The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1880, Page 25

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Che Autheran Ptoneer.

A MISSIONARY MONTHLY.

PusiisuED BY THE EVANGELICAL LutuHERAN SyNODICAL CONFERENCE or NortH AMERICA.

Edited by Prof. R. A. BISCHOFF.

Entered at the Post Onlice at St. Louis, Mo., as second-class matter.

Vol. IL.

St. Louis

No. 7.

, Mo., September, 1880.

The Missionary’s Path.

Servant of Christ, stand fast amid the scorn

Of men who little know or love thy Lord;

Turn not aside from toil: cease not to warn,
Comfort, and teach. Trust Him for thy reward;
A few more moments’ suffering and then
Cometh sweet rest from all thy heart’s deep pain.

For grace pray much, for much thou needest grace;
If men thy work deride—what can they more?
Christ’s weary foot thy path on earth doth trace;
If thorns wound thee, they pierced Him before;
Press on, look up, though clouds may gather round;
Thy place of service He makes hallowed ground.

Have friends forsaken thee, and cast thy name
Out as a worthless thing? Take courage then:
Go, tell thy Master ; for they did the same

To Him, who once in patience toiled for them:
Yet He was perfect in all service here;

Thou oft hast failed: this maketh Him more dear.

Be wise, be watchful. Wily men surround
Thy path. Be careful, for they seek with care
To trip thee up. Sec that no plea be found

In thee thy Master to reproach. The snare
They set for thee will then themselves enclose,
And God His righteous judgment thus disclose.

Cleave to the poor, bring them the Gospel’s bliss;

Count it great honor, if they love thee well;

Naught can repay thee after losing this.

Though with the wise and wealthy thou shouldst
dwell,

Thy Master oftentimes would pass thy door,

To hold communion with His much-loved poor.

“The time is short’’: seek little here below;
Earth’s goods would cumber thee, and drag thee
down ;

Let daily food suflice; care not to know

Thought for to-morrow; it may never come.

Thou canst not perish, for thy Lord is nigh,

And His own care will all thy need supply.

(Selected.)

rE &

Rest for the Heavy Laden.

‘Come unto me, all ye that labor and are
heavy laden, and I will give you rest”? (Matt.
Ii, 28.). This is Christ’s gracious invitation to
the heavy laden. Who are those that labor
and are heavy laden? Not the self-righteous.
They have a great load of sin; but they do not
feel the burden of their sins. They think
themselves good enough and find their peace
and rest in their own righteousness. They rely

upon their so-called good works and their out-
wardly moral lives and do not see the rottenness
of their hearts. The curse of God is upon
them, but they feel no want of rest and will
not come to Jesus.

Then, again, those are not heavy laden that
can delight in sin. Sin is no burden to them,
but a pleasure. They laugh away all thoughts
of eternity. They go on in their sinful ways
as drunkards and as men that live according to
their sinful lusts. In those sinful ways they
find their joy, and feel no want of rest, and
will not come to Jesus.

Now, who are those that Jabor and are heavy
laden? Let me tell you. ‘They are those that
have come to the knowledge and sense of their
sin by the law of God. They know and feel
that they have transgressed every command-
ment of God. God’s holy law has laid open
unto them their sinful, corrupt heart; they
find nothing good in themselves, but rottenness
all over. ‘Their sins have become a burden,
a heavy burden unto them, and they know and
feel that the wrath and curse of a just and holy
God are upon them. They labor and are heavy
laden with this burden and cry out for relief
and for rest. They seem to be in a very un-
happy condition, do they not? Yes, and still
I wish, my dear reader, you were one of those
that labor and are heavy laden before you feel
the burden of God’s eternal wrath in hell where
no rest can be found. In the time of grace
there is rest for the heavy laden; for Christ
says, ‘‘Come unto me, all- ye that labor and
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
So come unto Him, that is, believe, trust in
Him as your Saviour; for He is ‘the Lamb of
God that taketh away the sins of the world,”
that taketh away your sins. And be not afraid
of coming because your burden is so heavy and
the load of your sins is so big. You are just
the one He invites to come. Suppose I pre-
pared a nice supper and invite every one whose
name is Jones, and a man would come to the
door and say, ‘‘I would like to come in, sir,
and enjoy that supper, but I can prove to you
that my name is Jones and that is the reason
why I’m afraid to come in.” I would tell that
man, ‘Why, my friend, that is the very reason
why you should come in. I don’t want you to

prove to me that your name is Smith, or Jack-
son, no, I invited every one whose name is
Jones.’’ So Christ does not want you to prove
your own goodness, and holiness, and righteous-
ness, no, He invites all heavy laden sinners.
So come unto Him with the heavy burden of
your sins, and He will give you rest. He says
so, and you may be sure that He will do what
He says. He will give you rest; for He is the
Saviour whose blood cleanses you from all your
sins, and the moment you believe in Him your
sins are all forgiven, and you have rest. You
may haye many troubles and cares in this
world, but by faith in your Saviour you will
always have peace for your heart and rest for
your couscience. And in your dying hour the
loving Jesus will take you to eternal rest in
heaven. Come unto Him, and He will give
you rest!

Jesus only can Save.

When a person dies at sea, the usual practice
is, to encase the corpse and attach heavy
weights to it, then drop it over the side of the
vessel. But the corpse, though carried down-
ward into the deeps of ocean, is utterly un-
conscious of its sinking state, though it con-
tinues to descend, till it touches the bottom.
So with the soul, which is spiritually dead: it is
continually descending, and being overwhelmed
with the burden of its sins, unconscious of its
destination, it is irresistibly carried downward.
It has a weight and a burden, which it can no
more cast off, than the corpse can disengage
itself from its sinking weights. Nothing but
the mighty hand of Jesus can arrest and rescue
the soul from its downward course to hell.

6 oo

Hatred of Sin.

The Holy Spirit makes us abhor sin as de-
testable and odious. No child of God, no heir
of heaven can love sin, or live in it. He groans
under it, and looks on the right hand, and on
the left, for a way of escape. As I never can

reconcile my flesh to allow a hot burning coal
to be applied to it; so, if I be a child of God,
I never. can be reconciled to the power of sin
‘in my soul.