Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1891-10-16
Jt5us, IOVef OF my bOuIl
Let me 10 Thy bosom n.y.
While the pillows near me roll,
While the temnaat stiil IA high.


Let me 10 Thy bosom fly,
While the pillows near roll,
While the tempest still 10 high.
Then they were dashed down to deatht
Oh, how much others have endured for Christ
and how little we endure for Christi We
want to ride to heaven in Pullman Sleep
ing-car, our feet on soft plush. the bed made,
up early 50 we can sleep all the way, the
black porter of death to wake US up only in
time to enter the golden city. We want all.
the surgeons to fix our hand up Let them
bring on all the lint, and all the bandages,
and all the sslve, for our hand is hart, while
Eleazer does not know his hand is hurt. "His
hand cave unto the sword"
As look a. Eleazar's hand come to the
conclusion that he has done great deal OK
hard hitting. am not surprised when |
see that these four men -Eleazar and his
three conpanioas-drove back the army of
Philistines that Eleazlr's sword clave to his
hand, for every time he struck an enemy
Z with one end OF the sword the other end Of
the sword wounded him. When he took
hold Of the sword the sword took hold OF
him. Oh, we have found an enemy who
cannot be conquered by rose water and soft
speeches. It must be sharp stroke and
straight thrust. There is intenp rlnce, and
there is fraud, and there is gambling and
there is lust, and there are ten thousand
battalions OF iniquity, armed Philistine
iniquity. How are they to be captured and
overthrown? Soft sermons in morocco
cases laid down in front Of an exquisite audi
ence will not do it. You have got to call
things by their right names.
We have got TO eKpel from our churches
Christians who eat the sacrament on Sun
day and devour widows houses all the w3ek.
! We have got to stop our indignation against,
the Hittites and ths Jebusites and the Ger
gishites, and let those pop. wretcheS go, and
| apply our indignation to the modern trans
greSsionS which need to be dragged out and
slain Ahabs here. Herods here Jezebels
/ here. The massacre Of the infants here.
/ Strike for God so hard that while you STAY
the sin the sword will adhere TO your own
hand. tell you. my friends, We want
few John Knoxes and John WesleyS in the
Christian church to-day The whole ten
de3cy is to rsine on Christian work. We
keeO on refining on it until We send apollo
getic word to iniquity we are about to cap
ture It, And we must 60 with sword silver
chased and presented by the ladies, and we
must ride on white pslfrey under embroid-
cred housing, putting the spurs only just
enough to make the charger dance grace
fully, and then we must send a mis5ive, deli
cate as a wedding card, to ask the old black
giant OF sin If he will not surrender.
Women saved by the grace of God and on
glorious mission sent detained from Sabbath
classes because their new hat is not done.
Churches that shook our cities with great
revivals sending around to ask some demon
stratiya worshiper if he will not please to say
''amen" and ''hallelujah" little softer. 1t
seems "a if in our churches we wanted
baptism of coloSns and balm Of thousand
flowers when we actually nee1 baptism Of
fire from the Lord God OF Pentecos1 But
we are 80 afraid somebody will criticise our
sermons, or critic.ss our prayers, or critlclse
our religious WORK that our anxiety FOR the
worlds redemption is lost in tia fear we will
get our hand hurt. while Eleazlr went into
the conflict, "And his hanl ciaye unto the
sword"
But see in the next place. what hard
thing it was for Eliazar to get his hand ami
his sword parted. The muscles and the stu
ews had been so long graspe1 around the
sword he could not drOpit when he proposed
to drop it, and his three comrades, l suppose.
came up and tried TO help him, and they
bathed the back part OF the hand, hoping
the sinews and muscles would relax. Bat
no. His hand clave unto the sword"
Then they tried to pull open the fingers and
to pull back the thumb; but no sooner were
they pulled back than they closed again,
and his hand clave unto the sword But
after while they were successful, then they
noticed that the curve in the palm OF the
hand corresponded exactly with the curve
of the hilt His hand clave unto the sword
You and l have seen it many time.
There are in the United States to-day many
aged ministers Of the Gospel. They are too
feeble now 70 preach In the church records
the word opposite their name Is "emer-
titus or the words are, ~ minister Without
charge They were an heroic race Tney
had small salaries ami but few books, and
f.aci a. Z
continents. But they did in their day
mighty worE for God They took OF more OF
the heads of Philistine iniquitY than you could
count from noon to shutdown. You put that
old minister Of the Gospel now into PRAYER
meeting, or occasional pulpit or a sick
room where there is some one 70 be comfort
el, aud it is the same old ring TO his voice
and the same old story Of pardon and peace
and Christ and heaven. His hand has so
loag ciutched the sword in Christian conflict
he cannot drop it, "His han claye unto
tine sword
had in my parish in Philadelphia very
aged man, who in his early life had been the
companion and adviser OF the early Presi-
dents Madison ami Monroe He had
welded vast influence hut | only knew him
as a very aged man. The most remarkable
thing about him was his arior for Christ.
When he could not stand up in the meeting
without proppinS he would throw his arms
around pillar Of the church and though
his mind was partially gone his love for
Christ was so great that all were in deep re-
spsct and profound admiration, and were
moved when he spoke. was called to see
him die. | entered the ROOM and he said,
"Mr Talmage, | cannot speak to YOU now"
He was in a very pleasant delirium. as he
imagined he had an audience before him.
He said, 81 must tell these people to come
TO Christ and prepare for heaven" And
then in this pleasant deliriun, both arms
lifted, this octogenarian preached Christ AMI
told Of the glores OF the world TO come.
There lying on his dying pillow, his dying
han1 c.ave to his sword.
Oh, il there ever was anyone wac had
right to retire from the conflict 1t was old
Joshua Soldiers como back from battle
have the names of the battles on their flags
showing where tney distinguished taem-
selves, and it is very appropriate lnscrip,
ton. Look at the flag Of oil General
Joshua On it Jericho Gibeon, Hazir City
OF Al, and instead of the stars sprinkler on
the flag the sun and the moon which stool
still. There he is, one hundred aud tea years
old. He is lying fat on his back but he Is
preaching. His dying words are battle
charge against idolatry and rally'ng cry
for the Lord of Hosts as he says, "8ehold.
this day 20 the way Of all the earth, AMI
God hath not failed 10 fulfill his promise
concerning Israel" His dying hand ciaye
unto the sword.
There is tho besdless body OF Paul on the
road to Ostea. His great brain and his great
heart have been severed. The elmwoo1 ro1s /
had stung him fearfully. When the corn
ship broke up he swan ashore, coming up
drenched with tho brine. Every day since
that day when the horse reared under him /
in the SUBURBS OF Damascus, as the superna-
tural light fell down to this day when he IS
sixty.eight years Of age and old and decrepit
from the prison cell Of the Mamertine, he has
been outrageolsly treated, and he is waiting /
TO die. How does be spend his last hoursF
Telling the world how badly he feels, AM de- /
s,ribing the rheumatism that he got IN /
prison. the rheumatism affecting his limbs, |
or the neuralgia piercing his temples, or the |
thirst that fevers his tongue' %, no. his /
last words are TIE battle shout for Chrlsten- /
dom: II am now ready to be of cred ana
the time Of my departure is at hand; have
fought the good fight" And 50 his dying |
hand clave unto the sword
1t was in the front room on the second /
floor that my father lay a-dying; IL was
Saturday morning, four O'clock. just three
wears before that day my mother had lett
him for the skies, and he had been homesicX
10 ioiu her company. He was eighty-three
yesrs of age. Ministers OF the Gospel came