St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1881-10-14
CrOss-Bearing.
BY A. Z. KITTREDGE, ID. ID.


tian, with the garland of thanksgiving,
is that of his body-"'a living sacrifice,
holy and acceptable unto the Lord :"
and his glory Paul describes as in trib-
ulation, because circulation worketh
patience, and patience experience, and
experience hope In fact, we are
taught in the Bible that this suffering
for Christ is the test and badge of dis
cipleship, and that to he without the
cross is to be proved ga bastard and
not IA SON" Here is Paul's painting of
the life in Christ Jesus /: approving
ourselves as the ministers of God, in
much patience, i'll Affections, in neces-
sites, in distress, in stripes, i'll impris-
Onments, in tumults, in labors, in
watchings, in HASTINGS, by
honor and dishonor, by evil report and
good report, as deceivers and yet true,
as unknown and yet well known, AS
dying and behold we live, as chasten-
ed and not killed, as sOrrOwful yet al
ways rejoicing, as poor yet making
many rich, as having nothing and yet
possessing all things" Then, again
the believer is commanded to have his
''loins girt" there is earnest work to
he done ''to take unto him the whole
armOr of God" There is an enemy to
he met with and every part of this
armor is infinitely described, so that
failure will not occur through ignOr-
ance in preparation. CrOssbearing,
then, is an indispensable feature of the
believers life, until at the Jordan we lay
down the Cross and receive the Crown.
Why, where in all the Bible can we
find promise to him who floats heav
onward con iOwery beds of ease"
who clings to a hope of salvation
through pure religious seltishness, low
ing to sing Nothing either great or
small remains for me to dOY" TO
whom is the promise of everlasting life 7
For him who has left "father and
mother, houses and lands, for my sake"
Who is to reign with Him ''lf we
suffer with Him, we shall also reign
with him" Who is to receive the
crown of life ? He that OvercOmeth
and is faithful unto death. Who is to
be clothed in white raimentP Who is
to be IA pillar in Gods eternal temple
and 90 no more ont Whose name is
the Beloved Son to confess before his
Father and the angels as the name of IA
brother? Who is to sit with the Lamb
on his throneP He that Overcometh
-Overcometh self, overcOmeth the
world, overcometh sin; he who taketh
up the cross and follows his Master,
counting all things as loss for his sake.
But is the visible church to-day fill
ed with cross-bearers How many
are taking up crosses daily and joyful
ly for .Jesus's sake For we greatly
err when we interpret the endurance
of affections as necessarily cross bear
ing in the sense of this command of
Christ which is to stake up the cross"
Let me explain what | mean. When
God takes away our wealth, and the
earnings of long years slip in an hour
from our grasp, we speak Of this en-
forced poverty AS our "crOss )" yet 1t
is not, surely, II cross which we have
taken up, for we could not help our
selves. God laid it upon our unwilling
shoulders. Or, if disease shuts you in
to the sick-room and shuts out from
mind and heart the scenes of busy life,
you perhaps look up to those who
stand 10y your bed plying you and say,
"This, | suppose, is my cross, and |
must bear it patiently :" but You have
not taken it up. An Omnipotent Hand
has placed it on your shoulders. And
so, when Death enters your charmed
circle of love, enters unlimited, and
calls cherished one from your en-
brace to the safer Unfolding of the
Everlasting Arms, we call it a cross
and so it is IL cross so heavy that we
find it hard, at first, to trust in Him
who has thus wounded and crushed us.
But, if we are asked to take up such
crosses-that is to say, if by our simply
willing we could keep the loved ones
in the earthly hOme-I fear we should
say: "Not thy will, dear Lord, but
mine, be done" But taking up the
cross is voluntary endurance of that
which is difficult, trying, painful, even
crucitixion of self, if need be, for
His sake who, because he so loved us,
came into the world to save sinners
voluntary endurance, so that, if we
WILL we can leave the cross untouched
for self's sake or lift it up and carry it
for Christ's sake. The deepest Joy
springs up in the path of the highest
aim and from the soil of the mightiest
passion which strives to attain that
aim and sacrifices only pillow up the
soil, making the JOY purer and grander.
To Illustrate. Here is Il young girl,
merry, beautiful, surrounded by all
which can make life happy, as the
world defines that word. Now, place
in one scale all the joy which is gath
cred into those rainbow years, and
when you have estimated its weight
put it into the other scale the joy OF
that same girl, now a mother. Her
whole being is absorbed in the infant
life entrusted to her care. She lives,
II. L., lnl -, Il
through her. Day by day, night by
night she watches over that cherished
one. She sacrifices time and strength
and all social pleasures-yes life, il
need be-to this one mighty passion,
the perfect development of her child
up to its highest possibilities. HeI
feet grow weary, anxiety and watchings
steal the bloom of youth from her
cheek, the world, it may he, pities her
Well, put this mothers JOY in the
other scale, with all its burdens and
tears and agOnizing prayers, and which
is the heavier Why, you know that
the JOY of the mother has depth and
fullness which the young girl never
dreamed of, not only because of its
unselfishness and the grandeur of the
liie-aim, but because it has been made
perfect through suffering. Now, there
is JOY deeper, and richer than a
mothers. Ii is the joy of the Chris
tan, who has counted all things as
loss for the sake of Christ whose
glory fills mind and heart, so that he
can eXclaim Il live, yet not |, but
Christ liveth in me- Oh there is no
JOY in all Gods universe like this. The
heavier the cross the richer the 10y
IIndependent.