The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1890-03-05

John Bunyan had attempted an essay on
the human will.
Brighter than the light, fresher than
the fountains, deeper than the seas, are
all these gospel themes. Song has no
melody, flowers have no sweetness, sun
set sky has no color compared with
these glorious themes. These harvests
of grace spring up quicker than we can
sickle them. Kindling pulpits with
their fire, and producing revolutions
with their power, lighting up dying beds
with their glory, they are the sweetest
thought for the poet, and they are the
most thrilling illustration for the ora
tor, and they offer the most intense
scene for the artist, and they are to the
ambassador of the sky all enthusiasm.
Complete pardon for direst guilt. Sweet
est comfort for ghastliest agony. Bright
est hope for grimmest death. Grandest
resurrection for darkest sepulcher. Oh,
what a gospel To preach! Christ over all
in it. His birth, His suffering, His mir
acles, His parallels, His sweat, His tears,
His blood, His atonement, His interces-
sion-what glorious themes! Do we ex-
ercise faith? Christ is its object. Do
we have love? 1t fastens on Jesus.
Have we fondness for the church? 1t
is because Christ died for it. Have we
hope of heaven? 1t is because Jesus
went ahead, the herald and fore.unner.
The royal robe Of Demetrius was SO
costly, SO beautiful, that after he had
put it off no one ever dared put it on; but
this robe of Christ, richer than that,
the poorest and the wannest and worst
may wear. "Where sin abounded grace
may much more abound"
so, my sins, my SINS" said Martin
Luther to Staupitz, my sins, my sins!'
The fact is, that the brawny German
student had found Latin Bible that
made him quake, and nothing else ever
did make him quake; and when he found
how, through Christ, he was pardoned
and saved, he wrote to friend, saying
"Come over and Join us great and
awful sinners saved by the grace o.
God. You seem to be only a slen
der sinner, and you don't much
extol the mercy Of God; but we thai
have been such very awful sinners
praise His grace the more, now that We
have been redeemed" Can it be tina
you are so desperately egotistical tina
you feel yourself in first rate spiritua
trim, and that from the root of the hal
to the tip of the toe you are scarles
and Immaculate? What you need is (
looking glass, and here it is in the Bible
Poor. and wretched, and miserable, ant
blind, and naked from the crown Of tn
head to the sole of the foot, full o
wounds and putrefying sores. No healtl
in US. And then take the fact that Chris
gathered up all the notes against us an,
paid them, and then offered us the re
ceipt.
And how much we need Him in GU
sorrows! We are Independent of cir
cumstances if we have His grace. Why
He made Paul sing in the dungeon, an,
under that grace st. John from desolat
Patmos heard the blast of the apocalypti
trumpets. After all other candles hav
been snuffed out, this is the light tina
gets brighter and brighter unto the pei
feet day; and after, under the hard hoof
of calamity, all the pools of worldly er
joyment have been trampled into dee
mire. at the foot of the eternal rock tn
Christian, from cups of granite lii
trimmed and vine covered, puts out tn
thirst of his soul.
Again, remark, that Christ is abov
all in dying alleviations.
l have not any sympathy with tn
morbidity abroad about our demise. Th
Emperor of Constantinople arrange
that on the day of his coronation tn
stone mason should come and consul
him about the tombstone that after
while he would need. And there ar
men who are monomaniacal on the sui
ject of departure from this life by dealt
and the more they think Of it the les
they are prepared to go. This is an III
manliness not worthy of you, not worth
of me.
Saladin, the greatest conque rer OF h
day, while dying, ordered that the tun
he had on him be carried after his deaf
on his spear at the head of his army, an
that then the soldier, ever and anol
should stop and say: "Behold, all tn;
is left of Saladin, the emperor and COZ
queror! Of all the states he conquere
of all the wealth he accumulated, not
ing did he retain but his shroud."
have no sympathy with such behavio
or such absurd demonstration, or wit
much that we hear uttered in regard
: departure from this life to the mex
There is commonsensical idea on tn
subject that you and l need to consid
that there are only two styles Of d
parture.
A thousand feet under ground,
light of torch toiling in a miners shat
ledge of rock may fall upon US, al
we may die miners death. Far out
; sea, falling from the slippery ratlin
and broken on the halyards, we may
sailors death. On mission of mer,
in hospital, amid broken bones al
[ reeking leprosies and raging fevers, '
t may die philanthropist's death. {
f the field of battle, serving God and o
l country, slugs through the heart, Il
gun carriage may roll over US, al
t we die patriots death. But, after a
, there are only two styles of departure
, the death of the righteous and the dea
of the wicked--and we want to die t
, former.
t God grant that when that hour com
, you may be at home. You want t
hand of your kindred in your hand. Y