The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1890-03-13

every caravan. and you know story
enlarges as tits retold, and By the time
that story gets down. into the southern
part of Arabia Felix, and the Queen Of
Sheba hears it, it mast be tremendous
story. And yet this Queen declares in
regard to it, although she had heard sc
much and had her anticipations raised
so high, the half-the half was not told
her.
So religion is always surprise to any
one that gets it. The story of grace
an old story. Apostles preached it with
rattle of chain; martyrs declared it with
arm of fire; death-beds have affirmed ii
with visions of glory, and ministers OF
religion have sounded it through the
lanes, and the highways, and the
chapels, and the cathedrals. 1t has
been cut into stone with chisel and
spread on canvas with pencil; and it
has been recited in the doxology of
great congregations. And yet when a
man first comes to look on the palace
OF Gods mercy, and to see the royalty of
Christ, and the wealth of this banquet,
and the luxuriance of His attendants,
and the loneliness of His face, and the
joy of His service, he exclaims, with
prayers, with tears, with signs, with
triumphs: 1.-THE half-the half was not
told mel"
Iappeal to those who are Christians.
Compare the idea you had of the Joy of
the Christian life before you became a
Christian with the appreciation of that
JOY you have now since you have be-
come Christian, and you are willing to
attest before angels and men that you
in the days of your spiritual bond
age, had any appreciation of what was
to come. You are ready to-day to an
swer and say in regard to the discover
les you have made of the mercy and the
grace and goodness of God: ''The half
the half was not told me!''
Well, we hear a great deal about the
good time that is coming to this world
when it is to be girded with salvation.
Holiness on the bells of the horses. The
lions name patted by the hand of
babe. Ships of Tarshish bringing car
goes for Jesus, and the hard, dry, bar
rem, winter-bleached, storm-scarred;
thunder-split rock breaking into floods
of bright water. Deserts into which
dromedaries thrust their nostrils, be-
cause they were afraid of the SIMEON
deserts blooming into carnation roses
and silver-tipped lilies.
1t is the old story. Every body tells
it. Isaiah told it, John told it, Paul
told it, Ezekiel told it, Luther told it,
Calvin told it, John Milton told it-every
body tells it; and yet-and yet, when
the midnight shall fly the hills, and
Christ shall marshal His great army, and
China, dashing her idols into the dust,
shall hear the voice of God and wheel
into line; and India, DESTROYING her
Juggernaut and snatching up her little
children from the Ganges, shall hear the
voice of God and wheel into line; and
vine-covered Italy, and wheat-crowned
Russia, and all the nations of the earth,
shall hear the voice of God and fall into
line; then the Church, which had heen
toiling and struggling through the cent
uries, robed and garlanded like bride
adorned for her husband, shall put
aside her vail and look up into the face
OF her Lord and King and say: ''The
half-the half was not told me!'
"Well, there is coming a greater sur
prise to every Christian greater sur
prise than any thing I have depicted.
Heaven is an old story. Every body
talks about it. There is hardly hvmn
in the hymn-book that does not refer to
it. Children read about it in their Sab
bath-school books. Aged men put on
their spectacles to study it. We say it
is harbor from the storm. We call it
home. We say it is the house of MANY
mansions. We weave together all
sweet, beautiful, delicate. exhilarant
words; we weave them into letters, and
then spell it out in rose and lily and
amaranth.
And yet that place is going to be
surprise to the most intelligent Chris
tian. Like the Queen of Sheba, the re-
port has come to US from the far coun-
try, and many of us have started. It is
desert march, but we urge on the
camels. What though our feet be Bills
tered with the way? We are fastening
to the palace. We take all our loves
and hopes and Christian ambitions. as
frankineense and myrrh and cassia, to
the great King. We must not rest. We
must not halt The night is coming ON,
and it is not safe out here in the desert.
Urge on the camels. 1 see the domes
against the sky, and the houses of
Lebanon and the temples and the gar
dens. See the fountains dance in the
sun and the gates flash as they open to
let in the poor pilgrims.
Send the word up to the palace that
we are coming, and that we are weary
of the march of the desert. The King
will come out and say: ''Welcome to
the palace; battle in these waters: re.
cline on these banks. Take the CHINA.
mon and frankincense and myrrh and
put 1T upon a censor and swing it before
the altar" And yet, my friends, when
Heaven burst upon US it will be a great.
er surprise than that-Jesus on the
throne, and we made like Himl All our
Christian friends surrounding us in
glory! All our SORROWS and tears and
sins gone by forever! The thousands of
thousands, the one hundred and forty
and four thousand, the great multitudes
That no man ran nu,obor It'll -