Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1888-08-01

; at Greenwood" Some of them jumped o
r the docks. Some of them took prussl
! acid. Some of them fell under the snap Q
! Derringer pistol. Some of them spen
: their last days in lunatic asylum. Wher
are William Tweed and his associates
Where are Ketcham and Swartwout, ab
sconding swindlers2 Where is James Fisk
, the libertine? Where is John Wlke
Booth, the assassin? and all the other mis-
demeanants? The wicked do not live on
half their days. Disembogue, o world o
darknessl Come up, Hiidebrand and Henry
IL. and Robespierre, and with blisterinG
and disappearing and ashen lips hiss out
''The triumph of the wicked is short
Alas for the men of Al when Joshua
stretches out his spear toward the city
Lesson the third: How much may be &C
complished by lying in ambush for oppor.
tunities. Are you hypercritical of Joshua's
man@uvre? Do you say that it was cheat.
ing for him to take that city by ambuscade!
Was it wrong for Washington to kindle
camp.fires on New Jersey Heights, giving
the impression to the opposing force that q
great army was encamped there when there
was none at alls I answer, if the war was
right then Joshua was right in his strata
L
broke no treaty, but by lawful ambuscade
captured the city of All. Oh, that we all
knew how to lie in ambush for opportuni-
ties to serve God. The best of our oppor-
tunlties do not lie on the surface, but are
secreted; by tact, by stratagem, by Chris
tian ambuscade, you may take almost any
castle of sin for Christ. Como up toward
men with a regular besiegement of argu-
ment and you will be defeated; but just
wait until the door of their hearts is set
ajar, or they are off their guard, or their
severe caution is away from home, and then
drop in on them from Christian ambus-
cade. There has been many man up to
his chin in scientific portfolios which proved
there was no Christ and no divine revela-
tion, his pen a scimetar flung into the heart
of theological opponents, who nevertheless,
has been discounted and captured for God
by some little three-year-old child who has
got up and put her snowy arms around his
siuewy neck, and asked some simple ques-
tion about God and heaven.
Oh, make flank movement steal a
march on the devil cheat that man into
heaven. A five dollar treatise that will
stand all the laws of homiletics may fail to
do that which penny tract of Christian
entreaty may accomplish. Oh for more
Christians in ambuscade not lying in idle
ness, but waiting for quick spring-wait-
ing until just the right time comes. Do
not talk to man about the vanity of this
world on the day when he has bought
something at "twelve" and is going to sell
it at ''fifteen." But talk to him about the
vanity of the world on the day when he has
bought something at ''fifteen'' and is COM
PEELED to sell at ''twelve." Do not rub a
mans disposition the wrong way. Do not
take the imperative mood when the SUBJ
jective mood will do just as we'll. Do not
talk in perfervid style to phlegmatic nor
try to tickle torrid temperament with an
icicle. You can take any man for Christ if
you know how to get at him. Do not send
word to him that tomorrow at 10 o'clock
you propose to open your batteries upon
him, but come on him by a skilful, perse-
vering, God-directed ambuscade.
Lesson the fourth: The Importance of
taking good aim. There is Joshua, but
how are those people in ambush up yonder
to know when they are to drop on the city,
and how are these men around Joshua to
know when they are to stop their flight and
advance? There must be some signal a
signal to stop the one division and to start
the other. Joshua with spear on which
were ordinarily hung the colors Of battle,
points toward the city. He stands in such
o conspicuous position, and there is so
much of the morning light dripping from
that spear-tip, that all around the horizon
they see it. 1t was as much as to say,
"There is the city. Take it. Take it now.
Roll down from the west. Surge up from
the north. 1t is ours, the city of Ai."-
God knows and we know that a great deal
of Christian attack amounts to nothing,
simply because we do not take good aim.
Nobody knows and we do not know our
selves which point we want to take, when
we ought to make up our minds what God
will have US to do, and point our spear in
that direction and then hurl our body,
mind, soul, time, eternity at that target
In our pulpits and pews and Sunday schools
and prayermeetiDgs we want to get repu-
tation for saying pretty things, and so we
point our spear toward the flowers ; or we
want reputation for saying sublime
things, and we point our spear toward the
stars or we want to get reputation for
historical knowledge, and we point our
spear toward the past or we want to get a
reputation for great llberality, so we swing
our spear all around and it strikes all
points of the horizon, and you can make
out of it whatever you please ;swhile there
is the old world, proud, rebelliOus and
armed against all righteousness ; and in
stead of running any further away from its
pursuit, we ought to turn around, plant our
foot in the strength of the eternal God, lift
the old cross and point it in the direction of
the worlds conquest till the redeemed of
earth, marching up from one side and the
glorifed of heaven marching down from
the other side, the last battlement of sin is
compelled to swing out the streamers of
Emanuel. Oh, Church of God, take aim
and conquer.
have heard it said: "Look out for a
man who has only one idea he is irresisIi-
ble.'' l say Look out for the man who
has one idea, and that determination for
soul-saving. I believe God would strike
me dead if I dared to point the spear in
any other direction. Oh, for some of the
courage and enthusiasm of Joshua He
flung two armies from the tip OF that spear.
1t is sinful for US to rest unless it is to get
stronger muscle and fresher brain and purer
heart for Gods work. feel on my hoad
the hands of Christ in new ordination
Do you not feel the same omnipotent pres
sure? There is work for all of US. Oh,
that we might stand up side by side anG
point the spear toward the city ! 1t ought
to be taken. 1t will be taken. Our cities
| are QrlILlng OH toward loose religion, VI
what is called ''liberal Christianity" which
is so liberal that it gives up all the cardina
doctrines of the Bible so liberal that il
surrenders the rectitude of the throne O.
the Almighty. This is liberality with 6
vengence. Let US decide upon the worl
which we, as Christian men, have to do
and, in the strength of God, go to work ant
do it.
1t is comparatively easy to keep on pa
rade amid a shower of bouquets and hand
clapping, and the whole street full cf en-
thusiastic huzzas but it is not so easy tt
stand up in the day of battle, the face black
ened with smoke, the uniform covered witt
the earth plowed up by whizzing bullet
and bursting shells. half the regiment Gu
to pieces, and yet the commander crying
"Forward, march !'' Then it requires old
fashioned valor. My friends, the grea
trouble Of the kingdom of God in this da.
is the towards. They do splendidly on I
parade day, and at the communion, whel
they have on their best clothes of Christian
: profession; but put them out in the grea
battle of life, at the first sharpshooting o
skepticism they dodge, they fall back, the.
break ranks. We confront the enemy, w
open the battle against fraud, and 10 WI
find on our side great many people tha
do not try to pay their debts. And we opel
ho hat int VII