me that I have got to sit here to-night until somebody carries me home. I have the power of choice, and I can choose to go home and get my rest. No less true is it that man in his moral nature, if he is ever saved, must choose salvation. Choose it. Mary chose it. Oh, that every Mary, every young lady here to-night would say, while Jesus knocks at the door of her heart, I will open the door : come in, gentle Savior. Now then, in the fourth place, I answer the ques- tion, What is implied in this text ? When this bless- ing is secured it is a perpetual blessing. Do you mark the language ? " Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." Never. And I am really glad, my friends, that wherever I go, I can stand up and hold in my hand a body of truth that has in it a foundation that is not sandy. How I love that precious old poetic strain: My hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus' blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, But wholly lean on Jesus' name ; On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand. When darkness seems to vail His face, I rest on His unchanging grace ; In every high and stormy gale My anchor holds within the veil; On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand. 164 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. That is the choice that Mary made ; and wherever I go I am glad to be able to say to the people, I offer you a blessing of which no power can deprive you. Make the choice and you have it, in the name of the great conquering Savior. Sometimes, looking at this matter, I feel most deeply the security of the gospel, and really I never expect to be any better prepared for heaven than I am this minute ; and I have no more idea of losing my hope than I have of living the next minute without breathing. Sometimes I have thought of an illustration of this point. It is said that during the Revolutionary War, General Washington came up to the Brandywine,near Phila- delphia, with his army, and they crossed over the bridge. Some soldiers went to him afterward and said : " General, what had we better do with the bridge, burn it or leave it there, lest the enemy may drive us back, and we shall want to retreat? " Gen- eral Washington thought a minute, raised his hands in the great majesty of his mighty generalship, and cried out, " Burn the bridge." It is victory or death. That was the idea. And so the Christian may go through this world burning all the bridges behind him, in no danger of being driven back, or overcome by the enemy. Oh how glad my heart is that the Mary to whom Jesus spake had a hope that should never be taken away from her, glorious and grand. Now, young ladies, having thus answered this ques- tion briefly, I am coming with a few miscellaneous thoughts to your hearts. Mary hath chosen that good part. What part ? She has chosen that part ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 165 of humility and fellowship with Jesus. We read in Luke x, 39: "And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word." Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus. I regard that as a mark of humility and fellowship, and young ladies, if you will show me any where a young lady who takes that attitude and is thus regarded as sitting at Jesus' feet, I will show you a young lady of moral power, and of mighty influence in the world. But look out on society to-day. How many young ladies there are who have no idea of doing very much work. They will do any thing under the sun but engage in any kind of labor that requires strength and vigor. And then how many there are who do not seem to have any idea that God ever made them for any thing but to be city belles, and run the street ; no idea that they were made for any purpose of blessing in this world. Let us take an illustration. We will say that here is one of those young ladies. She is about twenty-two years of age, a beautiful girl, attractive in appearance, charming in her affections, a girl of immense worth ; but she don't know it ; she has perverted her affections dreadfully by the notions she has of youthful life. Look at her now. She is on her way to the theater. She thinks she is going to have a fine evening of pastime, and her heart is dancing with delight at the anticipation. She spends the hours until midnight. She returns. To-morrow morning she is not at the breakfast table ; don't get up. She don't want any breakfast. She has been sleeping for the last six or 166 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. eight hours, a kind of a dreamy sleep ; her brain is all demoralized by the fanciful acts of fiction that were running through her mind in the early part of the night. She comes down about ten o'clock in the morning. She don't eat any thing. She does not want any thing to eat. She picks up a novel and selects some story of iove and romance, just fitted to the excited state of her brain. She reads it in a kind of a lazy, leisurely way until noon. She sits at the dinner table now. She don't eat much ; she is not much hungry; as her physical energies are all paralyzed. Her spirits are low ; and there she is, with the best affections God could ever give to a young lady ; all misdirected. After dinner she goes up stairs and dresses up. The next you see of her she is walking down street past the stores, looking to see what young man is going to take her to the next theater. Here is another girl. She is also about twenty- two; a choice girl, charming in her appearance, dressed tidily, not extravagantly, but attractively enough for anybody. You are attracted, and you can not help it. She has a little something in her nand. She gathers up another little missive, pack- age or something, and starts down street. You are intensely interested by her appearance. She is per- fectly careless evidently, of whether anybody sees her or not, but she is intent on something. Follow her. She enters that house yonder. She steps up to the bed upon which there lies a wasting victim of disease. She lays her hand upon that brow, and ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 167 speaks a word of love. " I thought I would come in and see you this morning." " I am so glad ; I have been lonely here," and the sick woman's spirits begin to rise a little. " I brought along this little luxury." "I thank you very much; my ap- petite has been craving something of that kind." Gently she takes a spoon, puts some into the mouth of the suffering one. Oh how it refreshes the body. When she has thus administered the luxury she sits down. "I brought my Testament along: I did not know but that you would like to have me read a few sentences of the Word of God." " Oh, I thank you! I have been wishing some one would come and read the Testament to me." Hear that sweet girl, charming the heart and the affection, as she reads some of the sweet words of Jesus. " Would you like me to sing ?" " If you please." She breaks out in the sweet tones of poetic strain. It seems as if it elevated the very heart, till it chimed in with the angels on high. She closes that song. " Would you like to have me bow a moment in prayer with you ? " " Oh yes ! " Look at the dear girl as she drops upon her knees in prayer, and lifts up that victim of suffering and disease to God, as on the wings of inspiration and love. And the dear woman clasps her hands upon her breast ; her eyes sparkling with the very expe- rience of holy fire in the soul. She hardly knows whether she is in this world or another. 168 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. That dear angel girl has been on a mission of blessing. Tell me young ladies, where are the charms, in this city belle here, or in this precious one who carries about the jewel of love that God has given in her heart, as He never gave it to any man on earth ? That girl is worth no more than this one. This girl has every gift of love and affection as much as that one, but she has made a mistake. In the sight of God, she might have raised herself in the scale of immortal blessing and sublime expe- rience. Now I say young ladies, Mary chose that part of humility and fellowship with Jesus Christ. I urge upon you to choose that part. " Mary hath chosen that good part." What part? She has chosen that part of taking counsel of Jesus. Read again Luke x, 89. " And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet and heard his word." I understand by that, that this girl sat at the feet of Jesus, listening to hear what he had to say ; and, young ladies of this city, if I have one thing above another to press on your hearts, it is this : what- ever you engage in in this life first seek counsel of Jesus. If these young ladies who are troubled about dancing or any worldly pastime, will go on your knees and say, Jesus, I want to do that which shall be the best for my spiritual profit and for the best good of my fellows, you will be led right. There is nothing like seeking counsel of the Lord Jesus ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 169 Christ. Oh! the blessedness there is in walking with God all along the avenues and winding paths of this wicked world. How I love that precious little hymn, He leadeth me ! O blessed thought, Oh, words with heavenly comfort fraught. Whate'er I do, where'er I be, Still 'tis God's hand that leadeth me ! Lord, I would clasp thy hand in mine, Nor ever murmur nor repine ; Content, whatever lot I see, Since 'tis my God that leadeth me. And also, young ladies, I want to give you this thought, seek to have the counsel of Jesus in mar- riage. There is no more vital point than this upon which a young lady can interest herself in seeking the counsel of God. And I feel most keenly upon this subject to-night, as I stand here. Who does not know that our land to-day presents the appear- ance almost of one vast charnel house, on account of family troubles. I hardly visit a town anywhere without somebody comes to me : " My family is broken; my family is disgraced." Only yesterday a person came tome and said: "There is a man here who has a wife and children, and when they want to go to a religious meeting he will neither take his horses and go, nor let others drive them; but keeps his horses in the stable, and deprives his wife and children of the blessings they need." And all over this land there are most fearful ex- periences of sadness, and, I believe, in not a few in- 170 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. stances it is because there have been mistakes in the very beginning, on the subject of marriage. How many a young lady there is, who, though a Chris- tian, will allow a young man to attend her home, and receive his addresses from time to time, without saying one word to him about his soul, and by-arid- by his affections and attentions are ripened into an intimate acquaintance, and even come to marriage. Not a few young ladies, though they are at the com- munion table frequently, and profess to be candi- dates for glory, will allow young men to wait upon them, go through a courtship and enter marriage, without ever hearing their voices in prayer. They have never said a word to him about holiness, for his personal blessing. Is it any marvel that so many wives are living with unconverted husbands; so many homes are desolated with drunkenness, abuse and sadness? It is because in this land in which we live to-day, there is to an immense extent no idea that the institution of marriage came from heaven ; no idea that God himself gave the marriage relation; but an idea that it is a kind of a legal, pleasurable, worldly pastime; young people get together, and laugh, and talk, and spend their time, I had about said, desecrating the holiest of all insti- tutions that God ever gave to man. It is no mar- vel to my mind that so many girls pour out their eyes in fountains of tears ; hearts are broken, and the home is dark. I am saying some things to-night that I know. A few nights ago I referred to the death of my first wife. I never knew her to speak ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 171 an unkind word to man, woman or child ; yet she had a character, unassuming as she was, that seemed to control every community wherever we labored in the gospel of Christ. The second visit that I had with her, we had prayer together. She prayed for me ; and it seems that if I had been a man with a heart as hard as adamant, her prayers would have melted and broken it ; and I believe that there are before me enough young ladies to deeply affect all the homes of this community. Oh, your prayers of love and affection! If you will only use them. When I go now to visit my dear wife's grave, I go away always to be a better man, I believe, for one thing : It is not because of the many pleasant things about her home; but above every thing she lifted me to God in the council chamber of holiness. Oh ! I prize the prayers of consecrated young girls to-day more than of any other class. So in my present marriage, my dear wife entered with me into this work with a voice of prayer. Scarcely ever does she permit me to go to the pulpit without bowing with me in prayer. Oh ! young ladies, there is something that God honors in the wife praying with and for the husband. In a meeting, some time ago, I said : " Are there any present here who have requests for prayer?" A young woman arose, " Will you pray for my hus- band? " Others made their requests. I then added, " Will all of you who desire prayers for your friends come to the front seat and kneel together ; and we will carry these cases to God in prayer." They 172 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. came. That young woman was the first one to pray. That night I saw in the congregation a young man standing by her side. I stepped down the aisle and put out my hand, " Sir, will you come to Christ ; if so, will you come forward and kneel with us ?" He turned to his wife, " Will you go ? " Of course she came. He knelt down, and for the first time au- dibly offered a prayer to God. Soon that young man was a believer in Jesus Christ unto eternal life. A few days after, while riding, his wife gave me this experience : ' " When my husband paid his addresses to me as a young man, I knew he was quite moral, though not a Christian. When he proposed marriage to me, I said, ' I don't know as it is right for a believer to marry an unbeliever; I will take the matter into consideration with prayer.' The next time he visited me I asked if he would kneel with me in prayer. He knelt, and I prayed for him, and prayed that God would lead me wisely in my decision. A little time after that I felt impressed while in prayer, that I should engage myself to him, and I did. Now we have been married two years. " Every day since our marriage he has been at the family altar with me, and read the Bible. I have prayed, but I never heard his voice in prayer until the other night when he knelt with me in the sanc- tuary. Now he is saved, and I thank God that he has enabled me to lead him to Christ. I wanted to tell you this incident ; it might be a blessing to you in your work, and possibly bless some other home." ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 173 Young ladies, I give it to you, and I urge upon you this night, seek counsel of God. It will be no over- stepping of propriety for me to say that probably there are many young ladies before me to-night who, not many years hence, will be married and settled in life ; and I tell you there is much depending on this one idea. Would you be happy? Would you be useful ? Would you have a husband with a heart of love that will give you the blessings of happiness, of such a home as your own heart craves ? Take coun- sel of Jesus, and see to it that the foundations of your life in this respect are well laid in prayer and the counsel of God. Another thing, young ladies, and I am done. It is not true that all there is of interest in this text is for this world. " Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." What part? She hath chosen that part of heirship with Jesus Christ. And while I talk with you, and feel so interested for the young ladies with whom I labor, all over this land, and have such a desire for their future happiness and blessing in this world, I am reminded that not a few young ladies never come up into matured life. All the coffins in our graveyards do not contain gray hairs. No, no. Oh, how many charming young ladies there are who come up just like a blooming flower, smile out upon the world for a little season and are nipped as by an untimely frost, and pass a>way. Heaven only knows how many young ladies I am speaking to to-night who will soon be in another world. I am reminded of 174 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. the great importance of what Jesus said : First lay up your treasure in heaven, and all other things shall be added unto you. Many years ago, in an Eastern city, as I stood by my pulpit, there came a charming girl of eighteen and put out her hand. "Pastor, will } r ou tell me what I must do to be saved ? " I pointed her to Christ. I had the happy thought that minute that if she became a Christian she might become a very useful girl and woman; but I had also another thought, that she might soon go hence. She united with our church. My deacons and others said, " What a useful member Mary will be, she will have such a blessed influence over the younger members of the church." Six months passed quickly by. Early one morning there came to my study door a hasty knock. I opened the door. " Pastor, Miss M H is very sick this morn- ing ; won't you come and see her ? " I hastened, not mistrusting that I was to close her eyes in death. I reached the door. A friend at the door said, " Step right up stairs as quick as you can." I stepped up stairs. The door was a little ajar, and there stood the father, leaning his back against the wall, almost convulsed, weeping as only a loving father can to see a loving daughter of eighteen years so near the Jor- dan of death. I stepped through the door, and there stood the mother leaning over the foot of the bed. I believe I never witnessed a scene like that before nor since. It seemed as if that woman was utterly convulsed, looking down into the face of Mary, wiping away tear after tear, and then giving an out- ADDRESS TO YOUNG LADIES. 175 burst of terrible throes of agony. My eyes rested upon that lovely Christian girl so sweet, so serene and heavenly. It seemed as if the halo of God's glory had gathered around that bed. "Ma," she said, " don't weep so for me. I am going to be with Jesus, and you will come soon don't you see them ? Why, here are the angels, and here is Jesus." A bright and glorious scene seemed bursting upon her vision. It seems to me as if it were an hour ago. I remember saying, "My Lord and my God, is this dying with the love of Christ in the soul? Then make me a better minister, that I may lead more young ladies to Thee." And young ladies, I am here to-night to ask you to choose, choose! Her eyes were closed in death. We laid her in the cemetery. " Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." Choose ye. Choose ye. Choose to-night! Oh! will you do it? Will you have Jesus ? Will you choose Christ ? Will you choose that better part; that part that Mary chose that "shall not be taken away?" It seems to me to-night that I am speaking for generations in this world, and for eternity. Oh what a wave of influence will go out from this meet- ing, and from these young ladies' lives and characters that are before me. Can I be assured that you will choose Christ and let Him lead you? ASSURANCE. WILL you please turn to Proverbs iv, 18 : But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shinetl* more and more unto the perfect day. We shall find here what God says to a Christian. There are multitudes of persons, who are really Christians I believe, who are wanting to know how they may live as Christians and not backslide. In the first place I should say to such a person, anchor yourself right in this saying of God. I want next to give you an illustration. How are we to be certain that we are just persons, that we are of the class of persons who are described there, that we are Christians? I said to a young man who wanted to be sure that he had saving faith, " Are you going to put your faith, to know whether it is safe, on your feelings, on your actions, or on some- thing that some man says? Now," said I, "you can really have true and strong love, only as you have it in believing just what God says to you ? " Now the illustration I will give you is this: Before the late war we had slavery in this land. Now, when the war came, and was ravaging the land, Abraham Lincoln, the President of this great repub- lic, proclaimed that on a certain day, on certain (176) ASSURANCE. 177 conditions, every slave on the continent of America should be freed. When that day arrived, that pro- clamation took effect. Now, how may I know that tne slaves are all free ? Must I traverse the southern country, and ask every colored man or woman I meet if they are free, and they say, ' Pears, massa, I feel as though I am free.' Is that going to be my assurance that they are free ? Must I depend on every colored man or woman's coming up to Wash- ington to get their papers, and then, on that record, believe that they are free ? By no means. Where am I to get the assurance then ? Where are the slaves of America to get the assurance of their free- dom ? I will tell you. Two things are to be settled by every person in bondage on the American conti- nent. One is, did Abraham Lincoln say that they were free ? And the other is, had he authority to say that ? Now I contend that just as surely as the President of the United States proclaimed liberty to the captive, and had authority to make that procla- mation, there is the assurance of their freedom. In other words, it rests down right on the word of Abraham Lincoln, his authority, and his ability to do that thing. Now turn to the great fact that every man is a sinner. He wants to be freed from the bondage and thralldom of sin. Where is he going to get his freedom ? He must know in the first place, did Jesus Christ proclaim him free ? In the next place, had Jesus Christ authority, on cer- tain conditions, to proclaim him free ? Will you turn now to the fourth chapter of Mat- 12 178 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. tliew ? We are going to see if we can find any ground of assurance on which the Christian can rest and believe, without doubt, that he is free, saved, and as sure of eternal life as if he was in heaven this minute. Matthew iv, 10, 11 : Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan : for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shall thou serve. Then the devil leaveth Him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto Him. Now, I want to have you notice in the fourth chapter of Matthew, the last part of the chapter, that Jesus came to John the Baptist, to be baptized, and John refused to baptize Him. But Jesus said : " Won't you baptize Me now, to fulfill all righteous- ness?" "Yes, I will," says John, and down they went into the river Jordan. John baptized Him, and, as they came up, He stood on the banks of the river. Now, it is said that the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove, the very embodiment of gentle innocency, and lighted upon Him, and in connection with that coining of the Holy Spirit God said : " This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Hear ye Him." Just as soon as that was done, we recognize Jesus as the sealed worker in the great work of human redemption. " Him hath God the Father sealed." I believe that then and there, on the banks of the river Jordan, just after the baptism of Jesus Christ, the Father sealed Him to the great work of redeeming a lost world. What ASSURANCE. 179 did He do after He had sealed Him ? Look at this first verse. Matthew iv, 1 : Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. What ! Did God put His Son right into the hands of the devil just as soon as He had sealed Him to this great work ? Certainly He did ; and if He had not done that, I should not really know how to preach an everlasting gospel. God had to test His Son, and the world to-day could not receive the Lord Jesus Christ with all that confidence and assur- ance with which we now receive Him if He had not been put into the hands of the devil to be tested, whether He was divine and able to perform His mis- sion or not. Now, it is said in the second verse : And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an hungered. When the devil tempts a soul, he always tempts at the weakest point. Like a wise general he will not go right up to the front of the enemy's fortifica- tions, but will feel around with strategy, and try to find out where the weakest point is, and there he will make his attack. If he finds that a man has become a drunkard, and his appetite is his weakest point, he will assail him there. If he finds that a person has a quick temper, and is very impulsive, he will attack him there. Wherever it is, he will always tempt the Christian, as well as the sinner in his weakest point. So Satan tempted Jesus when. 180 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. He was hungry, but Jesus overpowered him. Still he continued his temptations till Jesus said, " Get thee behind Me, Satan." " Then the devil leaveth Him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto Him." Now, since we have found that Jesus can conquer the devil, we have some ground upon which we can stand with firmness. We have a conquering Savior. Every Christian has a Savior who can con- quer the devil. This, my dear friends, to-day is the great anchorage and conquering ground of eveiy true believer. We are to believe, at once, when we are tempted, that Jesus Christ can conquer the adversary of all righteousness; and cast ourselves wholly upon His power. From this point turn to Malachi iii, 10, 11. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground. That is, you are to be so consecrated, with the door of your heart open, that Jesus will fill you so full of righteousness and joy and strength that there will not be room for the enemy to enter. He says, you do this " and I will rebuke the devourer." He don't want you to do it. He says I will do that. I confess I lived many years before I discerned this one great fact ; and I used to have awful struggles with temptation; but when I came to learn this great fact of assurance that God would conquer ASSURANCE. 181 for me I felt secure. Yes, dear friends, Jesus every time is able to conquer the adversary, and secure you and me against his every assault. Wherefore in all things it behooved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that He himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succor them that are tempted. Hebrews ii, 17, 18. This is said of Jesus. We are here reminded of His temptation in the wilderness. Notice, it is said, " For in that He himself hath suffered being tempted." He was in the hands of Satan in the wilderness, and suffered temptation "He is able to succor them that are tempted." Not a single soul is there on the face of the earth but that Jesus can enter into the fullest sympathy with all his ills and sufferings and temptations. Now, you would like to know, dear friends, how you are going to avail yourselves of this succoring, and pre- serving Savior. For we have not a high priest which can not be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews iv, 15, 16. You see that we are to go to God in prayer, that we may obtain mercy. What else? "And find grace to help us." When? "In every time of need." From January to January in city and coun- try, in the sanctuary, on the street, at home, in the 182 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. shop, on the farm, every where. Then, my dear friend, if you are tempted, go to God in prayer. Prayer is the Christian's vital breath, The Christian's native air: His watchword at the gate of death He enters heaven with prayer. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ ; that ye should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God. Romans vii, 4. Here we learn the relationship that exists between Christ and the believer. It is a marriage relation. No wife on this earth was ever married to her hus- band; no husband was ever married to his wife as intimately as the believer is married to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now let us look at that fourth verse a moment. " Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ." Think of that. "That ye should be married to another " Married to whom? We are not left in the dark here. " Even to Him who is raised from the dead " Who is that? Jesus Christ, who was raised? "The first fruits of them that slept " Why? "That we should bring forth fruit unto God." Then I declare unto you to-day that every true Christian is married to Christ, and is the bride of the Lord Jesus. And it shall be at that day, saith the Lord, that thou shalt call me Ishi ; and shalt call me no more Baali. And I will betroth thee unto Me for ever; yea, I will betroth tliee unto Me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving kindness, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto Me in faithfulness : and thou shalt know the Lord. Uosea ii, 16, 19, 20. ASSURANCE. 183 Here is a full description given of this royal, divine marriage to which I have referred. "And it shall be at that day " What day is that ? It is the day when the believer is espoused to the Lord his God. "That thou shalt call me Ishi;" what does the word Ishi mean? It means husband. "And shalt call me no more Baali." What does the word Baali mean? It means Lord. Now, says God to the believer, you have such an intimate relation to me, you are so near to me in this sweet relationship, that you are my bride, and I am your husband, and you are after this going to call me Husband, and not Lord. Now look at the 9th verse a moment and see what God says to the believer. "And I will betroth thee ^nto me " How long? Mark the language. *' Forever." That don't look much like divorcing, does it? "Forever!" What else do we find? " Yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving kindness, and in mercies." Four of the grandest living realities of divinity that could ever be given to a lost world. Now let us look at the next verse, some thing sweeter yet. God repeats : " I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness ; and thou shalt know the Lord." Oh ! the faithfulness of God. I may be unfaith- ful and you may be unfaithful. Human frailty is always crushing us down ; but the believer is led right into the secret chambers of God's faithfulness, 184 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. and He says, " I will betroth thee unto me in faith- fulness." What else does he say? "And thou shalt know the Lord." There is not much guesswork there, is there ? It is moral certainty. I said last night there are a great many people who can not bear the idea of sanctification, and the higher life, and perfect love. They are wonderfully troubled for fear that heresy will get into the church ; and if they hear a man say he knows Christ, and knows he is saved, "Haven't you gone too far?" they say. Bless you ! I never expect to be prepared any bet- ter to go to heaven than I am this minute ; and I believe, on the record of God's word, I can be just as sure of heaven as if I was there. I deplore this miserable notion of stumbling and doubting. There are men everywhere who will reply if you ask them if they are Christians : " I guess so ; I hope so ; felt bad and felt better, and joined the church eight or ten years ago ; I kind of hope I am a Christian, but I don't know certainly." Good-bye to that man's usefulness until he gets on to the Rock of Ages, that is not going to roll out from under him. Now this declares, " You shall know I am the Lord." I heard of a minister saying in a prayer meeting : " Friends, the meeting is yours ; you can talk, and pray, and sing, whichever you please ; but if there is anybody here who has got so far along that he can say he knows, I don't care to hear from him to-night." I thought it was a good thing for him that good old brother Job was not there, as much of a backslider ASSURANCE. 185 as he got to be at one time ; for he said, " I know that my Redeemer liveth." And I thought that it was a p^ood thing that brother Paul was not there, for hd got so far along at one time that he could say, " For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." Let us have a word from Jesus on this matter : And the glory which thou gavest Me, I have given them ; that they may be one, even as we are one. I in them, and Thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one ; and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them as thou hast loved Me. John xvii, 22, 23. In these two verses you have the clearest con- firmation of all I have said in reference to our union and our marriage to Jesus. Now hear what God says to those who have adopted His ordinances, that is, have been married to Him : Even unto them will I give in Mine house and within My walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters : I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off. Isaiah !vi, 5. Going to give them a place, and a name. What kind of a name ? "A name better than of sons and daughters." Now is not that precious ? How much you thiuk of George, and Sarah. How dear those precious names are, that you have given your sons and daughters. There is nothing sweeter to your heart in any earthly relation; and yet God says 186 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. here that He is going to give you a name better than of sons and daughters. Your son may die; your daughter may die, and their names will fade away from earth, but the name that Jesus gives to those who are wedded to Him shall live forever. Oh ! it is better than all other names beside. Then another thing here : " I will give them an everlast- ing name, that shall not be cut off." No end to the Christian name, which is embraced and received by every one who truly believes in Christ. Arid the work of righteousness shall be peace ; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. Isaiah xxxii, 17. How sweetly God speaks to the believer. " The work of righteousness shall be peace " when He has planted it in the soul, though there may be an outward tossing like the ocean wave, within there is peace "and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever." Can you ask for any thing better than that ? Never to end or change. And My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places. Isaiah xxxii, 18. That is your privilege, and my privilege all along the rough pathway through this wicked world. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me : and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave him. self for me. Galatiana ii, 20. That passage reveals "the living Christ" in the soul ; Christ dwelling in us. Now the apostle says here, "I am crucified with Christ." Just as Christ ASSURANCE. 187 was there suffering on the cross, rent and torn and mangled, so, by all the designs of this sinful world, I am torn, and crucified. Yet, he says, "Neverthe- less I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." I realize all the time the power of the living Christ in my soul ; cheering, comforting, blessing and dwell- ing in me. "And the life which I now live, I live by faith " Faith in what? Faith in circum- stances ? Faith in belonging to the church ? Faith in going to the communion table? Faith in my baptism? Faith in paying money to spread the gospel ? Faith in any of the relations of this world ? " I live by the faith of the Son of Giod" Just anchoring his faith right in the living Christ, "who loved me and gave himself for me." Here is the blessed experience of believers, all the time realiz- ing that they live, yet not they themselves. How I realize it to-day, down in the depths of my soul, that as a Christian man I do not live, but Christ lives in me. It is the Christ that moves the soul ; the Christ that holds ; the Christ that cheers ; the Christ that helps; the Christ that gives blessing. He is the Alpha and the Omega of the Christian experience every where. The eyes of your understanding being enlightened ; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling; and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints. And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power. Epliesians i, 18, 19. What I want you to see here is the revelation of Christ's inheritance. Now what is that inheritance ? 188 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. It is His saints. It is his people; and these are scattered amid all the inhabitants of the earth. Have you never read what God said to His Son? "Ask of me, and I will give you the heathen for your inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession." Have you never thought of the appellations that are given to Christians? Some of you who heard me speak about that old Dr. Watts' hymn, " Come Holy Spirit," may know what I meant when I said that it was a dishonor to God and the Christian profession for anybody to sing that hymn. The first verse and the last will do very well, but when Christians go to singing Hosannas languish on our tongues, And our devotion dies, It is a disgrace to there- Now, you will say, Why ? Because you are Christ's inheritance. In this verse we are called the riches and the glory of Christ's inheritance, the riches of His inheritance in the saints. And then, do you know another thing? He calls them priests and kings to God. He calls them His jewels. He calls them His treasures. God gives the most endearing titles to saints ; and yet you will hear them telling what cold hearts they have ; and how back-slidden they are ; and often singing such hymns, instead of occupy- ing the position that God has called them to, and feeling more like taking wings and going up to glory, than backsliding. It is our blessed privilege to live in this world, realizing that we are the in- heritance of the Lord Jesus. ASSURANCE. 189 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance ; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake. 1 Thessalonians i, 5. There are four things stated here about the pre- cious Gospel. It came to us in " word," in " power," in the " Holy Ghost," and in " assurance." Do you want anything better than this precious old Pauline Gospel ? " As you know what manner of men we were among you for your sake," that is, this Gospel has made us such manner of persons as we are among you. Oh ! how much it has done for millions of souls. For the which cause I also suffer these things ; nevertheless I am not ashamed ; for I know whom I have believed, and am per- suaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day. 2 Timothy i, 12. Here is the object of faith's assurance. "I know whom I have believed," says the apostle. I know this Christ who dwells in me, and I live in Him. What else does he say ? " And am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." I don't know that I can illustrate that any better than by this incident. When I was in a city in Wisconsin, one afternoon a brother came in, and said he had been to see a sick man, and that he asked the sick man if he was a Christian. " I am." " What church do you belong to?" said he. "I belong to the church of Christ." "Yes, I know, but what persuasion are you of?" "Well, I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor princi- 190 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. palities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, shall be able to separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." I think that is about the same kind of persuasion that the apostle had in mind here when he said, " I am persuaded that He is able ;" that is, Jesus is able "to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God : therefore the world kuoweth us not, because it knew Him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be : but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him ; for we shall see Him as He is. 1 John i, 2. There again you get the same blessed assurance. There in the second verse is that know again. Rich assurance ! No guess work about it. We are sure of it. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To an inheritance incorruptible, and undented, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you. Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 1 Peter i, 3, 4, 5. Here you have a glorious description of the inheri- tance of the saints. Jesus told us a little while ago, about His inheritance ; that is, His people. Now we are told what we are going to inherit. It is said, "we are begotten to a lively hope." How? "By the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." That is, by the power of the resurrection. " To an inheritance " that is the first thing " that is incor- ASSURANCE. 191 ruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven." You are not only told what the character of this inheritance is, but where it is. It is "reserved in heaven for you." Who? Every body? The whole world ? Well, let us see. "You who are kept by the power of God" mark that. You don't keep yourselves, but you are kept. How? By your own power? I have heard a great many persons make this remark ; " I am glad that I started, and I want you to pray for me that I may hold out faithful, and meet you in heaven." I object to that form of expression, unless it is well guarded. It is very pleasant, if it is well guarded, but let any person get to going in that line for a while, and it won't be very long, if they are not careful, before they are trusting Christian faithfulness rather than Jesus Christ. We ought to be very careful that we rest our faith on nothing short of Jesus. Christian faithfulness never saved any one, and never will. You might as well talk about apple-trees growing because the apples are there. The apples grow because the tree is alive; and so Christians grow because the life is in them. I might say that I wanted every body to pray for me, that I might walk in Christ. Be filled with Christ, and the faith- fulness will take care of itself. We must recognize the keeping power in a higher than man. We must find it in the grasp of the divine hand. So we are those who are to be kept by the power of God. Through what? " Through faith." Then you must keep the faith in God to achieve it. God has not 192 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. promised to keep any body who does not believe in Him. God don't exercise the faith. You and I do that, and He gives the keeping power. " Kept through faith unto salvation." Then when are we going to have this inheritance ? " Ready to be re- vealed in the last time." In closing I will give you two thoughts which I want you to write down. I believe they are thoughts that are worthy of being put in letters of gold, and framed, and hung up in every Christian home. The first one is this : Some body may say to me, " How can I be saved ? " I have one answer : " You do the believing, and let Jesus do the saving." That is one thought I would give to every body who really wants to be saved. Now I will give you the other : Does a Christian want to know how he can hold out and be sure constantly of his salvation ? I give him this: " You do the trusting, and let Jesus do the keeping." I believe that those two thoughts, ac- cepted and entertained by any soul, will as surely bring him to heaven as that there is a heaven for the Christian to go to. HIGHER CHRISTIAN LIFE. THAT holiness becometh the Lord's house, and His family too, all Christians believe. Upon this there is no difference of opinion. But it is blessed to know that there is a high standard of piety and holiness, which we can all enjoy if we will. The prophet Isaiah tells us that there is a highway of holiness, and the redeemed of the Lord shall walk in it. A friend of mine was once asked, " What is sanctification?" He replied, "It is being satisfied with Christ." I like this. It is scriptural, definite, and easily understood. If I were to define what I believe to be the "higher Christian life," I should say, it is accepting and consciously walking in the full- ness of Christ Jesus. I mean we in Christ, and Christ in us. Just what he says in the declaration : "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him and will sup with him, and he with Me." Could any proclamation be more blessed or com- plete ? When Christ enters the union with believers is thus written. " Ye are the temple of the. living God;" "The Spirit of God dwelleth in you;" " Christ in you ; " " Together with Christ ; " " Cre- ated in Christ Jesus ;" "Thou shalt call me Ishi " (husband) ; " The Lord had chosen Israel for His 13 (193) 194 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. peculiar treasure ;" My jewels;" and "hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father ; " these are divine sayings for Christians. What lan- guage of endearment to holiness and holy objects ! When the great army of Christians rightly appre- hend these potent truths, there will be no more hanging harps upon the willows. Years ago I heard a Christian say in a large congregation, " I feel that my heart is a throne, and Jesus is the king." We do not want Christ as a theoretic belief, but as a conscious presence. We do not barely wish to ac- cept the gift, but the Giver. There is reason to believe that far too many pro- fess Christ who do not accept Him as a personal, living Savior. The church is dying of professional Christianity, when she ought to be giving to the world the power of pronounced holiness. It is now more than a dozen years since I first discovered the difference between accepting the gift, and accepting the Giver. I had long believed in Jesus as the Giver of eternal life, but never did I grasp the idea of Christ as a real Resident and Governor in the soul. I could realize that He deeded to me a title to heaven, but did not realize thab in present salvation He proposes to be to the believer what the husband is to the wife. When the marriage vow is sealed, the wife surrenders herself and all she has to her husband. Her will, heart, senses, strength, influ- ence, time, talent, life, and all she has, are given to him. She is to love, obey, and consult his will in every thing. And thus she is to find her happiness HIGHER CHRISTIAN LIFE. in him. But what is the husband to be to her, and do for her as his bride ? He is to love, support, and protect her in every possible way. He consults her needs and tastes, and is pledged to their supply, as far as his resources will admit. So with Christ and His church ; and in this relation the union is per- sonal and vital with every true member of the church. But in this we know the husband's re- sources are limited, while Christ's are inexhaustible. Hence it is written, " The husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church ;' and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it, that it should be holy and without blemish." Here then, in the simple figure of mar- riage, the Christian is taught his place with Christ : the place of consecration ; of attitude to receive Christ. When the apostle said, " I beseech you, brethren, that you give your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God," he meant unreserved consecration. What good men have defined as being "set apart to a sacred purpose." All the Lord's; all surrendered ; all given up to the Lord Christ and His service. A little girl was once asked where she found Jesus. She replied, " Just where I lost myself." How true ! In just this way every spiritual blessing is received from Jesus Christ our Lord. There is a principle in religion fraught with the 196 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. most Htal significance. It is this: If you would have all from Christ, you must give all to Christ. It is no marvel, then, that it has been written of the Lord and His saints, that " as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God." Here is the secret of the "faith life." When our bodies, will, intellect, eyes, ears, voice, heart, hands, feet, influence, words, actions, time, talent, and all our powers are given to Christ ; and when our wives, husbands, children, and friends are consecrated to Him ; and when our property, banks, stores, houses, lands, horses, carriages, cattle, sheep, and fowl, fur- niture, crockery, library, wardrobe, and all that we possess, are deeded to Him, the way is clear for Him to bestow the great gift of Himself, and impart the richest blessings of grace. Then faith can work. It can grasp the divine fullness of Jesus and rest in Him. I mean that this consecration should be car- ried just as far as knowledge goes. This is all that God requires ; and the satisfying experience that fol- lows is fully equal to God's gift, and the soul's capacity. " Christ in you the hope of glory " is the divine declaration that lifts the redeemed soul right up to the throne of God. And it is just here that the soul rests in the perfect refuge. Theodore Monod, who came into this life in Paris a few years ago, and has since awakened all England with wonderful religious power, defines the Higher Life thus: "It is just having one's eyes opened to see that there is a great deal more in Christ for us, actually and practically, than we ever suspected." HIGHEK CHBISTIAN LIFE. 197 It is true. And this is the lesson the church every where needs to learn. My own experience in what Christ does for me, and what Christ says to me, compels me to this conclusion. Before I came to this apprehension, there was much trusting in every thing, professionally, but Christ, the all and in all. But when I came to see, and really believe, that " He that hath the Son hath life," the whole aspect of my religious experience and labors changed. It is not he that hath a baptism, a sacrament, a con- firmation, a bare profession, but that hath Christ, the Son. As the body is absolutely dependent on the blood for life and actual strength, so are our moral sensibilities absolutely dependent upon the blood and life of Jesus for sanctification and spirit-" ual power. This I discovered to be true. And, i making unreserved consecration of myself to God many years ago, I apprehended this truth as a vital, living reality. It was to this end I made the conse- cration; and it is to this end I renew it daily. I wanted to remove the hindrances and dethrone every idol, in order that Jesus might reign upon the throne of my heart. I also wished to entirely renounce all self dependence of human merit, and be sanctified wholly by the blood and the word of the Lord Jesus Christ. I have found that this course has brought my soul into a wonderfully enlarged state of relig- ious experience. It has led me to understand the possibility of a perpetually sanctified state by the blood of the Lamb. Not a state of actual sinless- in this life ; that is too absurd for a moment's 198 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. thought. But of holding the blood constantly avail- able for the purity of my soul. If my faith can grasp the cleansing power of the blood one moment, it certainly can the next, and the next. And so on every hour, day, week, month, and year of our lives. Circumstances in sickness or health, business or pleasure, the friendship or hate of the world, the sunshine or the storm, the light or the darkness, can not change this. All are alike to the blood " that cleanseth us from all sin." This is spiritual and holy progress. And this view alone, revealing to our moral perceptions God and Christ and the Holy Spirit in all their divinity, opens the door for us to advance. Self renunciation and accepting Christ and the new life in Him just begin our march in holy pilgrimage. The tree that has always borne bitter fruit, when it is grafted for the good fruit, does not then reach perfectness, but is just prepared to grow in that which is good. So the believer who has fully accepted Christ as an entire dependence for holiness, sanctification and eternal life fruit will come, and that continually. Holiness to the Lord will at once be written on our banners as never before. Instances of this kind are clear and pronounced. There are enough of them to cover the world and inactive Christians alike all over with shame. And also enough to cover the Kingdom of God, as established in this world, all over with glory. Just let me mention Mr. George Miiller, of Bristol, England, and Dr. Charles Cullis, of Boston, in this country. The HIGHER CHRISTIAN LIFE. 199 former has planted the orphan school where thou- sands of homeless children have been cared for. The latter has established the consumptives' home, where great numbers of suffering ones have been nursed and comforted, and died "safe in the arms of Jesus." All this has been done by faith in God. They have trusted alone in God to move channels of His own choosing, and by methods of His own to provide means and give supplies to these great ends. And these men tell us that their determination in all this work has been to show to the world the pos- sibility and success of faith in God. And their lives have proved the sincerity of their motives. I would not say that no human hand or heart has wrought in this matter. They have. Reports of their work have been annually published to the world. Men, women and children who have become interested in their work have talked, prayed, sung and wept about it. They have taken it to their hearts in such deep sympathy that they could not r*est until they enlisted others to its perpetuity. But the underlying principle is what I contend for. No worldly scheme ever*had such a showing since the world was made. Men of the world may speculate, gain wealth, and build schools and great institutions ; but for poor men to engage in such a work, and on such a basis, and with all the growing success of the enterprise through a long term of years, evincing such unselfishness, is a marvel to behold. It can be accounted for in no way only upon principles of consecration and holiness. Of 200 FEOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. living faith, moved by the mighty power of the living Christ in the soul. And I can see no reason, neither do I believe there is any, why all the followers of Jesus, in the various spheres of life, may not, and ought not, to walk in the same conquering faith of the Gospel. I would that every member of the church of God would throw off the rubbish of bare professional Christianity, make a full consecration to Christ, put on the whole armor of God, and at once, by living faith, enter the work of turning this revolted world to the cross of Jesus. Another thing I wish to mention concerning the great need that every Christian has to enter this valley of blessing is, They can not do work to win souls, as they ought without it. There never was a time when there was more need for Chris- tians "to travail'' in Zion for sinners. The believer must enter the garden with Jesus, and be filled with the spirit of Jesus, before ]je can properly work for souls. And when we are fully consecrated and filled with joy we can not be satisfied to go to heaven without taking others along with us. FAMILY RELIGION. Delivered in the First Presbyterian Church in Rock Island, III., Sunday evening, February 25, 1877. THE text to-night is in 2 Kings iv, 26 : Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee ? is it well with thy husband ? is it well with the child ? And she answered, it is well. What could you say if that question was put to you, dear father, to whom God has given a wife and children, and you never prayed with them yet, and never asked a blessing at your table? What it" God should send a cohort of angels down from the capital of the universe to-night to press the question to your heart, "Is it well with you?" would you say, "I am a moralist," or " I am a Universalist," or some- thing of that kind ? Would you try to palm off the idea, that because it is some way, as you hope, well with you, that you are not going to be lost? 1 want every person in this room, as far as the human mind, aided by Divine truth, can do it, to settle this ques- tion to-night, right before your God, " Is it well with you ? " What say you, my dear friend, in the light of eternity ? If you should be called to go into eternity before twelve o'clock to-night, is it well with you ? (301) 202 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. I propose, dear friends, to consider the divine wel- fare for a little while. Let me take a few minutes to consider the process of the divine welfare. I shall show this in two ways. First, I will give you an incident, and then a passage of Scripture. It is said that Whitefield at one time dined with Lady Hun- tington : an unconverted brother of his was present. During the dinner hour, Mr. Whitefield and Lady Huntington had a religious conversation. Such was the nature of it that this brother's attention was ar- rested, and he was so deeply impressed that all at once he dropped his knife and fork, and threw up his hands and cried, "/ am lost! I am lost! lam lost!" "Thank God!" said Lady Huntington. " Why ? Why do you exult over my lost condi- tion? " " O, I can not help it," she says ; " I am so glad you are lost so glad ! " " But why, why, do you have such ecstacies over my lost condition ? " " Simply because Jesus Christ came into the world to seek and save that which was lost. Now, sir, if you have found out that you are lost, there is some hope of your being saved." I want to give that to every person in this room to-night. There is no hope of that young lady being saved until she owns herself a lost sinner. God has never sent His Son into the world to save the righteous. Jesus says Him- self that He " came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." Some of you self-righteous men here in Rock Island, I don't know whether the angels in glory could live with you if you could get into heaven under your self-righteousness. " Oh, I FAMILY RELIGION. 203 am honest/' you say; "I am as good as the minis- 'ters and deacons." Well, bless you! If you live as perfect as an angel the rest of your life, you will never get into heaven on that line. No one but Jesus can save helpless sinners. I bear you record that " except you repent you will all likewise perish." Some where I have learned this incident: It is said that in some Eastern countries when one king visits another and visits the prison of that nation, he is permitted to celebrate the occa- sion by letting a prisoner go free. Before the French and German war, it is said that the King of Germany visited France. Before going away, he visited a prison, and as he was about to leave, he celebrated his privilege. He said to the keeper, " Let out that prisoner." The door was unlocked and he stepped out. " What are you in here for?" said the prince. "I was put in, sir, for such and such a crime, but I never committed it." You know there are not many guilty men in the State prison. " Lock up that prisoner," said the prince. He went to another cell. " Let out that prisoner. What are you in here for?" " Sir, I was incarcerated for such and such a crime, but I am in- nocent." "Lock him up." He went to the third cell, and asked that the prisoner be let out. " What are you here for ? " "I was put in here for such and such a crime, and I am guilty. I deserve more punishment than my sentence requires." " Let that prisoner go free," said the prince. That is the way that Jesus saves sinners. If you want me to give you one illus- 204 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. tration from the Bible, take this : The Pharisee stood and prayed thus, " God, I thank thee that I am not as other men are : I pay tithes of all I possess ; I fast twice in the week." But the pub- lican stood yonder, smiting on his breast, " Oh, God be merciful to me, a sinner ! " Which of these men did Jesus save ? Tell me, ye moralists, did he say to that Pharisee, " I am glad you are so good, and never commit any sins ; go right up to glory ? " "I tell you," says Jesus of that poor sinner that smote on his breast, " this man went down to his house justified rather than the other." So I bear you re- cord that " Jesus Christ came into this world to seek and to save that which was lost.'" Now, that is one step toward having it well with you in the heart. Now I will take another incident and passage of Scripture. I think it was about seven years ago that I was in New York holding some meetings. The church where I was speaking had aisles on the side by the walls. I arose to give out my text. A gen- tleman and lady entered the door, and walked about half way down the aisle on my right, and took a seat. It was a cold, dark, stormy night. I took this text, " For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." The peculiarity of that sermon was " whosoever be- lieveth," believeth, believeth! As that .gentleman sat down, he turned his attention right up toward me, and, as near as I remember, he never took his eyes off me during that discourse. I never preached FAMILY RELIGION. 205 a sermon like that one before nor since. I think if I repeated that word believeth once, I did it scores of times during that sermon. I felt as if I could not let one member of that congregation go without ac- cepting Christ by simple faith. When we reached home, the pastor said to his wife, " George C and his wife were at meeting to-night." I said, "Who are George C and his wife?" Said he, " They are unconverted people, who Jive up on Q Hill, about five miles, and I wonder that they have come down this stormy night so far to meet- ing." Nothing more was said. A few days after, the pastor said, " Mr. Graves, wouldn't you like to ride out?" I said I would. A carriage was brought up. " I propose we drive up to Q Hill," said the pastor, "and visit George C and his wife." " Very well," said I. On we went. We were in- troduced into the sitting-room, and as we entered at one door, Mr. C and his wife entered at the other. " Well," said he, " I am glad to see you. I was down to hear you preach Monday evening." " I am very glad ; did you get a blessing ? " " Yes, sir, and you know you had a good deal to say about believe, believe, believe." " Yes," said I, " I think I did." " Well, when we started home, my wife turned to me and said, ' Don't you think that the preacher had a good deal to say about believ- eth ? ' I said, ' I do, and I don't believe that doc- trine.' ' He was one of those sinners who wanted to be saved, but he wanted a little partnership in the matter. He wanted to do a little, and let God do a 206 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. little, and somehow he would get into heaven. I judge that, going home that night, my sermon got a pretty good criticising, and also when they went to bed, and when they got up in the morning, and I judge they had it for breakfast, and again for dinner, and hashed up again for supper. For a day or two they gave my sermon a pretty good going over every time they got together. " That man said, Believeth, believeth, belie veth ; that what the sinner has to do is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and then he 'should not perish, but have everlasting life.' Finally," said he, " yesterday I had a little piece of work to do out on my farm, and I took my spade and went out, and all at once I found myself leaning on my spade, and saying to myself, ' I don't know but that Mr. Graves is right after all, when he said, " whosoever believeth should not perish, but have everlasting life." I have been wanting to be saved for five years. Now, why am I not saved ? I am a sinner, and surely if I could have saved myself, I should have done it long ago. Now Jesus is the Savior, but how is He going to save ? " I judge that he went into soliloquy with himself for twenty min- utes at least. By what he told me, he turned the thing all over again and again, and finally, down in his heart, he said, " I do believe that Jesus is my Savior, and I give myself up to Him to save me now. And," said he, " I believe he saved me in a minute. I didn't have any very great hallelujah emotion, .but my heart was satisfied ; I was at peace with God, and I am glad that I can tell you I am saved by be- FAMILY RELIGION. 207 lieving in Jesus Christ." That, my dear friends, is what I mean to-night by the divine welfare. Now I am going to talk to every wife and mother here for a few minutes. Dear wife, and mother, I am going to ask you this question of the text, " Is it well with thee ?" Is it well with you in that you are born again? Do you believe you are saved? Have you any means of belief that your name is written in the Lamb's book of life, or that you are sweetly trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ ? Have you the rich experience of the living Christ in your soul ? If you have answered that question, I have another to ask you. Is ife well with you, my friend, in that you enjoy religion ? I know very well, as far as a Christian man can know, the sympathy that one ought to have with a Christian wife, who is wading through seas of anguish and pra} T er for an uncon- verted husband. But while I sympathize with such very much, I must say to not a few of them, you are right in the way of your husband, madam. He never will be converted until you change your course. You may be a church member, but you think a great deal more of a dance than you do of a prayer meeting, and you go there with your husband many a time when you never ask him to go to a prayer meeting. It will be no wonder if you stand over his coffin by and by, and realize that his soul is lo.st, and stand at the judgment and realize that you are the very one who has dragged him down to hell, because you have such a cold heart. O, how the enemy of souls does love to warp the hearts of t'h? 208 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. jewels of Christ. How many wives there are who are barely in the church. Their hearts are cold. How little they know about the sweet joy of prayer. They have wandered away from Christ. I think I mentioned an instance here the other night of a woman near Boston. A friend of mine was preach- ing in a meeting like this. A lady came to him. "Can you come down and see my husband. I don't know as it will do any good; sometimes I think that he does not believe the Bible, but won't you come and see him ? " The next morning the minister went over to the house, was introduced into the par- lor, called for the gentleman. He was a wealthy merchant, and the minister went early to see him before he went into Boston to his business. The man came in. " Excuse me, sir, for coming in so early this morning to see you ; I will detain you but a moment. I have come in to ask you if you have any interest about your salvation ? " " Sit down, sir," said he, " I am very glad to see you ; take all the time you want. Sir, I have got a new home ; I don't understand it. There was a time when I doubted whether the Bible was divine, but the last few days my wife has been the happiest woman, it seems to me, that I ever saw ; and still she seems so troubled about me, and I can not think it is any thing but what you call the religion of Jesus. For the last few days, when I come in, my wife is sing- ing, and when she comes to the table she seems happy, and at the same time so anxious about something. She used to bow before we retired FAMILY RELIGION. 209 for the night, and spend a little time in silence ; but for the last week she has broken out in vocal prayer; O, how she does pray for me. I don't kneel down, but somehow I can't sit still, and I have not slept much for the last few nights, and my heart is troubled." Just then the wife came in. She had not had religion enough to go to the prayer meeting, but she could go with her unconverted husband to the dance or the theater. Who can tell but that she might have been happier than a thou- sand dances could make her ? I know all about the happiness of the dance. I knew all about it when I was a young man. It passes away like a morning va'por ; but Oh ! when you have Christ in your soul from morning till night, from January to January, you can not put out the light of joy which He gives. And who can tell but that woman might have long before had her husband at the communion table with her, and at the family altar, and lived as happily as it is possible, enjoying religion. But there she was with a cold heart. So I might tell you of not a few instances where wives are making sad mis- takes. You need not talk otherwise. I know what it is to have a praying wife, and to enjoy a happiness that belongs to that soul that knows Jesus, not as a minister, but as an immortal traveler to eternity. And, dear woman, you are making a great mistake if you belong to the church and have an unconverted husband, or unconverted children, and you walk along this -world without the enjoyment of the relig- ion of Jesus ; without your soul filled with the full- 14 210 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. ness of Christ's love. Now I have another ques- tion to ask you, dear woman. Is it well with your husband f Have you any means of knowing that he is saved ; that his name is written in the book of life ? If you have answered that question, I have another to ask you. Is it well with your husband in that there is family prayer in your house? Has your husband an altar there ? Does the old family Bible come out daily ? And are the children, if you have them, gathered around, and do you there call upon God ? There is nothing on the face of this earth like family prayer for the blessing of souls. I don't know who would stand in this place proclaiming the word if it had not been for one family altar, but I know that / should not be here. My dear father died when I was about nine years of age, but I look back and remember how morning after morning he brought out that Bible, read it with his family, called upon the name of God, and lifted us up on the wings of love and supplication, and though after my father died I went into the city, and led a reckless life for several years, the influ- ence of those prayers followed me. Many a time, in that wicked course, God seemed to bring to my heart, in answer to a father's prayers, all the power of that family altar. And I tell you, dear fathers and mothers, you are making a mistake when you are bringing up your children without a family altar ; educating, clothing, making wealth for them, doing every thing without prayer at the altar. But I do not wonder that so many men become discouraged FAMILY RELIGION. 211 about prayer; they get so little help from their wives, who ought to bring out the Bibles, see that the children are prepared and kept quiet, take an interest and a part in it. But many a man has to go on, as it were, alone with it. He gets no help. His wife never lifts her voice in prayer by his side, and he gets discouraged. Dear wife, I am here to ask you, Is there an altar in your house, where the holy incense of family prayer is lifted to God day by day, bringing divine blessings down upon the dear ones who are gathered around you ? I went to one place in Pennsylvania to have some meetings. The sixth day, at the close of the morn- ing meeting, I said I would like to have all in the body pews vacate the seats, except inquirers and converts. Of course, a great many arose, and began to push back toward the door. A robust man in the center of the house arose, a man, I should judge, of large intelligence. I began to talk to some friends near me. Soon I heard weeping down toward the door. I looked up and saw a lady with her arms around that man's neck, saying so loud that all could hear it, " My dear husband, I can not let you go." She led him back to the seat that he had vacated. Soon he arose with quivering lips, and the tears trickling over each cheek, and as soon as he could speak he said, "-My mother in L , New York, more than fifty years ago, dedicated me to the Lord." He then turned around, and put his hand upon the head of his devoted wife. "So many years ago," said he, " God gave me this dear one as 212 FKOM EAETH TO HEAVEN. partner of my life ; and I am ashamed to say it, I have let her keep up the family altar all alone from the day of our wedded vows. But, before God and these people I promise my dear wife that she shall do it no longer." He then dropped upon his knees. His wife arose, and through her tears, with tremu- lous voice, cried out, " There are two brothers, won't you come ? " Soon I saw two men yonder ; one put out his hand to the other, " Shall we go ? " said he, and they joined hands, walked to that seat, and knelt by the side of their brother. " Oh," I said, as I witnessed that scene, " what can not a pious woman do in leading husbands and dear ones to Christ !" Do I speak to wives and mothers here to-night who are pious ? Is there a family altar in your house ? You may say to me, " Mr. Graves, it is not my duty to have family prayer when my husband, who is the head of the family, is not a Christian." It is your duty. God has given you that home, and those chil- dren, and that husband ; and I believe to-day, if more wives had a family altar, from the very be- ginning of their marriage, there would be more hus- bands converted. Dear friend, there is many a young lady who makes her husband a drunkard, and every thing almost that is bad, by bare neglect. She is pious and goes to church, but she don't begin right, pray- ing with and winning, and drawing him. Any young man who cares enough for a young lady to marry her ; when she is married, I believe, she can lead him, with the strength and help of God. And you FAMILY RELIGION. 213 ought to. And if any of you have made a mistake up to this moment, you had better get right to-night. You had better be like a woman in a city I visited some weeks ago. She heard me speak ; and the next day a lady called on her, and she said to her, " The sermon last night deeply affected me. I had been married for years, and my husband had never heard my voice in prayer, and I said in my heart, as I went home, ' It is now or never ; ' and I said : ' Will you take the Bible and read to-night?' He did so. 'Now,' I said, 'can't you kneel in prayer?' And we bowed together. I prayed for my dear hus- band for the first time in my life, and then I said, 'Can't you pray?' and oh, such a prayer as he offered ! " There together they dedicated themselves to God. Would that I could open my heart to teU you the worth of a husband kneeling beside his wife in prayer. You may have a thousand other enjoy- ments, but there is none like this. Oh, the sweet- ness of feeling that together we can talk with God. I don't know but there may be a father here to whom God is speaking to-night, by His Holy Spirit, possibly like a father who took his little daughter in a boat and rowed out on the lake, set her down on an island and said, " Now, my child, you can run about, pick up the agates, and pluck the flowers, and I will go up the lake, and be back by and by." So the little girl amused herself a while, but by and by she looked up and saw that the thick fog was set- tling down upon the lake. She says, " Papa can't find me now." So she sought her way around to 214 FROM EAKTH TO HEAVEN. the place where she stepped off the boat, and there she waited and watched, and by and by she heard the dip of the oars, and presently, through the thick fog, she saw the end of the boat, and she leaned for- ward as far as she could and cried, " This way, pa ! this way, pa ! " and in that way lie found her, and took her into the boat, and managed to get her home. Not long after that, God called that darling one to go up and sing with the angels. Some time after her death the father had a dream, and he saw in that dream many scenes of his dear child, and among others, that little scene at the boat ; and be- fore he awoke he seemed to hear the voice, " This way, pa!" and as he awoke amid that scene, it seemed as if God was speaking through the voice of that little child "This way, pa! this way, pa!" and it was the means of leading him to the Lamb of God. And who can tell but that I am talking to some father or mother here to-night, some sister or some brother, whose darling one has gone, and the voice comes down by the Holy Ghost, " This way, ma ! " " This way, pa ! " " This way, sister ! " " This way, brother! " Oh, will you heed the call ? May Christ help you, and will you help yourself, that it .may be well with you. Give your heart to the Lord that he may take your sins away and save you. UNITED EFFOETS IN REVIVALS. THE particular phase in which these efforts are made is peculiar. It is evidently of God. The signs of divine leading and the seal of divine approval are clear. While distinctive relations of different denomina- tions are clearly recognized, holy power is greatly increased in this Christian form. And while objec- tions are few, very much can be said favorable to this kind of revival work. With both the ministry and laity the strength is greatly increased. Their power upon the world is enlarged every way. Minis- ters themselves fail to know each other intimately in the tender experiences of prayer, song, and deep spiritual impulse, in the accustomed way of church work. There are differences in doctrine or church polity that often seem like an impassable gulf in sacred fellowship. And unless some active change is effected, the gulf is liable to grow wider and wider. It may be unintentional, but nevertheless true, the tendency of pastors of various denominations, with rare exceptions, is to hold each other at arm's length. Jealousy, suspicion and variance are often cherished without real foundation, simply because they do not know each other as " one with Christ." And in this 216 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. way they fail very much of the mutual spiritual power that ought to be turned upon the bulwarks of the enemy. Of course the devil is glad of this. Any thing to weaken the holy forces is his delight. It is true ; conventions are often held which bring together many ministers of the Gospel. Different sects come together, shake hands, look into each other's faces, and then turn to the secular and executive. Seldom are these convocations, like the Pentecost of old, for consecration, and to call down the power of the Holy Spirit on a sinful world. Criticisms upon the- ological questions, discussing and passing resolutions, and debating about missionary work, are generally the order of the day. But in all this they do not learn each other in spiritual things. If there is any class who need to know each other's hearts, tears, prayers, love and sympathy, all side by side at the Cross, it is ministers who preach Christ. In a gen- eral revival movement they find this school of sacred learning as nowhere else. Many years ago I was in a meeting appointed for ministers to gather for the one purpose of praying for the Holy Spirit to be poured out upon their various churches. Anxiously did I wait for the day. It came ; and with it many ministers came together. They prayed, read the Bible, sang songs, and opened their hearts to each other in heaviness and in joy, in soul leanness and Christian livingness. It was a day of spirit baptism. I have carried its power more than ten years in my heart. One young man came into that meeting, who had graduated from the Uni- UNITED EFFORTS IN REVIVALS. 217 versity with the highest honors of his class, and been ordained over a good church, but felt that his min- istry was fruitless. No sinner had been converted during his year's work. He was about to give up and go into the mercantile business. His education was brilliant and ample. But he had not enjoyed the Spirit's power and presence. He confessed his leanness to his brethren. They gave him love, sym- pathy and prayers. God blessed him. "The things that remained were strengthened," and he returned to his work for a mighty harvest of souls. So all the Lord's ministers often need help one from the other. In union revival meetings they meet for no aimless purpose. Deeply conscious in their own hearts that the end desired can not be reached by wordy ad- dresses, they seek God's spirit upon each other, and God bestows it. Again an^again in various towns and cities which I have visited have I heard pastors say after " tarry- ing several days at Jerusalem," "We never knew each other so before." This asserts an evangelical power that can not be seen and felt in any other way. There is advantage also in this kind of revival work in view of the spiritual liberty enjoyed. Those who enter into it with pure motives and consecrated hearts feel a deep sense of God's approval. It is an undisguised fact that in our own land, as well as other lands, during the last quarter of a century God has been marshaling His holy hosts as never before. Where there was at the beginning of this 218 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. time but one or two Young Men's Christian Associa- tions now there are more than eight hundred, with international conventions, and various well organized forces for evangelistic work. Besides this, State Christian conventions often gather the armies of Israel and devise liberal things for God. And then the Sunday school work is evincing wonderful pro- portions and power in reaping for Jesus in the largest cities, over broad prairies, and along every rivulet and mountain side. Temperance revivals, that are now drawing their power from the Cross as never before, are exerting a wide spread influence. And while Jesus is thus moving along the lines of Israel, enlist- ing all truly regenerate hearts in oneness of sympa- thy and faith in the work of saving the lost, he who can not join in united labor with all Christians in evangelistic work so binds himself with sectarian, cords that he can not enjoy spiritual libirty in labor any where. I would not have a Christian of any name do violence to his denominational convictions as to church relations ; but while he may so maintain, with integrity, church standing, he is bound by all that is sacred to cherish and exhibit fraternal Christian feel- ing. With this he has a broader heart and a deeper and sweeter love for Jesus and the souls of men. And with it he is ready to stand side by side with the good and the true in turning a revolted world to God. To say that there can not be oneness of heart in Christian life when there is not oneness of sentiment in church ordinances and church polity is beating UNITED EFFORTS IN REVIVALS. 219 against the air in the face of facts. God says, " The liberal soul shall be made fat," and in no phase of holy living is this more apparent than for a Christian to pray for and join in every thing that is done, and that God honors in saving souls. The particular form of this kind of work must necessarily be dictated by God's providence in sur- rounding circumstances. Sometimes pastors go to- gether and lead the work themselves. At other times Christians without a ministerial leader enter the work. At other times accredited evangelists are invited to take charge. But each and all of these forms are receiving the Lord's seal of blessing in a wonderful degree. And no discerning Christian's mind can be blind to this fact. I would speak words of encouragement and en- couragement only, to those Christians who would give sympathy and help to this kind of work. There is sometimes inclination to discouragement if an evangelist can not be secured to lead the work. This should not be. Jesus is the great Captain. He never lost a battle. It is good to have a safe evangelist to lead the people. But evangelists are few comparatively. Ten years of life in this way has taught me that the demand is greatly in excess of the supply. And where this kind of help can not be secured, the Christians and the people (for in many communities the unconverted often want a revival) should look out a man of competence and holiness to lead and go on with the work. To go at 220 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. the work and expect G-od to bless it, are the great things needed. The impressions made upon the unconverted in such meetings are often overwhelming arguments in favor of the reality of Christian faith and doctrine. When in any given community they see Christians of all names go up to prayer together, they feel it deeply. United song too, with holy unction carries with it winning, constraining power toward the Cross. And the very fact of ministers and Christians stand- ing side by side, unctuously appealing to sinful men to be saved often spikes the guns of the enemy, and leads to a general surrender to Christ. And I believe the world would be converted much faster if the Christian forces would go together oftener to turn men to the Cross. Criticism that often hinders the cause of Christ, by this means is effectually disarmed. When Christians all go together for a time, con- certing their faith and doctrines to save souls from hell in one grand harvest work for Jesus, they pro- tect each other from the opposition that would other- wise arise. Much power is lost, and much mischief done in not a few communities, by the heartless indifference and scornful criticisms of lukewarm professors, while one church is struggling to put forth revival efforts. The devil is pleased with this, and the unconverted are sadly affected by its bane- ful influence. And I have long believed that this was a great hindrance, to the conversion of sinners in our land. A Christian once said in my hearing, " I am glad UNITED EFFORTS IN REVIVALS. 221 we have one revival where all Christians can meet and have controlling influence over business, schools, families, and the entire community, instead of one church meeting to pray for sinners to be converted, and all the rest praying God to hold on until they get ready." "While in another city I heard Deacon Philip's wife (not the Deacon Philip that turned Samaria to Christ) say, as the churches were joining together in revival work : " I should rather have only a few converted, and have them join our church." I do not believe that such a spirit as that pleases Jesus. And yet how much of it, in word or act, is scattered through the ranks of Christian churches. But it is a cause of rejoicing to not a few consecrated Christians, that the "Captain of our Salvation" is rebuking it by crowning with wonderful success union efforts, and this success is silencing, in a great' degree, the criticisms that hinder. Another marked feature in united efforts is the fact that the power of prayer is increased. This has been true in all the ages, and was never more so than to-day. In the autobiography of Elder Jacob Knapp, the eminently successful evangelist, whom God honored as He has honored few men in our land, running over a period of more than forty years, and after two years of united efforts, changing to de- nominational work, he says : " I never knew Chris- tians so effectual in prayer as during the time I held union meetings." And this has been the striking record of Christian power during the centuries. We would not disparage the effectiveness of prayer 222 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. in any form. God blesses it in every conceivable way, and not unfrequently a single person, small bands of Christians, and individual churches, have been very powerful in prayer, and God has greatly honored them. But we do say that this power has been greatly increased by concerting Christians in prayer, until the world has come to acknowledge in Christ this great necessity and blessing. Besides this, amid the bright shining of the lights in the world, where ever this form of work has been pros- ecuted, a monument of the G-ospel has been erected. No better illustration of this can be found than in the exhibitions of the ancient Pentecost. In this Christians united their powers to secure one grand end. They succeeded. But how? By sectarian bickerings and jealousies ? No. With " one accord " in prayer, praise, exhortations, preaching and hear- ing the word. What a grand beacon light to the weary pilgrim has that union meeting and its results been in all the succeeding ages of Christian work. Now, lest some man will say that was a time when all were agreed in the apostolic methods of the ordi- nances, and now divisions are so numerous among evangelical Christians that there can not be unity of effort to convert the world, I have to say, this argues nothing, so far as the success of the work, and the blessing of God upon it, are concerned. Ample proof is at hand. The great revival a score of years ago, under the united prayers and labors of all Christians, which resulted in the permanent establishment of the Fulton Street daily prayer meeting, fully attests UNITED EFFORTS IN REVIVALS. 223 that God is greatly pleased, and the Holy Spirit is greatly honored when Christians of all names and sects come together to pray and to work. No such successful movement and continuous unity has the world ever known before. It is like the wide-spread- ing branches of the living tree, sending forth its influence of power from the millions of the blood- washed throng. And we believe that this gladsome experience of holy blessing is but borrowed light from the Pentecost revival, which sent forth its power by the "one accord" Christians. Oh, this Pentecostal rerival of divine type ! No figures can compute its results. And as monuments of granite are raised to illustrious names and deeds, so a tower- ing monument of truth and grace was erected on that "day of Pentecost" as an incentive to action in the revivals of all the ages to come. It is also a standing rebuke to ritualistic formalism, and every society of any church pretensions which opposes revivals. Unitarians and Universalists may well doubt the correctness of their Gospel standing on this ground if no other. In that ancient revival sinners were pricked in the heart, and cried for mercy and the way of life. But who ever heard of such a thing in a Unitarian or Universalist church ? But evangelistic Christians of every name are con- stantly pointing back to this monument of light, saying, " See ! that is God's method of turning sin- ners to the Cross." And then, how delightful it is to see how God has wrought by the consolidation of Christian forces in England, Scotland, Ireland, and 224 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. this country, during the past four years. Of course croakers will say in the face of all this blessing : u You can not do effective work for God in this way," but we have no hesitancy in believing that a great work of God has been wrought that will stand as a finger board pointing heavenward for millions of souls in the ages to come. This work could not have been effected in any other way. The very fact that from six to twenty thousand people should be gathered daily by Christians of every name for the asserted purpose of prayer, praise, and the direct work of soul-caving, is won- derful. And then, that it has been proven again and again, that it is no fruitless experiment, but rather that the Lord and His Christ should shower such blessings upon the work, is enough to convince the greatest doubter of Christianity of the wisdom and the power of God ; yea, and of the truth of the Gospel of Jesus. And what is true now in these great centers of influence, both secular and religious, may continue to be true. There is nothing that pays so well in repeating itself as the Gospel. And in England and America these efforts may be repeated and multiplied. Also, what is true of the large cities may be true of smaller communities. It is better, for many reasons, for Christians of all names to join hands as often as practicable, and march on the lines of the enemy. With rare excep- tions, the power for good on the people is increased many fold. In an experience of more than ten years in the revival work, where the churches have all UNITED EFFORTS IN REVIVALS. 225 joined together, I have known them scores of times to get the business houses, and saloons, and offices, to close, sometimes for successive days, to allow all to attend the religious meetings, and in this way to stamp the whole community with marked power for good, while I never knew it done by a single church. 15 GOOD TIDINGS. Delivered to a congregation of a thousand men in King's Opera House, Independence, Iowa, April 8, 1877. THE text is in the second chapter of Luke, tenth verse : " Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy" This text contains the first proclamation that was made of Jesus, as a Savior, to a fallen world after He came into the world to save sinners. Let me say, in the next place, that this little sermon was preached by an angel. In the third place, I may say it was preached to a congregation of men only. I have no means of knowing that there was a woman in the crowd to whom this proclamation was made. The shepherds were down there on the plain, taking care of their flocks by day and by night. Jesus came into the world as a Savior for sinners. The angels came to these shepherds on the plain, a company of men, and men only, and cried to them : " Fear not ; for behold I bring you glad tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people." Let me say to you dear men, I have not called you together here to-day because I intended to say any thing that was improper for a woman to hear, or that I (226) GOOD TIDINGS. 227 was not willing to have the world hear and under- stand. But I have found it very excellent, once in awhile, to have class meetings of different kinds, and characters, and sexes. God somehow has won- derfully blessed such meetings as these, which are calculated to reach various classes particularly. Let me say further, that there is no class on the face of the earth that so much needs the Gospel as the men. I do not say that the Gospel is not a blessing to women. It often is. But do you know, my dear sir, that a woman has" a tender and affectionate heart that a man is not naturally possessed with. I do not say that a woman can not be very bad. She can be infinitely worse than a man if she undertakes it. Man has naturally a hard nature to contend with every where, and this Gospel that is so soothing, and loving, and comforting, is calculated to bless that nature. There is nothing like it in this world. I have called you here to-day that I might present and pregs to your hearts a few of the blessed words that come from the revelation of Jesus Some years ago a deacon, who was a man of large intelligence, influence and wealth, said to me one morning as I went into his office, "Dominie, do you know that you ministers make a great mistake some- times?" Said I, " I don't know what you mean." Said he, " You get a few men of wealth and influ- ence into your churches, and make them trustees and deacons, and fill up the headships of the church with them ; and then you go into your studies, and crack your brains almost to study out something '228 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. deep, philosophical and logical, so that you can feed these few men on Sunday. No matter whether the masses get a morsel that they can masticate or not, these men must be fed." "Now," said he, " pastor, if you only knew it, we business men all through the week are crushed down, and our brains are racked and tired with our business, and when we go to church on Sunday we want a little simple, soothing Gospel put into our hearts ; we don't want any of your dry pages of thought and great arrangements that almost crack our brains to even consider." " Ah," I said, " I have a new view of the wants of man now," and I believe it is true. There is nothing in this world that men need in their hearts so much as childlike simplicity ; something to bless them ; something to comfort these hearts that are all lace- rated by sin. Now, I will call your attention a few minutes to this idea, " Fear not ; behold I bring you glad tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people." What is meant here is deliverance from bondage, or taking away from man the bondage of sin, the fearful consequences and sadness that crushes him down to earth. I must confess to-day that while I have lived as a public man of large ob- servation in this world for now over twenty-five years, I have never seen a year in all my record that has presented such a spectacle of the needs of men in distress as the last. Oh, how many there are who are figuring all the time to keep out of bankruptcy. How much many have been crushed with suspense in the political GOOD TIDINGS. arena, and in all the concerns of business. How many have failed. How many a man who one year ago considered himself worth his hundreds of thou- sands, to-day is clear down at the foot of the ladder, and some know not where they are going to get the money to keep them from the poor-house. My dear friends, how sad the picture in this world, of all the distresses that are coming down upon men. But I am glad that I can tell you to-day there is comfort for the poor heart, whether the body be wrecked or not. There is joy. There is saving blessing. Some years ago, in western New York, I preached a couple of weeks. The last night I was in the city I addressed several different classes. Among other things I said: "Perhaps there are some men here who are distressed in their business, or have become bankrupt. If there are any here who are thrown in the conflicts of life into the very maelstrom of suffer- ing and distress, I have a word of comfort for you." The next day, when I reached my next point, I received a long letter, commencing: "My dear sir: I can not let you leave this town without sending you this letter. Last night, when you addressed men who were crushed and in distress, you did not know what words you were speaking to my heart. I did not have the pleasure of your personal acquaint- ance while here, but I want to tell you that a few months ago I was worth sixty thousand dollars. I sold out my business and invested my money in an oil well, thinking that I would oon double it ; but in a few brief months it was all swept away, and my 230 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. investment was a failure. I came back. I went to church, but they did not take as much notice of me as they did before." You know there are a good many deacons and women and others who come around, and smile very prettily when they want five dollars. As long as a man has money he is treated with a good deal of consideration in the church ; but if he goes down, there is a cold shoulder and a long face. I hope there are no Christians in this town who would act in that way. Said he, ' I went to church and everybody showed me the cold shoulder. I was sad. I went home, and said to my dear wife, ' They don't treat me as kindly, and as warmly as they used to, and I can not go there any more;' and I want to tell you, I believe that if it had not been for my dear family altar, my pious wife, and my precious Bible, I should have been a suicide before this. But there I found comfort, and I thank you for the words you spoke to me last night." I tell you, dear friends, there is nothing that is so blessed, and so adapted to man as the great idea : " Fear not, behold I bring you glad tidings of great joy." Now I want a little while this afternoon, to. con- sider several thoughts about this great joy. First, let me say, dear man, you will find great joy in the adaptation of the gospel to a man's heart. It matters not where he is, or whether he is a drunk- ard, a liar, or a moralist ; there is an adaptation of this precious Gospel. The worst of men can find here a great remedy for all the ills of life ; for their GOOD TIDINGS. 231 sin-stricken and their troubled hearts, as they go out amid the turmoils of this world. Some time ago I was at my home in New York. Walking up Sixth Avenue a man came along, walked by me, and looking around : " Oh, how do you do ! how do you do ! " said he. " Who are you ? " said I. " Oh, I shall never forget -the fourth day of August," said he. "I know you; I saw you down at the Fulton Street meeting, and I saw you here in Lyric Hall to-day, leading the meeting." "Well," said I, " Who are you ? " Said he : "I live in Albany I shall never forget the fourth day of August." "What happened then? "said I. He replied: "I was a drunkard, and I was home on the floor drunk, and my dear little girl, six years of age, came home from Sunday school, knelt down by my side, put her arm around my body, and I there, drunk, but not so drunk that I did not know what I was about ; and she drew her little hand over my face, and said, ' I love you papa;' and then she drew the other hand over my cheek, and said, ' Yes, papa, and Jesus loves you too.' That made me angry, and I pushed her off, and got up, and went out angrily. The very name of Jesus touched my sinful heart. I went down to the saloon, but every pat of my foot upon the pavement seemed to say, ' Yes, papa, Jesus loves you too.' And when I went into that saloon, and got a glass, and took it up in my hand, something was saying all the time, > Yes, papa, Jesus loves you too.' I could not drink it, and thank God I did not. I dashed it down, and came home, and called for my 232 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. little girl. Her mother led her out, and I got her up in my arms, and kissed her again and again. I never loved that daughter as I did then. That little daughter, by that little sermon, 'Yes, papa, Jesus loves you too,' led me to give up my cup, and led me to Jesus. I have not drank a drop since ; and last Sunday I joined the church with my wife." Is there any man on this floor to-day, who doubts whether that one little Gospel sermon, which that little girl brought, was the best thing that that man could have ? It was the great need of his soul. And I say to-day in this city would that I could speak to the ends of the earth this great joy is what every man needs in his soul, amid all the wrecks of time and sin. It is adapted to all the wants and conditions of men iu the world. Take one little illustration. Bid you ever read in the Second Book of Kings, fifth chapter, of Naa- man, the chief captain? He was a leper, it is said. You doubtless know what the leprosy is. It is a dis- ease of the skin. Hard scabs come up around the neck and on the body, and sometimes it takes twenty years to kill a man ; but it is considered a fatal disease. While he was in that condition, the soldiers went down into the enemy's country, and brought back among the captives a little maid. She looked at the master, and said to the mistress, " I would God my master were down in my country: there is a man there that could cure him." Soon there was a plan formed for him to go and get cured. He went down, and carried along with him GOOD TIDINGS. 233 6,000 talents of gold, and 10,000 talents of silver, and ten changes of raiment. Maybe he thought that he would have to go into the nursery, and go through with a great performance there, and change his clothes every day, have plasters put on, and salves, and I don't know what all. But when he got there he was told by the prophet that he must go and dip in Jordan seven times. He was mad at that. "Why," said he, "clip in the Jordan? Are not the waters in my country just as good as these ? If that is all there is, I can go down there and dip just as well." " Go down and dip in Jordan seven times," says the servant. By and by he persuaded the man to go, and dip in the Jordan. The servants went with him, and it seems to me to-day, I can see that leper, as he follows the directions. He goes down to the river, and dips his feet in the water, and the servants see him going down. " Can it be that this will cure me ? It does not seem possible." " Go on down," say the servants. And he waded down until he got about to his waist, and dipped himself so that the waters came up around his neck. " Why," said he, " it is no use." " Why, of course. He told you to dip seven times." Down he went, and down again, the third, and the fourth time, and the servant said, " Go on." The sixth time he goes down and comes up, the scabs are just as hard as ever. " But he told you to go seven times." Down he went the seventh time. " Oh ! " said he, " why ! how I feel ! " And the scabs fell off his body and floated away upon the water. Now see him, he don't stop to 234 FROM EAKTH TO HEAVEN. change his clothes, he is so happy. He springs up into the carriage. He says to the servants, " Run the horses just as fast as you can ; I want to tell my wife and children." And it seems to me that I can see the wife and children as they wait to see what the result will be, and as he gets down from the car- riage, I can hear him shouting, louder than any Methodist on the face of the earth, " Glory, hallelu- jah ! Oh, I am saved ! I am saved from this terrible disease." And he springs from that carriage, and meets his wife and children, and his wife gives him such a kiss as she never gave him before, and his children get hold of his knees and arms, and how glad they are ! Oh, what a happy time ! Don't you think that was adapted to that man's character and condition ? Do you know what is said ? " The leprosy of sin is on every man." You are diseased, dear man. " Fear not, I bring you glad tidings of great joy." Now, what does Jesus say? He says that " God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have everlasting life." Now I tell you this is the Gospel for you. Will you take this Gos- pel to your heart ? Some of you may have been drunk- ards. Perhaps you have not been home the past week until twelve o'clock at night, but hung around the billiard rooms, while your wife was at home in dis- tress, and your children afraid you will lie in a drunk- ard's grave. Don't be afraid. Take the Gospel. Let its adaptation come to your soul. Don't you think it is better adapted than any thing else to bless GOOD TIDINGS. 235 you ? A few years ago I was going west on a cam- paign. A gentleman in Michigan saw the announce- ment in the papers, and he wrote to me at New York : " You are coming west ; can not you stop in our town, and have some meetings?" I looked over my rail- road directory, and found that I could ftop over one day. So I wrote him that I would be there on a cer- tain day. He met me at the depot, took my wife to the house ; then he took me in his carriage around the town a little, and came to a place where they were building a large school house, and stopped and shouted, " Mr. A , come here a minute, will you ? " A gentleman came hurrying along to the carriage. " Mr. A , this is Mr. Graves." " Oh, Mr. Graves," said he, " I am glad to see you, glad to see you ! " He put out his hands and seemed very much inter- ested, though I had never seen his face. Said he, " I want to tell you my experience." " What is it ? " He said, "I was a drunkard (he was a man, I should say, more than forty), and I had got so low that one morning when I went down to the market, and got some beefsteak for breakfast (I got trusted for that), on my way home my appetite was so strong that I went into a saloon, and pawned the meat for a glass of liquor, and the saloon keeper was wicked enough to take the meat right out of my family's mouths, to let me have some liquor. I got home. My family saw that something must be done. I was a wreck. So they had me put under arrest, and took me down to the House of Reform. I stayed there several weeks, in despair, hopelessly, as I supposed, with no 236 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. idea that I was ever going to get over that fearful mania for drink. By and by, a young man, a Chris- tian, came up, and said, ' I have a remedy for you.' ' Have you ? ' Hope began to spring up in my heart. ' What is it ? ' 'It is Jesus Christ. He is able to kill out thaft burning appetite within you. He breaks the power of reigning sin. He sets the pris- oner free.' He then took his Bible and opened it and pointed out the pure Gospel of Christ. I ac- cepted it. I believed it that it was able to save me from the dreadful sin into which I had fallen. I stayed there a few weeks after that, but had the appetite no more. I came home, and to-day I am a happy man, because I have the Gospel, and it has taken away all my appetite for strong drink." And I want to say to you here to-day, while I have no enmity to secret societies, or any thing that will do good, I belong to no secret society on the face of this earth, and never expect to. You may ask me why. The temperance pledge alone never yet saved a man. No other work of man ever saved from any sin. I do not say but that these ways have been helps, but nought but the Gospel is adapted to take away the sins of a man's heart ; and I believe that in the church of God is the great work of reform ; the elements for, and all the elements of reform that this world needs. I take no stock in any thing to save men but the precious Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. This, and this only, is the grand thing that is adapted to save men. Now that that drunkard was saved, don't you think it was GOOD TIDINGS. 237 adapted to his wants, to bless his soul, to bless his wife and children ? Now there is another thing about this. There is great joy in the power which the G-ospel has over the human heart. There is nothing like it. It makes no difference how wicked a man is, or what his tendencies are. Oh ! the power that the precious Gospel has upon the heart of man, when it saves him. When I was first engaged in the ministry, I knew a man by the name of K , a very wicked one, whose wife was a member of my church. He was profane, very crude and rough, and sinful, but God met him ; the Holy Spirit touched his heart, and then it seemed as if, more than ever, he went into a desperate conflict with his convictions. One day he was out in the field plowing, and there came to him the mighty power of the Gospel, and wrought upon his heart. When he came to tell his experience and unite with the church, he told us this : " I was driving my oxen around the furrow, and it seemed as if they acted like so many demons. I could not keep them in the furrow, nor manage them. But by and by my heart was so wrought upon that I could not bear my convictions any longer, and I stopped my oxen, and knelt right down there in the field and said, ' Lord Jesus, I surrender to Thee. I give myself to Thee ; ' and I was converted ; and I was so blessed in my heart that I unhitched my oxen, and went right up to the house, and told my wife. After dinner I went out plowing, and hpw 238 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEtf. well the oxen behaved themselves; why, they went right along in the furrow so well that I did not know but that they too had been converted." When he was so wicked and rough, pounding his cattle, it is no wonder they behaved so, but when he was toned down in his own heart it had an effect on every thing about him. Oh, how the very beasts of the field do feel the sweet blessings that come into men's hearts, and flow out in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Now there is another thing in the great joy, and that is the fitness it gives a man to live. I take strongly the ground that no man is fit to live until he is fit to die, to change worlds at any moment when God himself shall call him. I urge upon your hearts to-day this one great idea of the fitness to live to the blessing of humanity, after the salvation of your own soul. Nothing will give you that fitness but the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Perhaps some of you may have heard of that old man, who was a deacon of the church. It is said an infidel miller came to tell his experience to the church, and some one said to him, ."How can this be?" He was a man who had denied his God; denied the Gospel, and denied every thing that was good. But said he : " When I used to run my mill on Sunday, the deacon used to go down regularly to church every Sunday, passing by at a certain hour, and I saw him go. He never said a word to me, but some how his influence seemed to take hold of me, so that I said, ' I am not going to trample on that man's GOOD TIDINGS. 239 good sense and Christianity any more by running this mill when he goes by ; and so, when I thought it was about time for the deacon to go by, I would shut the mill down, and wait till he got past, half an hour or so, and then start it up again. By and by that process of action led me to think there was some thing in religion, some power in it, and I gave myself up to Christ, just under that influence ; and here I am to-day with my heart right before God." You may say ^what you please, I know that these worldly men are for ever dinging at church mem- bers because they are " no better than others." Bless you ! when you turn to Mr. So and so, who is a Congregationalist, or a Baptist, and say, " He don't live any better than I do," it shows very much to my mind that you are convinced there is some thing good in religion, and you are trying to make out that that man does not come up to the standard. And any way you please to put it, all these little sayings are evidences that down in the heart there is a conviction that there is some thing blessed and good in religion, and every where there is a great joy, that the Gospel gives a man in his heart, when he receives it. I do not say but that there are hypocrites in the church, but I say when men receive the Gospel, and live by it, it fits them to live as nothing else can. There is another thing in this great joy, and that is the commendation it gives to men everywhere in this world. I suppose I have not spent a minute since I stood up here this afternoon but that every one of 240 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. you have really felt glad that I am here, and you are here. There is some thing pleasant in this meeting. You had a great deal rather see me standing here to- day than reeling down your streets drunk. You had a great deal rather see me standing here, and hear me talk, than to know I was playing cards, gambling and drinking with some of your young men in some back room, as you will often find men in towns like this, in these club rooms and other places. How sad the picture ! You had a great deal rather see me here as I am. I was not always so. Nearly thirty years ago I laid the foundation for what I am saying here to-day ; but when I laid that foundation, I came up -from the depths. You would hardly mis- trust that when I was at the age of twenty I was a reeling inebriate in the city of Boston, going the downward steps of death ; and before I was con- verted, at the age of a little past twenty-one years, these cheeks, to-day flushed with manhood, these eyes sparkling with earnest Gospel truth, were already tinged by the intoxicating bowl, and all there is that sin is heir to. And to-day, I suppose that if I were to take a vote of every person here and say, young man, old man, merchant, banker, farmer, lawyer, doctor, saloon-keeper, whoever you are, that believe it was a commendable thing that I did when I became a Christian, stand up ; I suppose there probably is not one in this room who would refuse to stand on his feet. It is commendable. When I was going down, grieving friends, breathing out sentiments of dis- GOOD TIDINGS. 241 grace and dishonor, who could respect me? The saloon-keeper? He played the laugh on me, of course, as long as I had any money. The man that kept the gambling table would be very pleasant as long as I would shake props, or any other game to throw a few paltry dollars into his pocket ; but when my money was gone he would kick me out if he could. Where was there one that could, down in his heart, respect me ? But to-day, from one end of this American continent to the other (for in twenty years I have traveled over thirty states of this land), legions of friends gather around me to commend the Gospel. Oh ! dear man, show me a young man or an old man 'in this town who has received Christ, and I will show you one whom every person, relig- ious or irreligious, respects above any otber class. It is commendable, I say, and there is nothing like it. There is another thing about this great joy. There is great joy in the fact of immediate surrender to Jesus Christ. To-day, right here in this house, between the hours of three and four o'clock, I say, Surrender ! Decide ! Oh ! sir, will you decide to-day ? Will you, young man, if you have not? Let the heavenly arches ring, the angels rejoice ; yea, the dear ones that have gone before rejoice in glory over your acceptance of the glad tidings of Jesus Christ. Will you do it? In Delaware a man sat right in front of me. He was convinced that he ought to be a Christian. That day I determined to go and see him. At four o'clock I went down. Said I, " Sir, you were in my 16 242 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. meeting last night." "Yes, sir." "You were con- vinced you were a sinner and needed the Gospel ? " " Yes." " Will you promise me that before sundown to-night, you will go some where in this shop, or in your closet, alone, and kneel down and give yourself to Jesus Christ?" He thought that was hurrying up business wonderfully. Said I, " Decision is what you need ; will you do it? " Said he, " Mr. Graves, it is reasonable, and I will do it. He was a man of forty-five. That man rejoiced soon in Christ, and came into the church. Two years ago I was in a hall in Philadelphia, and a gentleman came up to me : " I suppose you don't remember me." Said I, " I don't know ; it seems as if I had seen your face." " Do you remember the man at D , whom you visited in the shop, and pressed to immediate surren- der and submission to Jesus Christ?" "I do, sir; you are not that man?" "I am, sir. I saw you in the hall, and wanted to get hold of your hand, and thank you for leading me to that immediate sur- render." Do you think that he ever regretted it? Young man, I do believe, to-day, as much as I believe that I have a name, if you will give yourself unreservedly to Christ this afternoon, you will never in this world or another regret it ; but if you do not, you may regret it ten thousand times. Oh, then, will you have this great joy in your heart? Let me say another thing : There is great joy gathering around the death bed of that man who receives the Gf-ospel. How many I have seen die! How many there are who have this Gospel in their hearts when they die ! GOOD TIDINGS. 243 I never knew one to regret having it, and I have known many to regret not having it. Will you, to- day, dear friends, accept the preciousness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ ? SEOEET SOCIETIES.* MY reasons for giving a few brief pages to the readers of this book upon secret societies, are that I may present some hints to Christians who belong to them, and guard others in Christian usefulness who do not belong to them. I have no disposition to raise opposition to secret societies by way of contro- versy or unkindly feelings. But, having long felt that it was unwise for a Christian to belong to them, I wish to state some reasons why I have arrived at this conclusion. These I wish to urge upon the candid and prayerful consideration of my brethren. There are societies, doubtless, which are organized for secular and wicked purposes. Of course no Christian would think of joining such an one. Others, such as Freemasons, Odd Fellows and Tem- perance societies, and those of a kindred character, have for their object works of philanthropy and re- form, and deeds of benevolence. That such acts and purposes are commendable wherever manifest, none can den} r . But where is the proper place for moral action, influence and labor for the Christian ? Jesus says to his people, " Ye are the light of the world," " the salt of the * Suggested by the inquiry of many, "Would you advise a Christian to belong to secret societies?" (244) SECRET SOCIETIES. 245 earth." " A city that is set on a hill can not be hid." This doctrine of our Lord reveals to the Christian what he is in himself, what he is to the world, and what position he is to occupy to have his influence known and felt. And to this three-fold end God has given a visible church to the world. Whatever variance there may be about the outward marks by way of ordinances and church polity, there is but one evident design of the Holy One in giving this organization to mankind. It is to establish and spread holiness. The church, then, is Grod"s system of organized holiness. Its work is emphatically that of reform and philanthropy in every possible way. Do we want education advanced? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want temperance enforced ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want the sick and those in prison visited ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want widows and orphans helped and cared for ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want the poor fed and clothed ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want political government upheld on principles of hallowed goodness? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want plagues and scourges held back by prayer and fasting? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want the institutions of the Sabbath preserved in quiet and blessing ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want the marriage rela- tion kept in its divinely given purity? Look to the church of Christ. Do we wanted soldiers soothed and comforted in time of war ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want profanity, gambling, horse- 246 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. racing, fornication, and all other kindred evils checked in their course of sin and death? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want warning against the dangers of losing the soul ? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want to know God's true and only way of saving the soul, and of evangelizing the world? Look to the church of Christ. Do we want heaven opened ? Look to the church of Christ. With such an exalted institution as this you are now connected, my Christian brother; and what better or other relation could you ask ? And surely there is work and blessing enough in it for you. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST HAS IN IT ALL THE ELE- MENTS OF REFORM THAT THIS WORLD NEEDS. If it be said she does not fulfill her mission fully and faithfully in taking care of the sick, the orphan and the poor, and in prosecuting the work of temperance reform, I would urge that 3 r ou enlarge your devotion and consecration for her improvement and perfect- ness. Do this instead of letting down your standard and dividing your moral strength by uniting yourself with an institution that makes no pretensions to the promotion of gospel holiness. You have but one life to live ; you will soon be in eternity, and you can not afford to form such alliances as a basis of moral action. There are important bearings which Christian men ought to seriously regard in this matter. The bands of these societies often injure the moral liberty which their members should enjoy with their families. In many of them the wife and children can not join SECEET SOCIETIES. 247 with their husband and father. Neither can they know all the transactions of the lodge into which he enters. This puts on him bands that he never ought to wear, and has a tendency to wean him from the position of love and oneness he ought to hold in the bosom of his family. Besides this, there is an indi- rect influence in these alliances to chill piety. This may be unintentional, but nevertheless true. I have known many men who, before connecting themselves with a secret society, were pious and devoted in reli- gious experience, but after forming such affinity they soon relapsed into professional indifference, and lost their religious interest ; and, though devoted to lodge meetings every week until a late hour of the night, could find time no more to attend the prayer meet- ing. This course is not imfrequent among Christian men who become members of these secret orders, and is traceable directly to their influence. Besides this, again and again I have heard members of some secret societies say, " My church is enough ; " and " If I am a good Mason I shall be saved," etc. Now this society, in many of its first degrees, has no sem- blance to teach Christ and His blood to save men. How, then, can the followers of Jesus allow them- selves to belong to a society that thus in its very nature falsely leads immortal souls ? Another thing I wish to mention, and to it call the attention of brethren that I love. Some of these societies, and those too to which many minis- ters and church officers belong, frequently get up public balls and dances. Claiming to be no more 248 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. than wordly institutions, of course they feel that they have a right so to do. But do not the Chris- tian members of the body necessarily feel the griev- ance and blighting influence of these unhallowed practices which they could not, for a moment, sanc- tion in the churches to which they minister? It seems to me that this is too much of mixing the church and the world in the moral designs, impulses and forces which we have consecrated to Christ. I say these things, as a minister of grace, in the light of what I know of the inner circle of secret society experience. Therefore I wish to entreat Christian men, if you would be useful, promote holiness, save sin- ners, and stand untrammeled in every possible work of Christ-like reform, do not join a secret society. Perhaps some ministers and laymen, who are now " unequally yoked together with unbelievers," will ask, "How can I relieve myself of this relation?" I answer, step down and out at once. But do it in love toward those you leave, and for the one pur- pose of standing for Christ in the perfect law of liberty. " Whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God." IMMEDIATE SALTATION. Delivered in the Central Baptist Church, New York, Sunday Evening, June 10th, 1877. IN 2 Corinthians vi, and a part of the second verse, you will find this language: "Now is the day of salvation." Now! And we are here to-night to consider the immediate salvation of any soul who wants to be saved. There are two things which are imperatively needed by every one who desires to be saved. Let me illustrate what I mean by this remark. Suppose that there was a man in this town in danger of bankruptcy. His paper is out for fifty thousand dollars, and he can not meet it. The inquiry of his heart is, at once : Is there any way by which I can escape bankruptcy? A man approaches him and says : " Sir, ' now is the day of salvation ;' " meaning by that that there is a means of release from the danger of bankruptcy. His first thought is : is this true ? Can I escape ? and then the question arises, how can it be done ? Just so it is with the sinner. He wakes up to the condition of his soul and finds himself in impending danger, perhaps for this world, as well as the world to come. Now, dear sinner, there are two things (249) 250 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. which I propose to bring to your heart: one is Christ's ability, and the other is the way in which He proposes to do His work. In Hebrews vii, 25, you read, " Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them." I take it that in the very face of that declaration of holy record, there is im- plied the fact that man, who is lost to the uttermost, Christ is able to save to the uttermost. In 1 John i, 7, you find directly revealed the only remedy for sin. It is this : " The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." With my hand on the Bible, I should not hesitate an instant to say to a sinner who wants now to be saved : Comply with the terms laid down, and chal- lenge your Lord on the record of this passage, and know that through an infallible Savior, you have personal and immediate salvation. Let me add right here, any soul that will, can grasp that idea in a single instant. Take an illustration. Take the dying thief if you please. There he was on the cross ; surely his character was black enough, and yet the very minute that he prayed, the reply came : "To-day shalt thou be with me in Paradise." If that is not sudden conversion, I don't know what sudden conversion is. Another illustration, in the nineteenth chapter of Luke, the first few verses, you get the account of the conversion of Zaccheus. He was a chief among the publicans, and rich, too. I suppose he had been pilfering the treasury of his IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 251 country, perhaps taken more than he ought to when he collected the taxes. When he heard that Jesus was coming that way, his interest in Him was aroused, and, being a man small of stature, he could not look over the shoulders of the crowd, and so stood a very small chance to see the wonderful per- sonage. As He passed, he climbed up into a syca- more tree. When he got up there among the trees, he looked down to see the Son of God pass by, and just as Jesus got under the tree He looked up. One look struck the man under conviction. Then came the word, " Zaccheus, come down here, for to-day I must abide at thy house." And if all the combined powers of the eternal kingdom of God's grace had been put to work, I doubt whether they could show salvation more effectually to that publican, who was rich and a great sinner, than He did to Zaccheus when He told him to come down, " To-day salvation is come to thy house." Now, what did he do? Did he come down there with a dark, sad face, go hang- ing around like some of our elders, and deacons, and others, with a great long face? Like a great many of these professors of religion, who look as if they drank a quart of vinegar for breakfast every morn- ing, their faces a yard long, and all sad. Is that the way he came down? He came down as if he had obtained new life. He came down a happy man, It is said he came down and received Him joyfully. There is great evidence that the man was converted, and I believe he was converted somewhere among those limbs, as he came down. 252 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. If that does not teach sudden conversion, then I don't know what sudden conversion is. Now, per- haps some of you will say, " Mr. Graves, can I be saved as quickly as that?" Let me illustrate out- side of the Scripture. Before the war we had slavery all over the South, and after the Fugitive Slave Law the slaveholders could hunt their slaves from Georgia to the Canada line. Now I will suppose a slave escapes away down there in the South, and comes along up through Virginia and New York, and goes on up through Vermont, fleeing all the way as fast as he can. Perhaps the hounds and the slave- hunter are after him. He gets within a foot of the Canada line, and just as he comes to that line he makes a leap, and over he goes. How long did it take him to get over the Canada line ? About an instant. What was he when he got over there? He was a free man. What was he before he went, over ? He was a slave. He was in bondage. Now I bear you record to-night, my friends, that the sin- ner can be saved as quickly as that; and just as quickly as he yields himself and accepts Christ, he has immediate salvation. I don't care whether he sheds a tear, whether he has a happy emotion or not. It is going out of self into Christ ; in other words, stepping out of bondage into liberty. Now I will give you seven words from the Bible to help you along in the way of salvation. The first word is Submission. In Romans x, 3, you will read this language : " Who went about establishing their own righteousness, and would not IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 253 submit themselves to the righteousness of God." No sinner was ever yet saved until he had first sub- mitted, brought his will to yield to Jesus. In John v, 40, you will read this language : " Ye will not come to Me that ye might have life ; " that is, ye will not submit to Christ that ye might have life. I will suppose that this room is a parlor, and down yonder there sits a father, and he has a little boy, John, right by his side, and this book of hymns lies on the table. The father says, " Johnny, my boy, go and bring me that book of hymns." A little op- position, rebellion, rises up at once. " He says, " I don't want to, papa." No matter what the occasion is, the boy is in opposition to his father. You can see that readily. " Bring me the book of hymns, my child." The boy don't move. Pretty soon the father says again, " Johnny, did you hear your father? Go and bring the book of hymns." Johnny starts then, but he goes very slowly. There is opposition in his will. By and by he comes up to the table. His father says, " Bring me the book, my boy." He takes the book carelessly, and lets it drop on the 'floor ; gives every indication that he don't intend to bring the book if he can help it. His father speaks out, " My child, pick up that book, and bring it to me." Then he begins to cry with anger and grief; picks up the book, starts back very slowly, brings it to his father, and the father says, " My child, don't you think you did very wrong in not bringing the book to me at first?" That father may stand by that boy, perhaps weeping, pleading, entreating, ad- 254 FEOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. vising, and using every conceivable means for a Kwlf hour or more to persuade him to submit to his will. By and by the boy springs into his father's arms and says, " Yes, father, I did do wrong. I am very sorry ; will you forgive me?" Of course he will forgive him. Now that is just as near as you can illustrate it, the case of the sinner. He has gone away from his God. He has continued in rebellion; and I read in this Bible the language, " God was in Christ rec- onciling the world unto Himself." Now God sends out ministers, Sunday school teachers, pious parents ; builds meeting houses, sends evangelists, puts under contribution the singing of choirs, and employs every means to bring the sinner to see that he has done wrong, and to be willing to submit ; and God the Holy Ghost, by night and day, presses home calls and entreats the sinner. By and by you see the sinner as he says, " Yes, Lord, I am sorry I have sinned ; forgive me ;" and then there comes harmony between him and his God. Now can you see that when that father stood entreating that boy, he was not reconciling himself to the boy ; he was reconcil- ing the boy to himself; and can you not see that when it is declared that " God was in Christ recon- ciling the world to Himself," He was not reconciling Himself to the world. He was bringing the sinner to Himself; not bringing Himself to the sinner. Now I say this is the first, the fundamental thing. The sinner must in his will be ready to submit and surrender to the great God, the Heavenly Father, against whom he has sinned. IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 255 Now, my friends, the next word I want you to notice is Repentance. This will help you into the very ante-chamber of experimental religion. I doubt whether any sinner was ever saved, inquiring the way of salvation, until he had gone by the way of repentance. In 2 Corinthians vii, 10, we read, " For godly sorrow worketh repentance not to be repented of; but the sorrow of the world worketh death." Godly sorrow is being sorry for your sins, because you have sinned against a holy God. But what is the sorrow of the world which worketh death ? I will suppose that in your home there is a little boy. The mother goes away some day and says, " Now, my child, you must stay at home you must not go away. I shall be gone a few hours." She has been gone about an hour, and Willie runs over to the neighbor's and goes to playing with his playmates, but he knows he has done wrong. He stays, per- haps, half an hour, and keeps watching so as to be sure to get home before his mother does. He goes home, perhaps, fifteen minutes before his mother comes, and takes every method he can to cover up the fact that he has been away. She don't mis- trust it. Perhaps the next morning his little play- mate comes in, and while running around the room drops a word " When we were playing yesterday afternoon." The mother looks up. " Why, Willie, I hope you didn't go away yesterday afternoon. I told you not to." " Yes, ma, I thought I would run over a little while." He is sorry, but what is he sorry for ? He is not sorry because he went over 256 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. there. He is sorry because he got caught ; because his mother has found him out. Now that is the sorrow of the world. Let that boy grow up in that way, committing sin and covering it up, and it will be nothing strange if, by and by, he brings up on the gallows. It will work death as sure as the world. But you show me a heart that has godly sorry, that feels sad at every little wrong, because God saw it, and because you have. done wrong toward a holy God, then, my dear friend, you are getting right into the heart of God. The sinner who is saved must come to that posi- tion right between himself and his God ; and when he comes there, he is in the position where Christ can bless him at once. Now we will take another word, Trusting. Look at Ephesians i, 12, and you will read this : " That we should be to the praise of His glory who first trusted in Christ." I think a great many of us understand what trust is ; and I suppose there is nothing under the sun that has such a regard for the idea of trust as the heart of man. I can ride on the railroad cars. I would not get on them if I could not trust them against accidents ; trust them to take me where I want to go, and all that. You may lie down on your bed at night, and go to sleep with a great deal of trust in your heart that the house will not burn down, and that you will be carried safely through the night. But with all these various ways of trust, there is nothing that is so vital as trusting he word of man, or the word of God. For instance, IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 257 here is a man whom I want to have confer a certain favor on me. I say, Sir, in six weeks I will give you fifty dollars for this. There is my word. That man, perhaps, will confer that favor on me, but he trusts that word. He has nothing for the return of the value of that fifty dollars but the word that I have given him. He does not trust any thing else as much as he does that word, though he may look at my ability, and a great many other things. But if I had a million, and he conferred a favor, and had a little hope that I might reciprocate it some way, it would not be any thing like my saying that I would do so and so. Now I want you to see that the idea of trusting implicitly comes to your heart, and brings you to God's word directly; and that, trusting that word, and relying upon it, you may have eternal life. Jesus says this : " Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation ; but is passed from death unto life." There is His word. Now just trust, my dear friend, to-night, what Jesus says, and let your soul be saved. Now we will come to another word Receiving. In John i, 12, we read this language : " But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name." The figure there is a marriage figure. It is an idea drawn from a bride receiving her husband. She consents to take that man to be her lawful husband. 17 258 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. What does she get just as soon as she consents to become the bride of that husband ? She gets power, don't she? She becomes possessed of all that ner husband possesses. There may be a young lady in your city who to-day, at twelve o'clock, could not get trusted for a yard of calico worth ten cents. She may, before to-morrow's sun goes down, marry a banker worth half a million, and can then get trusted for ten thousand dollars. She has power now over all that her husband possesses. So it is with the sinner who accepts Christ. Receive Christ and He will impart to you the power to be His child, and you are saved. Now, we will take another word Coming. In Matt, xi, 28, you will read this language: "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest/' That is right from the lips of Jesus. But, as I said to a young man here in the inquiry meeting last night, how are you coming? " Why," said he, " I must come in my heart." Let me illustrate. I will suppose that there is a young man here to-night, and he is in a strait for -f 100 ; must have it to relieve him of his distress or he goes down in great trial and agony. To-morrow morning he receives a letter containing this: "My Dear Nephew : I understand that you are in trouble and distress for want of $100. If you will come to me I will relieve you of your distress by giving you the amount." He reads it. Hope begins to spring up in his heart, and when he closes, "Your Uncle," etc. Why, says he, that is my uncle. His uncle lives IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 2f>'. fifty or a hundred miles distant, and he has never seen him, but he has heard his name mentioned at the breakfast table and all around the house ever since he was a child. He heard them say how rich he is ; how kind he is ; and how benevolent ; and the very minute he reads that note with his signature attached, all this knowledge comes pressing in on him, and he begins to feel so glad. Now, my friends, how would you feel concerning the fulfillment of that pledge, and relieving yourself of your distress and difficulty? What is the first thing you would do ? Would you go on horseback, get on the cars, or go up to your uncle's on foot? By no means. What would you do ? You would say in your heart yes or no. You would accept or reject that offer. You would come to him, or you would say you would not. The whole thing must be done first in your heart, and if you consent to take that money and go to him, in your mind, you are just as sure of it, if he is able to give it and keeps his word, as if you had it right in your hand. Now (of course I speak very strongly in connection with the idea of human frailty and human disappointments), the boy in his heart is relieved, and sees by faith all there is in the whole thing. Let me say to you, dear in- quirer that right on that invitation that Jesus gives you, you may come, in your heart, in an instant and be saved. True, you have never seen Jesus with your natural eye, but you have heard a great deal about Him. You have a great deal of knowledge that makes you understand and believe that He is 260 FKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. u able to save to the uttermost all that coine to God by Him." Then come. Will you do it now? Will you do it this very minute? Now we will take another word Believing. I will point you to John iii, 16 : " For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." I want to know, my friend, how you are going to avail yourself of this, " shall not perish, but have everlasting life," unless by just believing on Him, God's great gift. Some years ago I sat by a young man in an inquiry meeting. Said I, " Frank, what is your case ? " Said he, " For a whole year I have been wanting to be a Christian, and be saved." "Well," stfid I, "why are you not saved?" He described his case to me as well as he could, and I said, " I see your difficulty at once," and to lead him to it I gave him that text I have just read. Said I, "Suppose that this morning about seven o'clock I sat :lown at my house, and wrote this, ' My Dear Friend Frank : I shall be at your house this afternoon to see you. Your friend, A. P. Graves.' You receive that note perhaps before eight o'clock. What do you think you would do about it?" "Why," said he, "I think I should expect you." "You don't think you would stay home and wait for me?" "I think I should." " And about three o'clock be watching for me ? " "Certainly I should." "What would you do that for?" "Why," said he, "you said that you would come; you promised to in your note." "But, my IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 261 dear friend," said I, " is that all you depend on, just my saying so ? How do you know but I might die of heart disease before that time? Any one of a thousand things might happen, and yet you say that you would act in just that way, because I had promised to come at three o'clock. Now, Frank, do you see where you are. You will trust my word im- plicitly, and here you have been giving God the lie for the last twelve months. You say that you have been wanting to be a Christian, and God has said to you again and again, just believe that ' He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life,' and all this time you have been doubting what He said. God, who can not lie, has given you that sure promise. I might have deceived you, but God' word is sure." The boy's eye began to sparkle. " I begin to see now," said he. " Will you settle this question at once, right here?" "I will." And I venture it was not three minutes before that boy was in the kingdom, trusting the Lord Jesus according to His word. O, sinner, I may never know your name ; I may never see your face again until I meet you at the judgment ; but I am confident that during this hour very many here will believe in Jesus. Cast yourself right on Him. Accept Him on His word. Believe and be saved. Another word and I am done Confession. In Rom. x, 10, you will read this : 262 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness ; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Now, my friend, if you are a Christian you ought to confess Christ. Jesus has never promised to con- fess anybody before the Father who will not confess Him here on earth. I believe there are more fatal mistakes of backsliding, and every thing of that kind, on this point than any where else. A man told me last night that although, nineteen years ago, in this very town, he believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, he did not join the church, and he believed it was a great mistake. I do not say that joining the church is the only way to confess Christ ; but I do say this, it is one of the most vital things in the category of a Christian profession, and my advice to every convert is, have a home in the church of God. Confessing Christ is the object of our little testi- mony meetings, but this is not the only place for a man to confess Christ in the world. A good many get into a little religious meeting and speak, and they think it is about all the religion they need to manifest in the world. By no means. Young man, Spring is coming. It won't be a great while before the young men will gather on the corners of the streets, and talk, and many a young man who has believed in Christ will make a fatal mistake by not confessing Christ, by word or act, in that crowd. How many a young man I have advised, " Commit yourself, commit yourself" If you go a stranger into a town, and you are a Christian, don't live there days, weeks and months without letting any IMMEDIATE SALVATION. 263 body know whether you are a Christian or not. Confess Christ any where, everywhere, and it will be a great help to you. Never be found where you can not confess Him. Wherever you go confess Him, and what a life you will have, what a heaven you will have, what an eternity you will have I SOCIAL AMUSEMENTS. GOD has endowed us with faculties, capable of enjoying all the happiness of this world which He designed for us. Some years ago I heard a friend remark, " I never knew how to enjoy this world until I became a Christian." How deeply my heart went out in sym- pathy with this "new creature in Christ Jesus." It is true that we can know nothing of real happiness until we are consciously one with God, and Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Many may doubt this state- ment, but it is because they are like the blind man who could not enjoy the sunlight, for he had never seen its rays. Experience every day compels us to feel that man needs some thing to teach him how to enjoy the world as not abusing it. And that some- thing has been conclusively found to be holiness of heart by renouncing sin, and trust in Christ Jesus. Or in other words, by accepting the living Christ as a continuous resident in the soul. Thus we are pre- pared to live in the world, enjoy what we should, and avoid what we ought not to accept. Religion never was designed To make our pleasures less. As our first parents were placed in the garden of Eden, so are we placed in the garden of this world. (264) SOCIAL AMUSEMENTS. 265 And in it we are to be " the light of the world." The keeper of a light-house never had so responsible a position to guide the mariner away from the dan- gerous rocks as the man of God has to guard the souls of men, to steer clear of the breakers of eternal perdition. To fulfill the law of Christ is the Chris- tian's great work in this world. And doing this he is to realize, in an important sense, that he is " in the world, but not of it." He is to walk with God, and be a " fellow helper to the truth." And in doing this important work, he is to lift the world up to himself, and not let the world drag him down to it. The question is, how can we best get at the lost who are in the world, and save them in the midst of all their love for social amusements ? We must go down to them. We must mingle with them. We must put our love, our piety, our sympathy, right by the side of their hearts, in the midst of their hurtful social practices. We must be willing to give them our social presence and influence, just so far as will bless them and not hurt our redeemed souls, dis- honor our Lord, or hinder His kingdom on the earth. God wants us to be social and happy here. And to say that a Christian should never enter into social amusements while in this world, because they are earthly, would be like telling a Christian that he should not eat food or drink water because they are of the earth, earthy. As well might we say, farm- ers should not cultivate their lands, and merchants should not trade, because these compel constant associations with the world. This position will not 266 PROM EABTH TO HEAVEN. do. The ends of Christianity can never be reached in this way. The world never longed more to have Christians come down to them than they do to-day. I mean in holiness, and with redemption's olive branch in their hands. They want no false sympa- thy or farcical pretensions. They want true hearts and true words that will win them. Long, sad countenances that betray cold and cheerless hearts can not win this revolted, sinful world to God. And while this is true, the world does not want Chris- tians to come to them in the falseness of earthly pleasure. No Christian should put himself in an attitude to give even the appearance of this. Some times the amusement may be in song, in a laugh, in humorous words, anecdotes, witticisms, or funny experiences ; or some times in social home games, with children, sick persons, the depressed in spirits, or such as need diverting recreations. But in all this, nothing should be entered into that would in any way mar the principles of holiness. I believe that in not a few instances, influence and piety alike have been destroyed by Christians attending balls and dances. Not unfrequently a wife will attend a dance with an unsaved husband, when sel- dom, if ever, she is seen in the prayer meeting of the church to which she belongs. So, also, Christian young men will attend balls with ladies who are not Christians. Also, Christian young ladies will very often attend on such practices with men who are without hope ; and to the careful observer these professing parties seldom show interest for the souls SOCIAL AMUSEMENTS. 267 of their friends. They are unfitted to lead them to Jesus. Then, also, there is often down in the hearts of these unsaved immortals an impression that religion is a farce, or these friends are self-deceived, or hypo- crites. I do not believe the world itself can give honest respect to such downright manifestation of pious pretensions and worldly love. If it be said that the Bible indorses dancing, I answer that Chris- tians have poor encouragement here for the dancing they wish to practice. The dancing referred to in the Bible had several important features. First, it was a religious practice ; second, it was not observed by both sexes together ; third, it was never practiced as an amusement, except by vain, worldly fellows ; fourth, when it was observed by Christians for devo- tion, it was almost invariably in the day tune. In view of this, so ^far as I have an influence, I must enter my protest against Christians so often trying to bolster up their practices of dancing that are so hurtful to their souls by the Word of God. And further, the record of the past should forbid Chris- tians this practice. The testimony of good and holy men everywhere is that it is hurtful, and only hurt- ful, to the experience and usefulness of Christians. It will also be expected by the readers of this paper that I will say some thing about the amusements of theaters, and whether it be right for Christians to attend them. I shall never advise a Christian to do so. "Why not?" you will say. I reply, simply because their very design is adverse to the cultiva- 268 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. tion of holiness and Christian character. Who ever heard of a theater manager or actor being a Chris- tian? How, then, can they arrange an entertain- ment to the needs of a Christian ? If the fountain be impure, the stream must be. The opera is no place for holy culture. Besides this, the influence of theaters and operas in no sense enters into the work of reform, but always, in one form or another, strengthens the hand of dissipation, and leads in the way to death. The same is true of circuses. And Christians should never support, either by money or influence, institutions of such doubtful position. I may also be permitted to speak of card-playing. Of course every body knows the baneful influence and tendency of this practice with the worldly and profane. This is fearful and sad. Thousands of young men are being drawn into the vortex of ruin every year by the habit of card-playing. A young man, from an excellent Christian family, was sent to the State prison. His pastor called upon him, and while in conversation, inquired : " How did you come to this ? " He replied : " I took the first lesson of my crime in the house of one of your elders. I called on the young ladies of the house, and they invited me to play a social game of cards. Although igno- rant of the game, I accepted. They taught me to play. I became an expert at the game, gambled, was led thereby to crime, and am now incarcerated." Let Christians beware how they help on the baneful habit of card-playing. There are abundance of social games, pastimes and recreations for parents, children SOCIAL AMUSEMENTS. 269 and friends alike, to make home what it should be happy and attractive. And in the selection of these, great care should be had to a wise appropriation 'of time and talent. And while there is proper regard to social habits and training, nothing should be en- tered into which will interfere with religious experi- ence and the best cultivation of holiness. TOO much stricture on the social happiness, amusements and pastimes of home is liable to make dyspeptic Chris- tians. The children and friends of our homes ever want to be surrounded with social loveliness. And while we have the Bible, the prayer and the song, we want the laugh and the play. And I believe that Jesus, who loved little children especially, and said, " Except ye be converted and become like a little child, ye can not see the kingdom of heaven," is pleased with such a home. Rules to wisely guide us in the conduct of this matter are often sought by Christians. I would not advise strictly the following of human opinion in any community. This is not safe. The opinions of human society are fallible and erring. Often, too often, worldly ministers and church officers advocate unwise and hurtful amuse- ments ; while on the other hand, some are so conserv- ative in this respect that influence for good is de- stroyed over a large number of persons. Now there are safe guides for Christians in all the walks and conduct of life. Ask Jesus. This should be done in every thing we do. He is our counselor. No one can go far astray if he live by this rule. The Bible 270 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. will give clear and full instruction on all that we need to know. -It is safe to gather knowledge here. But while " the letter killeth, and the spirit giveth life," we need the communion and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Let all Christians " carry every thing to God in prayer," with consecrated hearts ; then shall they have an experience that will enable them to say, " Thou shalt guide me by Thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory." THE TJKPABDOTvTABLE SOT. Delivered in Fourth Avenue Baptist Church, Pittsburgh, Penn., November 24, 1876. JESUS reveals this sin in Matthew xii, 32 : And whosoever speaketh against the Son of Man it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come. Christ himself uttered these words, and gave them directly upon the subject of the unpardonable sin. The very first thing that Jesus did after coming to this world to save sinners was to establish His ability and the authority of His mission. Conse- quently, you find Him at His baptism in the Jordan just as He stood on the banks of the river, sealed by the Holy Ghost. In the sixth chapter of John, 27th verse, it is said, " Him hath God the Father sealed," and I have no question but that it was then and there, on the banks of the river Jordan, that He was sealed by the Holy Ghost, to the great work of redeeming a lost world. Immediately after that, He entered upon His won derful work of miracles; hence you find Him very soon as He raises Jairus' daughter, the little girl who had died at twelve years of age, and gives her 272 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. back to her parents. Very soon as He walks along the street, there is. a blind man sitting yonder by the wayside, who had been blind from his birth, holding in his hand a plate or something to receive alms for his livelihood. While in that situation, all at once he hears a great crowd going past. " What is that?" said he. " Jesus of Nazareth passeth by," is the reply. At once he cries out, " Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me." "Stop, stop !" said the rabble, " don't make so much noise." Very soon Jesus sees him and cries out, " Suffer him to come to me." The blind man comes. " What do you want?" says Jesus. "That I may receive my sight." " Do you believe that I can do this?" said Jesus, demanding faith at once. " I do." He then applied the remedy, and the man's sight was restored, and he went home to see his wife and children for the first time. While thus performing this wonderful miracle, the Jews and infidels were gathered around, denying his divinity. " Now," says Jesus to the doctors of the law, " don't you see that I am able to give sight to the blind ; that I am divine?" "No, sir, there is trickery about it." They would not believe it. A little while after this you will see the Son of God, as He goes down to the grave of the dead brother with the weeping sisters, and at once Martha and Mary desire their brother raised from the stony sepulcher. He says to them, "Take ye away the stone from the door." As soon as they removed the stone, He cried with a loud voice, " Lazarus, come forth," and he walked a THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 273 live man, out of that sepulcher. Again, there were the doctors of the law and the cohorts of infidel Jews representing the Pharisees and Sadducees the Sadducees believing in no resurrection. " Don't you see now that I am divine," said He, " and I am able to bring the dead forth to life ? " " No, Sir, we won't believe it ; there is chicanery, Sir, about your actions, and you are not the man you profess to be ; you are an impostor." So I might go on, and repeat line after line of the evidence that Jesus Christ was able to fulfill his mission as a divine as well as a human being on earth. Now let me say just here, dear friends, I honor the Holy Crhost ; and I now say that Jesus, when He left this world, left one agent, and one only, primarily, to represent Him among the children of men, and that was the Holy Ghost. The work of the Holy Ghost was, first, to convince men of sin ; then to lead men to accept of Jesus Christ, His blood and His grace, and have eternal life. And while the Holy Ghost is per- forming this work, He may take the church organ and speak through its tones, if he please. He may use the voice and heart of every member of the choir to send home thoughts and impressions that will arrest the attention of the sinner. He may take the living minister, He may take the ministry of the winds themselves, but the Holy Ghost, and He only, can primarily turn the hearts of wicked men to Christ. When I was in the University, preparing for the ministry, one day a young man came to my room 18 274 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. and wanted me to pray with him. Said I, " How is this ; how came these awakening impressions ? " He replied, " Do you remember when we were going down to breakfast the other morning, we passed some maple trees by the side of the walk? " " I do." " As we were going along there, there was a little leaf that had been killed by the frost that fell and twirled its way along until it dropped down by my feet. In an instant something said to me, ' You will fall, as did that leaf, some time ; are you ready ? ' ' From that moment that young man was convicted that he ought to prepare to meet his God, and I think the Holy Spirit took that little leaf to preach a sermon to his heart that was the means of leading him to Christ. It is possible some young lady or young man in this congregation to-night may think of a sainted mother who has passed away, and of the last kiss you imprinted upon her marble lips as she lay in the coffin ; and the Holy Ghost may take that very thought and scene, and lead you to say, I will go to Jesus. Possibly a husband may remember a dying wife, or a wife may remember the dying testimony of a sainted husband, which may be the means of arresting your attention and turning you to Christ. The Lord may take a man's impulses. Perhaps you will say, concerning the ministry of reconciliation, " If you believe that all true ministers are called of the Holy Ghost, and set apart to the work of winning men, what are you going to do with tfiese ministerial tramps who go about deceiving the people, and they themselves are as wicked as the THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 275 vilest ? " I would account for them in this way. It is said there was an old lady once praying for bread. Some boys overheard her and thought that they woulol have a little sport. So they went up on top of the house and dropped down a loaf of bread through the chimney. She gathered it up, and went to making quite an ado of gratitude, thanking God for it, and the boys lifted up the window and said, " You old fool, you need not thank God for that ; we brought it." In a moment she said, " I don't care. God sent it if the devil did bring it." And just so I would say of those who go about, though they be wicked men and deceivers proclaim- ing the word. I don't care if the devil himself preaches the Gospel, God Almighty will honor his truth. He can honor the sword when he can not honor the man who wields it. His truth, He tells us, shall never return to Him void. Now another thing in connection with this subject. I* want to say that this subject is one of infinite mo- ment. If it is possible that any one in this congrega- tion can commit a sin that can never be forgiven in this world or another, I ask you in all candor, Isn't it a matter of infinite moment ? I bear you record that this subject involves a matter of the most vital import to the procrastinating sinner. Another thing, there are, doubtless, persons in every community, who have committed this sin. I should not wonder if there were persons in this room, just as sure of eternal hell, as if you were there this minute. You can not repent if you want 276 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. to no danger of your wanting to, for a man who has committed this sin has no interest in revivals, no interest in God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Bible or evangelists. There is not a tender emotion about his soul, and he has no care for the good things of holiness and eternal life. He may have some intel- lectual respect for a great many of these things, but in his heart there is no sympathy. He is all locked up. I never saw a person in my life whom I would give up ; but I have seen numbers of them that had given themselves up, and they have lived and died as if they were made of marble. Such persons are hardened, and let alone of God. Isn't it sad to see a man walking about this earth, with the black pall of death upon him, giving every evidence that he has crossed the Hne beyond which there is no hope ? Some years ago, where I was laboring, a minister came into the church looking pale. Said he, " I have a message to the young people. I have been up to see & young lady die. Soon after I entered the house, the mother said, ' Will you pray for my daughter before she dies ? ' The daughter looked in my face and said, ' I don't care whether you pray for me or not.' Perfectly startling ! Then the daughter said, 4 Pastor, I will now tell you what I have never told a human being. Do you remember one year ago when there was a spiritual awakening through this community? My attention was arrested. I was thoughtful, and in an inquiring state of mind ? ' 'I do.' ' Do you remember that at that time I was in- vited to a dance ? ' 'I do.' ' Well, sir, the young THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 277 man who invited me to that dance pressed the mat- ter ; my friends pressed it, but I felt that if I went there, I should do it at the peril of my soul. My judgment was convinced that there was danger in such a step, but they overpersuaded me, and I said, I shall risk it ! I went. And now, pastor, I must tell you that I spent that night at the chant of the viol. And when I returned to my home the next morning every tender emotion was hushed. I had no feeling, and I have n'ot had to this day. My intellect is clear, and here I am going to die, and I believe I shall be lost.' Not a tear could she shed, and she was without the slightest emotion. ' Pas- tor,' she said, * I believe every thing that I have ever learned about the word of God, and all there is about the soul, its danger and welfare, but here is the trouble, I have no tender emotions in my heart.' ' : Oh, my friend, beware to-night ! If you are within the reach of mercy, if you have a tender emotion left, don't delay your decision for eternity another hour, lest you " sport upon the brink of everlasting woe." How many times I have thought of that sweet hymn of John Newton's : Saved by grace, I live to tell What the love of Christ hath done, He redeemed niy soul from hell, Of a rebel made a son ; Oh! I tremble still to think, How secure I lived in sin; Sporting on destruction's brink, Yel was saved from falling in. Dear young man, are you there to-night ? Don't 278 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. delay another hour, I beseech you. Now I am going to give you some evidences that there is such a sin as this. The first evidence is this : In the Bible you read these words : " Whose conscience is seared as with a hot iron." Jesus tells us of a class of people of this character. Now what does He mean ? I will tell you. You take a hot iron and draw it over your hand what have you ? You have seared, crisp flesh. There is no feeling in it. It is all calloused. Now, God says that is the state of a heart or a conscience which has committed the unpardonable sin. The moral sensibilities are all blunted, and the conscience hard. Now take another evidence. In Ephesians, too, God tells us of a class who are past feeling. He uses these very words; " past feeling" describing persons who have gone so far in blunting their moral affections that they have no emotions, no tender- ness. Now take a third evidence. In another place we read that " the angels who sinned were chained up in the blackness of darkness unto the judgment of the great day." As near as we can understand, the man who has committed the unpardonable sin is just like that. He is all shut up, his conscience is locked up. He is hardened. There is further evidence in other passages. Take the text itself. There may be persons here who deny that there is such a sin as this ; and some may say, " That text which you have read means calling Jesus Christ Beelzebub." I don't believe it. I have carefully examined that Scripture, and if you say THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 279 that Jesus had no reference to the committal of a sin after He left this world, I will tell you that you have just as much authority to say that when He said : " He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved," He meant that baptism should be observed only while He lived on the earth. I tell you the word of God has force down to the end of man's life, while he shall accumulate all the record for which he must give an account by and by. I say the text itself, on its very face, is evidence that there is such a sin, and that a man can, by speaking against the Holy Ghost, put himself in such an atti- tude that he can never be forgiven in this world or another. Now, I will give you another text. In one place God says, " To-day, if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts." What does He mean by that ? He means to say to you, Sir, If you are within the hearing of the calls of My Spirit, receive them, follow their direction, lest, if you put it off, you will go so far that you will never hear My voice again. Delay not, lest you become calloused in your soul, and hardened in your conscience. Now take another passage : " And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." Now, God's idea is this: Take a man who is a moralist. I go to him in the name of my Lord and say, " Sir, you must be born again, or you can never 280 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. see the kingdom of heaven." " Oh ! I don't know anything about your born again ; that is all a mystery. I am going in with the crowd any way. I will risk it." "But God says you must be born again." "But I am as good as anybody. I pay a hundred cents on the dollar. I am as honest as your minis- ters and deacons." "But God says you must be born again, or you can not be saved ! " And that man may pursue his delusion, and utterly repudiate the vital doctrines of regeneration, and salvation by grace alone, until he is all let alone of God. I have seen very many of them ; once they were tender, but they run that line of delusion until they are all as hardened as the stone of adamant. Here is a man who is a Universalist. He says there is no hell. God says there is. God says, " The wicked shall be turned into hell, with all the nations that forget God ; " and all through the record he reveals the idea of punishment for sin, and a place of punishment ; but the Universalist says, " No," and keeps running in that delusion. By and by God comes to him and says: "Sir, I give you up to your delusion." Then he will generally take up Spiritualism, and deny the Bible and every thing pertaining to Christianity ; be- come a right down infidel, hardened in his sins. God has given him up to his delusion, that he might be damned, and why ? Because he would not come to a knowledge of the truth, but had pleasure in un- righteousness. So others, also, take up various forms of unbelief and error. Now, friends, I am going to open another book of THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 281 evidence, and that is the natural heart. Let me state it thus ; The unregenerate soul itself bears a conscious- ness of the danger of committing this sin. I venture there is not an unconverted person in this room who has seen a day, since you came to years of accounta- bility, when, in one form or another, you did not have some impression that you were going in the " wrong way ; and there was danger that you might go too far. I venture you never followed the hearse to the cemetery ; you never heard a bell toll for the dead ; you never had any thing make an impression on your heart and there is something, all the time, concerning eternity but that, if you were an un- saved person, there was something in your breast that seemed to give you an impression that there was danger that you might be doing wrong and going too far. Now, I know where some of you will meet me. You will sa} r , "I am not afraid to die: I am not afraid to meet God." Who said you were ? Many a man as good as you has often told that old story, " not afraid to die." Some years ago, in a town in New York, a minister said to me, " Do you see that large white mansion yonder?" "Yes, sir." Mr. lived there a long time, and one day I under- took to speak to him about his soul. " Oh, elder," said he, "you needn't talk to me. I am not afraid to die. I don't believe in your hell. I had just as lief meet God now as at any time." This min- ister was a very kind, loving-hearted man, he did not want to oppose every body who did not think ex- actly as he did. So he let him pass. About six 282 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. months from that time that man lay dying; and, when the doctors pronounced fatally on his disease, he said to his friends, " Will you call in the elder ? " They sent for him, and as he entered the room the man rolled his dying eyes up toward him and said : " Now, elder, I wish you would do the best you can." And who don't know that the record of this world is just such a record as that. Many a boast- ing sinner, cursing ministers and churches when in health, has been glad to call for prayer and help in the last hour of life. I tell you, Sir, there is fear in your heart, and you are afraid to die. You need not say that you are not. There is too much immortal- ity about your nature ; too much eternity about your very being. Do you see that little hen down there in your yard ? She is very calmly picking up the kernels and the bugs and the seeds. She don't act as if she was a bit afraid. But, wait a minute. Let the clouds gather blackness, and the hail come down upon her. She flees for shelter. Why ? Be- cause she is afraid. Ah, but she did not act afraid a few minutes ago ; but it was in her ; and all it wanted was something to wake it up. Thus it is with every sinner, in his natural state, who has not committed the unpardonable sin. I will admit, if you have committed that sin, you may have no fear. Now, some of you will say, " Will you tell us the source of this state of heart?" I will. Have you read in the book of God how the first parents in the garden transgressed, and God cast them out as unfit for the holy paradise ? It is said that before they THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 283 were cast out the Lord God walked in the garden, in the cool of the day, and cried to Adarn, " Where art thou?" What did Adam say, "I heard thy voice and was afraid." That is where this fear be- gan. Just as soon as sin came into the world, man became a creature of fear. Never was such a thing as fear in God's paradise before sin entered; but when sin came, man became afraid of his God, and he has been so ever since, and he will always be so. You may conjure up all the Universalism, and Spirit- ualism, and Unitarianism, and all the Devilism of every character on the face of the earth, and you are not going to wipe that out. You never can do it. Error won't do it; unbelief won't do it; procrasti- nation won't do it ; and, when man goes down to his grave without Christ, he goes in fear of eternal death. Now I am prepared to tell you that there are two things, and only two, that can hush this fear in the heart. One is to commit the unpardonable sin. When that is committed, I will admit that the sinner may live, and die seeming more like a piece of marble than any thing else. That is one way to hush this fear ; and another is by the blood of Jesus. Let any person accept the blood of Christ, and live in sweet and blessed faith in that blood, and he never will have fear about eternity, and the last judgment. It is all gone ; sins are washed away by the blood of the Lamb, and the heart is at peace with God. You may have regrets about leaving the world, on account of your family, and various earthly considerations, but just as sure as you have in your 284 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. soul the cleansing power of Christ's blood, there is no more fear. All is well before God in the light of eternity. I want, personally, to bear a testimony on this point. I want to say, as a Christian man, that for more than twenty years I do not remember the value of five seconds when I have had one particle of fear about my soul, in the light of eternity. I know that is saying a great deal. Perhaps some of you may say, " Sir, you look like a strong, healthy man, and you certainly must have remarkable health, or you could not pursue such a strain of work as you are doing, and have been doing for years." I doubt whether there is one present who has ever been nearer the portals of death than I have been. Many years ago, when there was not a foot of railroad in Minnesota, I went as a missionary to that State. I labored very hard ; often riding long distances on Sunday, besides my week's work, preaching three times and attending two or three Sabbath schools. Month after month I worked on for the frontier set- tlers. I loved their souls, and had the warmest sym- pathy with them in their trials and troubles. I came home one night about one o'clock and took my bed, utterly exhausted. The next morning I said to my dear wife, " I am going to rest to-day ; " and that was a good deal for me to say. Toward night I stepped out of the door to attend to some little home cares and dropped. I managed to get back to my bed, and there long, long weeks the fever burned my brow. By and by, after my wife had gone through an anxious period of watching over me, THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 285 besides nursing and caring for her dear little chil- dren, about sunset one evening my deacons came in and said, " Deal' pastor, you will probably never preach to us again. The doctors have had a council and they think you can not live till morning.' ' What a moment was that ! What a message was that ! I tell you, friends, there was heaven in that house. I had a chance then to test the doctrines I have preached to you. About midnight, I remember, my faith's perceptions were quickened, and I seemed if look across the river and beheld the teeming multi tudes coming up ; and I said in my heart (I remem- ber it as if it were an hour ago) " Jesus, if I should survive I will be a better minister, and lead more sinners to Thee." The morning dawned. Just a little after sunrise, I turned my head upon my pillow, and there sat my dear wife, bending over a chair. I said in my heart in an instant, my dear wife is sick. Very soon a lady of the church came in and said : " Mrs. Graves, you are not well ; you had better take your bed." She took her bed, and in five days crossed the dark river. Twice I was taken from my bed, bolstered up with stimulants, to look in her sweet face, and hold her hand in mine. The last time, as I sat about twenty minutes at her bedside, it seemed as if I was reading the very record of holy loveliness in the sight of God and heaven ; while her spirit was just gathering up the strength of holy wings to pass away to the better land. I held her hand in mine and said, " My dear, do you want any thing ? " The reply was, " Can they sing ' Rest for 286 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. the weary ? " A dear minister, who stood by the bed, struck up that little hymn : In the Christian's home in glory, There remains a land of rest, There my Savior's gone before me, To fulfill my soul's request. There is rest for the weary, There is rest for you. When he got through singing she said, " Can you bring the children ? " Our dear little children, one after another, were lifted to the bed, and received a dying mother's kiss. I kissed her hand, and she said sweetly, " Precious Savior, I am ready," and slept as sweetly in His love as a child in its mother's arms. I have never murmured. I felt it keenly. I had known her more than eight years in married life and otherwise. I never knew her to speak an unkind word to man, woman or child ; so lovely and holy, and I have often said, " She was too good to stay any longer in this world." It seemed as if God gave her to me just long enough to mold my life. I go to visit her grave as often as I can, and I believe I come away always to be a better man, because of the holiness that gathered around that hour, and that home, and her life. Let no man say to me, " Your doctrine of the blood is an idle tale." Oh no. Oh, the blood, the precious blood, That was shed on Oalvary. Though sin hath left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. The blood of Jesus can hush the fear of the soul THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 287 It can take away the guilty stains of sin. It can fit the sinner for heaven and immortal glory. Now I am going to tell you what this sin is. This is the unpardonable sin, a continuous rejection of the Gospel of Christ until that rejection becomes fatal to the soul. Now it is possible there are some here who still do not believe that such a sin can be committed ; that a man can live on this earth and be let alone of God ; be a sinner without having the hope or offers of mercy. Now wait a minute. Have you read the record of the antediluvian world, when the earth was filled with violence, sin and sinners ? God told Noah to build the ark. He did so. Then he gathered the few converts into it, at the bidding of the Lord; and it is said, " The Lord shut the door." Now if you think that a sinner can not live on this earth and be given up of God, will you please tell me what kind of a state those who resisted the calls of God's mercy, in the antediluvian age, were in from the time that ark was closed until the last man was drowned ? When the ark was closed, the foun- tains of the great deep were broken up, the windows of heaven were opened, surging waves rolled over the earth, men very likely climbed the house tops, the trees, scaled the mountains, built rafts and did every thing they could to save themselves ; but from the moment that ark was closed until the last man passed out of existence, they were sinners given up ; let alone of God. And it is just as possible to-day for a man or a woman to live in this world having 288 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. been given up of the Holy Spirit, committed the unpardonable sin, having gone beyond the reach of mercy, their hearts having been hardened, the day of grace having passed away, doomed and damned forever. Many years ago, in a certain city, Dr. took the pastorate of the First Presbyterian Church. A few Sabbaths after he commenced his labors he saw an old gentleman sitting in the congregation with whitened locks and wrinkled face. He said in his heart, " I will speak to that man before he gets out, after the benediction is pronounced." He stepped out of the pulpit and came up to him, and the man said, " Go away from me ; go after these young people, and get them all to come to Christ if you can." The minister felt chagrined for a moment, did not know but he had done some thing improper. The old gentleman looked at him a moment and said, " You may think it strange, sir. I have sat in that pew forty years, and there was a time when I could not listen to a single sermon without a tender heart, deep impressions, and some times the tears would flow, and I felt that I ought to be a Christian. Some times I would go from the church to my closet and offer prayer to God, and think I would then settle the great question. Then Monday I would go into New York to my business, and I would delay the matter, and so I kept on. By and by there came a time when I discovered I could shed no more tears. All these tender impressions were hushed and gone. I began to examine, and I found THE UNPARDONABLE STN. 289 by God's word that there was a sin against the Holy Ghost which would drive Him for ever from me, and I made up my mind I had committed that sin. Several years now have proved it to me. Here I am, Sir, a lost soul. Please don't say any more to me about my soul ; it will do no good. I respect you. I shall be in my pew here on Sunday. I shall pay my money for your ministry ; but, Sir, it is no use to talk to me. Take care of my family ; do what you can for them ; tell all these young people what I have told you to-day, and tell them not to delay the matter of attending to the calls of the Holy Ghost, as I have done ; " and I urge upon every one here to-night the same thing ; for as Dr. Alexander says: There is a time, we know not when, A point we know not where, That marks the destiny of men, To glory or despair, There is a line by us unseen, That crosses every path The hidden boundary between God's patience and His wrath. To pass that limit is to die; To die as if by stealth : It does not quench the beaming eye, Nor pale the glow of health. The conscience may be still at ease, The spirits light and gay; That Avhich is pleasing still may please, And care be thrust away. 19 290 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. He feels, perchance, that all is well, And every fear is calmed ; He lives, he dies, he wakes in hell Not only doomed but damned. Oh, where is that mysterious bourne By which our path is crossed ; Beyond which God himself hath sworn, That he who goes is lost? An answer from, the skies is sent Ye who from God depart, While it is called to-day repent, And harden not your heart. My hearer, will you do it ? May God help you this night to see to it that you no longer delay this matter, but while the gentle Spirit comes to your heart, accept the offers of His mercy, the entreaties of His love. Make sure of your salvation if it so be that you are now within the reach of mercy. BIBLE BEADING. THE HOLY SPIRIT. WILL you now turn to Matthew xxviii, 18, 19 : And Jesus came, and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in nearen and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost The personality of the Holy Spirit is what I wanted you to notice first. Now here you see that Jesus proclaimed himself as having all power in heaven and earth. Then he says to the disciples, " Go ye and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." This shows us plainly that the Holy Ghost is just as much of a person as God ; just as much of a person as the Son, and is co-equal with Them in His office work. The Holy Ghost is not barely an influence. When we pray and speak to God about the Holy Ghost, and of the influence of the Holy Ghost com- ing upon us, we ought to be very much guarded, lest we get an impression that the Holy Ghost is nothing but an influence. If, when you pray for the influ- ence of the Holy Ghost, you bear in mind that He is a person, as you would in speaking of Abraham Lincoln, when he was in Washington, and his influence was felt all over the land, there is no (291) 292 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. objection. Abraham Lincoln was a person, and what there was felt of his power, was an imparta- tion of himself. The Holy Ghost is just as much of a person as Abraham Lincoln was, aye, just as much of a person, in the divine record, as God, and as Jesus Christ. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye can not bear them now. Howbeit, when He, the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatso- ever He shall hear, that shall He speak : and He will show you things to come. He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. John xvi, 12, 13, 14. Notice, in that 13th verse, six distinct times the Holy Ghost is called a person. The personal pro- noun, " He," is employed here six times. We have these three verses before us, indicating strongly the personality of the Holy Ghost revealed to man. From this hour, I want in my h^.art, and you want in your heart, to walk about this earth, every where realizing that when the Holy Ghost is with us He is with us as a living person, not as a bare mythical influence. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive, for the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified. John vii, 38, 39. In this instance, you notice in the 38th verse it is said : " He that believeth on Me (Jesus) out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." It is a very striking figure, and means just this ; out of his BIBLE BEADING. 293 inmost parts the seat of the moral nature the deep affections there shall flow as water from an artesian well, a living spiritual power. Let us see what this power is. In that 38th verse Jesus was speaking of the coming baptized church the people who should have, bearing it about with them, the living power of the Divine One, and in their hearts, not be as other men ; but have a spirit- ual life that the world knows nothing about. It is a striking fact that the Holy Spirit never came to reside in the church, permanently, until after Jesus was glorified ; as we see by the 39th verse. But there were times when the Holy Ghost incidentally visited this earth, before He came to reside perma- nently in the Church. I shall now give yon one or two of these instances. Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man ; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. 2 Peter i, 20, 21. The Holy Ghost then visited this earth in an inci- dental visitation, to give the Holy Scriptures to the world. One word about this 20th verse. It cuts off the Roman Catholic notion that a priest can interpret the Scripture, but that the common people can not. " No scripture is of any private interpretation." God can teach the most ignorant on the face of the earth, and let them understand His precious Word, in various ways. In this twenty-first verse reference is made to an 294 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. incidental visit, or a coming of the Holy Ghost to earth, for the specific purpose, in ancient times, of endowing men, and leading them to give this Holy Bible to the world. Now I will give you another instance of this visitation. And behold there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel ; and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Luke ii, 25, 26. Here was an old man a Jew joist and devout. It is said, " he was waiting for the consolation of Israel'; and the Holy Ghost was upon him." Then it is said, " It was revealed to him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ." Now let me make this remark : When Jesus came into this world to save sinners, He came by the Holy Ghost. I propose in a few days to give you a Bible reading on this doc- trine ; " Sheltered by the Blood," and I shall be able to show you then that Jesus went to the cross by the Holy Ghost. Now, here was an instance where the Holy Ghost came into this world, made a visitation to this old Christian man, and revealed to him the fact, that he would not die, until Christ came, and he saw the Lord's Christ. You remem- ber, afterward, he took Jesus up in his arms, and said : " Now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." Now, upon the work of regeneration by the Holy Ghost, turn to John xvi, 7, 8. BIBLE READING. 295 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth : It is expedient for you that I go away : for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you. And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. Notice that idea of reproving sin. It is the very first thing that the Holy Ghost does in the work of regeneration. He touches the heart and convinces the heart that the man is a sinner. A good woman came to a friend of mine and said to him, " I wish you would show my husband that he is a sinner." He could not do that. The Holy Spirit alone could do that. I can work in inquiry meetings, pray, talk, weep, preach, and do a great many things; but I can never convince a man that he is a sinner. The Holy Ghost alone has this work ; and the very first work that God has given the Holy Ghost to do, in the regeneration of the sinner, is to show him that he is a sinner. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God. John iii, 3. That is positive, isn't it? Any body can under- stand from that, that a man must be regenerated born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it coineth, and whither it goeth : so is every one that is born of the Spirit. John iii, 8. You see that here Jesus takes the wind to illus- trate the work of the Holy Spirit. No\v you never saw the wind. You have seen the effects of it, and you have seen and felt the influence of it. " So i 296 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. every one that is born of the Spirit." But let me remark right here that though it may not be discov- ered at the time that a person is regenerated, it is always instantaneous. There is no half way, or progressive work about it, as we shall show. And you hath He quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins. Epliesians ii, 1. The apostle does not mean to say here that before they were quickened by the Spirit they were physic- ally dead ; that there was no breath in them. He is referring to their moral state. When man was thrust out of the garden of Eden, was it his body that was dead? He had become dead to holiness. His conscience had consented to transgression ; and when it did so, it became alienated from God, from holiness, and from every thing that was congenial to holy living in the paradise of God. When man went out he was dead in trespasses and sins ; not in physical, but in moral death. Now, the apostle says to these Ephesian Christians " You hath He quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins." Back here it is said, " The wind bloweth where it listeth, * * * * so is every one that is born of the Spirit." That means the quickening. Suppose that a young lady should faint here to-day. Some body would say, " That, young lady has fainted." Every body would get an idea at once she had become physically disabled ; her strength was gone. Suppose a friend should fan her, and give her some water, and she should revive, and some body should say, " She is quickened." Now what do we mean BIBLE BEADING. 297 by that ? We mean that strength has come back ; that she is enlivened and restored. Now when the apostle says, "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins," he means that the Holy Ghost has revived, and brought the sinner back into a living spiritual state. The idea is drawn from the figure of a dead man. Suppose that here is a bed to-day, and a man lies on it and is dying. The doctor comes in, and, feeling of his pulse, says, " He can not stand it much longer ; he will soon be gone." Soon the man dies. Is there any space between that man's life and death ? When that last pulse, was beating, he was a living man. When that last pulse ceased to beat, he was dead. There is no space between life and death. It is an instantaneous work. So " you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins ; " and I hold that there is no space between the life and the death of a sinner; in other words, between his sinfulness and his holiness. He is either a Christian or a lost sinner ; he is either saved or he is not saved. Whether you discern it or not, when the Holy Spirit comes in with that work of regenera- tion, it is an instantaneous work. Now we will pass to the washing. The quickening of the Spirit always precedes the washing of regeneration. Now where does that come ? But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy, He saved us, by the washing of regener- ation, and renewing of the Holy Ghost Titus iii, 4, 5. 298 FROM EA3TH TO HEAVEN. The renewing of the Holy Ghost means this quickening, this awakening by the Holy Spirit in the soul. No^r what is the washing of regeneration ? In the first chapter of Isaiah and the eighteenth verse, we read, "Come now, and let us reason to- gether saith the Lord ; though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow ; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Every lady knows that the colors of crimson and scarlet are fast colors ; it is almost impossible to wash them out ; and you certainly would not think of taking them out without a washing. It takes a liquid to do it; and almost invariably when you speak of purifying a thing, you get the idea that some kind of a liquid will be employed. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fel- lowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John i, 7. Now, that is the blood that Jesus shed, what you may call the liquid washing, that flowed 6n Calvary, that you and I have received to-day, and do receive always. When we are saved by living faith, that blood does the washing; and the Holy Ghost never will do it; He never will save any man. He can awaken, He can quicken a man, He can prepare the soul to receive the blood ; but the blood of Christ, and the blood of Christ only, can take away the guilty stains of sin. Thus, you see, the Holy Spirit performs His divine office in bring^ ing the sinner to the blood, and the blood cleanses him from all sin. BIBLE READING. 299 We will now pass to the residence of the Holy Q-host in the Church. Which when the brethren knew, they brought him down to Cesarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus. Then had the churches rest throughout all Judea and Galilee, and Samaria, and were edified : and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied. Acts ix, 30, 31. In these verses, it is recognized that the Holy Ghost is now in the New Testament Church. The idea is that when Saul of Tarsus, that giant Jeru- salem sinner, was making havoc among the churches, they were disturbed and tried. As soon as he was converted and brought to the Church, clothed in his right mind, it is said the churches had rest, "and were edified: and walking in the fear of the Lord, and the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were mul- tiplied." Now, with this recognition that the Holy Ghost is residing in the Church, we want to know when He took up His residence in the Church, and began to produce this edification and comfort. And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts ii, 1-4. Scan a few verses of this chapter, beginning with the first. Now the day of Pentecost was a great festive occasion. The people used to come up to Jerusalem from all the surrounding countries once a year. The Lord Jesus chose, on this particular occasion, to have 300 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. a prayer meeting; establish His Church; diffuse the power of the gospel ; and bring a great many con- verts into His kingdom ; and organize a great band of believers. One hundred and twenty Christians were gathered together. They had a prayer meeting for ten days. During this prayer meeting, it is said, " they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and spoke with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utter- ance." Now there were many different nationalities gathered there, and they all received the word of God through these people who spoke under the power of the Holy Ghost. Following this, Peter's sermon was preached. He, seeing this before, spake of the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in hell, neither His flesh did see corrup- tion. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we src all witnessc.. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. Acts ii, 31, 32, 33. What has He shed forth? The Holy Spirit. When did He do it ? Right at the time of His glo- rification. " Having received the promise of the Father." What did we read back here a little while ago? We read, "He that "believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive.") But we learn from the rest of the verse that this Spirit should not be given till Jesus was glorified. Here, then, is when the Spirit came, and took up His residence in the Church. From that day till this, BIBLE BEADING. 301 the Church of God has never been destitute of the Holy Spirit. I do not say that there have not been a great many times of coldness. Sometimes you will find churches, where almost all the members will go* down to the lowest ebb of religious interest. An acquaintance told me that in one community the Christians had got so dead, so destitute of the power of the Holy Spirit, the minister himself so back- slidden, that they had no prayer meeting. A mother in Israel came to the minister one day, and said to him, " Can not we have a prayer meeting ? " " Do you think any body wants a prayer meeting ? " he said " Well, if you think any body wants one, I will bring it up at the next church meeting," (they had the church meetings once in three months, and the next one would be in about six weeks,) " and we will have a committee appointed to report at the next meeting." Alas, that ministers can get so backslid- den and cold that they can not hold a prayer meet- ing ! But such was the case. That was the best she could do. A few days after she came again to the pastor, and said, " Can not we have a prayer meeting?" And he said, "Well, if you are so anxious, write a notice and I will read it, and we will have one appointed at your house." She brought the notice, and Sunday he read it very hastily, and carelessly announcing a hymn with the same breath. So indifferent and cold in his heart ! But they did get the notice. And there was a law- yer's wife in that meeting (her husband was uncon- verted), who said to her husband on Tuesday night, 302 PKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. " Will you stay with the children a little while ? I want to go out." She went to the prayer meeting, read, prayed, talked nobody there but herself and the aged sister who called the meeting the old gospel, " two agreed." By and by she looked at the clock. " Why!" she said, "I had no idea it was so late. My husband will be weary." She hastened home. As she hurried in at the door her husband was reading the Bible ; but he was ashamed of it, and put it behind him as soon as he could ; and she said, " I am sorry I stayed so late." " Where have you been?" "I have been to prayer meeting." " Prayer meeting ! I did not know you had any in town; where was it?" "Down at mother 's." "What did you pray for?" "We prayed for you, my dear " (bursting into tears.) Then the Bible came back. " Well, my dear wife," he says, " that accounts for it. I never had such feel- ings on the subject of religion, as I have had in the last hour. I took down this Bible, and read it. I did not know why I did it, hardly." You may be sure, religion came to that house, and there began a revival of religion that night, which this brother told me, swept clear through the adjoining country, and down through the Pennsylvania line. That, I believe, illustrates the whole history of God's Church. Sometimes it gets down very low, but the Holy Spirit is somewhere, in the heart of some old father or mother, or some young man. You have read about the great revival in Musca- tine. Five persons, a year ago the seventh day of BI**LE READING. 303 last January, met in a law office and pledged them- selves (joining hands on their knee. ) that they would have a daily prayer meeting until Gofl came to that city. They had not been visited with a great revival for twenty years, and they prayed and prayed there every day. Sometimes thi re was five, and sometimes not the five ; and sometimes a few more. During the last Autumn two brethren visited me, and God laid their case on my heart. I was just getting on the cars when I met them. At first I thought that I could not do any 'hing for them. But all the way to Chicago my heart was moved. I went right to the hotel and wrote a letter saying : " Some how I feel so impressed for Muscatine that if your whole people, ministers and all, wish it, and will let me know by such a time, I will arrange to come there, and lay all other work aside." Such was the beginning of that work of grace, and I believe God was in it. And I believe it has been so in the history of God's Church, in all the past ages, ever since the Holy Ghost came to take up His resi- dence in the Church. He will raise up men and women when there is darkness and coldness; and and that, too, in a way that you or I little under- stand or expect. But oh ! the sweeping tides will come in, and the Holy Ghost will pour out His mighty power into the hearts of the people. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance : against such there is no law. Oalatians v, 22, 23. 804 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Show me a man, or a woman, who has the SpLlt of God with them, and I will show you those who have this sweet fruit of the Spirit. . Quench not the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians v, 19. There are only four words in this verse, but I want y<-u to mark it particularly. Be very careful about quenching the Spirit of the Living God. It seems to me that the Church of God was never in more danger than she is to-day of quenching the Spirit. There are Christians enough on this continent to carry this whole land and the whole world for Jesus Christ, if they only had the Holy Spirit. But there is so much quenching the Spirit. There are enough Christians in this town to dry up every saloon, to beat back every power of darkness. There are enough here to pour out a tide of holiness that would turn the whole population to Christ ; but there is so much pride every where through this land. Look at our great cities. Every thing conceivable is em- ployed or indulged in that kills out the work of the Spirit. You have heard me talk about Christians dancing. I suppose you query a little whether I am opposed to dancing. I am, emphatically. And I will give you one reason why. I have lived in the church for a quarter of a century, and positively I never knew a dancing Christian in my life who did not give evidence that in her dancing she had quenched the Spirit. They have deadened their piety ; I don't care wffo or where they are. So with theaters. You ask me, "Is it wrong to attend them?" You can not take the Spirit of God into BIBLE READING. 305 a theater with you, unless you go there to preach and pray. I have preached in theaters. I can carry God's Spirit in my heart with the power of the Gos- pel any where. But, when Christians go there gen- erally, they do not go for spiritual life ; they go for bare worldly pastime and entertainment that has nothing in it of the Holy Spirit. So in our churches. An immense amount of pride is coming out now in building meeting houses. I recently saw an an- nouncement of the dedication of a meeting house that cost three hundred and sixty thousand dollars (sixty thousand for the lot and three hundred thou- sand for the building), and would seat only twelve hundred people. The bishop was to preach the dedication sermon. I said to myself, If John Wes- ley should be raised from the dead to preach that dedication sermon, I doubt whether he would know his own people. There is so much pride manifested. The churches seem to be running a race to see which can build the finest meeting house, and they build them so nice that the mass of the people can not go in ; indeed they are not invited. In one place recently, the usher had to ask the committee again and again to make known publicly that the poor could attend my meetings. Oh ! the sad impression that is going out. It grieves the Spirit of God. Give us a fine house ; give us a neat house. But, I sa} r , give us a grand, good, convenient workshop for Jesus. I will give my influence for that while I live one that will invite the masses in and let them have the 20 306 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. influence of the Gospel. Again, take our church singing. There is a church in Boston, organized a year or two ago (a " society," I am ashamed to call them a church), which pays six thousand five hun- dred dollars a year for a quartette choir ; and the peo- ple go there to hear the tweedledum and the twee- dledee, and that kind of thing, and go away and say it is a grand kind of a concert. And they call it the Gospel. Go through our land ; we must have the great organs ; and then we must have an ungodly player, or an ungodly leader to lead out the hallelu- jahs of Zion. I wonder the ministers can preach at all ; and the lazy Christians there will stand and look on. Not a hymn book in the pews, and no hearts to sing. And they pay a few ungodly people, who perhaps have been singing minstrel tunes all the week, to come there and do their singing. Is it any marvel that the Spirit of God is grieved ? " Quench not the Spirit." You may say, " Sir, you talk plain." While I live, as far as I have any influ- ence, I will enter my protest, against all these things that are grieving God's Spirit. Again, take our church fairs. If the ladies want to work ; get up a fourth of July dinner, to bring a hundred dollars into the church, let them do it. They can do it in holi- ness. . If they want to make a few articles, and sell them at a proper time, with a holy, consecrated zeal, let them do it. But I protest when they go to work, as they do at these common bazaars, and fairs, and get a ring, and put it in a cake, and dress up a girl in some pretty ribbons, and send her around to the BIBLE READING. 307 deacons and others, " Won't you take a share, it is only fifty cents, and you may get the ring?" A ring worth four or five dollars, is sold for twenty dollars, or so. Oh ! such conduct quenches the Spirit. I have watched it for years, and I have seen, that when the women are engaged for a few weeks, in getting up a fair, their spirituality is killed out ; and, some times they make a losing operation at that. Several years ago, in a large city the Young Men's Christian Association was consecrated ; working for Christ ; and the churches were getting blessings from its help. But there came along a man, who said, " Now, you are so much in debt, you had better get up a bazaar. You can make four or five thousand dollars." And he got them into it ; and the revival was killed out. The Spirit of God was quenched, when they went into that kind of thing, in that worldly way. I throw out these hints that we may be careful ourselves, that we " quench not the Spirit." Ask Jesus to lead you, that you may walk in spiritual mindedness. The last thing we will look at to-day, is in Luke, xi, 13. Here we shall find how we may obtain the power of the Holy Spirit. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children : how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him ? Hence you see, if you want the Holy Spirit, you are to ask God for it; and as He says, ask, "nothing doubting," your soul may be filled with the fullness of the Holy Ghost, and you will bear " the fruits of the Spirit." THE BLOOD OF JESUS. Delivered in the Colli&eum Place Baptist Church, in New Orleans, La., Jan , 1875. THE text, to-night, is in First John, first chapter, and a part of the seventh verse : " The blood of Jesus Christ, Sis Son, cleanseth us from all sin." I shall call your attention, at once, to what I will call the doctrine of this text. The first point of doctrine that I want you to notice is, the fact that every man, wherever you find him, in whatever condi- tion, surrounded by whatever circumstances, is a sinner. Would our God come to us with such a text as this, and cry out, " The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin;" if there was no sin to be cleansed from ? I want it understood, by all to whom I speak, that I have no sympathy with that kind of doctrine that builds up a sort of human perfection, on any theory, by any form of sophistry, or plan of genius, that will make out man so good, naturally, in morality ; so holy that by any conceiv- ble means in himself he can get into heaven. It can not be done. The word of God tells me that man is " conceived of sin, and born in iniquity." I simply believe it. That is all. When this Divine Word tells me that the "carnal mind is enmity against God;" " is not subject to the will of God, (308) THE BLOOD OF JESUS. , &09 neither indeed can be," I simply believe that. I have no sympathy with the doctrine of Collyer, of Chicago, Theodore Parker, peace be to his ashes, at Florence who long stood in the Melodeon in Boston ; or Mr. Alger, now a representative of New England's teaching, that the blood of Jesus Christ is no more than the blood of Cock Robin (that is his language); and that in man there is an inherency of quality and power that, if cultivated, would bring him up to the highest heaven. There is not a word of truth in it. The Word of God utterly con- tradicts and refuses to give indorsement, in a single sentiment, or sentence, or even shadow of thought, to any such doctrine. On the other hand, it teaches that man, in his natural state, is sinful, and, as the prophet Isaiah has it, from the crown of his head : to the sole of his foot, is covered with " wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores." The whole tendency of the natural heart is to go down, and grovel in sin. You may say, " Don't some men have good qualities ? " They may thank their God that they have pious wives to live with ; and if they have not, somebody else has, not very far from their homes ; that they live within the sound of church bells ; that they are in a com- munity where there is a written and revealed word of God ; and where there are manifestations of the morality of the Bible that tones and molds their characters. I suppose there are people in this town who think they do wonderful things by telling that they don't go to church ; and they are very moral ; 310 FKOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. pay a hundred cents on the dollar ; and are as good as the ministers and deacons 5 don't swear; don't get drunk ; don't cheat; nor lie. What of it? If they are moral, thyy may all thank God and their fellow-citizens, that some body has planted the mold- ing influence of the gospel, until it is gathered around them like the rolling waves of the ocean , and their characters are molded and toned by its influences. Soon after my conversion, I learned a little lesson on this point. As I said last night, in the early part of my life I was very dissolute. I lived with a family some time after my father's death who tried by every endeavor to have me form and preserve an upright character; but I gave them trouble because I was wicked, dissolute, reckless. I went away to Boston, ran a wild career for a time, and when converted I returned and said to the family, " I have reformed ; I am saved." The family was made up of the parents, three sons and a daughter ; the daughter a very estimable woman, lovely in charac- ter, but, I believe, in great error on this point of the seat of the morality of the Bible. She said to me, " Albert, I am glad thee has become a Christian ; a good young man ; but, after all, doesn't thee believe there was some good thing in thee, that if it had been cultivated, would have brought thee to heaven ? " I believe the Holy Spirit gave me an answer. " No," said I, "I don't believe one word of it." When Jesus took me by His blood, and made a Christian of me, He found me a sinner from the crown of the head to the sole of the foot; lost; going down as THE BLOOD OF JESUS. 311 low and as fast as I could go. And so it is with every man. His tendency is altogether to go away from God, and holiness. He is a sinner, and when this text comes to him and declares that " the blood of Jesus cleanseth from all sin, ' I recognize the state from which the blood lifts tlu man who is re- deemed and saved. Now there is another point of doctrine I want you to notice, my friend, and that is the rich provi- sion that has been made to save men from sin. I am so glad of that. I rejoice this night at that. I am glad to see the friendship of the world; I am glad to see all the excellent qualities and traits there are in any community, or with any men ; I am glad to behold every token of goodness ; but, I tell you, my friends, far above all other considerations, I thank my God that there is a provision to save man from sin, when its consequences would crush him down to hell forever. Sad would it be were that seat a couch and there lay upon it a young man wasting with disease, and the doctor comes, and feels his pulse, examines his case, and says, " There is no remedy for you ; your disease is fatal." But, ten thousand times ten thousand more, would it be sad were I obliged to look that man in the face as a sinner, and say, " Sir, there is no remedy ; you must go down to hell eter- nally, without any possible way of escape." It is not true. It is not true! Not one person in this room, not one in this town, not one in this broad world, in his natural state as a sinner, need be lost. He can be cured. And I am so glad that God has 812 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. not made it my duty to go from one end of this land to the other ; from sea to sea ; and on the steamboat, in the railway car, in the sanctuary, on the farm, the street, at home, any where be obliged to look a man in the face, and say, "You are a sinner without a remedy." It is not true. A rich provision has been made to save men from sin. Hence, my text cries out, " The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." Some of you have heard of that wonderful man, Christmas Evans. It is said that he was not converted until he was past forty ; then became one of the most brilliant and powerful her- alds of the Cross that ever preached in the realm of Wales. It is said that he, at one time, preached a sermon on "The Better Country;" and he drew this figure: I saw one coming o'er the plain, and as he approached the jasper gates, there sat the guardian angel. He stepped between the man and the gate. The man slackened his pace, and stopped. The angel said to him, " What is your passport sir ? 44 Oh ! I was rich, fed the poor, took c;ve of the sick ; " the old story of legalist over again. That is the way a great many people talk about going to heaven, " very rich." Here is a man who starts a whisky distillery, becomes very rich, sends thousands to the poorhouo' nd many to hell , throws firebrands of suffering, tcrture, and destruction into many a family; but if he onlygiv.s fifty thousand dollars to a college he is a wonderful man. By and by he dies, and they come around with a prayer book to THE BLOOD OF JESUS. 313 read him up to glory. Not very much. It will take some thing besides money to get a man into glory. The guardian angel said, " You can never enter these portals on that passport." But, says Mr. Evans, " I saw another come, he did not slacken his pace. The guardian angel stepped forward to stop him. He did not stop, but hastened on apace ; and, as he rushed forward, he threw up his hands, and cried, ' The blood of Jesus ; the blood of Jesus ; THE BLOOD OF JESUS ; ' and the angel stepped one side, and the man passed in." That represents the way the sinner will enter the portals of glory. I stand here to-night, having believed in the Gospel for nearly thirty years, but, if I were to-night to drop a corpse, and be called away to the regions beyond, to be with all the blood-washed throng, I should enter on the same level that that little girl would, if she is a Christian. Oh yes ! the only way, by which we can ever enter the portals of glory will be by the blood of Jesus. That same man, Christ- mas Evans, it is said, as he was about to die, when some friends gathered around his bed, and said, " What is your dying testimony ? " replied, " Tell the world that I never preached without blood in the basin." Would God I could say that, to-night. I have tried to be^a faithful minister for a quarter of a century ; but, if I have one thing above another to regret, it is that I have preached so little under the cross ; so little of the blood ; and yet I have had the most deep and earnest conviction all these years, that naught but the blood of Jesus can take away the sins of the sinner. 314 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Now, there is another point of doctrine that I want you to notice from this text, and that is the definiteness of the provision made to save the sinner from sin. Do you notice what the text says ? " The blood cleanseth." It don't say, the blood and your baptism ; the blood and your going to the commun- ion table ; the blood, and your going to church and paying your pew rent ; the blood, and your reading your Bible ; the blood, and your saying your pray- ers ; the blood, and your learning the catechism ; the blood, and your having the bishop put his hands on your head ; the blood, and your joining the church ; that is not what it says. It says, " the blood of Jesus." There is no partnership business in this plan. You might be baptized many times, and go to hell. You might go to the communion table every day in the week, and every hour of the day ; that would not save your soul. You might have all the bishops on the American continent and Europe confirm you, and that would not save your soul. You might give your body to be burned ; but I tell you to-night, my hearer, naught but the precious blood of Christ can take away your sins. Have I not read in that word, " We are not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ ? " That is what redeems us from eternal death. In an eastern city I went into the pulpit one day and there sat a lady on the front seat. She listened to the discourse, and when I came out of the pulpit took me by the hand, " Please, Sir, will you pray for my son, he is a mute." I said I would, and we passed out. THE BLOOD OF JESUS. 315 The next time I came into the pulpit, there sat that lady, and a young man by her side. As I began service, he looked earnestly into my face, and seemed to hear every word I said. I thought that he could not be her son ; for her son was a mute ; he could neither hear nor speak. I went out of the desk, after the discourse, and she led me up to him, and introduced me by signs. I knew then that he was her son, and appeared to listen, looking most sharply and earnestly to catch every motion of my lips and gesture, and all he could of the discourse, in my appearance. " Will you pray for him ? " she said. I said I would. The next day I was passing down street, and saw a young man coming. As soon as he came near enough, I identified him as this young man. As soon as he discovered who I was, he stopped, drew a slate and pencil from his pocket, and began to write. He handed it to me and I read this on it : " Mr. Graves, I want to see you." I understood that he wanted a religious interview. I took the slate and wrote upon it, " Call at deacon 's to morrow morning at ten o'clock." He bowed his head and went on. The next morning at ten o'clock the servant girl came to the door, saying, " A young man in the par- lor wants to see you." I took several sheets of paper, knowing I would have to converse by writing, and went down. The first thing I wrote was, " Will you please give me an account of your religious state, as you understand it?" He wrote this: " I am twenty-four years of age ; I was born 316 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. in England. Several years ago I united with the Church pf England." Then followed an account of his confirmation, sacraments, walks with the church ; and, I judge that he had kept up a fine moral character, and a circumspect life in the church. In all he said, and in his appearance, I could see that he was in a restless state of heart. He did not seem to be at peace with his God. I then wrote down the text I have read to you to-night: "The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." I then wrote : " Without the shedding of blood there is no remission." I also wrote : "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned. ' After this I wrote : " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." Then I wrote another text: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up : that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have eternal life." There I stopped. Then I wrote that word " believeth ! believeth ! believeth ! " I covered over an entire page with that word, believeth. I did not intend that that young man should leave me Until he under- stood that believing in the blood of Jesus, and that alone, would save his soul from sin, and bring him to heaven. I sat by the side of that young man three hours, explaining, directing, and praying. At the ex- piration of that time I was permitted to see him write this : " Mr. Graves, I am saved by trusting the blood of Jesus, and that alone. I am happy trusting the blood of Jesus." I saw that young man baptized THE BLOOD OF JESTJS. 31 7 into the church. Since then I have had letters from him, expressive of the greatest satisfaction of heart in his redemption. This is what I mean, then, by the defmiteness of that cure that comes only from the blood of Jesus Christ. Now, there is another point of doctrine that I want you to notice in this text ; it is the completeness of this cure. The blood cleanseth from all sin. From all sin! ALL SIN ! Perhaps you say, " Are you going to preach the doctrine of Christian perfection ? " I am not much afraid that you Methodists will get too perfect, nor you Congregationalists, or Presbyterians, or Baptists ; and, I must say, that I deplore this miserable notion of non-assurance doctrine, while many of the churches are dying with worldliness ; ministers are crippled for want of praying Christians ; few are at the prayer-meetings ; and every thing is dead and cold. I heard of an incident a while ago. A brother was visiting a town, and he said : " How is the state of religion in your church? " " Oh," said he, " our church is dead ! " " What is your minister preach- ing about ? " " He is preaching against excitement in revivals." Just what I would expect. You will find here and there a man or a woman in the churches, who, if any one says anything about the higher Christian life, about sanctification, is ready to cry out a great apology for sin. I confess, the most deplorable thing of our day, is to see the low standard of piety in our churches, and so many people who seem to have an idea that they can not 318 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. be cured from sin ; that they must go stumbling along in this world, under all the baneful influences of a sinful life ; though they are members of the church, and think they have been converted. As I have some times put it, it is a good deal like that old Dr. Watts' hymn : " Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly dove." Just as surely as you find a church back- slidden, they want to be singing that old hymn. I have not sung that hymn for a dozen years, and I don't expect to sing it again. The first and last verses are very well ; but I believe the rest of it is a libel on the Christian religion ; and if Dr. Watts was here to-night, I should want to ask him what made him compose that hymn. Dr. Watts was a great poet. But when he composed that, I think he made a great mistake. Look how we grovel here below, Fond of these earthly toys ; Our souls can neither fly nor go, To reach eternal joys. How does that sound for a saint, who may, in an hour, sing with the angels in glory ? What kind of singing is that, for a person whom God has redeemed by the precious blood of his Son ; and is styled a priest and a king unto God ? Then look at that verse : Hosannas languish on our tongues, And our devotion dies. I should think it would, if you have a heart that joins in singing such a verse as that. I tell you it is not true. A saint of God has no business to live in THE BLOOD OF JESUS. 319 that frame of mind. Do you know the names which that Bible applies to Christians ? God calls them saints. He calls them jewels. He calls them His " treasures." He calls them " kings and priests unto God." He has given the most delightful appellations. He says : " If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature ; old things have passed away, and all things have become new." One man said to me once : " Don't you think when Dr. Watts wrote that hymn he thought there were some states of heart it would fit." I replied : " If you want to get a backslider revived, don't let him sing, ' Hosannas languish on our tongues ; ' but let him sing, ' Rock of Ages cleft for me,' or, * Jesus, lover of my soul,' or something that will bring him back to God, and enliven his spiritual affections." Now, in this text we have the clearest doctrine that the blood of Jesus cleanseth us from all sin. You, perhaps, will say : " You don't mean to say you are perfect ; that you never commit sin." I don't know as I shall get out of this pulpit before the devil strikes me somewhere, with some vile insinuation ; tempts me. You will say : " What will you do ? " I will not run around and tell you what an awful sinner I am. I will tell you what I am going to do. I am going to sing : There is a fountain filled with blood, Drawn from Immanuel's veins ; And sinners plunged beneath that flood, Lose all their guilty stains. Now, my dear brother, let me tell you, such is the 320 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. nature of faith that you or I can, in a single instant, plunge into that fountain ; and I bear you record, if the blood of Jesus Christ ever has been, ever was to be, and eternally is, able to cleanse me from all sin, it is able to do it now this minute. A great many people think they can not get free from sin until they go to the grave. Then the text ought to read, " the grave cleanseth us from all sin, "-or, " the coffin cleanseth us from all sin." That is not what it says. It is the blood that cleanseth us from all sin ; that takes away our guilty stains. I press on your heart to-night that, whether you are in your store, whether your are in the street, whether you are at home, wherever you are, or whatever you are doing, it is your privilege to walk, in this world, with the simple, precious belief that the blood does take away your guilty stains ; frees you from your sin. Now, there is another point of doctrine that I wish you to notice from this text, and that is, this cleans- ing is in the present. Do you notice that word cleanseth ? " The blood cleanseth us from all sin." Every person in this room knows enough about grammar to know that that word cleanseth is not in the past tense, nor the future tense. It is now ; this minute ; right here. Let me illustrate this to you. Some years ago, in Western New York, I stood in a crowded assembly preaching. I remember that I struck upon this point of doctrine, and I cried out to my congregation, in great earnestness, " The blood of Jesus Christ His THE BLOOD OF JESUS. 321 Son cleansetb, cleanseth, CLEANSETH, CLEANSETH us from all sin." Just then a gentleman who sat four or five seats from the front looked right up at me. His eyes sparkled, he seemed to grasp the idea with great force. By and by he grasped the seat in front of him. He acted, as he leaned a little for- ward, as if he was going to jump right up over the heads of the people to the pulpit. I could hardly' understand the meaning of his actions. I drove home the idea with force, feeling, as I remember, that I could not let one of that congregation leave without believing that the blood of Jesus cleanseth us from all sin, and just now. I passed from the thought. The man settled back, but his counten- ance shone with perfect radiance. The next morning, as I sat in my room, there came a hasty knock at the door. I opened it, and there stood that man. " Good morning, sir," said I. " Good morning ; you don't know me ?" " Yes, I do know you," said I; "I don't know your name, or where you live, but you are the man who sat so and so in my congregation yesterday? " " Yes," said he, " and I have come in to tell you about it. Seven years I have been a member of the church, and I have been to sacra- ments, and supposed I was all right ; but, sir, I never had an idea that I was to be saved by the blood of Christ, and that alone, until yesterday, in your ser- mon, when you struck into the thought, ' the blood of Christ cleanseth.' Some how, in an instant, my keart grasped that thought, and I said, ' That is what I want,' and at once I realized that the blood took 21 322 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. away my sins and saved my soul, and I thank you for those words." That illustrates to my mind the great fact that the blood cleanseth from all sin. Another thought and I am done. This blood, when applied to your heart, must come through the channel of your own personal faith. I honor the Holy Ghost, and give God all the credit and honor for the revelations of His blood, through His Son ; but I do say it is utterly impossible for a sinner to be saved and cleansed by the blood of Christ unless he believes in the blood himself personally. The husband can not believe for the wife, nor the wife for the husband ; the child can not believe for the parent, nor the parent for the child ; the minister can not believe for the people, nor the people for him. Every one must have personal faith and belief in the blood for himself. It is said that during the war, George H. Stuart, a princely merchant of Philadelphia, and a Christian man of large heart and faith, was President of the Christian Commission. One day he had occasion to go down into Virginia, across the picket lines, to visit a soldier. He came along, and the sentinel was pacing up and down. Mr. Stuart rode up to the lines. "Halt!" Mr. Stuart stopped. "Who is there?" "A friend." " Advance and give the countersign." Mr. Stuart rode up, and leaning forward, whispered, "Chicago." " No," said the sentinel, " that is not the right word to-day; and it will be death for me to let you go over without the right word, and death for me to give it to yc'v. You must go back to headquarters THE BLOOD OF JESUS. 3'23 and get it." Stuart went back to headquarters, and having obtained the correct word, hastened back. As he approached the lines the sentinel shouted, "Halt!" Stuart stopped. "Who is there?" "A friend." "Advance and give the countersign." He rode forward and said, " Massa- chusetts." " That is right." Mr. Stuart rode over the lines, stopped, whirled upon his horse, and said, " Sentinel, I came here to-day to cross these lines, and I had the wrong countersign ; but I had oppor- tunity to go back and get the right one. But, sir, you are approaching lines of eternal consequences, and if you come with the wrong countersign, you never will have opportunity to go back and get the right one." " Yes, sir, I know what you mean." " What do I mean ? " " The judgment seat of Christ." " That is right." " Sir, have you got the right countersign ? " "I have." " What is it ? " " The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin ? " " Where did you get that ? " Said he, " In a prayer meeting where you were." Now I want to ask every person present, have you the right countersign in your heart ? Do you really believe that the blood, this minute, cleanses you from all sin, and you are saved by the precious blood of the Lamb ? BIBLE READING. HE A VEX. WILL you turn now to Deuteronomy xxvi, 15 : Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people Israel. Reference is made here to the attitude of God, in the first place, in all that He does toward the chil- dren of men. God never works upward. He always works downward. It is true that He may attract, and draw the people and lift them up. He always does, gets under their moral natures, the great divine lever. Now there is another thing that is very striking in this passage. Blessings come down from G-od out of heaven, and it is just as surely true that people every where, receiving blessings, receive them from heaven, the holy center of God's residence, as it is true that in any earthly kingdom the blessings and comfort and power, come from a kingly throne as a center. Turn now to Isaiah Ixiii, 15 : Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of Thy holiness and of Thy glory. The simple idea again of locating God's residence up in heaven ; and then the character or nature of His habitation, as being that of holiness. It is the (324) BIBLE READING. 325 most striking thing there can be in the moral world. You can not put man any where, and give him a decided position of holiness, where there is no mix- ture of darkness and sin. God is the only being who has a distinct residence without any mixture of error or darkness, or any thing that can hurt or destroy. Then another thing that is added from the other passage we alluded to is, that it is the place of God's glory. There it was said : " Look down and behold us from Thy holy habitation.'" Here it is said, " Look down from the habitation of Thy holiness, and of Thy glory. 1 " God has His center of glory just as the sun has its center of light. Some people can hardly understand how it is that a personal God can fill the whole world with His presence. It is no more mysterious than it is that the bright sun, having a center, can send out radiant light to the very ends of the earth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God. And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God. Acts vii, 55, 56. Here we find man looking up. God looks down, man always looks up. He has nowhere else to look when he is in the pursuit of holiness. He may be groveling in the darkness and sin of this world ; then he is always downward ; but just as surely as man's moral nature becomes toned and tempered by the Spirit of holiness, the whole tendency of his nature is to go up, and so much the more as he pro- 326 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. gresses in purity and the holiness of God. Now just see here ! Here was a man converted who walked about this earth, it is said, " filled with the Holy Ghost;" a man honored among his fellows for his Christian character ; thrown into scenes and experiences of persecution ; driven from pillar to post by those who would heap on him calumny and suffering ; by and by stoned to death ; and in the very midst of that experience, it is said that " he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stead- fastly " which I understand to be firmly, unflinch- ingly " into heaven." Then, to make it more explicit, we are told what he saw : " and saw the glory of God." There are but very few persons mentioned in the Bible who ever saw God's glory. What else did he see ? " And Jesus standing on the right hand of God." What a grand scene ! Two things, the glory of God, and Jesus standing on His right hand. And mark this : he saw them in heaven. Then it is said that he spoke and said : " Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God." Now I have given you these ideas, friends, to show you how possible it is for a human immortal being to have an attitude of holiness, and an attitude that draws him very near to heaven, even while he is on this earth. In my Father's house are many mansions : if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. John xiv, 2, 3. BIBLE BEADING. 327 Here is a most precious truth that Jesus teaches concerning the home of the saints. Now mark this : In the first place He says, " In my Father's house are many mansions." It seems as if he was going to draw the whole world right to heaven by way of Himself. Then what ? " If it were not so, I would have told you." He don't say I would have taken some method to have sent a ministry of some body else, but " J" would have told you this. " I go to prepare a place for you." Now you see by this that heaven is a place. We are also told that it is a pre- pared place, not a kind of a mythical, chaotic abode, where there are elements thrown together without calculation or arrangement. That is not all. We are told who prepared it. Angels did not do it. No human being did it. Jesus did it himself. He says : " I go to prepare a place for you." What else, then, is there here ! Precious thought ! " And if I go," that is just as surely as I go and prepare a place for you I will come again. I go, but I will come back. What is He coming back for ? Let us see. " I will come again and receive you unto my- self." Now do you see, my dear friends, the great object for which Jesus is coming back from the glory world. He is coming back to get His people. He has an errand ; a mission. He first came to save. The next time He comes He is not coming on a message of salvation ; He is "coming to take the dear ones, who have accepted eternal life, to the place that he has prepared for them. What 328 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. then? I judge that He wants company in glory. " That where I am, there ye may be also." Sometimes, when I see this, I wonder that the whole world does not turn to Christ and secure heaven, that they may be among those whom He will come for, and take to Himself, to " dwell for- ever with the Lord." But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. MattJtew vi, 20, 21. What is meant here by treasure ? There are but two kinds of treasures. One is of the earth, earthy ; the other of heaven, heavenly. In other words, the treasure that you have in your wife, your husband, your son, or your daughter, money, stores, farms, banks, any material thing in the physical or the material world, are all of the earth, earthy: they are perishable. The other kind of treasures are in the moral world, and partake of the holiness of God. Now Jesus comes to us and says : " Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt." I am lajdng up treasures in glory all the time, and I tell you, my friends, it is a very precious work to engage in ; molding, fashion- ing, preparing the moral natures of men to dwell for ever with Jesus in the realms of glory. But see how many people there are who are barely living for the pastimes of the flesh ; the bare worldly concerns and interests of this life they will all perish with usage. How deplorable ! BIBLE READING. 329 A friend visited a very wealthy farmer. He took him out. " Do you see all these broad acres ? These are all mine. Do you see all those flocks and herds ? They are all mine." He took him -over to the village. " All these blocks, and all these mansions and this vast wealth is mine, sir. I came to this place when I was a little boy, very poor ; I have made all this." The friend stopped a minute, then asked: "But what have you up there?" (pointing upward.) He hung his head a moment, " I confess; nothing," said he. "Is it possible," said the friend, " that a man of your discernment and judgment in accumulating should have done all this barely for the wealth that perishes, * where moth and rust cor- rupt, and thieves break through and steal;' and yet, have laid up no treasures there?" O think of it my friends ! and that man, a little while after, died a pauper. I don't mean that he had not plenty of farms when he died, and plenty of stocks, and moneyed wealth ; but I declare to you to-day, that any man, who, with that Bible laying before him makes such a stupendous miscalculation, and carries it through life, is the greatest pauper the world ever knew. Sad is the picture I That kind of life passes away. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, the moral wealth, the soul wealth which will never fade or die. Turn now to John iii, 3 : Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God. 330 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. The idea which I want you to get here, my dear friends, is this: No person will ever enter heaven, that place prepared for the saints, unless he is born again. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it ; for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it; and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it. Rev. xxi, 23, 24. Another grand thought. There will be no need of the sun nor the moon to light it ; for the glory of God shall light it. Oh for a dwelling place where all the light is the glory of God ? Another thing here " the nations." It does not talk much as if there were but few inhabitants who are going to dwell in that place. " The nations of them which are saved," mark the language " shall walk in the light of it." Only the saved ones will be there, and they will be counted by nations, " and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it." Then the kings of the European nations, and the men and women who are called great in this world ; whom we look upon as illustri- ous persons, will all be in common with the smallest of the earth, and their glory, and illustrious names, and worth will all be swallowed up in the light of God, the glory of that heaven to which you and I hasten. And there shall be no more curse : but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it ; and his servants shall serve him : BIBLE BEADING. 331 And they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads. Rev.~xxu, 3, 4. I want to call your attention to two or three thoughts here. First it is said : " They shall reign." It is the idea of a king reigning on his throne. In another part of God's Word we are told, that we shall sit with Jesus on His throne. Then, it is said, in this third verse : " There shall be no more curse." You know here we are plagued all the time with the curses of this earth. They will all be gone. Then again: " His servants shall serve Him ;" the idea of service is glory. Some people have an idea that there will be no service there. I have no such idea of heaven as that. There will be plenty of employ- ment in glory, and to all eternity our time will be constantly employed in such service as the great King shall give us. Now we will see if we can find out what that service will be. I think I shall be able to point out at least two things this afternoon that you will have to do in glory. Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another : and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name. And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Malachi iii, 16, 17. We learn from this passage in the 16th verse, " Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another," that they talked. They had something to say, and they did it very often, too. What was 332 FROM EAETH TO HEAVEN. done with this talk. Let us see, "And the Lord hearkened and heard it," like a man just listening to something that intensely interests him "and a book of remembrance," think of that ! He brings in memory. I do not suppose there will be any thing in the heavenly world that will be more prominent than memory. Memory ! Do you know, my dear friend, what an engine you have in your memory, and did you ever think of it? A year or two ago, I was holding meetings in New Orleans, Louisiana; then in Mobile ; Montgomery, and in other parts of the South. Then I traveled to New York, and to Bosion, and into Michigan, and, to-day, such is the nature of my memory, I can visit New Orleans, Mobile and Montgomery ; travel back to New York and Boston, and to the State of Michigan reviewing my journey and labors before a man could speak ten words. And I should not be surprised, to-day, if I am talking to some body who has been to London ; and if so, you can cross the Atlantic Ocean, three thousand miles, travel the streets of London, and be back in this room before I could speak a dozen words. Such is the nature of your memory. And that is the kind of engine, and power, and faculty that we shall carry with us to heaven. It is the grand center of our immortality. Then what? And the "book of remembrance was written." Written where ? " Be- fore Him for them." Mark the language. God would not let an angel superintend that book. It is done " before Him:' For whom ? " For them" (He does not need any book. His mind is one vast, BIBLE READING. 333 eternal record of all knowledge.) " That feared the Lord and spake often to one another;" "and that thought upon his name." Why, rny friend, the very thoughts are going into that book! And my im- pression is that eternity will be filled up with the vast review of the record of this life. We will be able to scan the results of our lives. Take an illu^- tration : John Bunyan was twelve years in Bedford jail. I have eleven choice volumes of his works in my library. How often we look upon that Pilgrim's Progress that has been translated into many lan- guages, and has turned thousands to Christ. I im- agine John Bunyan will have all he will want to do throughout eternity, to look over the record of the results of the great work he did in writing that book. I expect to live over all the gospel meet- ings I have held. Sometimes the people ask me, " Are you not going to make a record book of your work?" "I can not do it. I have not a record as big as my hand. Sometimes the people chide me because I do not keep a record of my life. Time enough for me to read that record up there. I have no time to stop here, and review and count up num- bers, and enumerate this that and the other labor. No, no ! It is enough for me to work on, and by and by we will have a record that God has kept better than any that man can keep. Now there is another thing we are going to have there. " And they shall be mine." Who? These that " spake often one to another." When are they going to be His ? " They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day 334 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. when I make up My jewels, and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God, and him that serveth Him not." Now we will leave the employment for a little while. And it carne to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. Luke xvi, 22. The idea here is, carried to the better land. Now do you see, my dear friends, that God employs angels to carry His saints to glory, when they die. How I do love that precious hymn : My latest sun is sinking fast, My race is nearly run ; My strongest trials now are past My triumph is begun. I've almost gained my heavenly home, My spirit loudly sings ; The holy ones, behold they come ! I hear the noise of wings. O, come, angel band, Come and around me stand, O bear me away on your snowy wings To my immortal home. The angels, then, bear us away. The angels that take care of us on this earth, while saints of the Most High, candidates for glory, are not going to leave us when we go down to the gates of death. Now you know, my friend, how you are going to get up there by and by. The soul will be carried by the BIBLE BEADING. 335 very agency that Christ has appointed for this work. How many times people say to me: "Mr. Graves, can you tell us why it is that when a saint is dying they frequently say ' O the angels have come ; don't you see them ? ' ' Yes, I can. It is God's appointed way, and their perceptions are quickened. I can not see the angels to-day, of course, as I will see them just as I enter the heavenly land. When the saints pass away, the angels take their souls and they are "carried by the angels." I do not expect to want any wings for my soul to fly away on, for the angels will bear away every saint that passes from this to the better land. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew viii, 11. I think that this means recognition of friends in glory. I expect to sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and to know them. I have not any doubt but that the Sons of God who will come there and sit down in the kingdom of heaven with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, will know them. I believe we shall have the recognition in glory of all the saints that have gone before. I have a dear wife there ; a dear child ; a dear father ; and mother, and sisters, and brothers, and loved friends. I do not expect to know them in any kind of natural affection at all, but in a hoty affection ; the new life ; the new nature in Christ I heard of a minister once who preached a sermo / on the recognition of friends in heaven. He came down the aisle, and a lady put out her hand and 336 PROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. said : " Sir, I thank you very much for that sermon. Now I wish you would preach a sermon on the recognition of friends on earth, for I have been attending church here three years, and nobody has spoken to me. I think it would be well to practice a little recognition here, in anticipation of the recog- nitions we may have in the better land." But when Jesus saw it, He was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto Me. and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the king- dom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. Mark x, 14, 15. Here is a precious thought, then, that Jesus recog- nizes with us the idea of children in glory. The idea is clearly taught here. Some people have a great deal of trouble about whether little children are saved ; and especially on the subject of bap- tism. I have seen people run with all their might after a minister to baptize a baby, because they thought it was going to die, and would not be saved unless it was baptized. Now, I am not prepared to tell you by any teaching of the Scripture how a child gets into glory ; but I am prepared to say to you that baptizing a child with water don't put it there. There is not a syllable in the teachings of the Lord which indicates that water ever takes away sin. The child is " conceived in sin and born in iniquity." That sin must be taken away ; that child must have a transformed nature to make it holy. There is another teaching in the Bible that gives me an assurance in my heart that the little child is saved. BIBLE READING. 837 and that is, the blood of Jesus takes away sin. I believe that this one great remedy is applied to the little child as much -as it is. to me. While it is applied to me through repentance and faith, with the little child it is applied without that in the great provision of God. But here is my assurance that the little child gets into heaven, and I am ready to comfort any father or mother with it ; just as surely as the child passes away, " Of such is the kingdom of heaven." I have a darling child in the Better Land. My heart to-day is made glad when I hear my Lord say, " Let the little children come," and I am glad He has put in that word " little; " the very smallest ; for " of such is the kingdom of heaven." That is not all. Except a man become as a little child, he shall never enter there. God help us all to be childlike in our trust with the Lord Jesus Christ. How desolate your homes were made, when you put your little one in the coffin. It seemed as if the very last jewel of earth had gone. But we shall meet them again. They have gone to this heaven where you and I are going, and I am so glad, to-day, that I can talk to you about this " Better Land," and all these blessed gems of truth that point us to where God resides; the place that Jesus has prepared for us. One father had a little child, and she died, and it seemed as if he would die too. When he got back from the cemetery he walked the floor, and cried out : " She will never call me father again ! " " Stop," said the minister ; " give your heart to Jesus ; lay up your treasure in heaven, an^ U f -tlfl 338 FiiOM EARTH TO HEAVEN. Josephine may be the very first to meet you on the threshold of the heavenly world, when you shall pass away." And so I expect that dear ones will be ready to meet you and me without the loss of one who has died in the Lord. " Of such is the king- dom of heaven," says Jesus. Now, we want to take a few thoughts more, and then I shall stop. Turn to Revelations vii, 9 : After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed - T ith white robes, and palms in their hands. Here is the great family of Jesus Christ, and John, the Revelator, on the Isle of Pzftmos, after he had witnessed some great scenes, says : " After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number." Think of that! Send your boy to school as long as you please ; perfect yourself in the highest attainments of mathematical calculation ; and I will give you one problem you never can work out : you can never tell how many there are in the family of Jesus Christ. Then it is said here : " Of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands." This ought to be encouraging to all the missionary enterprises. We are told that every nation of the earth will be represented. This great family will all be gathered up from the various nations. Then in the 14th verse, where John had a conversation with one of the elders, we read : BIBLE READING. 339 And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Mark that. Not one person who has passed into that better land will come easily there. All will come through great tribulations, sadness and sorrow ; but they will come with the great victories of grace and the blood of Jesus. And they sung a new song, saying : Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof : for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation. And hast made us unto our God kings and priests : and we shall reign on the earth. Revelations v, 9, 10. Here is another part of the employment which will occupy the time of the saints in heaven. They will sing there. There will be a great universal choir, and congregational singing, and all this vast throng will lift up before God their voices in praise, and the new song will be sung by hearts all attuned to it ; and the heavenly arches will ring eternally with this glorious employment. We will close with one more passage : Notwithstanding, in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you ; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven. Luke x, 20. These Christians had been out holding some Gos- pel meetings, and they had very great success. When they returned they were very happy and cried out to Jesus, " We have had a glorious time ; the very devils were subject unto us." I suppose they had a halo of glory all over their countenances, and 840 FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN. their hearts leaped with gladness because so many had been converted, and God had poured such showers of blessing upon their labors. What did Jesus say? "In this rejoice not." Don't go to rejoicing over what you have done. But can we not be happy ? Yes, but rejoice that your names are in "the book of life." Really there can be nothing more satisfying to the soul than this. Here is the strong foundation of usefulness. To be adopted into Christ's family by a change of heart is the grand center of fitness to work to save souls in revivals or any where else. And it is of this most important of all things that Jesus speaks, when He says " rather rejoice that your names are written in heaven." God informs us that there will be a day when the books will be opened, and all whose names are not found written therein will be cast into darkness for ever. How unspeakably happy then will be those whose names are written in the book of life. Heaven will be theirs for ever and ever. Husbands and wives, parents and children, sisters and brothers, friends and neighbors, the rich and poor, the bond and free, kings and subjects, will be interested in this vital matter as never before. They will want to know whether their names are there. What a scene will then be witnessed by God, angels and men. Every person who has consecrated his all to Christ and is saved, will be found in the book. Faithful pastors will come with their flocks. Earnest evangelists will appear with their converts. Self-denying missionaries will come with their saved BIBLE READING. 341 ones from heathen lands. Sunday school superin- tendents and teachers will be seen with their scholars. Editors and publishers will be present with their saved readers to find their names enrolled in the army of the Lord. May every member of this great congregation be found at last with the blood-washed throng whose names are written in heaven. Beautiful heaven, where all is light, Beautiful aiigels, clothed in white; Beautiful strains that never tire, Beautiful harps through all the choir. There shall I join the chorus sweet Worshiping at the Savior's feet Beautiful crowns on every brow, Beautiful palms the conquerors show; Beautiful rones the ransomed wear, Beautiful all who enter there: Thither I press with eager feet, There shall my rest be long and sweet Beautiful throne for Christ our King, Beautiful songs the angels sing; Beautiful rest all wanderings cease Beautiful home of perfect peace: There shall my eyes the Savior see, Haste to His heavenly home with me. It is written, " Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. ' THE END.