"We don"t want you. We won"t let you in."
"How are you going to keep me out?" I asked. "There is the invitation."
"We will put a policeman at the door."
"What is the policeman going to do with that invitation?"
"We won"t let you in."
"Well," I said, "I will be there."
I gave them a good scare, and then I said, "I will compromise the matter; if you two men will get down here and let me pray with you, I will let you off."
I got those two rum-sellers down on their knees, one on one side of me and the other on the other side, and I prayed G.o.d to save their souls and smite their business. One of them had a Christian mother, and he seemed to have some conscience left. After I had prayed, I said:
"How can you do this business? How can you throw this place open to ruin the young men of Chicago?"
Within three months the whole thing smashed up, and one of them was converted shortly after. I have never been invited to a saloon since.
"Too Late!"
At our church in Chicago I was closing the meeting one day, when a young soldier got up and entreated the people to decide for Christ at once. He said he had just come from a dark scene. A comrade of his, who had enlisted with him, had a father who was always entreating him to become a Christian, and in reply he always said he would when the war was over. At last he was wounded, and was put into the hospital, but got worse, and was gradually sinking. One day, a few hours before he died, a letter came from his sister, but he was too far gone to read it. It was such an earnest letter! The comrade read it to him, but he did not seem to understand it, he was so weak, till it came to the last sentence, which said:
"Oh, my dear brother, when you get this letter, will you not accept your sister"s Savior?"
The dying man sprang up from his cot, and said, "What do you say? what do you say?" And then, falling back on his pillow, feebly exclaimed, "_It is too late! It is too late!_"
My dear friends, thank G.o.d it is not _too late_ for you to-day. The Master is still calling you. Let every one of us, young and old, rich and poor, come to Christ at once, and He will put all our sins away.
Don"t wait any longer for feeling, but obey at once. You can believe, you can trust, you can lay hold on eternal life, if you will. Will you not do it now?
TOPICAL INDEX
a.s.surance, 44 Atonement, 8, 30, 98 Attention, 43
Backslider, 17, 22 Balaam"s a.s.s, 102 Bible, 9, 10, 15, 16, 22, 29, 34, 44, 80, 84, 102, 108 Breath from G.o.d, 35
Child, As a, 49 Choice, 98 Christ, as Burden-Bearer, 120; for all, 73; seeking the lost, 86; coming of, 67, 85; in the Bible, 31 "Come," 46 Communion with Christ, 21, 65, 84, 103 Confessing Christ, 26, 27, 35, 52, 77, 109 Conversion, 25, 80, 88 Conviction, 21 Courage, 20 Covetousness, 27, 35, 51 Crazy from sin, 89 Criticising the sermon, 106 Cross of Christ, 31
Death, 18, 24, 107, 118 Decision, 10, 61, 62, 93, 122 Don"t Worry Clubs, 31 Doubts, 36, 109, 116 Doves, Legend about, 42 Drawing a comparison, 42
Election, 107 Eternity, 81
Faith, 12, 14, 23, 55, 109 Finding the thirsty, 57
Giving, 23, 35 Grace, 20
Habit, 83 Heaven, 14, 62, 87 "Hitch on" and "Cut behind," 104 Holy Spirit, 20, 35, 75 Home Religion, 76, 85 Honey-dew, 37
Illuminated Christians, 26 Indwelling Christ, 31 Infidel books, 18 Is your soul insured? 100
Joy, 94
Keeping, 8, 76, 99, 104
Law, 72 Liberty, 13 Look to Christ, 43 Love, 33, 69
Memory, 101 Money, 33, 95 Murder, 67, 95
Need, 45 Neglecting church, 53 No difference, 40 "Not for you," 67
Obedience, 56, 91 Opportunity, 78, 79 Oratorical preaching, 53
Parables, Making, 58 Parents, 19, 32, 40, 50, 51, 58, 59 Peace, 9, 16, 23 Pendulum, Lady, 7 Personal religion, 38 Prayer, 68 Pride, 76 Promises, 63, 68, 99
Repentance, 45 Rest.i.tution, 71 Resurrection, 64 Revivals, 79 Rich husband, 93
Saloon opening, 120 Salvation, 8, 38, 82, 86, 93 Scarlet thread, 31 Sealed for redemption, 27 Separation, 69, 102, 118 Sin, 118, 119 Sinner"s heart, 97 Sowing and reaping, 48, 63, 82, 87 Small beginnings, 64 Starting right, 73 Stealing, 35, 67 Subst.i.tution, 74 Sunday, 55, 60, 100 Swearing, 90
Temptation, 27, 77, 78, 85, 98 Theatre, 38, 111 Time to think, 86 Trial, 28 Trust, 8, 11, 46
Unbelief, 55, 56 Unity, 83 Use or lose, 118
Watching, 85 Work, 15, 24, 34, 48, 97, 106, 108, 114 Will, 39, 57, 66
PSALM 23.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name"s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.