Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1888-06-09


thirst Of Christ must have tantalized rs he
thought of the Euphrates and the Jordan and
tho Amazon and all the fountains Of earth
ard heaven poured out of his own hand.
They offered him an Intoxicating draught
made out Of wine md myrrh, but be declined
it. He wanted to die sober No water.
Then, my friends, there was the absence Of
light Darkness always exnspcrates trouble
Inever shall forget the night in the summer
of 1873 in the steamer Greece, mid Atlantic,
every moment expecting the steamer to go
down. All tho lights in the cabin were blown
out Tho captain came crawling on his
hands and knees, for he could not stand up
right, so violently was tho vessel pitching,
| end he cried: Light up, light upI" Tho
steward said: "Wo can't light up; the can-
/ dies are gono and tho holders are gone.n The
captain said: Il can't help that; light upl'
i Tho storm was awful when the lights were
I, burning; worse when the lights went out.
81 Then there was the absence of faithful
4 nurses When yousare il, 1T is pleasant to
4 have tile head bathed and the hands and feet
,lg.rpbb oil: at tie handss feeso
4 Christ, look ut the face Of Christ There were
women there who had caredfor- tho sick, but
none Of them might come up near enough to
help There was Christs mother, but she
might not come up near enough to help.
They said: "Stand back, stand back; this is
b, place for you" The high priests and the
soldiers wanted it their own way; they had it
their own way.
The hours pass on and it is l2 o'clock of the
Savioul's suffering, and it is o'clock, and it
is Q o'clock, and it is almost O'Clock. Take
e.,
! pinched, the purple lips drawn back against
the teeth, the eyes red with weeping and
sunken as through grief had pushed them
/ back, blackness under the lower lid, the whole
body adroop and shivering with the last chill,
the breath growing feeber and feebler and
fcebler and feebler until he gives one long.
deep. last sigh. He is deadi
Oh my soul, he is dead. Can ron tell why7
Was he fanatic dying for principle that
did not amount to anything3 Was he q man
infatuateda No: to save your soul from sin,
and mine, and mako eternal life possible he
died There had to be substitute for sin
Who shall it hel "Let it be me, said Christ
''let it he me-" You understand the mean
ing of that word substitution. You were
drafted for tho last war; some one took your
place, marched your march, suffered your
wounds and died ut Gettysburg. Christ
comes to US while We are fighting our battle
with sin and death and hell, and he is our
substitute He marches our march, fights
our battle, suffers our wounds and dies our
death. Substitution! substitution
How do you feel i'll regard to that scene de-
scribed i'll the text, and III the region around
about the texta Are your sympathies
aroused2 Or ore you SO dead in sip, and SO
abandoned by reason Of your transgressions
that you can look upon all that tcarless and
unmoyedl No, no; thorc are thousands OF
people here this morning who can say in the
depths of their soul mo, no, no; if Jesus
endured that, and all that for me, Il ought to
love him. must love him. l will love him,
I do lovo him: Here, Lord, l give myself to
thee; tits all that can do.n
But how are you going to test your love,
and test your earncstnessl My text gives q
test. 1t says that while Christ carried q
cross for you, you must be willing to carry o
cross for Christ. "Well," you say, II never
could understand that. There arc no crosses
to DO carried in this land; those prosecutions
have passed, and mall the land there is no
one to be.crucificd, ant. Fin the pulpit and
in the prayer meetings you oil keep talking
about carrying cross What do you mean,
sire" mean this: That this is n cross which
Christ calls y, IL to do. which is unpleasant
and hard 'Or' you say, latter hearing the
story of this Christ and all that be has ell
dured for me, am ready to do anything
for him Just tell me what have to do and
I'll do it. am ready to carry any cross"
Suppose should ask you at the close of
religious service to rise UP, announcing your
self OH the Lords sdc-could You do it. "Ol
no" you say. II have shrinking and sem
sitivc uatnrc, and it would DO impossible for
me to rise before n large assemblage, an-
nouncing myself on the Lords side" Just
as feared. You cannot stand that cross.
The first ono that is offered you, you reject.
Christ carried a mountain, Christ carried a
Himalaya, Christ carried world for you,
and you cannot lift an ounce for him.
But here is q man whose cross will DO to
announce among his business associates to-
morrow morning Oh exchange that he has
begun n new life; that while he wants to be
faithful in his worldly duties, he is living for
another world, and he ought to advise all
those who are bis associates, so fur us he can
influence them, to begin with HIM the Chris
tian life Could you do that, my brotbcrf
! "Oh, no." you say, mot just that. think
religion is religion and business is business,
and it would DO impossible for me to recon-
mend the Christian religion in places Of
worldly business" Just US l feared. There
is Il second cross offered you, and you can
not carry it. Christ lifted mountain for
YOU; you cannot lift an ounce for him.
There is some one whose cross will &c to
-. +I,o ~, EnfI11
you dare to llncel down and pray, if your
brother and sister were looking at youf
! Could YOU ask a blessing ut the ten tablet
Could you take the Bible and gather your
family around You, and read Of Christ and
heaven and your immortal soula Could you
then kllce aud pray for q blessing on your
household? "OhI" you say, mot exactly
that; couldn't quite do that, because have
a very quick temper, and if l professed re-
| lcion and tried to talk religion in my house
hold. and then after that should lose my
temper, they would scof at mo and say
You arc pretty Christian!'" So you are
cowed down, and their sarcasm keeps you
out of heaven and away from Christ, when,
under God, you ought to take your whole
family into the kingdom. Christ lifted q
mountain, lifted world for you; you cannot
lift oil ounce for him. see how it Is; you
want to be favorable to religion, you want
to support Christian institutions, you like to
he associated with those who love Jesus
Christ; but as to taking q positive step on
this Subject, you cannot-you cannot; and
my text, like a gate of hundred bolts, bars
yon away from peace on earth and glory in
heaven.
There are hundreds of men and women here
brave enough in other things in life who sim.
ply, for tho lack of manliness and womoni-
ness, stay away from God. They dare not
say: "Forevcr and forever. Lord Jesus, l
take thee. Thou hast redeemed me by thy
blood, here is my Immortal spirit Listen,
oil my friends Listen, oil the world" They
are lurking around about the kingdom OF