Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1889-04-05

not stand That is all thsro is about it. A
man COmss to me to lalk about rei zion. The
hrst question ask him is; "Do you feel your
self 10 be a sinnerf' IL he say: well l.
yes" the he5itancy MAKES me feel that that
man wants q ride Oh NehemRhs horSs by
midnight through the ruins-in by the gate
of his affections, out by tho gate of his will;
and before he has got through with that
midnight ride he will drop the reigns on the
horses mock, and will take his right
hand and smite on his heart and say:
God be merciful TO mo q snner;h
and before be has stabbed his horse he
will take his feot out of the stirrups, and he
will slide down on the ground, and be will
knssl crying: Have mercy on me, God,
according to Thy loving kindness, according
unto tho multitude of Thy tender msrcies;
blot out my transgressions for | acknoTl-
Adge my trans.ressions and my sins
IRE ever before Thee An, my friends
you soc this is not n complimentary
gospel. That is what makes some PEG.
de so mad. 1t comes to q man of a million
dollars and impenitent in his sins and says;
You're pauper." IG comes to a woman of
iairest cheek who has never repented, and
says: You're a sinner" 1t comes TO man
pridiRg himself on his Independence aud says;
you're bound hand aud foot by the devil "
1t comes to our entire raco and says: YOU'RE
ruin, a ghastly ruin, an illimitable ruin"
do you preach that truthl Why
don't you preach gosLsl with
no repentance III IJF why DON'T you nattsr
mons hearts so that you make them feel all
right Why don't you preach a humani-
tartan gospel with no repentance in it, say
time about redemption" say: "Get thee
iehind me, Satan" would rather
lead five souls tue right way than
twenty thousand the wrong way.
The redemption Of the gospel is a per-
feet farce if there is no ruin. 1.-THE whole
need not physician, but they that ara sick.n
"If any one, though he be an angel from
heaven, preach by any other gospel than
this" says the apostle, Get him be accursed."
There must be the midnight ride over the
ruins before Jerusalem can be built. There
must be the clicking of the hoofs before there
can be the ringing Of the trowes.
Again. Ny subject gives me q specimen
of busy and triumphant sadness. If there
was any man in the world who had right
10 nope and give up everything as lost, it
was Nehemiah. You say: "Hs was cup
bearer in the palace Of Shushan, and it vas
grant place" So il was. The hall of that
palace was two hundred feet square,
and the roof hoverel over thirty-six
marble pillars, zach pillar sixty feet high;
and tbs intense blue of the sky, and
the deep green of the forest foliage and
trembling in the upholstery. But, my
friends you know very well that fine archi-
lecture will not put down Inconsistencies.
Yet Nehemiah did not give up Then when
you SEQ him going among these desc
lated streets, and by these dtsmantled
towers, aud by the torn up grave of his
father, you would suppose that he would
have been disheartsnsd, and that he would
have dismounted from his horse and gone to
his room and said: WOE is mel My fathers
grave is torn up The Temple is dishonored.
The walls are brokon down. Ihavs no money
with which to rebuild, wish l had neve
bssn born. | wish were dea1.n Not so says
Nehemiah Although he had O grief so
intense that it excited the commentary Of his
King, yet that penniiess, expatriated
Nehemiah rouses himself up to rebuild the
city He gets his permission of absence He
gets his passports. He hastens away to
Jerusalem. BY night on horseback he rides
through tina ruins. He overcomes the most
rerocioas opposition. He arou5o5 tia piety
aud patriotism of the people, and i'll less than
Gwo months, namely, IN fitty-two days,
Jerusalem was rebuilt. That's what call
busy and triumphant SADNESS.
My friends, the whole temptation is with
you, when you have trouble. TO do Just the
opposite to the behavior of Nehemiah, and
that is to give up. You say: 81 have lost
my child and can never smile cgain.n You
otiJ iie~fO ANoV ny ~ OpSiC " tbh'l iiSfCI
can repair my fortunes" You say: 81 have
fallen into sin, and l neyor can start
again for a new lif9" II Satan can
make you form that resolution, and
make you keep i5, he has ruined you.
Trouble is not sent to crush you, but to
arouse you, to animate you, to propoi you.
The blacksmith does not thrust the iron in5o
the forge and thea blow away with the bel.
lows, and then bring the hot iron out on the
anvil and beat with stroke alter stroke to
ruin the iron, bu! to prepare it for
better use. Oh, that tho Lord God
of Nehemiah would rouse up all
broken-heartsd people to rebuild. Whipped,
went right on. The Italian martyr
Algerus sits in his dungeon writing letter,
and ha dates it ''I'rom tho dolectabie orchard
Of the Leonine prison" That is what call
triumphant sadness. I knew q mother who
buried her BABY on Friday end on Sabbath
appeared in the house of God and said:
'Givs me class; give me a Sabbath school
class. have no child now left ma,
and would like TO have a class of little
children. Give mo real poor children.
Give me- a class off the back street"
That, I say, is beautiful That is tri-
umphant sadness. at 3 O'clock this after
noon, in beautiful parlor in PhiIalolphia-
parlor pictured and statuetted-th9re will
be from ten TO twenty destitute children of
tho street. LIZ has been SO every Sabbath
afternoon at B O'Clock for many years Those
destitute children receive religious instruc-
tion concluding with cakes and sandwiches
How do kno" that that has been going or
for manV wears? knew it in this wav
1nsJ was tue ngSG home in Philadelphia
where | was called to comfort great 5or.
row. They had a splendid boy and
no had been drowned at Long Branch.
The father and mother almost idolizs6
tho boy, and the sob and shriek Of that
father end mother as they hung over the
coffin resound in my ears to day. Thera
seemed to be no use of praying, for when
knelt down to pray, the ouGcry in the room
drowned out all the pray. But the Lord
comfortet thaG sorrow. They did not for
get their trouble. II sou should go on the
sDowiest winter afternoon into Laurel Hill
you would find monument with The word
"Welter" inscribed upon it, and wreath of
fresh flowers around the name I think there
has not been All hour all these years, winter
or summer, when there was not wreath OF
fresh flowers around Walters name
But the Christian mother who sends thoss
flowers there, having no Child left, Sabbath
afternoons Others ton or twenty of the lost
ones OF the street. That is beautiful. That
is what call busy and triumphant sadness
Here is man who has lost his property, ITe
does not go TO hard drinking He does not
destroy his own life. He comes and says;
"Harness me for Christian work. inv
moneys gone. I have no treasures
Oh earth. | want treasures in heaven
have voice and heart TO serve Gol.n You
say that that man nas failed. ITe hos not
failed-he has triumphed. Oh, wish |
could persuade all tho people who have any
kind Of trouble never to give up. | wish they
would look at the midnight rider OF the text,
and that the f0ur hoofs of that
beast on which Nehemiah rode
might cut to pieces all your
Heterogeneous and hardships and
trials. Give upl Who is going to give up.
when on the bosom OF God he can have ali
his troubles hushedl Give up! Never think
OF giving up Are you borne down with
nnua1,kuI littla chill ,-rnn En.,..A III