Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1890-05-08

100. NV III, ueculiar make Of its hoofs able
calmly to sustain itself in the most danger
ous places. 'sThe Lord God is my strength,
and he will make my feet like kinds feet
ALL NATURE PAYS TRIBUTE
lob makes all natural objects pay tribute
to the ROYALTY of his book. As you gothrougn
some chapters of Job you feel as II II were a
bright spring morning, and, as you see tne
differing drops from the grass under your
feet. YOU say with that patriarch, W no hatn
bepotten the drops of the dewF And now,
as Won read on, you seem in the Silent nild-
night to behold the waving OF gTOat llgnt
mon your path, and You look up TO ma u
the aurora borealis, which Job described SO
Long ago as s'the bright light IN the clouds
and the splendor that cometh out Of the
north As you read on, there IS darkness
hurtling in the heavens, and the showers
break loose till the birds fly for hiding place
and the mountain torrents in red fury foam
over the rocky shelving; and with tine same
poet. YOU exclaim, "Who can number the
clonds in WISDOM or who can stay the BOT
Ties of heavenf' As you read on, you feel
Yourself coming in frosty chimes. and,
in fancy, wading through the snow,
YOU say. with that same inspired writer,
"Hast thou entered into the treasures OF the
snowgn And while the sharp sleet drives IN
your face and the hail stings your cheek, you
quote him again: "Hast thou seen the treas
ures of the hailln In the Psalmist's writings
| hear the voices of the sea; Deep calleth
unto deep:n and the roar Of forests; The
Lord shaketll the wilderness of Kadesh;" and
the loud peal of the black tempest: 1.-The God
of glory thundereth;n and the rustic OF the
long silk on the well filled husks: The val
leys are covered with corn;' and the cry OF
wild beasts: ''The young lions roar after their
prey;r the hum Of palm trees and cedars:
1.-THE righteous shall flourish like palm tree,
he shall grow like cedar IN Lebanon the
sough of wings and the swirl Of fins: DO
mnion over the fowl of the air and the fish OF
the sea"
The truths Of the gospel might have been
presented in technical terms, and by the
means Of dry definitions, but under these the
world woull not have listened or felt How
could the safety Of trusting upon Christ have
been presented, were il not the figure OF a
rockl How could the gladdening effect Of
the gospel have been set forth, had not
Zacharias thought Of the dawn Of the morn
ing, exclaiming; 1.-The day spring from on
high hath visited US - give light 10 them
that sit in darkness How could the souls
intense longing for Christ have been present
ed so well as by the emblem of natural hun
ger aud natural thirst As the lake gathers
INTO us bosom the shadow of hills around,
and the CLEAN of stars above, so, in these
great deeps of divine truth, all objects in ma
ture are grandly reflected We walk forth
in the spring time, and everything breathes
OF the Resurrection. Bright blossom and
springing grass speak to us Of the coming up
OF those whom we have loved, when in the
white robes of their joy and coronation they
shall appear.
And when in the autumn Of the year ma
ture breaches thousands of funeral sermons
from the text, eve all do fade as leaf, y
and scatters her elegies in our path. we can
not help but think of ickness and the tomb.
Even winter, "being dead, yet speaketh.n
The world will not he argued into the right.
IL will be tenderiy illustrated into the right.
Tell them what religion is like. When the
mother tried 10 tell her dying child what
heaven was, she compared it TO light. But
that hurts my eyes" said the dying girl.
Then the mother compared heaven to music.
"But any sound hurts me; l am SO weak, "
said the dying child. Then she was told that
heaven was like mothers arms ''Oh, take
me there!n She said. "lf it is like mothers
arms, take me there" The appropriate
simle had been found at last.
NATURES LAWS DEFEND THE CHRISTIAN
Another contribution which the natural
world is making TO the kingdom Of Christ is
the defense aud aid which the elements are
compelled to give TO the Christian personally.
There is no law in nature but is sworn for the
Christians defense In Job this thought is
presented as a bargain made between the in
animate creation and the righteous man:
Thou shalt be in league with che stones of
the field" What a grand thought that the
lightnings, and the tempests, and the hail,
and the frosts, which are the enemies OF un-
righteousness, are all marshaled as the Chris
tian's bodyguard They fight for him. They
strike with an arm of fire or clutch with their
fingers of ice Everlasting peace is declared
between the fiercest elements of nature and
the good man. They may in their fury seem
TO be indiscriminate, shifting down the
righteous with the wicked, yet they can
not damage the Christians soul, although
they may shrivel his body The wintry blast
that howls about your dwelling, YOU may
call your brother, and the south wind com
ing up on June day by way Of flower gar
den. you may call your sister Though so
sun and the moon have special charge con
corning you. .'The sun shall not smite thee
by day, nor the moon by night Elements
and forces hidden in the earth are now har-
messed and at work in producing for You food
and clothing. Some grain field that you
never saw presented you this day with your
morning meal The great earth and the
heavens are the busy loom at work for you:
and shooting light, and silvery stream, and
sharp lightning are only woven threads IN
the great loom, with Gods foot on the shut
tie. The same spirit that converted your soul
has also converted the elements from enmity
toward you into inviolable friendship and
furthest star and deepest cavern, regions of
everlasting cold as well as chimes of eternal
summer, all have a mission of good. direct or
indirect. for your spirit
THE STUDY or NATURE ASSISTS RELIGIOUS
THOUGHTS
Now infer from this that the study Of
natural objects win increase our religious |
knowledge. II David and Job and John and |
Paul could not afford to let 90 without obser.-
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