The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1888-07-12

Tansgression, unuer Unrlsulan pomoardmenJ
may be made to hoist the flag of redemption
But is all this admonition and PRAYER, and
Christian work for nothingl Ny text
',They that turn many to Righteousness shall
shine as the stars forever
As stars, the redeemed have borrowed
light What makes Mars and Venus and
Jupiter so luminous1 When the sun throws
down his torch in the heavens the stars pick
up the scattered brands and hold them in
procession as the queen of the night ad-
vRnces; so all Christian workers, standing
sround the throne. will shine in the light bor-
lowed from the Sun Of Righteousness--Jesu
/ IN their faces, Jesus in their songs, J esls in
their triumph. Christ left heaven once for a
tour of redemption on earth, yet the
glorified ones knew he would come back
again. But let him abdicate his throne.
ana go away to stay forever the music
woult stop: the congregation disperse; the
temples of God be darkened: the rivers Of
light stagnate, and every chariot would be-
come hearse. and every bell would toll, and
there would not be room on the hill sides to
bury the dead Of the great METROPOLIS, for
there would be pestilence in heaven. But
Jesus lives, and so all the redeemed live
with Him. He shall recognize them as His
comrades in earthly toll and remember what
they did for the honor of His name and for
the spread of His kingdom. All their pray
ers and tears and work will rise before Him
as He looks into their faces, and He will
divide His kingdom with them: His peace
.heir peace; His holiness their holiness: His
iov-their JOY. The glory of the central
throne reflected from the surrounding
thrones the last SPOT of sin struck from the
Christian orb, and the entire nature a trem-
BILE and flash with light, they shall shine as
the stars forever and ever.
Again: Christian workers shall be like the
stars in the fact that they have light inde-
pendent of each other. Look up at the night,
and see each world shows its distinct glory
1t is not like the conflagration. in which you
cannot tell where one flame stops and another
begins. Neptune, Herschel and Mercury are
as distinct as if each one of them were the
only star; so our individualism will not he
lost in heaven. A great multitude--yet
each one as observable, as distinctly recog-
nized. as greatly celebrated, es If in all the
space from gate to gate, and from
hill to hill he was the only inhahitant: no
mixing up-no mob-no indiscriminate rush;
each Christian worker standing out illus
trious-all the story of earthly achieve
ments adhering to each one; his self denials,
and pains, and services, and victories
published. Before men went out to the
last war. the orators told them that they
would all be remembered by their country.
and their names be commemorated In poetry
and in song; but go to the graveyard in Rich
mond and you will find there six thousand
graves, over each one of which is the inscrip-
ton, "Unknown" The world does not re.
member its heroes; but there will be no un-
recognized Christian worker in heaven.
Each one known by ALL grandly known;
known by acclamation; all the past story of
work for God cleaning in cheek, and brow,
and foot and palm. They shall shine with
distinct light as the stars, forever and ever.
Again, Christian workers shall shine like
the stars in clusters. In looking up. you find
the worlds in family circles. Brothers and
sisters-they take hold of each others hands
and dance in groups. Orion in a group.
is only a company of children, with bright
faces, gathered around one great fireplace.
The words do not straggle off. They 20 in
sQuadrons and fleets, sailing through i'm
mensity.
So Christian workers in heaven will dwell
In neighborhoods and clusters I am sure
that some people will,ke in heaven great
deal better than others. Yonder is con.
stelation of stately Christians. They lived
on earth by rigid rule. They never laughed.
They walked every hour, anxious lest they
should lose Their dignity. But they loved
God and yonder they shine in brilliant con-
stellation. Yet shall not long to get into
that particular group. Yonder is a constel.
latIon of small hearted Chstians- asteroids
In the eternal astronomy. While some souls
90 up from Christian battle and blaze like
Mars, these asteroids dart feeble ray like
Vesta. 4onder is a constellation of martyrs,
Of apostles, OF patriarchS. Our souls, as they
20 up to heaven, will seek out the most con
genial society. Yonder is constellation
almost merry with the play of light. On earth
they were full of sympathies aad songs and
tears and raptures and congratulations.
When they prayed their words took fire;
when they sang the tune could not hold
them; when they wept ever a worlds woes,
they sobbad as if heart broken; when they
worked for Christ, they famed with enthu-
sasm. Yonder they are-circle of light!
Constellation of joy! Galaxy of fire! Oh,
that you and /, by that grace which can
transform the worst into the best, might at
last sail In the wake of that fleet and wheel
in that glorious group, as the stars, forever
and ever!
Again: Christian workers will shine like
the stars in swi tness of motion. The worlds
do not stop to shine. There are no fixed
stars save as to relative pos tion. The star
most thoroughly fixed flies thousands of miles
minute. The astronomer, using his tele-
scope for an Alpine stock Leaps from world
crag to world crag, and finds no star stand
ing still The chamois hunter has to fly to
catch his prey, but not so swift is his game
as that which the scientist tries to Shoot
through the tower of observatory. Like
petrels mid Atlantic, that seem to come
from no shore, and be bound to
no landing place-fying, fying-so
these great tiocks of worlds rest not as they
60, wing and wing, age after age, forever
and ever. The eagle hastes to its prey,
but we shall in speed beat the eagles You
have noticed the velocity of the swift horse,
under whose feet the miles slip like a
smooth ribbon, and as he passes the four
hoofs strike the earth in such quick beat
your pulses take the same vibration. But ali
<lpSa thiOpq Gyyjff In
with the molten of which speak. The moon
moves fifty-four thousand miles in day.
Yonder, Neptune flashes on eleven thousand
miles in an hour Yonder, Mercury goes one
hundred and nine thousand miles in an hour.
So like the stars, the Christian worker shall |
shine in swiftness of motion. You hear
now of father or mother or child sick
one thousand miles away, and it takes
you two days to get to them. You hear
of some case of suffering that demands |
your immediate attention. but it takes !,
you an hour to get there. Oh. the Joy when |
you shall. in the fulfillment of the text, take
starry speed, and be equal to one hundred |
thousand miles an hour. Having on earth |
got used to Christian work, you will not quit |
when death strikes you. You will only take |
on more velocity There is dying child in |
London, and its spirit must be taken up to
Tod: you are there in an instant to do it. |
There Is young man in New York to be ar |
are there in an instant to arrest him. |
whether with spring of foot, or stroke OF |
wing, or by force of some new law that |
snail huri you to the spot where YOU would |
90. L know not; but my text suggests veloc-
ity. All space open before yor with moth
ing to hinder you in mission Of light and |
love and JOY, you shall shine in swiftness of |
motion as the stars forever and ever
Again: Christian workers. like the stars.
snail shine in magnitude The most illiterate |
man knows that these things in the sky.
looking like gilt buttons, are great masses of
matter 10 weigh them, one would think that
1T would require scales with a pillar hun
dreds OF thousands of miles high, and chains
hundreds OF thousands OF m les long and at |
the bottom of the chains basins on either side
hundreds Of thousands of mics wide. and |
that then onnipotsnce alone could put the
mountains into the scales and the hills into the
balance. But puny man has been equal to the
undertaking, and has set little balance on
his geometry, and weighed word against
world. Yea, he has pulled out his msasur-
ing line, and announced that Hers hal is
thirty six thousand miles in diameter. Saturn
seventy-nine thousand miles in diamster
and Jupiter eighty nine thousand mics IN
and that the smallest pearl on the
beach of heaven is immense beyond all i'm
ayination. So all they who have toiled for
Christ on earth shall rise up to n magnitude
OF privilege, and a magnitude of strength.