The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-08-04

scholastic pretension and no graduation
from a learned institution, to set himself
up for a teacher. 1t was all against him.
So also the brevity of his life was
against him. He had not come to what
we call midlife. But very few men do
anything before thirty-three years OF age
and yet that was the point at which
Christ's life terminated. The first fifteen
years you take in nursery and school,
Then it will take you at least six years
to get into your chosen profession or oc'
cupation; then it will take you tea years
at least to get established in your life;
correcting the mistakes you have made.
If any man at thirty three years OF age
gets fully established in his life-work, he
is the exception, Yet that is the point
where Christ's life terminated, Men in
military life have done their most won
derful deeds before thirty-three years OF
age. There may be exceptions to it, but
the most wonderful exploits in military
prowess have occurred before thirty
three years years of age. But as legls.
lator, no man becomes eminent as a leg
islator until he has bad long years of ex.
perienCe. And yet the gray-bearded
scribes were expected to bow down in
silence before this young legislator, who
arraigned Sal hedrims and accused gov
ernments. Aristotle was old; Lycurgus
was old; Seneca was old. The great leg
islators of the world have been old; but
Christ was young. All this was against
him. If child twelve years old should
get up in your presence to discuss great
questions of metaphysics, or ethics, or
politics, you would not be more con
temptuous than these gray.bearded
scribes in the presence Of this young
Christ, Popular opinions in those days
declared: BLESSED is the merchant who
has a castle down on the banks of Lake
Tiberius." This young man taid: "Bles-
sed are the poor" Popular opinion in
those days said BLESSED are those who
live amid statuary and fountains and
gardens, and congratulations and all
kinds of festivlty," This young man re.
sponded. Blessed are they that mourn"
Public opinion in those days said "Bles
sed is the Roman eagle, the flap of whose
wing startles n, tions, and the plunge of
whose iron beak infiCts cruelty upon it's
enemles." This young man responded:
"Blessed are the merCiful." Popular
opinion said: can eye for an eye, a tooth
for TOOTH" In other words, if man
knocks out your eye, knock his out; If q
man breaks your tooth, break his, Re-
tort for retort; sarcasm for sarcasm; iro'
ny for irony; persecution for perseCu ion;
wound for wound. Christ said; pray
for them which despitefully use you"
They looked at his eye; it was like any
other mans eye, except p rhaps more
expressive. They felt of his hand, made
of bone, and mu lCle, and nerves, and
flesh, Just like any other har d. Yet
what bold treatment of subjects, what
supernatural demand, what strange doc.
trine. They felt the sold earth under
them, and yet Ch ist said: 81 bear up
the pillars of this world" They looked
at the moon. He said: l will turn it
into blood" They looked at the sea. He
said: IT will hush it," They looked at
the stars. He said: 81 will shake them
down Ii g untimely fgs," Did you ever
see one 80 young say things 30 boldY 1t
wps all against him.
Again: l remark, there was no Visi-
BILE organization in his behalf, and that
was against him. When men propose
any great work they band together: they
write letters of agreement; they take
oaths of fealty, and the more and com.
plete the organization, the more and
complete the success. Here was one
who went orth without any organiza-
ton and alone. If men had a mind to
join in his company, all right. If they
cams they we're greeted with no loud
salutatiou; if they went away they were
sent with no bitter anathema, Peter de-
parted, and Christ turned and looked at
him; tba was all. all this was against
him, D d anyone ever undertake such
an enterprise amid such infinite embar'
rassments, and by such modest And yet
am here to sy that it ended in com.
plete triumph. Notwithstanding his
worldly ocCuJ alton; his poverty; his un-
garb; his plain face; the fact
that he was not accompanied by any vis-
ible eorganization-notwithstanding all
that, he utters in an exhilaration which
shall be prolonged in everlasting Chorals,
II have finished the work thou gavest
me to do"
If you have followed me in this line of
remark, you are ready to make two or
three acknowledgements. The first, that
Christ was supernatural. mo man cod
90 through all that" you say, "without
having nature adjOined that was super.
natural" That arm, amid it's muscles.
and bones, and nerves, was intertWisted
with the energies of omnipotence. In
the syllable OF that voice there was the
emphasis of the eternal God. Tha foot
that walked the deck Of the lights hip on
Genessaret shall stamp kingdoms of
darkness into demolition, This poverty
struck Christ owned Augustus, owned
the Sanhedrim, owned Tiberius, owned
Bill the castles on its beach, and all the
skies that looked down into its water,
owned all the earth and all the heavens.
10 him of the plain coat belonged the
robes of celestial royalty. He who walk.
cd the road to Emamus, the lightnings
we're the fre.shod steeds of his char.
lot. Yet there are those who look on,
and they see Christ turn water into wine
and they say, "Sleight of hand" And
they see Christ raise the dead to life,and |
hey say, Easily explained; not really
lead, playing dead" And they see
Christ giving sight to the blind man, and
hey say, "Clairvoyant DOCTOR" Oh, |
what will they do on that day when
Christ raises up in judgment, and the
nils shall rock, and the trumpets shall
all, peal on pealP
Ny subject also treasures us of the
act that in all our struggles we have a
IympathIzer. You cannot tell Christ
lnything new about hardship. l do not
hink the wide 9ges of eternity will take
he scars from his unCtured side, and
lis lacerated temples, and his sore
hands. You will never have burden
so many pounds as that burden
which Christ carried up the bloody hill.
You will never have any suffering worse
han that which he endured, when |
With tongue hot, and cracked, and in.
famed, and swollen, he moaned, II
hirst." You will never be surrounded |
-, ,rov,a ,oati1;ty, tbon tbat yvl;oL atooJ |