Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-01-23
HOPE AND WAIT.
Jereminh's Precept About saliva.
tiOn.


At the First Presbyterian Church
yesterday forenoon, the pastor, Rev
w. J. Chichester, filed his pulpit fol
the first time in several weeks, his
absence being due to a severe attack
of nervous prostration. His discourse
was based on the 26th verse oi
the Sd chapter of Lamentations
"It is good that a man should
both hope and quietly wait for the
salvation of the Lord" In the con-
dition that Jerusalem was in when
jeremiah wrote his Lamentations the
advice in the text was timely and
opposite. For the multitude of her
transgressions the Lord had sorely
afflicted her. The King OF Babylon
had thrown down her wall and had
taken four thousand of her chief in
habitants into captivity, and the city
sat SOLITARY that was full Of
people," Plague and famine came
to fill up her cup of misery, and
the anger of the Lord for the back
sliding of his people was manifest in
her unspeakable distress. Bent and
bowed by three-score affections, there
was ray of sunshine in the advice
of the weeping prophet when he bade
the chastened people to hope and
quietly wait for the salvation OF the
Lord. Jeremiah's destiny had cast
his lot upon troublous times. He had
been called upon the scene at a time
when one would think it re-
quired stout and determined
nature to play the part of
reformer. When the Lord had
pointed to him the task to go out
among the people and exhort them
against their iniquitious courses, he
he felt that he was not fitted for it,
and cried out, "Ah, Lord God, behold,
l cannot speak, for l am child" He
was, indeed, the last man who
would have been selected, from
our human standpoint, to en-
ter upon a vigorous crusade against
the sins of a people who had
violated and contemned all the
ordinances of God. He was of
a soft and delicate nature;
retiring and sensitive, filled
with passive piety and averse
to demonstration. There could hardly
be more striking contrast than be-
tween the gentle character of the weep
ing prophet and that of the aggres-
sive and indomitable hero of the Re-
formation. Yet the Lord, for His own
wise purpose, had chosen him at this
inauspicious time in the history of
Jerusalem to confront his rebellious
people, and had "sanctified him and
ordained him prophet to the Ma
tions." His work was to turn the hearts
of the Jews from sin, and bring them
to the worship of Zion. In the midst
of their humiliation they were better
prepared to receive consolation from
one whose whole being was over
whelmed with a consciousness OF
their unhappy condition, and who
could assure them that there was even
then hope unto salvation. 1t was
well to bring such message to
people who had given up hope.
Despair had seized upon them and
they saw nothing before them but
destruction. Therefore it was like
bright augury when the man
of God, told them to quietly wait for
the salvation of the Lord. The lesson
of the hour is this to the sinner who
has given up hope and despairs Of
salvation, he should quietly wait
and inwardly pray for deliv-
erance. 1t is not the demon
strative and aggressive Christ
ian who secures the greatest favor.
The quiet, most sincere Christian; I;
the one who suffers without
complaining; who accepts the chas-
Jennings of the flesh and the lashings
of the spirit in silence and humility;
who looks to God for relief and dwells
on him in thought; whose meditations
are holy and whose grief for past er-
rors is sincere; whose deep venera-
ton for the Throne and whose faith
in the salvation OF the Lord
is immovably ceutered in the
heart; it is this sweet, sensi-
tive, quiet, patient spirit that comes
nearest to perfection ,and which in the
end will accomplish the most goodly
example. The Lords gates are not to
be opened by the boisterous assault
of tongues. They will sooner turn
their hinges to the man "who shall
hope and quietly wait for the saliva
ton of the Lord"