February 20, 1947 – Reprinted September 22, 1977

Transcribed by Connie Albers

* CAL’S COLUMN *

There will be no funny stories in this article. This is written in all seriousness, because of the deplorable conditions that have arisen among our young people. We do not charge all our young people with the things herein mentioned, for there are still many nice, decent and respectable young folks. But, on the other hand, it is freely admitted that there are today literally millions of poor deluded girls and boys who are treading the “primrose path” of moral ruin. We are sorry to have to believe that we now have the worst morals this nation has ever known. But we are convinced that such is true. We used to read about such things “away off yonder” in some other part of the country. But we perhaps thought that we would not be affected. But the evils of drinking and immorality are right here among us.

We are informed that recently three couples of young folks went to a school house in a rural part of the county, that they drank their liquor and beer, leaving the floor of the school house littered with broken bottles and the window panes broken out. It is also reported that parties living near the schoolhouse saw one of the couples go to one toilet, another couple to a second toilet and the third couple remained in the school building. Such conduct, to say the least of it, is so low and vile that we would not mention it at all except to condemn it. When our girls begin to drink, they have then gone far down the road to moral ruin. No drinking girl can ever hope to retain her virtue, her self-respect, nor the respect of decent men and women. A nation whose men are sorry may live long, provided its womanhood is still decent and above the filth and more of immoral living. But there never has been a nation that stood very long when the most of the men and the women went to the dogs. And America will go the same way unless there is a halt in our wild, lustful manner of living.

The Assyrian Empire was rich and strong and was the most powerful in all the world in its day and time. It did not fall when hard times came, but stood. It did not fall when nations around it fought with the “head of gold.” It did not fall until its women went to the dogs. Then the Assyrian or Babylonian Empire fell never to arise. American beware!

The next great worldwide government was that of Alexander, the Great. Its strength, to start with, lay in well-trained, disciplined citizens, who walked in the way of upright living. Its first and greatest ruler, Alexander himself, gave way to his evil passions and by doing so, brought death upon himself at the age of 33 years, and his kingdom went the way of the Medes and Persians. Immorality sank the Greek Empire. Dirty, filthy living cost Alexander his life and the life of his kingdom and poor Greece fell from the earth’s great heights to the dept of poverty and national ruin, never to rise again. America beware!

After Greece sinned its way to eternal ruin, it fell, like the nations before it who had worshipped at the feet of the god of lust. Then came on the world’s scene, the Iron Empire of the Romans. It stood when nations around it fought against Rome. It stood even when its men forgot to be moral. It stood, even in spite of its fight against Christianity. But when the most of its women went to the dogs, Rome fell and has risen no more. Ungoverned, uncontrolled lust sank the mightiest of all nations the world has so far had in its time. Represented in Daniel’s vision as having legs of iron, and called by historians, the Iron Empire, it was not strong enough to live when the demon of lust and unbridled passions swept its poor, deluded womanhood into the abyss of moral ruin. American is strong, or has been, but it cannot survive when the majority of its young women worship at the altar of unlicensed, illicit love. America, beware!

In the long, long ago, Sodom and Gomorrah “gave themselves over to strange flesh.” And the result is known to every Bible reader. They were wiped off the face of the earth and are today but memories. Twenty centuries later, their lustful men and women, ungodly and uncontrolled in their mad, bestial desires, up to the very last night Sodom stood, were, according to Jude, still “suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.” Notice the work, “Suffering,” signifying that 2,000 years had not stopped their anguish and pain. We verily believe that the hottest fires of an unending hell await those who burn in their flesh for the gratification of unholy desires. America beware!

In Jeremiah 5:7-9 are these words: “How shall I pardon thee for this? Thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods; when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses. They were as fed horses in the morning; every one neighed (“nickered”) after his neighbor’s wife. Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?” America beware! In the same chapter are these words: “Hear now O foolish people, and without understanding: which have eyes and see not: which have ears and hear not.” America, beware!

David forgot the divine commandment; “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” As the result of his sin, his innocent child died. David’s wives were driven into lewdness before the very public. David’s beautiful daughter, Tamar, was ruined by her half-brother, who in turn was killed through the plans of the poor, innocent girl's avenging brother. David’s son, Absalom, stole his father’s wives and committed adultery with them publicly, and then Absalom paid for his folly and died, hanging in the oak tree by his long and beautiful hair. David, on learning of the death of his sorry son, whom he loved even if he was an unworthy and hateful son, cried out in some of the most bitter words in the Bible: “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son.” Here is an old man who is still paying for the folly of long years before when he lusted for another man’s wife and had not the will power nor moral backbone to crush such unholy desires until they had in a large measure wrecked his happiness in life. Another part of the price David paid for his folly may be seen in the sad picture of the old king as he went over the Mount of Olives in the night, barefooted, bareheaded and weeping as his son took from his old dad the kingdom. Truly the price of lustful folly is high indeed and may run through life and continue through an eternity “where the worm never dies and the fires is never quenched.”

Young men, please read these two selections from the words of the world’s wisest man, Solomon: “That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words. For at the window of my house I looked through the casement, and beheld among the youths, a young man void of understanding, passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house, in the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night. And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of a harlot and subtil of heart. So she caught him and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him, ‘ I have peace offerings with me; this day have I paid by vows. Therefore come I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek they face, and I have found thee. I have decked by bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning; let us solace ourselves with loves. For the goodman (the husband) is not at home, he has gone on a long journey; he hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.’ With her lips she forced him. He goeth after her straight way, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks; till a dart strike through his liver, as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.” Proverbs 7: 5-23. Then read one more: “But knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depth of hell.” Prov. 9:18. Young men, beware!