The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1874-01-26

scope for reflection and thought.
Baptist Church.
1t being known that Rev. r. NJ. Luther
would deliver n sermon applicable to the
late calamity, Although this church do
not have TO mourn the loss of any of its
members Or worshippers," the attendance
was large
REV. MIR. LuTnER's SERMON.
The speaker spoke from Amos 4;12.
"Prcparc to meet thy God
When great calamities come upon any
community, the first sensation is one of
stupor. We stand ayhast at the terrible
blow stunned and faint at heart, we do
not at the first realize the magnitude of the
calamity
As this feeling wears away it is succeed
ed by an earnest questioning. How did
the accident occur? What might have
been done to prevent it What shall we
do in the future to guard against similar
catastrophes
These emotions are succeeded in turn by
another. AS the sense of great afiliction
grows deeper, and as the tender heart feels
yet more and more the bitterness of woe,
the SOUL ilhding no relief on earth, looks
upward, and asks, Lord, why is this
Why such heavy stroke, rending and
crushing remorsclessly the tcnderest feel
in"s. the hnlicst enNotiQpst 4 san these s,ouaa
last.
At that hour was in my study, convers
ing with dear friend upon some of the
dark problems which perplex us here We
had but just been speaking of the way in
which we could reconcile the occurrence
of terrible Affections with the mercy of a
Heavenly Father Startled by the explo-
sion and subsequent cry we FASTENED to-
ward the scene of that terrible disaster.
Who of those who were there will ever
forget the fearful sight of that ruined mil !.
All through the abors of that fearful
time, as the day declined, and night came
on, and as hour after hour went by, the
mind refused to grasp the terrible reality.
The care of the wounded, the task of extin-
gushing the fire, and the many other
necessary tasks of that eventfu night, were
a positive relief, in that they gave occupa-
ton to the thoughts, and shut out for n
time the realization of the dreadful fact
that nine precious souls had been hurried
into eternity in an instant, without warn
ing, without time to utter single PRAYER.
or to put up a single cry for help.
But now we begin to question what this
dreadful calamity means. With fearful
eyes and broken hearts we look upward
and strive to read in it all, our Fathers
will.
Chief of all do we hear in this dreadful
calamity, the voice of the Lord 1t says to
us, Prepare to meet thy God"
The voice of Providence has ever the
same sound Each event of our daily life
speaks to us of our decay and death. The
tolling bell from the church tower speaks
TO the heart more loudly than the familiar
stroke of the clock. Both alike warn us
of the hour when ''the Son of Man
Cometh.' But we do not heed these calls
as we should. We pass our years as a tale
that is told, until gradually some fearful
blow, such as that which has afflicted us,
falls. Shall it not speak tons?
|. We must meet God. None of us can
escape that meeting.
The poor victims of this fearful expo-
sion sooner or later would have been called
to stand before Him, even if it had not oc
CURED. We must meet Him, perhaps
8 lOn
II. We must be prepared to meet God
We need preparations ere we can stand
in Ills presence without fear.
III. The preparation needed.
1t is reconciliation to God through the
death of His Son Jesus Christ
He has made Him to be sin for us who
knew no sin, ''that we might be made the
of God through Him."
The soul, washed in the blood of Jesus |
Christ, can stand without fear in the pres. |
ence of the great Father of us all. 1t
will stand there siness, because Jesus has |
borne its sin 1t will stand there saved. |
because Jesus has offered an atoning sacri- |
flee
~. Preparation must be immediate if
we would be safe
I'm such an hour as we think not the
son of Man cometh.
Death may give no more warning to us
-han to our friends who have been hurried
INTO eternity, Thank God that some of
hem had proved the benefit of the Atom
ng Blood, and were reconciled to God.
shall we not give our hearts to God to-
layE Tomorrow we may be in eternity.
In conclusion the preacher spoke most
and aifectlonately to those mem
lers OF his church who were in the mill at
he time OF the explosion, but who were
nercifully delivered, urging them to look
lpon Their lives as given to them anew by
iod, and to dedicate those lives to His ser
nee as thank-oifering for their deliver
nee.