The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1890-05-14


verse, and in all the eternities, He has
never once contradicted himself. Chris
tian merchants endow universities, and
in them Christian professors instruct
the children Of Christian communities.
The warmest and most enthusiastic
friends of Christ are the bravest and
most enthusiastic friends Of science.
The Church rejoices as much over every
discovery as the world rejoices. Good
men have found that there is no war be.
tween science and religion. That which
at first has seemed to be the weapon Of
the infdel has turned out to be the
weapon of the Christian.
Scientific discussions may be divided
into those which are concluded and
those which are still in progress,
depending for decision upon future in
vestigation. Those which are concluded
have invariably rendered their verdict
for Christianity. and we have faith to
believe that those which are still in
prosecution will come to as favorable o
conclusion. The great systems Of error
are falling before these discoveries,
which have only demonstrated the truth
of the Bible, and SO reinforced Christi
anity, Mohammedanism and paganism
in their ten thousand forms have been
proved false and by great natural laws
shown to be impositions. Buried cities
have been exhumed, and the truth of God
found written on their coffin-lids. Bart
lett, Robinson and Layard have not been
more than apostles of science than the
apostles of religion. The dumb lips
of the pyramids have opened to preach
the gospel. Expeditions have been fit
ted out for Palestine, and explorers have
come back to say that they have found
among mountains, and among ruins, and
on the shore of waters, living and indy
ing evidences Of our glorious Christi
anity.
Men who have gone to Palestine infid-
els have come back Christians. They
who were blind and deaf to the truth
at home have seemed to see Christ again
preaching upon Olivet and have beheld
in vivid Imagination the Son OF God
again walking the hills about Jerusalem.
Caviglia once rejected the truth, but
afterward said, II came to Egypt, and
the Scriptures and the pyramids con-
verted me-" When was in Beyrout,
Syria, last December, our beloved Amer
lean missionary, Rev. DR.. Jessup, told
me OF his friend who mot skeptic at
Joppa, the seaport of Jerusalem, and
the unbeliever said to his friend: 81 am
going into the Holy Land to show up
the folly of the Christian religion. am
going to visit all the so-called sacred
places and write them up, and show
the world that the New Testament is an
imposition upon the worlds credulity.'
Months after DR.. Jessup's friend met
the skeptic at Beyrout, after he had
completed his journey through the Holy
Land.
swell, how is it?" said the aforesaid
: gentleman to the skeptic. The answer
was: 81 have seen it all, and l tell you
the Bible is true! Yes, it is all truev
The man who went to destroy came
back to defend. After what l myself
saw during my recent absence l con
, cluded that any one who can 60 through
, the Holy Land and remain an unbe
! lever is either bad man or an imbe
cile. God employed men to write thu
, Bible, but He took many of the sam'
? truths which they recorded, and will
His own almighty hand he gouged then
into the rocks. and drove them dowr
, into dismal depths, and, as documents
{ are put into the cornerstone of q tenn
pie, so in the very foundation of the
earth He folded up and placed the rec
. ords of heavenly truth. The earth''
| cornerstone was laid, like that Of othel
. sacred edifices, in the name of thu
: Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
= Ghost. The Author of revelation, stand
} ing among the great strata, looked upol
, Moses and said: LET us record for fu
ture ages the worlds history; you writ
it there on papyrus; l will write 1t her
( on the bOulders."
. Again, nature offers an invaluable
t contribution to Christianity by the il
: lustration she makes of divine truth
t The inspired writer's seized upon the ad
s vantages offered by the natural world
i. Trees and rivers and rivers and cloud
l and rocks broke forth into holy and en-
0 thusiastic utterances. Would Christ Sc
0 forth the strength Of faith. He point
/. to the sycamore, whose roots spread out
0 and strike down, and clinch themselve
e amid great depths of earth, and He sal
t that faith was strong enough to tea
that up by the roots.
v At Hawarden, England, Mr.. Glad
Q stone, while showing me his trees dur
+ ing prolonged walk through his mag
o nificent park, pointed out sycamore
" and with wave Of his hand said: IL
J. your visit to the Holy Land did you Sc
8 any sycamore more impressive tina
Il that?" Iconfessed that had not. 1t
branches were not more remarkabl
!. than its roots. It was to such tree a
8 that Jesus pointed when He would illu.
Is trate faith. "Ye might say unto thi
D sycamore tree, Be thou plucked up b
g the root and be thou cast into the Sc;
h and it would obey you." One reaso
n why Christ has fascinated the world q
It no other teacher, is because instead {
It using severe argument He was alway
v telling how something in the spiritus
q world was like unto something in tn
natural world.
q Oh, these wonderful "likes" Of OF
|. Lord. Like grain Of mustard-seet
It Like treasure in field. Like me
70 chant seeking goodly pearls. Like uni
y \ net that was cast into the sea. Liz