Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1892-05-04
from the Petersburg Index-Appeal April 26th.
SERMON TO GOLD MEN"

DIR. ROSEBRO'S ABLE ADDRESS AT TAB
STREET CHURCH LAST SUNDAY EVEN
ING-A LARGE CONGREGATION HEAR
THE DISCOURSE.
The announcement that Rev. j. "
Rosebro, DID,, pastor of Tabb Stree
Presbyterian church, would deliver
special sermon to old men last Sunda,
night, brought sogether large congre
cation, among whom were many of ou
gray-haired citizens. DR.. Rosebr,
selected as his text the 14th verse of tn
23rd chapter, the 1st verse of the 1871
chapter, and the 7th, 9th, 9th, 10th, It'll
and 18th verses of the 14th chapter O
| the Book of Joshua.
And, behold, this day l am goine
| the way of all the earth, and We know
| in all your hearts and in all your souls
that not one thing hath failed of all the
good things which the Lord your Goo
spake concerning you, and not one
thing hath failed thereof
Now Joshua was old and stricken il
years; and the Lord said unto him
Thou art old and stricken in years, anC
there remaineth yet very much land to
be possessed"
''Forty years old was l when Moses
the servant of the Lord, sent me from
kadesh-barnea to espy out the land
and brought him word again as it was
in mine heart"
Nevertheless, my brethren that
went up with me made the heart of the
people melt; but wholly followed the
Lord my God"
"And Moses sware ON that day, say
ing, Surely the land whereon thy feet
have trodden shall be thine inheritance,
and thy children's forever, because
thou hast wholly followed the Lord my
God.n
"And now, behold the Lord hath kept
me alive, as he said, these forty and five
years, even since the Lord spake this
word unto Moses, while the children of
Israel wandered in the wilderness; and
now, 10, am, this day, four score and
five years old"
GAS yet | am as strong this day as l
was in the day that Moses sent me; as
my strength was then, even SO is my
strength now, for war, both to go out,
and to come in"
Now, therefore, give me this noun
tain, whereof the Lord spake in that
day; for thou heardest in that day how
the Ana-kims were there, and that the
cities were great and fenced; if so be
the Lord will be with me, then | shall
be able to drive them out, as the Lord
saidn
DR.. Rosebro prefaced his sermon by
saying that on last Sunday the request
came to him from a young man that he
should preach a sermon to old men. The
person making the request had never
heard a sermon to old men. DIR. Rose
bro then spoke in substance as follows:
,r+ a<~4f +1.o l.
we are speaking to the old men, we
must not forget the young men. We
must look at the old men and take
for them still to fight, and He has put
Caleb and Joshua had both been true
to God together, and they still stand
before us as two good old brothers,
whose hands stand clasped in friend
ship and fidelity to God. We cannot
these two old men. They il
lustrate two sides of old age. While
Caleb is eighty-five years of age, that
right arm of his has struck many blow
for God and is ready to strike many
more. He says, "give me the most dan
gerOus path"
Dr. Rosebro said he did not know
which was the brightest of these two
sides of old age. Zone strong and the
other feeble" but God says to Jacob:
| have many battles for you to fight,
am not going to throw you aside, for
have other work for you to do. 1T
seems to me-" said the speaker, that
God said to Joshua: "When you were a
young man, you served me faithfully
and am not going to give up" Old
men you are useful vessels. God has
good work for you to do. Don't go
through the world moping and think
ing that God has nothing for you to do.
Stand up and speak of Gods mercies." :"
The chief work of the old men is to
testify of God. John says, have writ
ten uniO you, fathers, because we have
''known Him that is from the begin
ming | have written unto you, young
men, because ye are strong, and the
word of God abideth in you; and ye
have overcome the wicked one. ''Of
all the promises that God has made, :"
said the speaker, mot one has been
broken. Sometimes the aged look back
at their early days and they say the
world is growing worse. A large part
of the work that God has for the old to
do is to testify of Him. We have in
some of our homes some who are in
their old age, and who can testify of
God. Ring out your testimony, old
man. Tell us what God has done for
you. We need you to come and put
your arms around us and tell us young
men of the blows those arms of yours
have struck for God. You remember
the promises of the Bible in which you
trusted when a lad. You look back
when you remember the times of temp
tation, but you remember how God
restored you"
Dr. Rosebro continuing, said: 81
think as we become older our faith be-
comes stronger. You never hear of an
old man becoming an intidel. l have
known young men with scarcely beard
on their face, who knew all about in
fidelity. | have been talking of old
men and Christians. | do not know
the faces of all who are here tonight,
but some of you are probably not of the
class of whom | have been speaking.
1t is seldom that you see an old man
turning to be Christian. A few Sab
bath ago an old man, eighty years of
age, and little girl stood before this
pulpit and gave their hearts to God.
1t was touching sight to me-one of
the most touching in my ministry-tO
little girl placing her faith in her Heav-
emily Father. 1t is not impossible for
you to come to God. When | remem-
Der how many pastors have appealed
to you; how many times your heart has
been touched when Gods spirit has
come down time and time again and
spoken to you in vain, how many times
you have said Away, away with the
Saviour, away with Him; when | re-
member that sin is like great stream
going to the sea, when l remember that
sin is every year growing stronger and
stronger, and you are growing weaker
and weaker, l must stand here and ask,
with the greatest solicitude, what is
going to bring you to God"
| now entreat you, in your last years,
to come to God. Turn old men, for
why will you die? Pray that there still
may come to you, in the desert of your
life, an oasis. springing up, something
fresh before you are gone
All for a Barley Corn.
LaFontaine, in one of his fables, tells
of q barnyard fowl that scratched up a
gem, while scratching for corn. Not