Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1889-03-09

va htiil'ilAtu III Sun VA o1p1t Nh'at ~,
fore HIM and putting his fingers among
the charmed strings Of the harp played
the devil out Of the craZed monarch, OF
that in heaven there shall be harper'
harping with their harps. So you will
not blame me for opening the dark say
ing on the gospel harp.
Your harps, We trembling saints,
Down from the willows take;
Loud to the praise OF love divine
Bid every string awake!
Interrogation third: Why did a good
God let sin and trouble come into the
world when he might have kept them
cut? My reply is, he had a good reason.
He had reasons that he has never given
us. He had reasons which he could no
more make us understand in our finite
state than the father starting out on some
great and elaborate enterprise could make
the 2-year-old child in it's armed chair
comprehend il. One was TO demonstrate
what grandeur of character may be
achieved on earth by conquering evil.
Had there been no evil to conquer and no
trouble to console, then this universe
would never have known an Abraham or
a Moses or "A Joshua or an Ezekiel or a
Paul or a Christ or a Washington or a
John Milton or d John Howard, and a
million victories which have been gained
by the consecrated spirits OF all ages
would never have been gained. Had
there been no battle there would have
been no victory. tenths OF the an
thems Of heaven would never have been
sung. Heaven could never AVE been a
thousandth part Of the heaven that ii is.
| will not Say that | am glal that sin ard
sorrow did enter, but | DO say that | am
glad that after God has given all his
reasons TO an assembled universe he will
be more honored than if sin and sorrow
had never entered, and that the unfallen
celestials will be outdone and will put
down their trumpets 10 listen, and ii Will
be in heaven when those who have con
quered sin and sorrow shall enter, as ii
would be in a small singing school on
earth il Tbalhcrg and Gottscbalk and
Wagner and Beethoven and Rheinberger
and Schumann should all at once enter.
The immorta.s that have been chanting
ten thousand years before the throne will
say, as they close their librettOs: "Oh,
if we could only sing like that!' But
God will s2Y to those who have never
fallen and consequently have not been
redeemed: you must be silent now,
you have not the qualifications for this
anthem" so they sit with closed lips and
folded hands and sinners saved by grace
take up the harmony. for the bible says
mo man could learn that song but the
hundred and forty and four thousand
which were redeemed from the earth"
A great prima donna, who can now do
anything with her voice, told me that
when she first started in music her teacher
in Berlin told her she could be a good
singer, but 8 certain note she could never
reach. And then she said, II went to
work and studied and practiced for years
until | did reach it." But the song of the
sinner redeemed, the Bible says, the ex-
allied h%armonists who have never sinned
could not reach and never will reach.
Would you like to hear me in a very poor
way play a snatch Of that tune? | can
give you only n bar Of the music on the
gospel harp. Unto him that hath loved
us and washed us from our sins in his
own blood and hath made us kings and
priests unto God and the Lamb, to him
be glory aud dominion forever and ever,
Amen" But before leaving this inter
1ogatory, Why God let sin come into the
world? let me say that great battles seem
60 be nothing but suffering and outrage
at the time of their occurrence, yet after
they have been a long while past we can
! see that it was better for them to have
been fought, namely, Salamis, Inkerman,
/ Toulouse, Arbella, Agincourt, Trafalgar,
Flenheim, Lexington, Sedan. So now
that the great battles against sin and suf-
fering are going on we can see mostly
that which is deplorable. But -, 600
years from now, standing in glory, We
| cha1l oprrn.intn tkgt hoo y,nn 10 hnltIr nN
than if the battle of this world sin and
suffering had never been projected.
But now | come nearer home and put q
dark saving on the gospel harp, a style OF
question that is asked a hillion times
every year. Interrogation the fourth
Why 90 | have it SO hard while Others
have il SO easy? or, why dol have sc
much difficulty in getting a livelihood
while others 40 around with a fun porte
monaie? or. why must | wear these plain
clothes while others hard to get then
wardrobes closed, SO crowded are they
with brilliant attire? or, why should
have TO work SO hard while others have
800 holidays every year, 1hey are al
practically one question. | answer then
by saying, it is because the Lord has
his favorites and he puts extra disci
pine upon you, and extra trial, be
cause he has for you extra glory, eytr;
enthronement and extra felicitie3. Tha
is no guess Of mine, but the divine say-so
Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth.
Wei" says eome one, Il would rattle
have a little less in heaven and a it'll
more here. Discount my heavenly ROB
10 per cent. and let me now pat it on,
fur lined o%vercoat; put me IA q less goI
geOus room of the house OF many man
sions and let me have Il house here in
better neighborhood." No, no; God !
not going 10 rob heaven, which is to b
your residence for nine hundred quadril
ion ofyears, to fix W your earthly abode
which you will occupy At most foi les
than a century, and where you may pei
haps stay only ten years longer, or onl
one year, or perhaps a month more
Now you had better cheerfully let Go
have his way, for, you see, he has bee
taking care of folks for near seveR thou
, sand years, and knows how 10 do II, am
can see whatisbest for you better than yo'
can Yourself. Don't think you are to-
|, insignificant to be divinely cared fox.
!, was said that Diana, the goddess, eoal
r not be present TO keep her temple a
Ephesus from burning because she wa
attending upon the birth of him who wa
e to be Alexander the Great. But | te
A YOU that your God and my God ID 8
\ great in small things as well as larg
r things that he could attend the cradle q