The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1888-11-21

| Ema ClFCulG, DuG SO IdT dS GucJ al o eOhot'O
they get their light from the great central
sun around whom they make revolution
Let each one keep his own sphere. The
solar system would soon be wrecked if the
stars instead of keeping their own orbit
should go to hunting down other stars
Ministers of religion should never clash.
But in all the centuries OF the Christian
Church some of these stars have been hunt
ing an Edward Irving or Horace Bush
nell or an Albert Barnes; and the stars
that were in pursuit Of the other
stars lost their own orbit and
some of them could never again find it, Alas
for the heresy hunters! The best way to de-
/ stroy error is to preach the truth. The best
way to scatter darkness is to strike light.
There is in immensity room enough for all
the stars, and in the church room enough Tor
all the ministers The ministers who give
up Righteousness and the truth VIII get
punishment enough anyhow, for they are
| ''the wandering stars for whom IS reserveI
the b!ackness Of darkness forever But l
should like as minister when l am dying 10
be able truthfully to say what captain Oh
the English army. fallen at the head of his col
umn, and dying on the Egyptian battlefield,
said to Gen. Wellesley, who came to condole
with him: II led them straight; didn't lead
them straight, General" God has put US
ministers as captains in this battleheld OF
truth against error. Great at last will be our
Cna0Tln II we Idl seduIll9 LILO pSoP'O eAS
wrong way; but great will be our gladnesi
il when the battle is over we can hand
our sword back to our great Commander
saving: lord Jesus! We led the people
straight: didn't we lead them straight!'
Those ministers who 60 off at tangent ana
preach some other gospel are not stars but
comets, and they flash across the heavens
little while and make people stare, aud throw
down few meteoric stones, and then go out
of sight if not out Of existence. Oh, brethren IN
the ministry, let us remember that God calls
US stars and our business is to shine and to
keep our own sphere, and then when we get
done trying to light up the darkness of this
and in us shall be fulfilled the promise
'they that turn many to Righteousness
shall shine as the stars forever and
ever" All! the ministers are not all Peck
shifts and canting hypocritles, as some
would have you think! Forgive me il. hav.
ing in your presence at other times glorihed
the medical profession and the legal profess
sion and the literary professional glorfy
my own. Ihave seen them in their homes
and heard them in their pulpits, and
grander array Of men never breathed, end
the Bible figure is not strained when it calls
them stars; and whole consultations OF
glorious ministers have already taken their
places on high where they shine even brighter
than they shone on earth: Edward N. Kirk,
VI LILO CbuSIcRdUiOudi SuuiShN SIOPhCA AA'
Tying, of the Episcopal Church; Matthew
Simpson, of the Methodist Church; John
Bowling, of the Baptist Church; Samuel K.
Talmage, of the Presby terian Church; DIR.
Dewitt, of the Reformed Church; John
Chambers, of the Independent Church; and
there stop, for it so happens that I have
mentioned the seven stars Of the seven
churches.
1 pass on to another mighty Bible seven, ,and
they are the seven seals. st. John in vision
saw scroll with seven seals and he heard
an angel cry: "Who is worthy TO loose the
seals thereof" Take eight or ten sheets
Of fooiscap paper, paste them together and
roll them into scroll, and have the scroll
at seven different places sealed -, with
sealing wax. You unroll the scroll till you
come to one Of these seals, and then you can
20 no further until you break that seal; then
unroll again until you come to another seal
and you can go no further until you break
that seal; then you 60 on until all the
seven seals are broken, and the contents
Now, that scroll with seven seals held by the
angel was the prophecy Of what was to come
on the earth: it meant that the knowledge Of
Gne 1uJure was with God, ana no mau and no
angel was worthy to open it; but the Bible
says Christ opened it and broke all the seven
seals. He broke the first seal and un-
rolled the scroll, and there was a
X
prosperity and triumph for the Roman
empire, and so it really came to pass that for
ninety years virtuous emperors succeeded
each other, Nerva, Trajan and Antoninus.
Christ in the vision broke the second seal and
unrolled again and there was painting of q
red horse, and that meant bloodshed, and
so it really came to pass, and the next ninety
years were red with assass;nations and wars.
Then Christ broke the third seal and I'M
rolled it and there was painting of black
horse, which in all literature means fam
inc. oppression and taxation and so it
really came to pass Christ went on
until DE De broke all ,H ,he seven eve seals - and
of us is sealed scroll, and am glad that no
one but Christ can open it. DO not let us
join that class of Christians in our day who
are trying to break the seven seals of the
future. They are trying to peep into
things they have no business with. They
try to foretell what is going to come
to them and what is going to come on the
earth. They know nothing about it. Christ
is the only one who can break the seal of the
future. Bible prophecy was not written to
help us to tell things in the future, but to
have us, when the things actually do
come to pass. compare them with prophecy
and SO learn Gods foreknowledge and the in
spiration Of the Scriptures. But you go
into the study of the prophecies i'll order
to find out what is going to happen year
from now, or twenty years from now, or one
thousand years from now, and l will
make a prophecy of my own, and
that is that you will have your
brain added, if you do not
positively get into public or private insane
asylum, where the greatest If expounders
and preachers OF prophecy ended his life
few years since, and where you may rtga!e the
visitors of the Institution hv incohercnr m'r"
blings over something from Daniel or Revela-
tions about the leopard which means Greece,
and the bear which means Medo-Persla,
and the image with the great toes. What a
mental wreck did the persistent attempt TO
forestall events make of that miracle OF
preachers Edward Irving, OF London: 1t
would take several mad-hoVses to hold the
demented victims Of the improper use OF
the Prophecies Of Daniel and Revelation.
be studied! Yes No part of the
Bible is more important Neither is there
any more important shelf in that apothecar!s
store than the shelf on which are the bella
donna and the morphine but be more care
full in using them than in the use OF pepper
mint and ginger. Keep your hands on OF the
seven seals. Christ will break them soon
enough. Don't 60 to some necromancer or
spiritualist or soothsayer or fortune-teller 10
find out what is going to happen to yourself,
Christ breaks the seal to find out whether IN
your own personal life or the life OF
the nation or the life of the world,
it is going to be the white horse OF
prosperity or the red horse Of war or
the black horse of famine. You will soon
enough see him paw and hear him nelgn;;
Take care of the present and the future Will
take care of itself. II a man live seventy
years, his biography, is in scroll having at
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