The New York herald., 1874-09-07
TIE CHURCH OF THE STRANGERS.
The Stone Rolled Away-A Sermon by
Rev. DR.. Deems.

Rev. DR.. Deems.
The church was crowded, and the sacraments Of
baptism and the eucharist were administered.
The text was Mark xvi. 8, 4-"And they said moug
themselves, who shall roll US away the stone from
the door Of the sepulchref And when they looked
they saw that the stone was rolled away; for 1t
was very great" There never was such Sabbath
as that described in this context. To Jesus 1t was
o Sabbath OF silence His ministry had closed. No
taunts Of enemies, no curses Of murderers, no
pleading sick mans voice is in his ears Love
and hate and want and weakness were all outside
and Jesus was in the sepulchre. No longer from
mount or lake size came the tones OF HIS voice,
preaching the kingdom OF GOD. To the disciples 1t
was a sabbath of grief. Many another Sabbath had
come upon them ana found them with burdened
hearts. They mad had the common cares OF humanity
and the pinching of poverty. Sometimes their
nets broke. Sometimes the Roman yoke nad
CALLED them. Sometimes their own heart-sins had
given them heart-sorrows. They had been sons,
lovers husbands laborers, patriots, sinners, men.
But never such sabbath this had they seen.
1t was not q Sabbath. 1t was not a rest. The
heart had been torn out Of their lives To the
churchmen 1t was sabbath OF guilt and fear.
Many Sabbath before they had meditated the
murder of the great Teacher, but never before had
Sabbath sun seen their hands actually stained
with His blood. Ever and anon their hearts beat
as they seemed to hear the accents OF His marvel
lous voice, as If its accents still hung on cloister
beam and would occasionally descend with its
palpitating utterances on their horror-stricken
ears. There were women in the transac-
ton. Greater to women s any blow
than to men. Think Of those three women
sitting through all the sabbath under the dark
ness OF that grief-tnat grief which fell On their
souls like frost on flowers. Contrast the behavior
OF these women with those mean disciples. What
! fhnga m
were just like other men when first bankrupt.
But the godly women kept the sabbath and they
kept the spices they had procured, and then, when
the SaDDatn was passed. as early as there was any
hope OF seeing they went to the seDulchre
! And what q sight awaited them! The stone was
gone. An angel was there. He announced the
resurrection, the grandest fact In the history OF
earth and, so lar as we know IN the BIOGRAPHY of
She would rather see one Jesus than million Of
angels. She saw Jesus. Heaven makes It's reve-
latlons TO the heart rather than to the head to
love rather than TO intellect, to activity rather
than to despair, to Mary rather than to John and
Peter.
Tnere are some sepuchres from which we should
not to roll the stone away Part OF the past
Is sucn sepulchre. from the future, out OF winch
broken and the stone be roed but the past
in that past there is a sepuchre in which corpses
mates; corpses OF Old loves. Oh that we could
never see them more; that we could forget their
very names. MOI there Is nothing there to anoint.
Let the stone stay. But there Is another sepucnre
OF the past where there do lie some things very
sweet molly ana precious. Let US keep our spices
ready.
/ Let US listen to some lessons OF the stone that
was rolled away. Perhaps the very hrst should be
the Importance Of not dwelling on difficulties IN
Christian work and IN the discharge OF the duties
/ which love brings Jesus may be dead But yoI.
der IN Joseph's garden are His remains. ] can at
least go toward them, II i cannot be near
| them. can carry sweet spices and lay them at
| the tomb's door If | cannot enter and anoint tie
GEAR limbs OF my dear dead. There are always
difficulties in any CHRISTIAN or Cnrlsty work.
Whether you are 70 build up family or church,
hnnl mr. hnGv al WI f.nf " n a
| OF dlihcultles-one. the difficulties that you DO
know, the other the difficulties that you do not
know. The women knew that the stone was
there But they probably did not know that the
guard had been set. These would probably come
later IN the morning and the women oid not know
OF them. But there are always proceedings upon
the part OF God that we do not know, aud those
proceedings are always adful TO those who are
| dong their duty. Remember that the women
knew OF the set and seaied stone but they did not
In the night and Jesus was gone Iorth
ana angelic servtors had been left to
give them sweet and cheering messages.
sense OF forgetting that there are difculties Men
! WHO undertake great works ike the Mount Gems
! tunnel the Atlantic cable, railway across a con-
tinent know that there are paipaDle vast ana
| taInly known, which civil engineers eau certainly
calculate, and there are pr0oaDle costs wnlcn
! hinge upon conJectured contingencies, and there
are possible costs which may be brought TO llght
| by the progress OF the work. The men VINO iur.
/ nish the capital necessarily look at them; but
/ nevertheless they go forward.
the rest OF the sermon was occupied ~ snoWing
| how faith and love were quick-sgnted, and that
! the highest duties have the sternest dInlcuitles,
and that easy virtues are poor virtues.
IL closed In tnis way:-We must go toward Jesus
Just as early as possible; but, having brought
sweet spices, they may be wholly unneeded. Our
sobs at the size OF the stone may be turned into
lGAe0S " the sight oi the Stunning ARge)G ana ".