Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-09-04
THE SIGN DE PROMISE.

Father, the humblest spot give me;
Set me the lowlieSt task Thou hast,
Let me Tepeutant work for Thee
THE SIGN OF PROMISE.
| IBy Rev. Jacob A Biddle, Canandaigua, y. "
at shall come to pass, when bring a cloud
over the earth that the bow shall be seen in the
cloud. ten. r., II.
One of the saddest facts that meets us in
this world is human sorrow. Next TO hui
man sin.with which it is closely connected,
| sorrow is the most difficult Of explanation
of all the ugly facts of this curious earth.
Studied simply as one of the phenomena Of
the race as the optician studies light, 1t
becomes an object of deep interest. What
is this power i'll human life that casts
shadow over our feastS, that tempers all
our JOYS that makes us groan and weep
bitter tears? Whence is it? For what
purpose? How is it produced? How
ayoided2 How relieved? But We cannot
approach it in q scientific mood. 1t touches
US too closely 1t wrenches our nerves. 1t
plaques our homes. 1t floods our hearts.
Il Is too personal TO be viewed with simple
curiosity. Nor would we find light by
such a -blooded process. Sorrow is one
of those deep facts of the race that can be
touched by no superficial study. 1t lies
upon the surface ike float upon the wa
ter, but it is chained to q weight that lies
at the very bottom of the sea, far beneath
the depth of our short sounding-line of OBJ
servation or experiment. The impotence
of science to comprehend or relieve it is
powerfully represented in that scene in
q Macbeth" where Macbeth calls the phy
stefan, who is treating the case of his sor-
row-burdeued and conscience-stricken wife,
and says, in brief, despairing tones:
.sCaust thou not minister to a mind diseased
Pluck from the memory q rooted sorrow,
Rae out the written troubles of the brain,
And with some sweet obliYious autidote
Cleanse the stuffed bosom OF that perilous stuff
Which weighs upon the heart?"
And when tho physician confesses his ina
bility--
Throw physic to the dogs; I'll none Off,
cries the infatuated Macbeth, as many an
other has cried when he has seen how inn
potent were human learning and strength
to reach those Geep-seated troubles of the
heart If pain came only to the wicked,
its existence would not be so perplexing;
but when innocence is made to writhe,
and righteousness is stretched in agony,
when the stainless Christ and the brutal
robber are alike sufferers on the cross, the
problem becomes more and more compli-
Gated.
1t may relieve and encourage us if we
study the teaching of the Bible upon this
point
l. The Bible recognizes the fact Of sor-
row with great plainness. Man is born
to trouble, as sparks fly upward" The
Bible would not be the Book of humanity
if it failed to state clearly the exact condi-
ton of mankind. The object of its mes
sage is to relieve and save the world but
it never UNDERSTANDS the moral weakness or
sad condition of the world. It never speaks
slightingly or despairingly of sorrow or
sin. But with a steady, honest purpose
ana a clear eye il paints in true colors just
exactly what man is, what is his condition,
and then offers him its help. 1t says
" Man that is born of woman is full of
trouble" 1t does not go round the fact
that sorrow is the lot of the good as well
as the bad. Though wash my hands in
innocency, yet am l chastened and plagued
every morning" In that great roll-call of
of the heroic dend, in the eleventh chapter
Of Hebrews, we read of those " of whom
the world was not worthy; sawn asunder,
wandering about in sheepskins and goat
skins, destitute, afflicted, tormented."
Here is no evasion of the difficulty. The
cloud is on the earth. We know it is, for
we have seen it. 1t is of no use to deny
the fact So, how painfully expressive are
the epithets of the sacred writers: Mourn
ers, ~ weary" heavy-laden," passing
through the water" " walking through the
fire." Everyone of these words and
phrases expresses one of our own expert
ences So is this great Book a mirror in
which we may see the true image of the
human race. This is world of heartaches,
signs, tears and groans.
The air is full of farewells to the dying
And MORNINGS for the dead.
The clouds arise in our brightest sky
The tempests howl about our quiet homes.
There is sorrow on land and sea.
.. But the Bible goes further. 1t tells US
that the sorrows of life are of Gods APP
pointment when bring the cloud over
the earth" The clouds do not arise by
accident They do not grow out of vacancy.
| bring the cloud, saith the Lord. Clouds
are not something to be apologized for, as
if they were a blemish on nature as if they
were interlOpers into an otherwise world of
sunshine. Clouds are as much part of
Gods good creation as are suns and stars.
They might be blemish in some worlds
and states of existence. But in this world,
in our present state, they help to complete
the excellence of nature, just as shadows
help to perfect landscape, or rolling waves
picture of the ocean shore.
So, suffering is a part, a necessary part,
Of our earthly life. 1t is so by divine APP
pointment 1t is not blemish upon this
world, or on OR present state of develop
ment. 1t would doubtless be ont of place
in heaven 1t would be an interloper
there. But here, susceptibility to pain is a
mark of advancement in civilization and
refinement. As beings become more per-
feet in their organization, and more adj
yanced in their development of bodily,
mental, and spiritual functions, their Sensi-
bility to suffering increases. The plant has
no feeling The jely-fish or worm is less
sensitive than the canary or the horse.
The bird and beast suffer less than men.
The savage suffers less than the civilized
man. The woman of deliCacy of taste, re-
finenent of nature, and great moral and
spiritual accomplishment Is u thousand
times more susceptible TO pain than the
rough, stupid boor who knows only how to
perform his daily tasks. 1t is also true
that she has more ways of protecting her
self from pain than be. But il is easily seen
that sensitiveness to suffering is a mark of
progress A refined taste is offended more
easily than a deprayed one. 4 quick,
sensitive conscience Is troubled far more
than a scared on. A deeply loving
and sympathetic heart is rent with grief
at the loss that would hardly cause tear
to the hard, selfish nature. And the pure,
from the sins of the world an agony Of
which We who are less pure and holy, can
have little comprehension. You note that
an advance in civilization and learning is
accompanied with increase of cares and
burdensome duties, just because il Is an adj
vancement in being. The oyster has more
contentment, less trouble, than the saint in
this world. l do not know why, but it is
fact that being advances along the line of
sensitiveness to pain and pleasure. So God
has ordained. We measure our hight, not
by our indifference to suffering, but by our
sympathy with it, and our fortitude to
withstand it. The spirit that prays " If
it be possible, let the cup pass; neverthe-
less, not my will but Thine be DONE" is
vastly higher and nobler than that which
sees no cup, is too calloused to feel. Two
men were going into battle, a private and
Major The private was careless and indif-
ferent the Major was solemn and pale.
Why" says the private, in jest,
Major, you looked scared = Yes, was
the solemn reply, as he marched steadily
forward: Ii you were frightened only
half as bad as l am you would run like a
mailman Which is the larger and drawer