The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1896, Page 29

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

A MI

SSIONARY

MONTHLY.

PusuisHep By THE EvancenicaL Lurueran Synopicat ConreRENCE OF NortH AMERICA.

R. A. BISCHOFF, Editor.

Entered at the Post Oflice at St. Lonis, Mo., as second-class matter.

Be Still.

Dear troubled soul, be still, be still,
God knoweth best;

Calmly accept His loving will,
So cometh rest.

His purposes thou canst not see,
Tis thine to trust;

He never will unmindful be
That thou art dust.

Thy trial shall but spell His love
In lines of light;

The darkest providence shall prove
An angel bright.

He with His own hath ever stood,
To shield from ill,
For He is God, and God is good;

All hail His will!
Selected.

—>- oa oe

The Guide-Post.

Perhaps you have already seen a guide-post

and know its use. There it stands at the cross-
roads, with its arms pointing different direc-
tions, and the needed information painted on
them. How convenient to the traveler who
wishes to know which road to take! He looks
up, reads, and passes on with a light heart.
The guide-post points the way, the traveler
follows the road pointed out, and finds him-
self in the course of time at his destination.

We all are travelers—travelers to eternity.
But there are two places in eternity — heaven
and hell. And there are two roads, of which
the one leads to heaven and the other to hell.
On which road are you? We need not be in
ignorance of whither we are going. God has
set up His guide-posts, so that we may not in
any wise mistake our way. Here is one of the
guide-posts. Read it:

“Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is
the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth
to destruction, and many there be which go
in thereat: because, strait is the gate, and
narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life,
and few there be that find it,’’? Matth. 7,
18, 14. ©

This guide-post calls your attention to the
two roads. Where are you? On the broad
toad which leads to destruction, or on the nar-

St. Louis, Mo., August, 1896.

row way which leads to life? On one or the
other you are most certainly traveling. Every
breath you draw brings you nearer to ever-
lasting glory or eternal misery.

One of these roads has a wide gate, and
many there be which go in thereat. The road
is broad—plenty of room—souls are born in
it, live in.it, die init. It is a large road and
holds many, and in it are attractions to suit
all as they pass along, according to their vari-
ous tastes. Attractions pleasing to the flesh
of those that live in sin and of those that live
in self-righteousness. All kinds of pleasures
and attractions — it matters not, so long as
Satan gets souls to the end of that broad road.
Beware, lest you be one of. those whom he is
beguiling. The broad road is the road to hell.
In it all those travel that live in sin or in self-
righteousness—in short, all that reject the
Saviour. It is the road of unbelief. ‘‘He that
believeth not is condemned.”

The other road is the road to heaven. Its
gate is strait, the road is narrow; but it leads
to life, and few there be that find it. Have
you found it? Have you passed in at the
strait gate, and are you upon the narrow way
that leads to life everlasting? Which is the
gate, and how do we pass through on the nar-
row way? Christ says: ‘‘I am the door: by
me if any man enter in, he shall be saved,”
John 10, 9. As there is salvation in no other
than in Christ, and as there is no other name
under heaven given among men whereby: we
must be saved, than the name of Jesus, so
there is only one entrance to everlasting life
—Jesus, the Saviour of sinners. ‘‘I am the
door,’? says He. Not one of the doors, but
the door, the only door. He is the door for
all sinners, for He shed His blood for all and
redeemed all from sin and eternal woe. How
can you pass through this door on the narrow
way to everlasting life? By faith. ‘He that
believeth is saved.’”? The moment the poor
sinner, convinced of-his sin and guilt, trusts
in Christ as his Saviour, he is on the narrow
road that leads to heaven. Do you see why
there are so few that find the narrow way?
Most men reject the Saviour. They prefer
the pleasures of sin to the joys of heaven and
do not want to be saved from sin. Or they

No. 8.

try to save themselves by their own works and
their own righteousness, and reject the grace
and merits of Jesus offered to them in the
Gospel. The gate is strait and the road is
narrow that leads to heaven. There is plenty
of room for you to get through, but no room
to take anything with you; every rag of your
own righteousness must be stripped off, and
if you enter the strait gate it must be as a lost
and guilty sinner trusting in Jesus only.

Just as thou art, without one trace

Of merit or of self-earned grace,

Or meetness for the heavenly place,
O, guilty sinner, come!

Burdened with guilt, wouldst thou be.blest?

Trust not the world, it gives no rest;

Christ-brings relief to hearts oppressed —
O, weary sinner come!

——-— oo

Prayer for Missions.

: Prayer is the most important help in mis-
sions, and therefore every Christian should
pray, earnestly pray for our missions. Prayer
is the mainspring of all missionary work.
Christian missions are born, cradled, live,
grow, and work in prayer. But for the power
of prayer missions would scarcely yet have
entered any. field; but for the power of prayer
the missionaries would have speedily to leave
them. It is in answer to prayer that men aré
given; it is in answer to prayer that money
is given; it is in answer to prayer that upon
the expenditure of the money and the labor
of the men, the blessing of God descends.
That the Church’s work of witness may be
discharged God calls for consecrated prayer,
for the prayers of His children. Christians,
pray for our mission work!

——- a

Working Cheap.

‘What does Satan pay you for swearing ?””
asked a man of a swearing boy- ;

‘tNothing,’’ was his answer.

“Well,” said the man, ‘‘you work cheap.
To lay off the character of a gentleman, to
give so much pain to your friends and all civil
folks, to wound your conscience and risk your
soul, and all for nothing, you certainly do
work.cheap—very cheap indeed.””—Ez.

Pere Pair t Weta eke Cred tt De as nae