The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-10-28

not know it.
Must be carried to the skies
On howery beds of ease.
While others fought to win the prize
Or sailed through bloody seas?
What have we suffered in comparison
with those who expired with suffocation, or
were burned, or were chopped to pieces for
the truths sake? We talk of the persecution
OF olden times. There is just as much perse-
cution going on now in various ways. In
1S49, in Madagascar, eighteen men were put
to death for Ch-ist's sake. They were to be
hurled over the rocks, and before they were
hurled over the rocks, in order to make their
death the more dreadful In anticipation,
they were put in baskets and swung to and
fro over the precipice that they might see
how many hun ired feet they would have to
be dashed down, and while they were swing
ing in these baskets over the rocks they
sang:
Jesus. lover of my soul.
Let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the bi,lows near me roll,
While the tempest still ts high.
Then they were dashed down to deathl
Oh, how much others have endured for Christ
and how little we endure for Christi We
want to ride to heaven in q Pullman Sleep
ing-car, our feet on soft plush, the bed made
up early SO 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 salve, for our hand is hurt, while
Eleazer does not know his hand is hurt. His
hand clave unto the sword"
As look at Eleazar's hand come to the
conclusion that he has done great deal OF
bard hitting. I am not surprised when l
see that these four men-Eleazar and his
thres companions-drove back the army OF
Philistines that Eleazar's sword clave to his
hand, for every time he struck On enemy
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 intemperance. and
there is fraud, and there is gambling, and
there Is lust, and there are ten Shousand
battalions of iniquity, armed Phillstine
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 1t. You have got to call
things by their right names.
We have got to expel from our churches
Christians who eat the sacrament on Sum
day and devour widows houses all the week.
We have got to stop our indignation against
the Hittites and the Jebusites aud the Ger.
gishites, and let those poor wretches go, and
apply our indignation to the modern trans.
gressions which need to be dragged out and
here, The massacre of the infants here.
Strike for God so hard that while you slay
the sin the sword will adhere to your own
hand. tell you, my friends, we want a
few John Kno1es and John Wesleys in the
Christian church to-day. The whole ten
dency IS to refine on Christian work. We
keep on refining on 1t until we send apollo
getic word to iniquity We are about to cap
ture it. And we must go with sword silver
chased and presented by the ladies, and we
must ride on white palfrey under embroid-
cred housing, putting the spurs only just
enough to make the charger dance grace
fully. and then we must send missive, deli
cate as wedding card, to ask the old black
piant Of sin II 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
reyivals sending around to ask some demon
strative worshiper If he will not please to say
''amen" and '.hallelujah" little softer. 1t
seems as if in our churches we wanted g
baptism of cologne and balm Of thousand
flowers when we actually need baptism OF
we are so afraid somebody will critioise our
sermons, or criticise our prayers, or criticise
our religious work that our anxiety for the
worlds redemption is lost in the fear we will
get our hand hurt, while Eleazar went into
the conflict, "And his hand clave unto the
sword"
But see in the next place what hard
thing it was for Eiazar to get his hand and
his sword parted. The muscles and the sim
ews had been so long grasped around the
sword he could not dropit when he proposed
to drop it, and his three comrades, suppose,
came up and tried to help him, and they
bathed the back part Of the hand, hoping
the sinews and muscles would relax. But
no. ''His hand clave unto the sword. u
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,
land 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 I have seen it many time.
There are in the United States to-day many
aged ministers Of the Gospel. They are too
feeble now to preach. In the church records
the word opposite their name is "emer.
itus," or the words are, "a minister without
charge" They were an heroic race. They
had small salaries and but few books. and
they swan spring freshetS to meet their ap-
pointmenrs But they did in their day
mighty worb for God. They took of moro Of
che heads of Philistine iniquity than you could
count from noon to sundown. You put that
old minister of the Gospel now into prayer
meeting, or occasional pulpit, or sick
room where there is some one to be comfort
cd, 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
he cannot drop it. "His hand clave unto
the sword"
I 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 and Monroe. He had
welded vast influence. but only knew him
as very aged man. me most remarkable
thing about him was his ardor for Christ.
When he could not stand up in the meeting
without propping 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-
spect and profound admiration and were
moved when he spoke. was called to see
him die. l entered the room. and he said
'Mr. Talmage, I cannot speak to you now"
He was in a very pleasant delirium, as he
imagined he had an audience before him.
He said, II must tell these people to come
to Christ and prepare for heaven" And
then in this pleasant delirium, both arms
lifted, this octogenarian preached Christ and
told Of the glories of the world to come.
There, lying on his dying pillow, his dying
hand clave to his sword.
Oh, 1t there ever was anyone who had
right to retire from the conflict it was old
Joshua. Soldiers come back from battle
have the names Of the battles on their flags,
showing where they distinguished them
selves, and it is a very appropriate inscrip-