The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1885-12-03

out some of the people on the seventh
day to gather some, and they found none"
-EX. 16. 27.
When the children of Israel, in the Will
derness of Sin, cried out against Moses,
the latter received the Divine assurance
that bread would be rained down from
Heaven for them. After the people had
perceived the visitation of quails, and
passed the night, another miraculous
manifestation of Gods power and kindly
providence awaited them in the early
morning light. They had been impressed
with the fact that God does not desert
His children in time of need, and were
better prepared for this new manifesto
ton than for the coming of quails.
When the dew of the morning had
gone, there was discovered lying upon the
ground small round thing, as small as
the flakes of frost. They were puzzled as
to the meaning of the strange visitation,
but Moses informed them that this was
the promised bread from Heaven. Each
one was commanded to gather enough
for his own use for the day, and to fur
nish an equal amount to any that might
be in the tents. The bread thus gathered
was measured out, an equal amount to
each man, and all were commanded to
use that which had been gathered, and
not leave it until morning.
But the record shows that there were
disobedient hogs in those days, as well
as in these days. Some we are told kept
the bread until the morning, and it "bred
worms, and stank." And this is conse-
quence of disobedience, or in vulgar par
lance, "acting the hog" They gathered
it every morning, and every man accord
ing to his own eating, and when the sun
waxed hot it melted. But on the sixth
day Moses had the Divine assurance that
what was baked or prepared on that day
for that day and the succeeding day, would
not spoil, and they therefore prepared
enough to last over the Sabbath day. But
there were in those days people who had
the unfortunate habit of putting things
off" and they went out on the seventh
day to gather bread, but found none.
They were like some of the wonderfully
developed people of the present time.
They evidently thought that they knew
more about the Creators business than
He did
Now for short time, let us see how
much better we are than the people of
those long-ago days. We are wandering
in the Wilderness of Sin; and the shad-
ows, and snares, and reptiles of the Will
derness are gathering thiekly and threat
ingly about us. The great Ruler of the
Universe is near at hand to hear our
every cry, and supply our every want;
and the bread of Heaven may be gathered
up, by little exertion on our part. Some
gather it-"every man according to his
eating" But many there be who gather
double portion and hide it away until
it stinks. But even these are blest upon
the Sabbath day, in that they have the
sweet consciousness of knowing that
their possessions will not stink upon that
day.
/ Again, many there be who do not
gather sufficient for their own eating, and
when the sixth day comes, and the time
for preparing for the seventh is at hand,
they get less bread and more stink than
the hoggish ones of history. The mamma,
we are told was of the flavor of wild
honey; the mamma these fellows seek is
wild, but not honeyed. But modern in
genuity has out-generaled the old tradi-
tions. These fellows go forth on the sew
enth day, and they find an abundant sup
ply-an inexhaustible torrent of their IA
vorite mama. And they do not have to
take the trouble of gathering it. 1t is
gathered on the Sabbath day, and every
other day, and placed before them, at con-
venient places. These fellows who con-
stitute one class of the hoggish ones of
creation. They may waste litte-a 0erg
little-eXertion through the week, in pro-
curing the bread of Heaven, but on the
sixth day and the seventh they will par
take of the bread freely gathered for
them by the hosts of Sin, in the Wilder
ness of Sin. All the "sustenance" gath
cred by these people stinks far beyond all
the decayed mama of all history; yet the
worse the smell the greater the fascina-
tion. This class, instead of gathering
life, gathers death, and the only crying
out in the wilderness is the howl of the
deunken orgy, or the imprecation upon
every holy influence.
1t seems astounding that with the
bread of life springing up from the
ground still, the man will deliberately go
to his death. When the mercy of the
Divine one falls like the snow-fakes, set
tling about each life, the 'strong man"
will ruthlessly trample them and scram-
BILE for the decay, and smell, of the cess
pools of degradation. But there will
come time when the man who will not
avail himself of these mercies will go out
to gather them, and will find none. The
man who can live upon the filth of earth
may not have urgent need of mamma, for
time. But there comes time when he
feels necessity for better things, when
perverted taste and meager understand
ing, the star Ting fact-startling to him
that there are no hogs in Heaven, and
that when he wallows in the filth of
earth he is uniting himself for the
purity of Paradise.
There is enough of the "bread of
Heaven" falling constantly to supply the
wants of all of Gods creatures, and the
sacrifice and eXertion required to obtain it
are very slight. One little righteous deed
will collect goodly supply; noble
thought, a good impulse, will gather the
"bread of Heaven But the great truth
must be borne in mind that no creature
can gather more than his individual needs
require; no creature can gather so much
that there is danger of it's spelling from
over-supply; no creature can possess it
in excess of an equally earnest and pray
erful neighbor. 1t is measured out to all
alike-each man according to his needs.
the Father.