SUNDAY READING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIII, Issue 7650, 29 May 1886, Page 4 (Supplement)

SUNDAY READING.

« GRIPPING AND SLIPPING. SCENES IN THE LIFE OK A PRIVATE SOLDIER. Looking into my room one afternoon, an officer's servant told me that he thought Private Schofield wished to see me. "And who is Private Schofield ?" "Why, that recruit who, on his first payday, when the men asked him to accompany them to the canteen, told them that he had never tasted drink in his life, aud never would. Have you not heard of him." "I have not. Does he belong to your company "He does; and No , 8 never owned a better man. In his room they call him ono of the ' holy boys,' but I don't think he belongs to that squad yet, though I dareeay he i 3 looking that way." " What makes you think so ?" " ell, I know he hates swearing; end that sort of thing ; aud last night, when someone spoke of you as a 'cheat-thumper,' he at once said ha would like to have a talk with you. Shall I send him down ?" " You may. In a few minutes I shall be going as far as the firing range; tell him to dress and come with me." On our way to the range, Private Schofield and I talked of matters chiefly connected with soldiering, but, when we had reached a secluded spot, and were seated, I inquired if he had anything particular he wished to say to me. "They call you a 'chest-thumper,'" he replied, "anil 1 have bean long enough in the regiment to know that ' cheat-thumper' is slang for Christian. .Now, I am not a Christian, but wish to become one, and it occurred to me that a conversation with you might , help me." "I hopo you will not be disappointed, my young friend, though, perhaps I am not the bent ' chest-thumper' you could apply to. But, before wo proceed, let Uβ kneel down and ask God's guidance." Here we uncovered, knelt down on the grasa, and asked the great Wisdom-giver to be with us. ".May I ask," said I, after being reseated " what has led you to think of becoming a Christian? ,, " The explanation is this : I have been well brought up. and the filthy language of the barrack-room is almost moro than 1 can stand. 1 know that the non-commissioned oflieer in charge ought to put a et >p to it, but, unfortunately, so far as 1 can see, he enjoys it. Now, I fee! that one of two thinps must take place, if I am to remain a soldier : I must either co down to the level of my comrades and speak and act as they do, or, in order to be able to hear what 1 complain of, I must become a real Christian." " Ifavo you made any effort to become a Christian?" "I have." "What have you done? "I have prayed." " And lias your praying been of service to you?" ''I am afraid not." " Have you tried anything else ?" " Yes ; I have repented." "And has your repentance helped you at all?" " Not that lam aware of. Indeed, I seem to be further from the right thing than ever I was," "It appears, then, that your praying has failed, and that your repentance has failed. I fas any other course been suggested?" " Yes ; I was told one night in the Soldier's Home that I had nothing to do but believe, and 1 am sure I have done that." "And lias your believing given you any relief?" "It ban not." "Have you tried anything else?" " What else is there to try ?'' " Wore there nothing else, you mist see at a glance that your case would be hopeless ; for everything you speak of has, according to your own showing, been of no use. Answer ire this one question, and think before doing no : Have you ever honestly tried Christ ?'' " Have—l—ever— honestly—tried—Christ ?" "Such is the question I wish you to answer. Now, take time to it." " Have— I—ever - honestly - tried — Christ ? That question was never put to me before, and 1 am inclined to think that I have been trying to pray, and repent, and believe, without any reference to Christ at all." " That is just what I think you have besn doing. I did so myself for a considerable time, and there are few serious inquirers who have not made the samu blunder. In the first verso of the fifth chapter of Romans wo read of a Christian possession called 'peace with God.' Do you know anything ot this peace?" "I do not. The thought of God tills me with terror instead of pence ?" " There must be a reason for that, Why should the thought of God fill you with terror ?" "Because I am a sinner. When I think of my sins and then of the proapret of meeting God, I am overwhelmed with fear." "Bat what ia it you fear?" "Punishment, I suppose. Aii sin deserves punishment, and sins against light such as I have been guilty of must merit punishment of the Be\eivsi kind." "Do you believe that Jesus died for sinners?"' " Yes," " Do you believe that Jesus died for those who have sinned against the clearest light " lie must have done bo." " Do yen believe that when Jesua was on the cross He was thinking of you?' "Thinking of me!" "Yog; thinking of you." "That never struck mo before; but, as I am one of the signers for whom Ho died, He must have been thinking of mo. The thought is new to me, but it must be true." "Has it ever occurred to you that when Jesus was on the cross, and thinking about you, He resolved, rather than want your company in Heaven, to hoar the penalty or punishment which your sins, great and small, hs.ve merited? , ' "I h ivo not thought of th nutter in that way ; yet it seems reasonable." " Well, then, if Jesus has bonio the penalty of your sins, why, in view of meeting Go;i, should you be afraid of that penalty ? According to Paul, Jesus, the Innocent, was made to be sin for \ou, that you - the guilty—might be made tire righteousness of God in Him; or, in other words, Jesus has been treated as if He hid been guilty that you might be treated as if you were righteous. He thus takes your s;n with its consequences that you may have the benefit of His righteousness, and all that His righteousness merits. Will you promise to ponder over that view of the V " I will." "Then, as I have something to do on the range, you may now go back to the camp, but, before we separate, let us again kneel down and pray." Again we uncovered, and bowed before the Heavenly Father, whose ear was not deaf to Our cry. That night, or rather, I should aay, early next morning, Private Schofield was made free. "I pondered," he said, "over Jesus aH my .Sin-bearer, and, as I pondeied, the light broke in upon' me. Iα my thoughts I was at tho cross, and, as I looked up, 1 could say with confidence, 'Jesus loved me and gave Himself for me;' and when from the cross I looked forward to the judgment, and remembered that the Judge 'loved me, and gave Himself tor me, , the'tear with which I had been torment left me. Jesus took my sin, and 1 get His righteousness. Precious Gotpiil 1" A few weeks after his conversion, Schofield and 1 separated, but in lesn than twelve months we met again in a soldier's prayerroom in India. I shall never forget that night. A civilian living at the station had delivered an address, and then camo ueveral testimonies. "Do you think," whispered Scbofield, " that I would be considered presumptuous if I spoke?" "Certainly not, brother," I replied. "By ail means tell us how you have been getting on since we parted." Then, rising to his feet, he spoko as follows :—" Comrades, I cannot tell you how thankful I aui that there is a prayerroom here. There is no such place for our soldier friends at home. lam thankful also to find so many believers connected with this battalion ; but, as I listened to the speakers I felt convinced that some of you, at least* ate in the condition I was in up to a few days before we embarked. I was happy one day, and miserable the next. I had no doubt of my conversion, no doubt that God had forgiven me on tho ground of Christ's atonement, but my experience was n?ost unsatisfactory. Meeting with a Christian lady one day, I opened up my mind to her, and during our conversation 1 was convinced that I had boon looking too exclusively at my relation to God, and so far forgetting Hie relation to me. On my bed-cot that night I could not sleep, and begged deliverance from my chequered experience, aud, while I was praying, my Saviour appeared to me in a aort of waking dream. •Let me tell you,' Ho said, 'why you are hnppy one day and miserable the next You are always trying to take hold of My big, strong hand with your tiny, weak hand, and you grip and slip, grip and slip. When you grip, you are but when you

slip, you are the reverse. Come now, and put your weak hand within My ttrong hand, and let Me hold you. I knew at once what the Lord meant, and did what Hβ bade me. I gave up my hand to Him, and His strong, loving hand closed over it, and He has held me ever since, lam not now keeping Jesus ; He is keeping me. I am not now keeping my heart; Jesus stands eentry over it and keeps it for me. When trouble springs up I do not, as formerly, say, How shall I get over it ? but, How will Jesus get me over it ? and there is as much difference between the two experiences as there is between the two questions. My will is in Christ's keeping, and so long as this is the case He is responsible for me. Comrades, thore is no reason vhy any of us should be in the gripping and slipping condition, for nothing gives our Saviour greater pleasure than to have all the holding and keeping entrusted to Himself." MR. JOSEPH COOK'S BOSTON LECTURES. The first of the present series, reported fully in the New York Independent, was on "Saving Faith." In a fresh and brilliant way, Mr. Cook re traversed the ground with which he has made us familiar ; but, as the lecturer does not favour speculation in theology, that is not a matter of surprise Four ot his eighteen syllogistic propositions will indicate the bed rock on which his argument was based:—(G) "Salvation for man is permanent and perfect deliverance from both the love of sin and the guilt of it. (7) Perdition is permanent subjection to the Jove and guilt of sin and their consequences. (8) It is clear that when we are delivered from the love of sin we are not thereby delivered from the guilt of it. (9) Deliverance from the guilt of ein we cannot demand in justice ; if it is attained at all, it must come from grace." Saving faith Mr. Cook designated as " Confidence in God" and all that it implies. The prelude was on "Helps and Hindrances to Revivals." The supremo need of the day, said the lecturer, is the Chrictianisatiou of Christendom. He maintained that those churches which hold unevangelical views have been powerless in propagating spiritual force. "Nowhere are tiie systems of speculation producing revivals." He paid a warm tribute to the recent mission in America of Mr. Aitken, "whose system of thought and effort was in its details very nearly parallel to that of our great evangelist, Mr. Moody, whom may God bless in hie roving commission from side to side of tbe world." In the interlude Mr. Cook referred to the question of Home Rale in Ireland, which he favours on certain conditions. He thinks that probably the British Empire will become a federation on a plan resembling i that ef the American Constitution. "Let the sun never set on the prayers that humanity offers for the good of the empire on which the sun never sets." "GETTING UP" A REVIVAL. We need not say to our readers that we are out and out in favour of evangelists and evangelistic work in the churches. At the same time we are free to confess that there are a good many false notions and dependencies upon evangelists. There could be no greater mistake for churches or pastors to make thau to suppose that evangelists can bring a revival with them, or that the Church may secure a blessing in connection with an evangelist's work by turning away from woridliuees for a few days. '1 he great need of the Church to-day is to be found in au out and out separation of herself from the world ; in a real repentance and a, clearing of herself from the thousand and one entanglements and compromises which she has made. It is pitiful to see the weak ai'd spasmodic efforts that are everywhere being made to "get up revivals." For a few day* a small portion of the church will come together and pray, and, if tht-y can, get an evangelist to preach for them and call for inquirers. And then, when this spasm is over, with results more or lec3 unsatisfactory, they relapse into coldness, indifference, and worldline«s again. We would recommend to all such the third chapter of Jeremiah, and that each one for himself make inquiry whether he is backslidden in heart and life, or whether lie is truly and honestly, out and out, on the Lord's side.— Dr. U. F. Pentecost, OH, WHEREFORE DID I DOUBT ? "By Him all that bulieve are justified from all things, from which ye would not be justiticd by the luwof M ie ."—Acts xiii. 39. " On, wherefore did«t thou doubt?" Ah, wherefore, Lord ? I looked away from Thee, No longer trusting in Thy faithful Word, 'Ihy tender voice of lov,s no more 1 heard, And wild waves br.ke o'er me, ( And wherefore did I doubt? I saw Thee not, And curious looked within, Where 1 token laws of awful judgments toM The wrath of Go'!, and like a tempest rolled O'er the abyss of sin. Vainly I Btr ve to search Infinite leva, That waited but to blesc. How fur availed for me * Saviour's blood ? 1 fain hart measured with un enrthly rood Tim which Is moasureless ! Just then I saw On» walk the 'wheeling ware, 1 thought He'd i ah me by ; I ut no ! me m an bad reached His list'ning car, And moved Hie pity ; so I lost my fear And told my misery. lio KpaVco : ami then my heart lay hushed and still, Tho' reared til- tfunjieit wild. "I c me,' lie said, "to guard theo through the night, Not to upbraid, but make thy darkness light, And cbcer My faithless child. Thy Sauiour p»id thy ran?om ! Be at peace, 'Ihou eaiiit not count tho cost ; Gjd's love extendeth far beyond thy ken, And Ills free mercy, measured not by men Saves to the uttermost !" - Anni SniP7ON.