Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-12-19

grOup OF IrleuuS on Inc stormy EaS-
sage" taking for his text the verses of
the gospel following: john vi, II: EN-
tered into the ship, and went over the
sea toward Capernaum;" and Mark vi,
80: And he rose and rebuked the wind
and the sea-" He said:
Here in this seashore village was the
temporary home of that Christ who for
the most of His life was homeless. On
the site of this village, now in ruins.
and oil around this lake, what scenes of
kindness and power, and glory and
pathos when our Lord lived here! 1t
has been the wish of my life-I cannot
say the hope, for l never expected the
privilege-to stand on the banks of
Galilee. What a solemnity and what a
rapture to be here! l can now under
stand the feeling of the immortal
Scotchman, Robert McCheyne, when,
sitting on the banks of this lake, he
wrote:
1t is not that the wild razelle
| Comes down to drink thy tide,
| But he that was pierced to save from hell
Oft wandered by thy side.
| Graceful around thee the mountains meet,
Thou calm reposing sea;
| But ah far more, the beautiful feet
| OF Jesus walked Der thee.
lean now easily understand from the
contour of the country that bounds this
lake that storms were easily tempted to
make these waters their playground.
From the gentle way this lake treated
our boat when we sailed ON it yesterday,
one would have thought it incapable of
paroxysm of rage, but it was quite
different on both the occasions spoken
of in my two texts. close my eyes, and
the shore of Lake Galilee as it now is,
with but little signs of human life, dis
appears, and there comes back to my
vision the lake as it was in Christ's
time. 1t lay in a scene of great luxuri-
ance; the surrounding hills, terraced,
sloped, grooyed, so many hanging gar
dens of beauty. On the shore were cas-
ties, armed towers, Roman baths, every
thing attractive and beautful-all
styles of vegetation in shorter space
than in almost any other space in all
the world, from the palm tree of the
forest to the trees of rigorous climate.
1t seemed as if the Lord had launched
one wave of beauty on allthe scene, and
it hung and swung from rock and hill
an oleander. Roman gentlemen in
pleasure boats sailing this lake, and
countrymen in fish smacks coming down
to drop their nets, pass each other with
nod and shout and laughter, or swing
ing idly at their moorings. Oh, what a
beautiful scene!
1t seems as if we shall have a quiet
night. Not leaf wiuked in the air;
not ripple disturbed the face of Gen
nesaret; but there seemed to be u little
excitement up the beach, and we hasten
to see what it is, and we find it an en-
barkation.
From the western shore a hotillO
pushing out; not q squadron, or deadly
armament, nor clipper with valuable
merchandise, nor piratic vessel ready to
destroy everything they could seize, but
q fotilla, bearing messengers of light
and life and peace. Christ is in from
of the boat. His disciples are in SINH
lar boat. Jesus, weary with much speak
ing to large multitudes, is put into
somnolence by the rocking of the waves
If there was any motion at all, the shiI
was easily righted; if the wind passed
from starboard to larboard, or from lar
board to starboard, the boat would rock
and by the gentleness of the motion
putting the Master asleep. And they
extemporized pillow made out of {
fisherman's coat. l think no sooner il
Christ PROSTATE. and His head touches
the pillow, than He is sound asleep
The breezes of the lake run their fin.
gers through the locks of the worr
sleeper, and the boat rises and falls like
a sleeping child on the bosom of a sleep.
ing mother.
Calm night, starry night, beautiful
night. Run up all the sails, ply all thu
oars, and let the large boat and thu
small boat glide over gentle Gennesaret
But the sailors say there is going to b.
change OF weather. And even the pas
sengers can hear the moaning OF thu
storm, as it comes on with great stride
and all the terrors of hurricane nnt
darkness. The large boat trembles lik,
deer at bay among the clangor of th
hounds; great patches of foam are fun!
into the air; the sails of the vesse
loosen, and the sharp winds crack lik,
pistols; the smaller boats like petrol
poise on the cliffs ofthe waves and thel
plunge.
Overheard go cargo, ,tackling and masts
and the drenched disciples rush int
the back part of the boat, and lay holt
of Christ, and say unto him: Master
carest thou not that we perish2" Tha
great parsonage lifts his head from tn
pillow of the fsherman's coat, walks t.
the front of the vessel, and looks ou
into the storm. All around Him are th
smaller boats, driven in the tempest
and through it comes the cry of drown
ing men. BY the fash of the lightnin
I see the calm brow of Christ as th
spray dropped from His beard. He ha
one word for the sky and another fo
the waves. Looking upward He cries
J "Peaco!" Looking downward He says
@Be still"
The waves fell flat on their faces, tn
: foam melts, the extinguished stars re
light their torches. The tempest fall
} dead and Christ stands with His feet OIL
the neck of the storm. And while th
while they are trying to untangle tn
cordage, the disciples stand in amaze
ment, now looking into the calm sea
then into the calm sky, then into tn
} calm Saviour's countenance, and the
| cry out: what manner Of man is this
that even the winds and the sea ODE
J Him."
ALWAYS HAVE CHRIST IN THE SHIP.
The subject in the first place i'm
presses me with the fact that it is yer
: Important to have Christ in the ship
for all those boats would have gone t.
the bottom of Gennesaret if Christ ha
not been present. Oh, what lesso
for you and me to Learnt We must al
ways have Christ in the ship. All yo
can do with utmost tension of body
mind and soul, you are bound to do
but oh! have Christ in every enterprise
Christ in every voyage.
There are men who ask Gods help a
ha of ,rroot III