Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1892-04-15

!
at the building Of three churches" But
! before twenty-four hours had passed we
were compelled to cry out, with Peter OF
my text. LET US build three tabernacles.
! We must have a home somewhere. The old
site had ceased n be the center of our con-
! gregation, and the center Of the coCgrega-
tion, as near as we could find it is where we
now stand.
Having selected the spot, should we build
| on il barn or a tabernacle, beautiful and
! com nodiousi Our common sense, as we'll as
our religion, commanded the latter. But
whas push, what industry. what skill, what
sacrifice, what faith in God were necessary
Impedirnents and hinirances without num-
bsr were thrown in the way, and had il not
been for the perseverance CT our church Off
cials and the practical help Of many people,
and the prayers OF millions OF good souls in
all parts of the earth, and the blessing o.
Almighty Col, the WORK would not have
been done. But it is done, and all good
people who behold the structure feel in their
hearts il they do not utter it with their lips,
"How amiable are Thy tabernacles, o Lord
os Hostsr On tho third Sabbath OF last
| April this church was dedicated, DR.. Hamlin,
| OF Washington. preaching an insoiring SER
mon, Dir. Wendell Prime of New York.
Offering the de elicatory prayer, AMI some
/ fifteen clergymen during the day taxing
/ part in the services. Hosannah.
How suggestive 10 many of us are the
! words spelled out in flowers above the pull
! pit-'lSG9' and "IS93' for those dates
! bound what raptureS, what grefs, what
struggles. what triumphs. mention it as q
\ matter OF gratitude to God that in these
! twenty-three years 1 have missed but one
Sabbath through physical indispositlon, and
but three in the thirty six years of my min
istry. And now, having reached this
twenty-thiri milestone, | start anew. l
| have in my menoran ium books analyses
of more sermons than | have ever yet
preached, an1 l have preached. as near as
can tell, about 3jS0
During thess past years have learned two
or three things. Among others | have
learned that "all things work together for
| good" My positive mode Of preaching has
! sometimes SCENE TO stir the hostilties OF all
earth and hell. Feeling called upon fifteen
years ago to explore underground New York
city life, that might report the evils to be
combatel, took with ms two elders of my
! church and New York polics commissioner
and policeman, AMI explored and re-
ported the horrors that needed removal and
the allurenents that endangered our young
men. There came upon m9 an outburSt or
! assumed Indignation that frightened almost
everybody but myself That exploration
put into my church thirty or forty news
paper correspon tents from north, south,
east and west; which opened for me new
otherwise would never have been opened
Years passed on ami | preached series
Of sermons on AmusementS aud falss re-
port OF what did Say-ani one OF the SER
mons said to have been preached by Inc was
not mine in single worI-rouSad violence
that threatened me with poison and dirk
aud pisto! and other forms of extinguish.
ment, until the chief OF Brooklyn police,
without any suggestion from me- took pos
session OF the church with twenty-four po-
lcemea to see tlat no harm was done. That
excitemeEt opened many doors, which en-
tered for prclching the Gospel.
After awhile came an ecclesiastical trial,
in which was arraigned by people who did
not like the way did things and although |
was acquitted Of all the charges, the contest
shook the American church. That battle
made ME more friends than anything that
ever happened and gave me Chistendom and
more than Chrstendom for my weekly
audience On the demolition Of each church
we got better and larger church, and not
a disaster, not a caricature, not a psrsecu-
ton not an assault, during all these twenty
thre, years, but turned out for our acyan-
tage, ami ougdt | not to believe that 'all
things work together for good" Hosannahl
Another lesson have learn ID during these
tweuty-three wears is that 1t is not necessary
TO preach error or pick flaws in the old
Bible in order to get an audience; the old
Book with any fixing up is good enough
for NE, and the higher criticism, as it Is
called, means lower religion. Higher
criticism IS another form of intdelity, and
its disciples will believe less and less, until
many OK them will land in Nowhere and
become the worShipars of an eternal What
is it. The most OF taes3 hi cher critics seem
To be seeking notoriety by pitching into the
Bible 1t is such a brave thing to strike
your grandmother. The old Gospel put in
! ,Nlt m NyI n
conyentionslties, and adapted TO all the
wants and woes of humanity, | have found
the mghtiest magnet, aud We have never
lacked an audience.
Next to the blessing of my own family
account the blessing that | have always had
great multitude OF people to preach to.
That old Gospel l have preached to you
these twenty-three years Of my Brooklyn
pastorate, and that old Gospel | will preach
till die, and charge my son, wno is on the
way to the ministry, TO preach II after me,
for remember Pau's taunderbolt, "lf any
man preach any other Gospel, let him be
accursed.h And now, as | stand here on my
twenty-third anniversary | see two audi
ences The one is made up Of all those who
have worShiped with us in the past, but have
been translated TO higher realms.
What groups OF children-too fair and too
sweet and too lovely for earth, and the Lord
took them, but they seem present to-day.
The Group has gone out of the swollen throat
and the pallor from the cheek, and they have
on them the health and radiance OF heaven.
. Hail, groups OF glorifled children How glad
:. | am TO have you come back to us to-day
And here sit those aged ones who departed
, this lie leaving an awful vacancy in home
, and church. Where are your staffs and where
are your gray locks an1 where you STOPPING
shoulders, ye blessed old folks! "OhP' they
: say, I'VE are all young again, and
the bath in the river from under the throne
has made US agile and bounding. In the
, place from which we come they use no STATS
/ but scepters!' Hail, fathers and mothers in
q Israeli how glad we ore to have you come
back to greet us. But the other audience
see in imagination is made up of all those K
whom we have had opportunity as a church,
directly or indirectly Of presenting tn,
, Gospel. Yea, all my parishes seem to comt
: back to-day. The people OF my first charg
a second charge in Syracuse, New York. Th,
a people of my third charge In Philadelphia
9 And the people OF all these three Brooklyn
Tabernaces. Look at them, and all thos'
. whom, through the printing press We hav,
4 invited to God and heaven, now seeming *
. sit in galleries above galleries, fifty galleries
: hundred galleries. thousand galleries
K high
n greet them all in your name and ii
Christs name, all whom have oonfronte
I from my first sermon in my first vilIaS
: charge, where my lips trembled and m
{ knees knocked together from alright, speak
n ing from the text jeremiah l., q, "Ah, Lor'
A God, behold cannot speak, for am
:. child l"until the sermon preach today fror
n Luke ix., 80, "Let us make three taber
n nacles," those OF the past and the present, al
' gather in imagination, IL not in reality, a
l. OF US grateful to God for past mercies, all @
\ us sorry for misimproved opportunities, a
4 hopeful for eternal raptures, and while Il
, visible and the invisible audiences Of IL
n present and the past commngle, l give oil
" to be sung by those who are here to-day, an
Ia to be surg by those who shall read OF Oh
n scene of "Reminiscences and conpratulatio