The Russellville Democrat., 1888-04-05

Matthew and Lake te write sweet sto-
ries about Chris with he doeiarf q -
law. mud Christ "a thewall, ana Christ n
the cross, SO that am litile ellild can un-
derstand them. Then Gaa knew that tfs
aged people would want 70 read the book
and SO he allows Goln4aon - ecfapaet 9
world ~ wisdom fn that Book - Proverbs.
God knew that the historian would want
to read it. and 40 he allows Moses 10 rive
the plain Statement Of the Pentssteuch-
God knew that the poet would want 20
read it, and so he allows job 20 picture
the Heavens as curtain; and Isaiah ths
mountains as weighed tn balance
and the waters as held In ths
hollow OF the Omnipotcnt hand; and
God touched David until, Ia the lat
ter part OF the Psalms, he gathers
great choir standing in galleries above
each other-beasts and men IN the hrst
gallery: above them hills and mountains.
above them, fire and hail and tempest;
above them, sun, moon and stars
of light; and then, ON the high.
est gallery, arrays the hosts Of
angels; and then, standing before this
great choir, reaching from the depths Of
earth to the heights Of Heaven, like the
leader OF great Jrchestra, he lifts his
hands, CRYING "Praise We the Lord. Let
every thing that hath breath praise ye the
Lord;n and all earthly creatures In their
song, and mountains with their waving
cedars, and tempests In their thunder and
rafting hail, and stars on all their tremb-
ling harps of light, and angels on their
thrones, respond in magnificent acclaim;
'Praise We the Lord. Let every thing that
hath breath praise the Lord God knew
that the pensiye and complaining world
would want to read it, and so he inspires
Jeremiah to write: "Oh, that my head
| were waters and mine eyes fountains of
tears" God knew that the lovers the
wild, the romantic, and the strange would
want to read it, so he lets Ezekiel
write Of mysterious rolls, and winged
! creatures, and flying wheels OF fire. God
prepared it for all zones-for the arctic
and the tropics as well as for the temper
ate zone. Cold-blooded Greenlanders
would find much to interest them, and the
| tanned inhabitants at the equator would
| find his passionate nature boil with the
vehemence Of heavenly truth. The Arab
| ian would read it on his dromedary, and
the Laplander seated on the swift sled,
and the herdsman of Holland guarding
the cattle in the grass, and the Swiss gil
reclining amid Alpine crags. Oh, when l
4
| ly s.ited to all ages, to all conditions, 10
all lands,I can not help repeating the con-
| clusion OF my text: "The statues OF the
Lord are right.s
| remark again, the Bible Is right ia its
| doctrines. Man sinner, Christ Saviour
the two doctrines. Man must, como
| down-his pride, his self-rtg righteousness,
his worldliness. Christ, the anointed,
must 90 up. If it had not been for the
setting forth OF the atonement, Moses
would never have described the creation;
prophets would not have predicted; apos-
] ties would not have preached. 1t seems
TO me as if Jesus, in the Bible, were stand
ing on the platform in great amphithea-
ter, and as il the prophets were behind
him. throwing light forward on His sacred
| person; and as If the apostles and evan
gelists stood before Him, like foot-lights
throwing up their light into His blessed
countenanoe; and then as if all the earth
and Heaven were the applauding auditory.
The Bible speaks of Pisgah and Carmel
and Sinai, but makes all mountains bow
down to Calvary. The focks led
over the Judean hills were emblems
of ''the Lamb of God that taketh away
the sin of the world" and the lion leap
ing out of its lair was an emblem OF 'the
lion Of Judah's tribe" | will, in my next
breath, recite TO you the most wonderful
sentence ever written: "This is faithful
saying. and worthy of all acceptation, that
Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners.n No wonder that when Jesus
was born in Bethlehem Heaven sym
pathized with earth, and wave of joy
dashed clear over the battlements and
dripped upon the shepherds in the words
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace, good will toward men" In my
next sentence every word weighs a ton:
"God so loved the world that he gave his
only begotteu son, that whatsoever be-
lieveth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.n Show me any other
book with such doctrine-so high, so
deep, so vast.
Again, the Bible is right in its effects. ]
do not care where you put the Bible, II
Just suits the place. You put it in the
hand Of man seriously concerned about
his soul. see people often giving to the
serious soul this and that book. It may be
very well; but there is no book like the
Bible He reads the commandments, and
pleads to the indictment guilty" He
takes up the Psalms of David and says
ssThey Just describe my feelings" He flies
to good works. Paul starts him out of that
by the announcement: "A man Is NOT
justified by works" He falls back in his
discouragement The Bible starts him up
with the sentence; "Remember Lots wife.
Grieve not the Spirit Flee the wrath 10
come" Then the man In despair begins 70
cry out: "What shall do? Where shall
gog" and voice reaches him, saying
"Come unto me, all We who are weary and
heavy laden, and l will give you rest"
I ~ts NNEG - Il.
hands OF men In troubleY Is there any
body here in troubleg All | might better
ask. are there any here who have never
been in troubley Put this Bible in the
hands OF the troubled. You find that as
some OF the best berries grow on the
sharpest thorns, so some 81 the sweetest
consultations Of the Gospel grow on the
most singing Affections. You thought
that death had grasped your child. Oh,
no: il was only the heavenly shepherd
taking the lamb out OF the cold. Christ
bent over you as you held the child in
your lar. and putting his arms gently
around the little one said: "Of such is
the kingdom OF Heaven" Put the Bible
in the school. Palsied be the hand that
would take the Bible from the college
and the school. Educate only a mans
head and you make him an inidel
Educate only mans heart and you make
him "a fanatic. Educate them both TO.
gether and you have the noblest work Of
God An educated mind without moral
principle is a ship without a helm, a rush
ing rail train without brakes or reversing
rod to control the speed Put the Bible il
the family. There it lies on the table an
unlimited power. Polygamy and unscript.
ural divorce are prohibited. Parents are
kind and faithful, children polite and
obedient. Domestic sorrows lessened by
being divided, joys increased by being
multiplied. o father. o mother take
down that long-neglected Bible ana read
, it yourselves and let you children read it
INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS.
| Nr.n...tt., tf,,t,.a H.