"Billy" Sunday, the Man and His Message: With his own words which have won thousands for ChristEllis, William T. (William Thomas)
Religion
"Billy" Sunday, the Man and His Message: With his own words which have won thousands for Christ
Ellis, William T. (William Thomas)
Baseball players -- United States -- Biography; Evangelists -- United States -- Biography; Sunday, Billy, 1862-1935
Others say: "But I don't get what I pray for." Well, there's a cause
for everything. Get at the cause and you'll be all right. If you are
sick and send for the doctor, he pays no attention to the disease,
but looks at what produced it. If you have a headache, don't rub your
forehead. In Matthew it is written, "Ask and it shall be given you;
seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you." If
your prayers are not answered you are not right with God. If you have
no faith, if your motive is wrong, then your prayers will be in vain.
Many times when people pray they are selfish. They are not gripping
the word. I believe that when many a wife prays for the conversion
of her husband it isn't because she really desires the salvation of
his soul, but because she thinks if he were converted things would be
easier for her personally. Pray for your neighbors as well as your own
family. The pastor of one church does not pray for the congregation of
another denomination. I'm not saying anything against denominations.
I believe in them. I believe they are of God. Denominations represent
different temperaments. A man with warm emotions would not make a good
Episcopalian, but he would make a crackerjack Methodist. Oh, the curse
of selfishness! The Church is dying for religion, for religion pure
and undefiled. Pure religion and undefiled is visiting the widow and
the fatherless and doing the will of God without so much thought of
yourself. I tell you, a lot of people are going to be fooled the Day of
Judgment.
Isaiah says the hand of God is not shortened and his ear is not deaf.
No, his hand is not shortened so that it cannot save. He has provided
agencies by which we can be saved. If he had made no provision for your
salvation, then the trouble would be with God; but he has, so if you go
to hell the trouble will be with you.
In Ezekiel we read that men have taken idols into their hearts and put
stumbling-blocks before their faces. God is not going to hear you if
you place clothes, money, pride of relationship before him. You know
there is sin in your life. Many people know there is sin in their
lives, yet ask God to bless them. They ought first to get down on their
knees and pray, "God be merciful to me a sinner."
Some people are too contemptibly stingy for God to hear them. God won't
hear you if you stop your ears to the cries of the poor. You drag along
here for three weeks and raise a paltry sum that a circus would take
out of town in two hours. When they give things to the poor they rip
off the buttons and the fine braid. Some people pick out old clothes
that the moths have made into sieves and give them to the poor and
think they are charitable. That isn't charity, no sir; it's charity
when you'll give something you'll miss. It's charity when you feel it
to give.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account