Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1889-11-29

majority of men will he destroyed" deny
the charge. ! suppose that the multitude of
the finally lost as compared with the multi
tude of the finally saved, will he u handful
] suppose that the few sick people in the hos
pitfalls of our great cities, as compared with
the hundreds of thousands of well people,
would not be smaller than the number of
those who shall be cast out in suffering, com
pared with those who shall have upon them
the health of heaven. For we sre to remem-
Der that we are living in only the beginning
of the Christian disponsation, and that this
whole world is to be populated and redeemed,
aud that ages of light and love are TO flow
on If this be so, the mutitudes of the saved
will be in vast majority. Take all the con
greCations that have assembled for worship
throughout Christendom. Put them togcth-
err and they would make but a small audi
ence compared with the thousands and tens
of thousands and ten thousand times ten
thousand, and the hundred and forty and
four thousand that shall stand around the
throne. Those flashed up to heaven in martyr
fires those tossed for many years upon the
invalid couch; those fought in the armies of
liberty. and rose rs they fell those tumbled
from high scaifolding, or slipped from the
mast or were washed Off into the sea. They
came up from Corinth, from Laodcca, from
the Red Sea bank and Gennesaret's wave
from Egyptian brickyards, and Gideon's
threshihg floor. Those thousands Of years
ago slept the last sleep, and these are this
moment having their eyes closed, and their
limbs stretched out for the sepulcher.
A general expecting an attack from the
enemy stands on a hill and looks through a
field glass, and sees, in the great distance,
or
their numbers. He says: Il cannot tell my
thing about them. merely know that there
are a great number" And so John, without
attempting to count, says: "a great multi
titude that no man can number" We are
told that heaven is a place OF happiness; but
what do we know about happiness3 Happi-
ness i'll this world is only half licGgod thing;
a fowery path, with Il serpent kissing across
it; n broken pitcher, from which the water
has dropped before we could drink it a thrill
of exhilaration, followed by disastrous re-
actions To help us understand the joy of
heaven, tho Bible takes us to a river. We
stand on the grassy bank. We see the waters
flow on with ceaseless wave. BuJ the filth
of the cities is elnpticl into it, aud the
banks are torn, and unhealthy exhalatons
spring up from it, and we fail ID get an idea
of the river of life in heaven.
GLORIOUS AND EVERLASTING REUNION.
| We get very imperfect IDEAS of the reunions
| of heaven W. think Of some fe..al day on
| earth, when ia her and mother We're Yet liv-
/ in- and the children came home. 4 good
| time that But it Lad this dra@hack--all
/ were not there. That ,rother Went OF 20 sea,
ard mover wa. heard soal. That sistor-tid
| We no. lay her :,raY in the freshness Of her
! young lie, never more in this world to look
/ upon herr Ah there was a skeleton at the
! feast; and tears il.u lied with our laughter
! on that Christmas day. Not so wiki heavens
reunions. 1t will be al uninterrupted glad
ness. Many a Christian parent will look
around and find all his children there "Ahl'
| lie says. can it be possible hat We are all
here-lifes perils oyerf the Jordan passed
and not one wanting: Why, even the prod
! igal is here. | almost gave him up. low long
he de.piseI my coIu,eisl but grace L1'n til
umphcd All Acrc all here! 1,lithemi-.ty
joy through the city. Let the bella ring. and
the angel, mention it in their song. Hoye it
from the top OF the walls. All here!
10 more breaking Of heartstrings, but
face to face. The orphans that We're left
poor, and in a mcrciIe,s world, kc,ad AMI
cJIcd OF many hIrdshipS, snail JON tLrr
parents over whose gray they $50 long wvPt,
and ga1e into their 9ioriGad coUuteuaAco
forever, face to luce. We may come up from
I different parts Of the world, one from the
land and another from tEe depths Of the SET;
from live a.iluent and prOsp rous, or from
scenp5 OF ru--pd distress; bu. W snail al
meet u,rapture and jubilee, face 10 lace
Many OF Cgr friends have entered Up0,
that Joy \ few duvs ago tAeF sal with LIS
Studying these gospel themes; but they only
saw dimly-nowreyc AntA come. YoIr