Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1889-01-18

world but wept and thrilled and shouted
OH yes, our world is only a silver rung OF a
great ladder, at the top of which is our
Fatherss house No more stellar soltariness
for our world, not friendless planet spun
out into space to freeze, but world in the
bosom of divine maternity. A star harnesed
to q Manager.
". Again, l remark that that night born
In that village barn was the offenders hope
Some sermonizers may say l ought TO have
projected this thought at the beginning Of
the sermon. Oh, no. wanted you to rise
toward it l wanted you to examine the
comedians and the jaspers and the emeralds
and the chrysalis before showed you the
Kohinoor-the crown jewel Of the ages.
Obi That jewel had very poor setting.
The cub of bear is born amid the grand old
pillars of the forest. the whelp of the lion
takes its first step from the Jungle of lux
uriant leaf and wild flo yer, the kid of goat
is born in cavern chandeliers with stalactite
and pillared with stalagmite Christ was
born in a bare barn Yet that nativity was
the offenders hope. Over the door of heaven
are written these words: "None but the sim
less may enter heren
"Oh, horror" you say, that shuts us all
outn No. Christ came to the world in one
door and He departed through another door.
He came through the door of the mangcr
and He departed through the door of the sep
ulcher, and His one business was so to wash
away our sins that one second after we are
dead there will be no more sin about us thar
about the eternal God
know that is putting it strongly. but thai
Is what understand by full remission Ar
erased, all washed away, all secured out, al
gone. That undergirding and overreachine
and irradiating and imparadiSlng possibility
for you and for me and for the whole race
was given on that Christmas night
Do you wonder we bring flowers to-day Il
celebrate such an eventt Do you wonder
that we take organ and cornet and youthful
voice and queenly soloist to celebrate it, Dc
you wonder that Raphael and Rubens, anC
Titan and Giotto and Ghirlandajo and al
the old Italian and German painters gave
the mightiest stroke of tue pencil ~ sketch
the Madonna, Mary and her boyl
OH now / see what the manger was Not
30 high as the gilded and jeweled and en-
broidered cradle of the Henrys of England
or the Louises of France, or the Fredericks
of Prussia. Now l find out of that Bethe-
hem crib fed not so much the oxen of the
stall as the white horses of Apocalyptic Wis
ion. Now find the swaddling clothes en-
larging and emblazoning into an imperial
rote for conqueror Now find that the
star of that Christmas night was only the
diamond sandal of Him who hath the moon
under His feet. Now | come to understand
that the music OF that night was not com.
plete song, but only the stringing of the in
struments for great chorus of two worlds,
the bass to be carried by earthly nations
saved and the soprano by kingdoms of glory
won.
ooh, heaven, heaven, heaven l shall meet
you there. After all our imperfections are
gone l shall meet you there. l look out to-
day, through the mist of years, through the
fog that rises from the cold Jordan, through
the wide open door of solid pearl, to that re-
t1ninn I IN fbara rta if1lU
as | see you here What a time we shall
have in high converse, talking over sins par
doned, and sorrows comforted, and battles
triumphant
am going in. am going to take all my
family with me- am going to take all my
church with me. am going to take all my
friends and neighbors with me. [ have so
much faith in manger and cross l feel sure
of it. am going to coax you in. | am going
to push you in. By holy strategem am 60
ing to surprise you in. y ca, with all the con-
centrated energy OF my nature-physical,
mental. spiritual and immortal-I am going
to compel you to go in. like you so well
want to spend eternity with you'll
Some of your children have already gone.
| Some time ago l buried one of them, and
| though people passing along the street and
! seeing white Grape on the doorbell may have
said: at is only child.n yet when the
| broken hearted father came to solicit my
service he said: "Come around and comfort
us, for though she was only fifteen months
old we loved her so much" All! it does not
| take long for a child to get its arms around
| the parents whole nature.
What a Christmas morning it will make
when those with whom you used to keep the
holidays are all around you in heavenl Sill
| yer haired old father young again, and
mother who had so many aches and pains
and decrepitudes well again, and all your
brothers and sisters and the little ones. How
| glad they will be to see you'll
They have been waiting. The last time
they saw your face it was covered with tears
and distress, and pallid from long watching,
and one of them l can imagine to-day, with
one hand holding fast the shining gate, and
the other hand swung out toward you, say
ing:
Steer this way, father, steer straight for me;
Here safe in heaven am waiting for thee.
Oh! those Bethlehem angels, when they
went back after the concert that night over
the hills, forgot to shut the door. All the
secret is out No more use Of trying to hide
from us the glories to come. 1t is too late to
shut the gate 1t is blocked wide open with
hosannas marching this way and hallelujahs
marching that way.
What almost unnans me Is the thought
that it is provided for such sinners as you
and have been. If it had been provided
right, and spoken right and acted right, you
and would have had no interest in it, had
no share in it; you and l would have stuck
TO the raft mid ocean, and let the ship sal
by, carrying perfect passengers from per
feet life on earth to perfect life in heaven
OH have heard the Commander Of thai
ship is the same great and glorious and sym
pathatic One who hushed the tempest arounC
the boat on Galilee, and I have heard tina
all the passengers on the ship are sinner
saved by grace. And so we hail the ship
and it bears down this way and we come b.
the side of it and ask the Captain two cues
tions: "Who art Thou? and whencep and H
says: 81 am Captain of Salvation, and an
from the manger" Obi bright Christina
morning of my souls delight Chime all tn
bells. Wreathe all the garlands. Rouse al
the anthems. Shake hands in all the con
gratulations.
Merry Christmas Merry with the though
of sins forgiven, merry with the idea Of sor
rows comforted, merry with the raptures b
come. Oil lift that Christ from the mango
and lay Him down in all our hearts. W
may not bring to Him as costly present a
the magi brought but we bring to His fee
and to the manger to-day the frankincens
of Gus Joy, the pearls of our tears, the kiss @
our love- the prostration of our worship.
Down at His feet all churches, all ages, a
ear til, all heaven. Down at His feet the foul
and twenty elders on their faces. Down tn
great multitude that no man can number
Uown Michael, the archangell Down a
worlds at His feet and worship. "Glory
God in the highest, and on earth peace. goo
will to llenln