The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1890-12-19

FRIDAY. DEC. l9. l8s
gate, along which trampe J and rolled the
r.ompt ts Of az ~ n@'ion: There Foes Abraham,
city been purchasing a celebrated .lnve.
There goes Ben Hudnd Of Bibe times lend.
Ing 32 conquered monnrclla. There goes
David. king. warrior. and sacred pt,et.
There goes Tamsrlane theconIueror. There
goes Hnronn ulltnschid, once ethecomnander
o. an army o $4,000 Icrsians and Arabs
There comes warrior on his why to the bar
rncIs, carrying that Kind of sword Whicl,
the world has forgotten how to make.
Damascus blade with the interlacings (,
color changing at every new turn
the light; many colors coming al.
going and intsrioining, the blade ~
Keen It could cut in twain an Object
tremble, With an elasticity that conld not b.
broken, though you brought the point o;
the sword clcar buck to the hilt, aud having
waterci appearance which made the blade
seem as though just dipped in clear oun
tain. triumph o. cutlery which thousund
modern 'oundrymen and chemists have ut.
tempted in vain to initiate. On the side
this st,lpt. .iamasks. named atter this ,ity,
figures animals. and fruits. nnd landscapes
hero being first wrought into silk-dumasks.
And specimens Of damaskeeminr by whrl,
III this city steel md iron were first gravel,
an,i the groves filled with wire o. goli-Jnm.
askeeming. ,ut stand buck or l,c run over
lor here are the gates Of the city. laden cara.
vans from Meppo in one direction, aud from
Jerusalem in another direction, and caravans
nll nations paying toll to this supremacy.
Great III Damascus!
But what most etirs my soul IL neither
chariot. nor caravan. nor bnxur. nor pulnce.
Dnt a blind man passing nlong the street,
smail ot stature anl insigniticnat In person.
al appearance. Oh yes: We have seen him I've.
lore lie was one of that cavnlcade coming
from Jerusalem to Damascus to kill Chris.
tians and We saw him and his horse tumble
mp there on the road some distunce out O
the city, md he got up blind. Yes. 1t was
saul oi Iarsus, now going along this street
called Straight. He il led by hin friends,
Tor he cannot see his hand before his face.
hut Judas the good. In another part OF this
city one Ananias. not Annnias the linr, but
Ananins3 the Christian, is told by the
Lord to 60 to this house oi Tudus
ON Strnisht street. nnd put his hnn,ls on
the blind eyes of Saul that his sight nigh,
return. oh, yes" said Annnias. II dare
not go; that Saul is q terrible fellow. He
Kills Christians aud he will kill me. Go"
snid the Lord, and Ananias went. There
sits in blindness that tremendous prrse
cutnr. tie was u great nature cr,ishe..
He had started for the city of Damas,usf
the one purpose Of nssassinat ting Christ
followers. but since TINT full from his hor.,
he ms entirely changed. Ananins steps up
to the sishtless man, puts his right thumb
on one eye, and his lett thumb on the other
eye, AMI ip an outbnrst OF sympathy and
love. nnd faith says: Brother Snul! brother
saul! the Lord, even Jehus that appeared
unto thee IN the way ns thou earnest. hns
sent me that thou mayst receive thy sight.
and lie filled with tho Holy Ghost" In.
stantiy something like scales fell from TINT
bind mans eyes. md he nrosc from that
seat the mightiest evangel of all the ares. n
Sir William Hamilton for metnpl.ysicnl an.
alysis, n John Milton for sub!imity of
thought. a Whitcfrld for pupnlnr eloo,,encc.
John Hownrd for wide spread rlriIan.
thropl'y, but more thnn all OF them put to.
= thcr inspired, thunderLolted. mulinoteni,
apostolic. Did Judas. the kind host Of this
biin' man, or Ananias. the visitor, sce
s,ak drop from the sightless eyes? think
not. But Paul knew they had ial!en. nnj
that is 'll that happens to my OF us when
We nre converted. The binding srnles ,rop
'iom our eyes, and we sre things differently
! Alhrstian woman, missionary among n
most degraded tril~, whose religion wns
never to wash or improve personal apJmar-
nncc; was trying to persuade one of those
heathen women not only OF need oi change of
ienrt. but change of habits. which would re-
suit IN change Of appearance. hut the effort
in'lei until the missionary lnd pluced in her
own hnllway u looking glass and, when the
hnrbaric woman passed through the hall
saw herself In the mirror for the first time
she eNcaimcd. "can il be possible look like
thai?' and appalled, at her own appearance
she denounced her old religion. aud asked TO
bc instructed in the Christian religion. And
SO We 'erl that we are all right In our ain e,I
rti,lV1s srn.N Ixl
| iaii from our eyes. md in the looking. clnks
ofGod'a word We Zee ourselves us We really
are until Divine grnce transforms u.s.
There aro many people in this house to-
day hs bind as Paul wns before Anunjns
touched Ills eyes. And there are many here
from whose eyes the scales have nlrendy nll
en- You see all subjects and all things ,li.
errntly-God nni Christ. and eternity and
Your own immortal spirit. Sometimes the
scales do NOT all iall at once. When / was
boy Mt Mount Pleasant, one Sunday a ter
noon reading Dodlridge's Rise AMI Pro.
gress of Religion in the Soul" that ufter-
noon some Of the scales fell from my eyes
aud saw II little. After | had been in the
ministry about year one Sunday arer.
Bible story of the syro Phenicinn's inith
other scales fell from my eyes and saw let.
ter. Two Sunday evenings ago while rre.
pnrin- or the evening service in New York,
] picked NJ Il book thnt did not ren,q1n her
to hav" seen hr,ore, md after lul rend u
page about remuneration to God, I think
the remaining scales fell rom myeycs Shnil
not our visit to Damascus tn.dny result,
like Pnul' visit. in vision to The blind aul
increased vision to those who saw some.
What betore?
was reading Of n pninter's cl,iLi who lp
came blind in infancy. But ter the child
WAS nearly grown. u surgeon removed til.
blindness. When told that this could be-
done. the child Is chic thought her mot her Ee
ing dead, was that she would be nble o see her
futler. who hnd watched over her with grent
tenderness. When night came slle was in
raptures. nud run her hands over her Il, hers
inc" nn'l shut htr eye. ns II to assure herself
that this was really the tuther whom she had
only known by touch, aud now looking upon
him. noble man rs he was in appearance nv
well ns In reality. shc cried out, Just to
think that had this fnt her 20 many ycnr.
aud never knew him" As grent and greater
is tho souls joy III surpris" when the scales
fall from the eyes and the long spiritual
darkness is ended. and "" look nron our
fathers fucc always radiant. aud loving. but
now TOR the first revealed. and our hlinInes,
forever gone, We cry, abba fatlier!'