Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1888-12-06

J. B. Parmalee preached from the text:
Thou croWnest the year with thy goodnes,
And thy pnths drop fetness.
Tney drop uIon the pastures Of the wilder
ness;
And the hills are girded with joy.
The pA-tnres are clothed with flooks:
The valleys also are covered over with corn
They shout for Joy, they also sing.
--pa. Lxv, fi-i3.
Bless the lord. o my soul; and all that
within me bless His holy nane.-Ps. CHI, .
To live 10 thsnklessness In the midst O
klndnesseB received from others who ar
only our equaisi5 mo,e than q mere neg
atiye wSong: il 10 positive evil, for i
indicates q couarmed state Of selfishness
which is the proIido parent of all eyi
thoughts, affections and deeds.
But TO live in practical ingraiitude 1,
God, the fountain of all bsnefi.a natura
and spiritual, js3a grievous sin.
Onr text, as II stands in the letter O
the word, is the body, Of which the In
ternal sense is the soui.
The letter apesks OF natural states AMI
benefits, while tho internal sepse epenk,
Of spiritual states and benefits for which
every true heart will hasten to offer hil
daily and yearly Thanksgiving to God.
And there lives not g soul today hul
what has abundant reasons to thank the
Lord for his bBipR, aud for the divine
provisions for his welfare and well. being:
though many mak not be in state to see
and acknowled ss shese reasons.
The constant aim Of the Divine Proyi.
dence, In natural as we'll as in spiritual
things, is the present and eternal health
and happy life 3nf all. II Providence
seems untriendiy, and losses and sffiic-
lions betail, and natuyal good things are
Lot given in the fulness we desire, il il
because our desres fulfilled would be
Injurious to QRr spiritual state, and
because the pre9snt order OF Providence
will tend to oar elevation out of our
present evils and TO our more complete
preparation for heavenly happiness and
angelic uses. This must be true for "the
Lord is good to ell, and Elia tender
mercies are over all His works, and "Ho
doeth all things WE'LL" ever.
Il Is ssd fact that there are nauv ala.
osders and much srGering in all the reIs
tione OF life among men, all the causes of
which exist in men themselves. Human
ills are not provided OF God, but are the
rank poisonous weeds OF human selfish
ness. The Great Father seeks to provide
amply for every real want of each and
all, and to override evil for the GOOD Of
sll who will freely consent ard co operate
with Bim. n any persist in peryertino
,he divine good, in sq1andsring His
oenents upon their own selfish ends in
disregard of the divine laws of life for
man, then they turn those blessings into
c'irses and rsap harvest OF misery. He
never visits misery upon any here, nor
hereafter. He is not fountain of misery,
and only what is ttnsa fountain can fiow
from it.
HE maketh His sun to rise on the evil
and the good, and sendeth His rain On
the juat and ON the unjust." The evil
man ss likely 90 the good man finds his
''yeaI" Of lapor ''crowned with goodness,
and his steps droppiug with fatness,n in
thing. His shooksn In his pas
ture thrive as we'll, and his fields OF
''corn" are ag we'll cared. He NAV
shout as loui for joy" and "sine" es |
meEfiiy over his income aud his richly |
furnished mansion and luxurious table.
hut real prosperity depends upon turn. |
ng natural blessings into spiritual good, |
which can be done by his blessing the
Lord for and in the u4s of them ali. Il
! man gifted with the health, etrenath |
md aptitude to amass material good, or
o act as an Intelligent steward of the
rsasures amassed by others? Then his
cry giftd make him debtor to others--to
II who need him, aud by meetins this
Ieht faithfully can he sniess the Lord. y
nd only thus.
TheIord gays, ia Matthew XIV: tI
Tas hungry and ye fed me, &c. Inasmuub
8 ye did it unto one OF the least Of
nese, my brethren, ys did ii unto me.
nter into the joy OF thy Lord" The
Iord olesssa us when Hs helps rs Ia our
aFitimate work, with His sunshine and
are spiritually His love and
isdom-csuaing our fslds, or our bust.
ess OF whatever order, to prosper and
specially when EIs aids us in cnltiystinp
10 "Sarden of Eden" within us, the
arden of spiritual intelligence and love.
IS gifts are always blessings when
l5ely used In view of all His gifts, of ,
10 fact that He loves to bless us, we ,
lsll find il in our hearts to bless Him in
turn, and for his own sake,i. g. because
9 is good. But how can we hlesB Him?
% caanot bestow gifts npon Him, or aid .
i'm directly and psrsonally. True we
n thank Him for His benefits, and
axe the confession before men. We can :
sy to Him, and sing His pEaise. But Z
that NAV be done without practically :
essing Him. And yet We may prscti- :
lily aid Hun by cooperating with Him q
Ills work Of salvation in u9 aad in tho
orld, that lie nay make heaven Of, or
om the human race.
By receiving His natural henefits thank.
lily and putting them 60 legitimate uses r
} become recipients of His spiritual =
'ts and grRoes to which His temporal \
iBtlngs correspond. Iu this way we :,
come spiritually pure, and in the game !,
gree become channels, mediums, Of
1Ine blessings to others. Thus we bleus ),
} Lord when we aid Him in blessing !,
families and others, socially, morally, d
religtously. Not that he d
sntlally needs our aid 10 make His p
rk successful in others, but we need to U
rk and he employs us for our own sake. y
IS not on His own account, not that the =,
I'd may receive honor and glory, that \,
dealre5 and commands our thanks, h,
ing, and all modes of worship; but b,
our sakes, that we may become like
object OF our worship, become His m
idren, and thus pure, useful and happy p.
ever. q
That our text contains spiritual sense y i.
hin the external covering must be ob- n
us In that it is affirmed that the pas al
ts and valley "sbout for joy, and also b
g." which cannot he said Of inanimate II
A
nss il nature do, in u mute and un- =.
Iscious way, show forth tho praise OF 81
when the clouds OF the letter of the
I'd ere rittsd, aud the spirit of the tex; 40 40
ais forth to view. it will commend ~
# to enlightened d reason, and hence to !. !.
IA. The contt xt says: "Psaise waitsth "
Thee, o God, in I,on. and uuto Tbse ps ss
II the vow be psrtoimcdn Ii ia Co.'s ~
n, then, Els church, which ia under VI
sideration. II is then eaid that He
pre f1rppaF re,upvaa spfo,.ttu owl