cession. Joshua wanted Moses to
rebuke them. Instead of that he said: "Would God that all the Lord's
people were prophets." Elijah and Elisha did not belong to the regular
school of prophets, yet they exercised a mighty influence for good in
their day. John the Baptist was not in the regular line. He got his
theological training out in the desert. Jesus Christ Himself was out
of the recognized order. When Philip told Nathaniel that he had found
the Messiah, he said to him: "Can there any good thing come out of
Nazareth?"

As we read the history of the past few centuries we find that God has
frequently taken up those who were, so to speak, out of the regular
line. Martin Luther had to break through the regular order of things
in his day before he brought about the mighty Reformation. There are
now some sixty millions of people who adhere to the Lutheran Church.
Wesley and Whitefield were not exactly in the regular line, but see
what a mighty work they accomplished!

My friends, when God works many things will be done "out of the
regular order." It seems to me that will be a good thing. There are a
few who cannot be reached, apparently, through the regular channels,
who will come to meetings like these out of the usual routine. We have
got our churches, it is true, but we want to make an effort to reach
the outlying masses who will not go to them. Many will come in to
these meetings simply because they are to be held only for a few days.
And so, if they are to come at all, they must come to a decision about
it quickly. Others come out of idle curiosity, or a desire to know
what is going on. And often at the first meeting something that is
spoken or that is sung will touch them. They have come under the sound
of the Gospel; probably they will become real Christians and useful
members of society. You will sometimes hear people say, "We have our
churches; if men will not come to them, let them keep out." That was
not the spirit of the Master. When our Civil War broke out we had a
very small standing army. Government asked for volunteers to enlist.
Several hundreds of thousands of men came forward and joined the ranks
of the regular army. There was plenty for every man to do. These
volunteers were not so well trained and drilled as the older solders,
but we could use the irregulars as well as the regulars. Many of the
former soon became efficient soldiers, and these volunteers did great
service in the cause of the nation. I