The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-03-19
Ascend the stairs OF your
Step out into the broad light Of

and bound by lear OF MS own dlSSOluClOn. 10
such the book refers when it speaks Of those
who through fear OF death were all their
lifetime subject to bondage. The most of us,
even if we have the Christian hope, are
towards about death. If plank falls from
scaffolding and just grazes our hat, how pale
we look. If the Atlantic Ocean plays with
the steamship, pitching it toward the
heavens and letting it suddenly drop, how
even the Christian passengers pester the stew
ard or stewardess as to whether there is any
danger, and the captain, who has been all
night on the bridge and chilled through,
coming in for cup Of coffee, is assailed with
thinks of the weather. And many OF the
best people are, as Paul says, throughout their
lifetime in bondage by fear Of death. My
brothers and sisters, If we made full use OF our
religion we would soon get over this. Backed
up by the teachings Of your Bible, just look
through the telescope some bright night and
see how many worlds there are and re-
feet that ell you have seen compared
with the number Of worlds in existence are
less than the fingers of your right hand
as compared with all the fingers Of the hu-
man race How foolish then for Us to think
that ours is the only world flt for us to stay
In. I think that all the stars are inhabited
and by beings like the human race in feelings
and sentiments and the difference is in lung
respiration and heart beat and physical con-
formation, their physical conformation fit
for the climate Of their world and
our physical conformation fit for the
climate of our world So we shall
feel at home In any Of the stellar neighbor-
hoods, our physical limitations having ceased.
One of our first realizations in getting out Of
this world, think, will be that In this world
we were very much pent up and had cramped
apartments and were kept on the limits. The
most even of our small world is water, and
the water says to the human race: Don't
come here or you will drown" A few thou
sand feet up the atmosphere is unin-
habitable, and the atmosphere says
to the human race: "Don't come
up here or you cannot breathe" A
few miles down the earth is furnace of fire,
and the fire says: Don't come here or you
will burn" The caverns of the mountains
are full of poisonous gases, and the gases say:
Don't come here or you will lbeasphy1iated."
And, crossing rail track, you must look out
or you will be crushed. And, standing by a
steam boiler, you must look out or: you will
be blown up And pneumonias and pleurisies
and consumptions and apoplexies 60 across
this earth in focks, in droves, in herds, and it
Is world Of equino4es and cyclones and
graves. Yet we are under the delusion that
It is the only place fit to stay in. We want
the great ship, ':the City Of God" Of the
Celestial line, goes sailing past, and would
gladly take us up in life boat. My Chris
tan friends, let me tear off your desponden-
cies and frights about dissolution. My Lord
commands me regarding you, saving:
"Loose him, and let him CO."
Heaven is ninety-fve per cent. better than
this world thousand per cent. better. a
million per cent. better. Take the gladdest,
brightest, most jubilant days you ever had
on earth and compress them ell into one
hour, and that hour would be requiem,
fast day, a gloom, horror, as compared
with the poorest hour they have had in
heaven since its first tower was built or its
first gates swung or it's first song caroled.
"Oh," you say, that may be true, but am
so afraid Of crossing over from this world
to the next, and fear the swapping of the
cord between soul and body" Well,
all the surgeons and physicians and
scientists declare that there is no pang at
the parting of the body and soul, and all the
seeming restlessness at the closing hour of
life Is involuntary and no disease at all. And
agree with the doctors for what they say
is confirmed by the fact that persons who
were drowned or were submerged until all
consciousness departed and were afterward
resuscitated declare that the sensation Of
passing into unconsciousness was pleasurable
rather than distressful. The cage of
the body has O door on easy hinges, and
when that door Of the physical cage opens
the soul simply puts out its wings and scars.
"But" you say, II fear to 60 because the
future is so full of mystery" Well, will
tell you how to treat the mysteries. The
mysteries have ceased bothering me, for 1
They hear all the arguments in the case and
then say: 81 will take these papers and give
you my decision next week." So have
heard all the arguments in regard to
the next world and some things are
uncertain and full Of mystery, and so
fold up the papers and reserve until the
next world my decision about them. can
there study oil tho mysteries to better ad-
vantage for the light will bo better and my
faculties stronger, and l will ask the Christian
philosophers, who have had all the advan-
tages Of heaven Tor centuries, to help me,
and may permit myself humbly to ask the
Lord, and think there Will De only one mys-
terry left, and that will be how one so un-
worthy as myself got into such an enrap-
tured place Come up out Of the sepulchral
shadows. If you are not Christians by
faith in Christ come up into the light;
and if you are already like Lazarus,
terminated, but still have your grave clothes
on, get rid of them. The command is:
Loose him, and let him CO." The only part
of my recent journey that really dreaded,
although did not say much about it before
hand, was the landing at Joppa. That is
tie port of entrance for the Holy Land, and
there are many rocks and in rough weather
people cannot land at all. The boats taking
the people from the steamer to the docks must
run between reefs that looked to me to be about
fifty feet apart. and one mis-stroke of all
oarsman OF an unexpected wave has some
times been fatal and hundreds have perished
along those reefs. Besides that, as we left
aid: ''The wind is just right to give you a
ough landing at Joppa; indeed, think
.ou will not be able to land at ALL" The
act was that when our Mediterranean
steamer dropped anchor near Jopps
and we put out for shore in the small boat,
the water was as still as though it had been
sound asleep q hundred years. and we landed
us easily as I came on this platform. Well,
your fears have pictured for you an ap-
palling arrival at the end of your voy-
age Of life. and they say that the seas
will swallow you up, or that if you reach
Canaan at all it will be very rough
landing. The very opposite-Whl be true II
YOU have the eternal God for your portion.
Your Decentralization for the promised land
will be as smooth as was ours at Palestine
last December. Christ will meet you far out
at sea and pilot you into. complete safety,
and YOU will land with hosanna on one side
of you and halleluiah on the other.
"Land ahead ~ its fruits are waving
Der the hills of fsdeless green,
And the living waters lsving
Shores where heavenly forms are seen.
Rocks and storms III fear no more
When on that eternal shore;
Drop the anchor furl the sail!
I am safo within the veil!
In Georgetown, D. G., in a humble