Milford chronicle., 1891-01-30

mother stand by and see the tides Of hi
life going out to the great ocean. The ban
quet is coming to an end. The lights o
Thought and mirth and elOQuenee ar
being extinguisbed. The garlands ar
snatched from the brow. The vision il
gone. Death at the banquet
DEATH AT THE BANQUET.
We saw the same thing on larger scal'
illustrated at the last war in this country
Our whole nation had been sitting at 1
national banquet-north, south, east and
west. What grain was there but we grew
it on our hills What invention was thers
but our rivers must turn the new whee
and rattle the strange shuttle. What warn
furs but our traders must bring them
from tho Arctic. What fish but our nets
must sweep them for the markets. What
music but ii must sing in our halls. What
elOQuence but it must speak IN our sen.
ates. Hol to the national banquet, reach
/ ing from mountain to mountain. and from
sea to seal To prepare that banquet the
sheepfolds and the aYiRries Of the country
sent their best treasures The orchards
/ piled up on the table their sweetest fruits.
| The presses burst out with new wines. To
| sit at that table came the yeomanry OF
! New Hampshire, and the lnmberman Of
Maine, and the CaroliniAn from the rice
/ fields, and the western emigrant from the
pines Of Oregon, and we were all brothers
brothers at banquet. Suddenly the
1 feast ended.
What meant those mounds thrown upat
ChickAmauga, Shiloh, Atlanta, Gettys-
burg, South Mountain? What meant those
golden grain fields turned into pasturing
| ground for cavalry horsesg What meant
III. C.NaT ~
the heavy supply tEaini Why those rivers
of tears-those lakes Of bloodl God was
angryi Justice must come A handWrit-
ing on the WE'LL The nation had bean
weighed and found wanting. Darkness
Darknessl Woe TO the northl Woe to the
south Woe to the eastl Woe 70 the westl
Death at the banquet
have also to learn from the subject that
the destruction Of the vicious, and OF those
who despise God, will be very sudden. The
wave Of mirth had dashed to the highest
point when that Assyrian army broke
through. 1t was unexpected. Suddenly,
almost always, comes the doom Of those
who despise God and defy the laws Of
men. How was it at the deluge' Do you
suppose it came through long northeast
storm, SO that people for days before were
sure it was coming? No; I suppose the
morning was bright, that calmness brood
ed on the waters; that beauty sat en-
throned on the hills, when suddenly the
heavens burst, and the mountains sank
like anchors into the sea that dashed clear
over the Andes and the Himalayas.
OVERWHELMED IN THE WATERS.
The Rcd sea was divided. The Egyptians
tried to cross it. There could be no danger.
The Israelites had just gone through.
Where they had gone, why not the Egyp-
tiansp Oh! it was such a beautiful walking
piacel A pavement of tinged shells, and
pearls, and on either side two great walls
of water-sOlid There can be no danger.
Forward, great hosts of the Egyptiansi
Clap the cymbals, and blow the trumpets
Of victoryl After themi We will catch
them yet, and they shall be destroyed. But
the walls begin to tremble. They rockl
They fall The rushing waters! The shrek
Of drowning menl The swimming of the
war horses in vain for the shorel The
strewing Of the great host on the bottom Of
the sea, or pitched by the angry wave on
the beach-a battered, bruised and lOath-
some wreck Suddenly destruction came.
One-half hour before they could not have
believed it. Destroyed, and without
remedy.
I am just setting forth a fact, which you
have noticed as well as /. Ananias comes |
to the apostle. The apostle says, "Did you
sell the land for so muchW He says, /
''Yes." It was lie. Dead as quick as thatl |
Sapphira, his wife, comes in. did you /
sell Che land for SO muchg' YES" It was |
a lie; and quick as that she was dead. |
Gods judgments are upon those who de- |
spise him and defy him. They come sud |
denly.
The destroying angel went through |
Egypt. Do you suppose that any Of the |
people knew that he was coming? Did I
they hear the flap OF his great wingg mol /
mol Suddenly, Unexpectedly, he came.
Skilled sportsmen do not like to shoot a
bird standing on a sprig near by. II they
are skilled they pride themselves on tax
ing it on the wing, and they wait till 1t
starts. Death is an old sportsman, and he
loves TO take men flying under the very
sun. He loves to take them on the wing.
WORD TO TEE UlScoNvRRrED.
Are the,e any here who are unprepared
for the eternal world? Are there any here
who have been living without God and
without hOpeS Let me say TO you that you
had better accept Of the Lord Jesus Christ.
lest suddenly your last chance be gone.
The lungs will cease to breathe, the heart
viii stop. The time will come when you
shall go no more to the Office, or to the
tore, or to the shop. Nothing will be left
but Death and Judgment and Eternity.
Dbl Zee to God this hO1rl If there be one
q this presence who has wandered far
sway from ChFist, though he may not have
ieard the call Of the gospel for many a
rear, invite him now to come and be
aVed Flee from thy sinl Flee to the
stronghold Of tho gospei Now Is the ae-
epted time, now is the day Of salvation.
Goodnight, my young friendsl May you
AVE rosy sleep, guarded by him who never
lumbersl May you awake in the morning
trong and wetll But Obi art thou de-
piser OF Godi Is this thy last night on
arthi Shouldst thou be awakened in the
lignC by something, tnou knowest not
THAT, and there be shadows floating in the
oom, and handwriting on the wall, and
iou feel that your last hour is come, and
here be a fainting at the heart, and q
remor in the limb, and q catching Of the
thy doom would be but an
cho Of the words OF the text, "In that
light was Belshazzar, the king Of the Chal-
eans, slain"
THE GOSPEL INVITATION.
Hear the invitation Of the Gospel There
/
hall never speak again, and therefore let
! be in the words Of the Gospel, and not In
ny own, with which close; "Ho, every
ne that thirstethi Come ye to the waters.
Ind let him that hath no money come,
NY wine and milk without money, and
7ithout price" Come unto me, all ye
Tho are weary and heavy laden, and will
i've you rest" OH that my Lord Jesus
1ould now make himself so attractive to
our souls that you cannot resist him; and
hat, If you have never prayed before, or
ave not prayed since those days when you !
melt down at your mothers knee, then
hat tonight you might pray, saying;
Just as I am without one plea
But that thy blood was shed for me.
And that thou bld'st me come to thee. :
Lamb Of God, comel c
But II you cannot think of so long 2
rayer as that, will give you a shorter t
rayer that you can say, "God, be merciful '
, me, sinnerp Or, If you cannot think .
I so long prayer as that, viii give you q
still shorter one that you may utter, h
Lord save me or I perishW Or If that