Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1891-04-30


six thousand persons were present a.
the dedication OF the new Brooklyn Lap,
ernacle. and many thousands were
turned away. Text, ''What mean ye by
these stones?" Joshua w. o..
The Jordan, like the Mississippi, has
bIuffs ON the one side and flats on the
other. Here and there a sycamore
shadows it. Here aud there willow
dips into it. It was only little over
waist deep in December as L Waded
through it. but in the months or Aprll
and Nav the SHOWS on Mount Lebanon
thaw and flow down into the valley, and
then the Jordan overfOWS It's banks,
Then it is wide, deep, raging ana I'M
pctuOus. At this season of the year L
hear the tramp Of 1000 armed men
coming CRwn to cross the river You
say. why do they not 90 up nearer tne
rise of the river at the old camel ford?
All, nv friends, it is because 1T is not
safe TO 90 around when the Lord tells us
to go ahead. The Israeltes had been
going around forty years, and they had
enough Of it. | do not know how 1t IS
with Won. my brethren, but have al
WAYS got into trouble when L went
around but always not into safety Wheh
| went ahead.
There spreads out the Jordan, rag
ing torrent much Of il snow water just
come down from the mountain top; and
see some Of the Israclitcs shivcring at
the idea of pIunging in, and one soldier
saws to his comradc, ''JOscph, can you
swim?2 And another says: III we
get across the stream we will get there
with wet clothes and with damaged
armor and the CanaanitCS Will slash us
60 pieces with their swords before we
get up the other bank But it is no
time to halt. The great host marches ON.
The priests carrying the ark 90 ahead,
the people follow. | hear the tramp OF
the great multitude. The priests have
now come within stones throw or the
water. Yet still there is no abatement
OF the food Now they have come
within four or five feet of the strcam;
but there is no abatement OF the Hood.
Bad prospect. 1t seems as if these
Isracitcs that crossed the desert are
now going to be drowned i'll sight OF
Canaan. But "FOrward" is the cry.
The command rings all along the line OF
the host. "FOrWard!' Now the priests
have come within one step of the river.
This time they lift their feet from the
solid ground and put them down into the
raging stream. No sooner are their
feet there than Jordan flies.
On the right hand God piles up a
great mountain of floods; on the left
the water flows off toward the sea. The
great river for hours haltS and rears
The back water not being able to flow
over the passing Isfaeltcs, pile wave on
wave until perhaps q sea bird would find
some difficulty in scaling the water cliff,
Now the priests and all the people have
gone.ovcr on dry land The water on
the left hand side by this time has
reached the sea; and now that the mir
ulous passage has been made, 80 lI
back and see this stupcndon@' i,ie Vi
waters leap. God takes t* "" I iio'l1
that wall of floods, and 49, " l0t 1ti,
cataracts they plum "''" ''''i III ''i0''-
dcrOuS triuTnrf ~ VIC H'|'
4oW ale they to celebrate this pas
sage? Shall it be with music? | sup
pose the trumpet and Cymbals were all
worn out before this. Shall it be with
banners waving? Oh, no; they are all
faded and torn. Joshua cries out, IT
will tell You how to celebrate thiS-build
y monument here to commemorate the
EVENT. and every priest puts q heavy
stone on his shoulder and marches out,
and drops that stone in the diyinely APP
pointed place. / sec the pile growing in
height, in breadth, in significance; and
in after years, men went by that spot
and saw this monument, and cried out
one to another, in fulfiIment of the
prophecy of the text, What meant we
ibg these stones?"
Blessed be God, lIc did not leave our
"a, ,y,.I -
wandering about for year and half
wOrshipiug in the Academy of Music,
and the Academy of Music,
New York. And some thought we would
never reach the promised land. Some
Said we had better take this route and
others that. Some said we had better go
back, and some said there were sons of
Anak in the way that would eat us up,
and before the smoke had cleared away
from the Sky after our tabernacle had
been consumed, people stood on the very
site of the place and said, This church
will never AGAIN be built" We came
down to the bank of Jordan; we looked
of upon the waters. Some of the SYM
pathy that vas expressed turned out to
be snow water melted from the top Of
Lebanon. Some said, ''Nou had better
not go in; you will get your feet wet"
But we Wadcd in, pastor and people, far
thcr and farther, and in some way, the
Lord only knows how, we got through:
aud tonight | go all around about this
great house, erected by your prayers and
SympathjcS and sacrifices, and cry out in
the words OF my text, what mean We by
these StQuCS?'
1t is an outrage to build house like