The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1892, Page 25

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

A MISSIONARY MONTHLY.

PUBLISHED BY THE EVANGELICAL Lurueran SynopicaL ConrerENCE oF NortH AMERICA.
R. A. BISCHOFF, Editor.

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

‘Vol. XIV. St. Louis, Mo., July, 1892. No. 7.

Delay Not. day until death grasped them and dragged
them into an eternity of woe.

A pastor relates that on a cold and stormy
night he was called to visit a dying man. It
was not long before he came to the street and
the house that had been pointed out, and was
taken;to an upper room. <A man not more
than twenty-five years of age was there gasp-
ing for breath. The clammy sweat was on his
face, his eyes were rolling wildly, and it could
be clearly seen that he had only a few minutes
to live.

The pastor took the hand, which felt like
the hand of a corpse, in his own, and said,
‘My friend, you are dying, and I have come
to tell you of Jesus.”’ ‘‘Too late! too late!”
hoarsely whispered the sufferer. ‘‘I was at
your church last Sunday night, and was deeply
impressed by the sermon. I knew I was a
sinner and needed salvation, but as I went
home I thought I was young, and had just
started into business, and made up my mind
that I would put off the subject a few years.
Now I am dying, and I have sent for you, not
to talk to me, but to pray that my wife and
child may not go to the world of woe I am
about to enter.”

The pastor told him that it was Satan’s voice
which whispered to him: ‘Too late.”” But
in vain was the dying man told of the dying
thief, of the blood that cleanseth from all sin,
of the grace that saves the chief of sinners, of
the call of love sounding out at the eleventh
hour. ‘The only answer was a groan of de-
spair, and in a little while, lifting his hand as
if waving back the shadows, the dying man
murmered: ‘Last Sunday night! Last Sun-
day night!”? He then moved his head on the
pillow, the death rattle was heard in his throat, | lady trying to teach a very little boy geography
and he was gone. the other day. She said:

Alas for the tricks and wiles of Satan, the| ‘‘How do you know the world is round ?””
great enemy of our souls! Whensinnershear) ‘‘Oh, because I have been told so.””
the Gospel call, then Satan paints sinand the} ‘But how do you- know you were told
sinful pleasures of the world in bright and| aright?”
beautiful colors, and whispers in their ears:| ‘‘My Aunt Maggie told me, and she never
“Time enough!’? And when conscience, per-| tells lies.”” :
haps on their dying-bed, is aroused, then he} I thought—“‘This is just the way we know
tells sinners that their sins are too many and| anything about heaven, or the way to get
too great, and that there is no grace for them, | there; we have been told so; God has told
and whispers in their ears: ‘‘Too late! too] us, and He never tells lies.”” -

late !’’—Dear reader, beware of the wiles and
tricks of Satan! Do not listen to the devil’s
voice, but heed the voice of the true and _mer-
ciful God: ‘‘Behold, now is the accepted
time; behold, now is the day of salvation,’’
(2 Cor. 6, 2); ‘*To-Day if ye will hear His
voice, harden not your hearts,’’ (Hebr. 3, 7).

Delay not, delay not, O sinner draw near,
The waters of Life are now flowing for thee:
No price is demanded, the Savior is here;
Redemption is purchased, salvation is frec.

Delay not, delay not, why longer abuse
The love and compassion of Jesus, thy God?
A fountain is opened; how canst thou refuse
To wash and be cleansed in His pardoning blood?

9

Value of One Leaf.

Delay not, delay not, the spirit of grace,

Long grieved and resisted, may take his sad flight,
And leave thee in darkness to finish thy race,

To sink in the vale of eternity’s night.

There was once a caravan crossing, I think,
the north of India, and numbering in its com-
pany a godly and devout missionary. As it
passed along, a poor old man was overcome
by the heat and labors of the journey, and
sinking down was left to perish on the road.
The missionary saw him, and kneeling down
at his side whispered into his ear, ‘‘Brother,
what is your hope?’”’ The dying man raised.
himself a little to reply, and with great effort
succeeded in answering, ‘‘The blood of Jesus
Christ cleanseth from all sin;’’ and immedi-
ately expired with the effort. The missionary
was astonished at the answer; and in the calm
and peaceful appearance of the man he felt
assured he had died in Christ. Presently he
observed a piece of paper grasped tightly in
the hand of the corpse, which he succeeded in
getting‘out. Great was his surprise and de-
light when he found it was a single leaf of the
Bible, containing the first chapter of the First
Epistle of John, in which these words occur.
On that page he had found the gospel.

Selected.

———. +o e+ =

Now is the Accepted Time.

‘There is an old saying that the devil once
held a council of demons to talk about the best
way of bringing men into hell. One said that
he would go about and tell men that there is
no God, another that there is no hereafter,
another that there is no Christ, another that
thereisnosin. At last one said that he would
go through the world and whisper in men’s
ears: ‘“Time enough.’’ At this the prince of
darkness laughed and said, ‘‘Go thy way, and
thou shalt succeed better than all my hosts.”’

This is but an old saying; it, however,
teaches a solemn truth. Among the readers
and hearers of God’s word Satan wins many
souls by whispering to them: Time enough!
He wins many souls by moving them to put
off their conversion to some future time. How
many of those that have heard the Gospel die
unbelieving and are therefore damned! For
it is plainly written, ‘‘He that believeth not
shall be damned’? (Mark 16, 16); ‘‘and he
that believeth not the Son shall not see life ; but
the wrath of God abideth on him’’ John 3, 36).
Many who thus die in their sins did not expect
to leave this world without faith in Christ.
They did not intend to neglect to the very end
the sacrifice which Christ made for sin. They
were often ‘‘almost persuaded ;’’ but they
never got beyond the almost. They wished
to enjoy this or that sinful pleasure, to trans-
act this or that worldly business before they
would yield to the pleading of the Holy Spirit.
So they put off their conversion from day. to

0 oe oe

Faith.

My story is about faith. I heard a young