The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1892-08-19


She is the only institution to-day that
gives any light TO our world Into her
portal the poor come and get SYM
pathy of a once pillowless Christ, the
bereaved come and see the bottle in
which God saves all our tears, and the
captives come, and on the sharp corn
ers of her affairs dash off their chains
and the thirsty come and put their cup
under the "Rock of Ages" which pours
forth from its smitten side living water,
sparkling water, crystalline water,
from under the throne of God and the
Lamb. Blessed the bell that calls her
worshippers to prayer. Blessed the
water in which her members are bap-
tized. Blessed the wine that CLOVIS in
her sacramental cups Blessed the
songs on which her devotions travel up
and the angels of God travel down.
As the moon goes through the midst
of the roaring storm-clouds unfinished
and unframed, and comes out calm
and beautiful on the other side, so the
church of God has gone through all the
storms of this worlds persecution and
come out uninjured, no worse for the
fact that Robespierre cursed it and Vol
taire caricatured it, and Tom Paine
sneered at it, and all the forces of dark
ness have bombarded it. Not like some
baneful comet shooting across the sky,
scattering terror and dismay among
the nations. but above the low bowling
night of the worlds wretchedness the
Christian church has made her mild
way, flair as the moon "
take a step further in my subject
''Clear as the sum-" After season of
storm or fog, how you are thrilled
when the sun comes out at monday!
The mists travel up hill above hill,
mountain above mountain, until they
are sky lost The forests are full of
chirp and buzz and song; honey-makers
on the log, birds beak pounding the
bark; the chatter of the squirrel on the
rail, the call of a hawk out of the clear
sky, make you thankful for the sun
shine which makes all the world so
busy and so glad. The same sun which
in the morning kindled CONGREGATIONS
among the castles of cloud, stoops
down to paint the lily white, and the
buttercup yellow, and the for-get-me
not blue
What can resist the sun? Light for
voyager on the deep; light for shep-
herds guarding the focks afield; light
for the poor who have TO lamps to
burn; light for the downcast and the
weary; light for aching eyes and burn
ing brain and consuming captive; light
for the smooth brow of childhood and
the dim vision of the octogenarian;
light for queens coronet and sewing
III AT Al. L. Il
Now" says my text, "Who is she
that looketh forth clear as the sum-
Our answer is, the Church. You have
been going along a road before day
break, and on one side you thought you
saw lion, and on the other side you
thought you saw a goblin of the dark
ness, but when the sun came out you
found these were harmless apparitions.
And it is the great mission of the
church of Jesus Christ to come
forth "clear as the sum-" to illumine
all earthly darkness, to explain, as
far as possible, all mystery, and to
m axe the world radiant in its bright
ness; and that which you thought was
an aroused lion is found out to be a
slumbering lamb; and the sepulchered
gates of your dead turn out to be the
opening gates of Heaven; and that
which you supposed was a flaming
sword to keep you out of Paradise is an
angel of light to beclon you in.
The lamps on her affairs will cast
their glow on your darkest pathway,
and cheer you until, far beyond the
need of lantern or lighthouse, you are
safely anchored within the veil. o, sun
OF the church, shine on until there is no
sorrow to soothe, no tears to wipe
away, no shackles to break, no more
souls to be redeemed. Ten thousand
hands of sin have attempted to extin-
guish the lamps on her affairs, but they
are quenchless; and to silence her pull
pits, but the thunder would leap and
the lightning would flame.
The church of God will come to full
meridian, and in that day all the
mountains of the world will be sacred
mountains touched with the glory of
Calvary, and all streams will flow by
the mount of God like cool Sloan, and
all lakes be radiant with Gospel MEM
cries like Gennesaret, and all island of
the sea be crowned with apocalyptic
visions like Patmos, and all cities be
sacred as Jerusalem, and all gardens
luxuriant as Paradise, with God walk
ing in the cool of the day. Then
the chorals of grace will drown out all
the anthems of earth. Then the throne
of Christ will overtop all earthly au-
thority. Then the crown of Jesus will
outflame all other coronets. Sin de-
stroyed. Death dead. He'll defeated.
The church triumphant. All the dark
nesses of sin, all the darlxnesses of trou-
BILE, all the darknesses of earthly mis-
cry, hieing themselves to their dens.
"Clear as the sun! Clear as the sunl''
Further, Terrible as an army with
banners" 1 take one more step in this
subject and say that if you were placed
for the defense of feeble town, and a
great army were seen coming over the
hills with flying ensigns, then you
would be able to get some idea of the
terror that will strike the hearts of the
enemies of God when the church at last
marches on like IAN army with ban
ners."
You know there is nothing that ex-
cites soldiers enthusiasm so much as
an old flag. Many a man almost dead,
catching glimpse of the national en-
sign, has sprung to his feet and started
again into battle. Now, my friends, /
don't want you to think of the church
of Jesus Christ as a defeated institu-
ton, as the victim of infidel sarcasm,
something to be kicked and cuffed and