The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1886-07-16

three years, bringing back all the wonders
Of the world; his parks af1oat with myrrh
and frankincense, and a-rustle with trees
brought from foreign lands, the traces of
his stupendous gardens found by the
traveller at this day. Solomon sits down
In this place to think Of Christ, the alto
gether lovely and the altogether fair; and
whilst seated, there comes breath OF the
spices and aromatic woods, and of the
blossoms, in through the palace win
dow, and he crys out:
MY beloved is unto me as a cluster OF
campfire from the vineyards of En-gedl.
o rich and rare, exquisite and ever-last-
ing perfumel Let it in every poor mans
windows; plant it on every grave; put its
leaves under every dying head; wreath
its blossoms for every garland; wave its
branches in every home; and when am
about to die, and my hands lie cold and
stiff and white upon the pillow, let some
plain and humble soul come and put In my
dying grasp this living branch with clus-
ters.
OF campfire from the vineyards OF En- gedL
1t is many years now since found the
Lord. I must in your presence tell you
how good He has been to my soul. Often
since then have given Him hard thrust
in His sore side; but He has been patient
with me by day and by night 1t is the
grief of my life that have treated Him so
badly; but He has never let me go. Ihave
seen wonderful sights, have heard no
wonderful sounds, I have no marvellous
experience; it has been a plain story of
patience on His part and of unworthiness
on my part. Some of my dear friends be-
fore me have had more rapturous expe-
riences. Christ to them has been the con-
| queror on the white horse, or the sun of
| righteousness setting everything ablaze
with light, or tire bridegroom coming with
lantern and torches. To me it has been a
very quiet and undemonstrative expe-
rience. 1t has been something very sweet
but very still. How shall describe it2 l
have it now:
My beloved is unto me like cluster Of
campfire from the vineyards of En- gedI.
But remark further: This campfire
plant of the text was a symbol of Christ in
the fact that it gives coloring. From the
Mediterranean to the Ganges the people
of the East gathered it, dried the leaves,
pulverized them, and then used them as a
dye for beautifying garments and their
own persons. 1t was that fact that gave
the campfire plant of the text it's COM
mercial value in the time of King Solo
mon; type of my Lord Jesus, who beau
titles, and adorns, and colors everything
he touches.
have no faith in that mans conversion
whose religion does not color his entire
life. It was intended so to do. IL a man
has the grace of God in his heart it ought
to show itself in the life. There ought to
be this "cluster of campfire" in the ledger,
in the roll of Government securities, in the
medical prescription, in the law book. A
religion is of no value to a merchant un-
| less it keeps him from putting lse labels
| on his goods; or to the plasterer, unless it
keeps him from putting up ceiling which
| be knows will crack in six months; or to
the driver, unless it keeps him from LASH
| ing his horses to eight miles an hour when
| the thermometer is at ninety degrees; or
1 to the farmer, unless it keeps him from
| putting the only sound pippins on the top
I of the barrel; or to the shoemaker, unless
! it keeps him from substituting brown pa
| per for good leather in the soles. In other
| words, the religion of Christ is good for
every thing or it is good for nothing The
| grace of God never affects us by piece
meal. If the heart is changed the head is
changed, and the liver is changed, and the
spleen is changed, and the hands are
changed, and the feet are changed, and the
store is changed, and the house is changed,
and every thing over which the man has
any influence comes to a complete and
radical change. The religion of the
Lord Jesus Christ is not a pot of hya-
cinth to be set in a parlor bay-window
for passers-by to look at, and TO be exam
ined only by ourselves when we have COM
pany; but it is to he q perfume filling all
the room of the heart as ''a cluster of
campfire from the vineyards of En-gedi."
The trouble is men do not take their re-
ligion with them. The merchant leaves it
outside the counter lest it disturb the
goods. The housekeeper will not let her
religion trail its robes in the kitchen on
washing-day. The philosopher will not
let his religion come in amid the batteries
lest it get a galvanic shock. But, tell you,
unless your religion goes with you every
where, it goes nowhere. That religion
was intended to color all the heart and
the life.
But, mark you, it was bright color.
For the most part it was an orange dye
made of this campfire plant, one of the
most brilliant Of all the colors; and so the
religion of Jesus Christ casts no blackness
or gloom upon the soul. 1t brightens up
life; it brightens up everything. There is
no more religion in funeral than there is
in wedding; no more religion in tears
than in smiles. David was no better when
uD bAlQ n0 CflSQ Oub Oub OA bu0 uSDbAS Oh
hell, than he was when he said that his
mouth was filed with laughter and his
tongue with singing. The best men that 1
have ever known have laughed the loudest.
Religion was intended to brighten up all our
character. Take out the sprig of cypress
from your coat and put in "a cluster of
campfire from the vineyards of En-gedi."
Religions "ways are ways Of pleasant
ness and all her paths are peace" have
found it so. There are hundreds in this
house who have found it so.
Iremark again that the campfire plant
of the text was a symbol of Jesus Christ,
because it is a mighty restorative. You
know that there is nothing that starts
respiration so soon in one who has tainted
as camphor, as we have it. Put upon
sponge or handkerchief, the effects are
almost immediate. Well, this campfire
plant of the text, though somewhat differ
ent from that which we have, was a
pungent aromatic, and in that respect it
becomes a type of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who is the mightfest Of all restoratives. I
have carried this camphire-pIant into the
sick room after the doctors had held their
consultation and said there was no hope
and nothing more could be dones
and the soul frightened up under
the spiritual restorative. There is no
fever, no marasmus, no neuralgia, no con-
sumption, no disease Of the body that the
grace of God will not help. wish that
over every bed of pain and through every
hospital of distress we might swing this
scIuster of campfire from the vineyards
of En-gedi." Christ's hand is the softest
pillow, Christ's pardon is the strongest
stimulus, Christ's comfort is the mightiest
anodyne, Christ's salvation is the grand
ess restorative. 1t makes man mightier
than his physical distress.
Art thon wearyg Art thou Iananld2 Art