Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1865-12-12

X 4
Peace once heavenly-7and the grace of
Glory resplendent. AS the sun, shining Al
it does round the world to wake the slum
bering subjects Of Oriental despotisIns Il
the fact that they themselves are men, ant
their rulers oppressors; and to call them Il
arise, to shake Off their civil bonds and t.
be free. Such "graces" are worth the find
ing, when sought Tor, even in a wilder
ness. f- r,. --.,
20 If Columbia is ''the gem of the ocean,
IT isalso the Canaan OF lands. With all he
faults as seen in foolish and wicked men
who can help but love her still--for he
honey and milk are freer, fresher, sweeteI
and richer than ever flowed In the world
famed land of Israel What did David ol
Solomon, or Isaiah,Or Jeremiah, or any Oh
, all the sons Of the prophets know of thu
1lessedness Of good government; or wha
dld they ever personally see of true ma
tlonal greatness, In comparison with us
the Fee1bornr citizens of this western
world? 4 ..s.r ..-....t.,,l a. ~.
But, let us look little closer (and with
brevity) to the text and parallel our condi-
ton and blessings with those of theJews,
and learn thar we have greater reasons to
render thanks to ''the God OF gods' than
BY "people left Of the sword'' we are to
| nhuOiobhuu UfOpftb dS IDedIllDR SllCn
Jews as escaped the perils of death anterior
to. their exodus from Egypt. There they
had been endangered by excessive toll. be-
| ing punished for not doing fmpossibilites.
a most cruel edict had gone forth from the
throne against the lives of their unborn
sons-and when they departed the land
under the lead of Moses, Pharaoh followed
with his six hundred charots of iron,
either TO, destroy them, or to bring them
back, bound, into his domnions. Bot
Gods band shielded them, and brought
tllem into "a Wilderness it is true, butone
in which they rfound grace." '... ~.
This grace was not indigenous to the
| wilds OF Arabia, but it was an exotic
! brought down from heaven and strewed
around the path of Gods people; so that
they are said to have found it. Or, in other
words, 1t was the Divine Presence that was
with them agreeably to the petition of Mo-
ses-"lf thy PRESENCE 60 not with me, car
| ry us not up hence" ..
| l, This presence was TO Israel a pr0ui-
dence. 1t anticipated their wishes and sup
| piled their wants. So it has been to us as
| individuals, as Church, and as nation.-.
! Personally, the cups of most of YOU
| have been running Over-you have en-
! joyed all that heart could wish. Think of
| the many thousands of dollars you have
! given in late years to sustain the gospel at
home and abroad-Of tue thousands you
have expended in the recent erection of this
noble church edilice-of the thousands upon
thousands you helped to raise for the de-
tense OF your country-and yet all this
time you have been building grand houses
four yourselves, adding farm to farm, in
creasing and improving your ilocks, edu-
eating your children at great expense
In first class instituti0ns-in a word, no,o-
ing rtCh--sO that this day you have far
more wealth than you had when these
expenses began. Who has given YOU
all this? Like the unwasting barrel of
meal, or cruise of oil of old, so did you find
your resources, You have always had
enough ana to spare. In Gods providence
with you, you have "found grace in the
Wilderness"
2. This presence was preservation. God
not only provides for, but preserves his peo-
pie. Israel found it so. He that miracu-
lously fed and clad them, kept them
carefully as his jewels, or tenderly as the
apple of his eye. Their enemies--Our enc
mics, superior to us in numbers, and in
power, and in wisdom, he has kept from
harming us, although led on by the old lion
that goes around seeking whom to deVOur.
The God of Jacob has been on our side; He
helped, he delivered, he preserved u.s.
Blessed be his name tor the grace of his u
protecting power. .n ...#-i a--nu..
3. 1t was also guidance. q God was to Is
rael a breaker up of their way.n All their
varied edjOurneyings in the lone wilderness,
were determined by the pillar OF cloud by
day to shade them, and of fire by night to
illume them. Onward they went after this
till they reached the rest for which they
had set out. Need this be applied Has
he not been to us most blessed Guide even |
from our youth upY o, that we had follow |
ed more implicitly tue teachings of his |
word as the only rule to direct us how we |
arc to glorify and enjoy him, and thus se-
cure the great end for which he gave us |
being. 1T is not in man to direct his own
steps" How ignorant, self-willed, shOrt-l
sighted and prone to err are we! How Of |
ten do we seek to escape events that prove
blessings, and to obtain uppOsedlblessingS'
that prove banes! o, the embarrassment
into which we fall by leaning to our own
understandings ln sErrtTas-ss ,r.gl
This is the great sin of the day. in both |
church and State. Thus Bible and Consti- |
tutions are laid aside, igpored, rejected, |
thought to be. played out" and men judge |
OF what is right or wrong from feeling
rather than from conscience, being gov
erned from passion, rather than from prin-
SlplVs anu unuS NtcH OllcInSelNGS anu OLlleTS |
to ruin under the impulses of an animal, |
or tiendish phrenzy! Woe to virtue and
order when madness rules the hour! Then
truly: 81 G. ya'n.r rgF I'd ''.-y + .rr-i.,..
"The times are out of joint .l.la.| 7.
'' Llberty plucks Justice by the nose: .N II.f |
' Inc babe beats the nurse and quite athwart
Goes all decorum." .-. TT
How well our late condition as a nation
verlfies this. From such state of diaboli-
cal fanaticism good Lord deliver usH-by
the return of reason to some OF our civil
rulers and of grace to the hearts of many
in the ministry. o, that in this wilder.
ness lsrael's God may fulfill to us the pron-
ise, ~ am He that teacheth thee to thy
profit, and Twill lead thee in the way thou
ShoaldSt ckO0SeN .GbG1g HG.G J3s# sI.unH
A. His presence gave them pardon. royI
How often did they need this? How Of
Ten did they grieve him, provoke him, mur.
nur against him, distrust all his prolnisesl
So have we. He had compassion on them:
so will he haveon us If we repent and turn
% him again. How Standardization un-
how flistrustful; show ,faithless,
hopeless, uncharitahle, upforgiying, ,incor-
,igibly bad have we been, to say nothing
# the sins that have mixed with our most
loly services cold 7 family altar,
Al fco., r. q. , |