Arizona Republican

TAKE A SAFE PATH

Responsibility of a father to His Children.

Mr. Moody Shows That the Father of All Has Shown His Children How to Walk.

The Moody meetings continued yesterday at O'Neill hall and were well attended. The chorus choir under the leadership of Professor Towner conducted the usual opening song service. Solos and a duet were sung by Mrs. William Moody and Professor Towner. Rev. Mr. Wyncoop and Mr. Hill offered prayer. Mr. Moody paid a very pleasing compliment to The Republican. He advised the people to read the report of the meetings in the morning paper. Some one from the audience asked what paper, and he replied in some surprise, "The Republican," as he didn't know there was any other.

Mr. Moody took for his text Gen. 7:1:

"And the Lord said unto Noah, 'Come, thou, and all thy house into the ark.'"

"You know when God speaks the best thing you and I can do is to listen. This is not a man-made text, but the Lord said it. One hundred and twenty years before this Noah had received a most awful communication-none so terrible had ever been received before that time and none since has been given so terrible as this one sent to Noah. God decreed that He would drown the world, and commanded Noah to build an ark of safety for himself and family. Noah knew he would be ridiculed as he worked away, and he was. The people made sport of him, and thought him mad, but he toiled on unmindful of their jests and jeers. If they had saloons in those days, and I suppose they had. I have no doubt they sang songs ridiculing poor old Noah. He was the target for many a rude joke and jest in the gambling houses and saloons. Then the atheist laughed at him. There are very few atheists-men who don't believe in any God at all. I once knew a Scotchman who was an atheist. and I said to him: 'With your belief how do you account for all the huge rocks?' 'Why. Moody, I'm ashamed of you. A man preaching and don't know that. Any school boy can tell you they are made from sand.' Well. then.' I asked. where did the sand come from?' Why, from the rocks.' was the reply. I knew another man in New Haven who didn't believe in any God. 'How. then do you account for creation?' 'Why,' said he, 'it is simply force and matter thrown together.' 'Isn't it strange. then, if that is the case. that your tongue doesn't happen to be on the top of your head or one arm stretching out straight behind? Look at my watch. If I tell you it made itself. will you believe it? And yet there are men who say there is no God, and men in Noah's time believed the same thing. They were not afraid of a hereafter or punishment and laughed at Noah.

"Then there is the deist who said 'that if God destroyed the world He would destroy himself with it and He wouldn't do that. Others argued that if a great flood came it might sweep the lowlands. but they would be safe on the hills and mountains. Then there was the astronomer who read the heavens. but saw no sign. and the geologist who studied the earth, but he found nothing to foretell the coming disaster. But there was another class who wouldn't believe Noah because he was in the minority and consequently must be wrong. Noah was in the minority then, but we find he swung around and was in the majority after awhile. That's an argument frequently brought against Christianity, that it has so few believers.

"And so these men laughed at Noah and made sport of him, but still he toiled on as God had commanded. I can imagine Noah leaving his work, and going out to preach to those people. but they only laughed at him and told him to go back and finish his ark. One hundred years passed and still no sign of a flood. Men bought and sold and got gain as before: the voice of the bride and bridegroom were heard as usual, and they planned wickedness beyond our conception.

"The sage said. 'Don't borrow trouble; the world will last.' And if they had theaters in those days. I imagine they would have a burlesque on Noah's ark. and men and women would point him out as a strange man with a queer look in his eye. Some one has said. 'Noah must have been deaf or he couldn't have stood all he heard.' But deaf or not he heard God when He told him to build the ark, and he heard His voice calling him to come into it and all his family. I don't know when the flood came. but one beautiful morning. as beautiful as you have here. with never a cloud in the sky. we see Noah leaving the old home where he had probably lived for a hundred years. and moving with his family into the ark. I have a great deal of respect for Noah. He must have lived a good life at home or his sons wouldn't have followed him. The people say. 'What's your hurry? You've lots of time. Wait awhile and don't leave a good home for that ark with only one window in it.' They laugh, but he pays no attention, for God has spoken. And after Noah and his family went into the ark God gave the seven days of grace and if they had repented then He would have spared them. On morning a black cloud appears. It is more dreadful than anything of the kind they had seen. and they begin to wonder what's coming. The wise men say, 'Don't be alarmed. If it is a storm we can flee to the mountains and that ark will go to pieces anyway.' The animals and Noah and his family are in the ark. and God comes down and closes the door. The last year. the last month. the last week. the last day and minute had come: the day of grace was over and the day of judgment was at hand. An hour ago no one would have bought the ark for kindling wood, but now it was worth more than all the world to them.

"You can laugh and sneer now at this old bible, but the hour is coming when one promise in it will be worth more than all the world to you. Don't laugh at your mother's bible. How black this world would be if there were no bibles in it. When the storm burst they ran to the door and knocked, crying. Let us in.' But it was too late, and they heard a voice within say, 'I can't; God has closed the door. There is no hope. Let me plead with you; don't make light of a hope of a better world.

"Now I want to talk to you on this text tonight as a father, and follow up yesterday's thought of reaping for our children what we sow. We want more family piety, more family altars. You may stand all right in the church, but how do you stand at home? Where are your boys? In or out of the ark? If they are out you'd better get them in. How would Noah have felt to have left out one son? And what joy to take them all in. You are here at this meeting tonight. father, but where is your son? In a saloon, drinking? It is time to wake up and save your children.

"A mother lay dying. Her husband was at her side, and as she roused a little she said. It is dark -isn't it?' 'Yes,' was the reply. 'Is it night?' Yes.' 'Are the children all in?' 'Yes, mother, they're all in,' and she fell quietly asleep. Are your children all in? Two boys here last night seemed interested, and when I talked with them they gave their hearts to Christ, but, O! how much they need a mother's guidance and wise counsel to keep them in the right way. for it is easier to keep them in the right track than to get them back when they have gone wrong. It is a mistake to think that the children can't give their hearts to God.

"I once knew a man who was ambitious to gain wealth and worldly honor and spent most of his time in that way. One day his oldest son was brought home in a dying condition. The father said to the doctor, Can't you rouse him? I don't want him to die without knowing it.' After a time he rallied and when told his condition he said, 'Must I die? I'm not ready to die. Pray for me. father.' But the father couldn't pray and in a few minutes the boy was gone. As the father turned away from that newly made grave. he said. 'I'd give all I'm worth if I could call him back and make one prayer for him.' If there is a prayerless father or mother in this house tonight, go home and erect a family altar. Gather in the children. make that your principal business; it is a better one than buying and selling.

"A father sat by the bedside of his dying boy and he told him he was going to die. The little fellow looked up into his face and said. 'Will I die today and be with Jesus tonight?' 'Yes, my son.' 'Papa, don't weep. I'll go right to Jesus and tell Him that while I lived you tried to make me good.' I'd rather hear that testimony than anything else. Make the welfare of your child's soul the principal thing. I think it is wrong to belong to a club if it takes you away from your family, for the enemy then comes in and sows the seed that destroys.

"I heard a man complaining about all his sons being a disgrace to him, and I began inquiring into his habits. I found that he was an alderman and spent Monday night at the council: on Tuesday night he attended a young people's prayer meeting: on Wednesday he attended his lodge, and so on throughout the week. until Saturday night, when he stayed at home. but shut himself up to study his Sunday school lesson. The boys hardly ever saw him and didn't know him and he knew nothing of their bad habits or evil companions. Neglect a garden and it is ruined. Neglect a boy and he is ruined, too.

"A boy came crying into the house and said to his mother. That man struck me.' What man?' Why. that man that comes here on Sundays.' He didn't even know his own father. A man in England told me that he had a great love for climbing in very dangerous places. One day he took his little boy with him until he came to a place that was too steep for the child to climb. He wanted to climb that one steep cliff, and leaving the boy in a safe place told him to await his return. When he was on a very dangerous point he heard a voice calling to him. 'Take a safe path, father. for I'm coming. too.' Oh, fathers who are here tonight. take a safe path, for your boys are coming. too.'