The free press., 1892-02-25
Abraham's faith is sufficiently tried the

Q plague pauScS. AS soon as Une lSraeiUeS ubNo
3 been sufficiently disciplined by their wander
l ings they find their way into Canaan. But
tosome the limit is not set in this life. Their
whole pilgrimage is through the wilderness
and the world is to them valley of tears.
{ But perhaps God has a special throne IN
: heaven that no ordinary saint can occupy,
| and by extraordinary trials lie has prepared
= that Christian soul for extraordinary glory.
God will not keep you in the furnace one
moment too long. just soon as Paul had
z met with enough imprisonment and scourg-
: ings he reached up and plucked his eternal
crown. God will keep us no longer under
, the hammer and on the stocks than is neces-
sary to fit us for entrance into the haven or
eternal rest Glory be to the divine grace
that. as soon as our affections have accom-
plished their mission, they are arrested.
The defeats and sorrows of life have some
| times been the greatest advantage. 1t was
because Dante failed as a statesman that he
gave up politics and wrote his immortal
| "Diyinia Commedia" 1t a violent
thunderstorm that first set Martin Luther
seriously thinking, and the thunder of this
worlds disaster has started reformation.
| James Y, Simpson went from surgeons
operating table to experiment and see If he
could not find something that would alleviate
human pain, and he kept on until he had dls-
covered chloroform as an an9sthetlc, and
the story of distress has almost always been
followed by the story of rescue.
| For many years after ShakeSpeare's death
his work was so little appreciated that In
1906 there was only one edition of his works.
land that of only three hundred copies, IN
Lexistence and that edition was nearly all
Eburned in the great London fire. But forty
Height copies had been sold out Of the city,
Land those forty-eight copies saved Shakes
lEDeare for all nations and all time. Your
E1lDpression on q smaller scale may last
lkgood while, but for all you are worth you
Twill yet shine out on earth or in heaven.
Again, learn from my subject that con-
Injected with the most distressing Judgments
'.of God there are displays of divine mercy.
Hood might justly have left Nebuchadnezzar
lin the field, but infinite compassion brought
jshim back to the palace. No sooner was Eden
i'blasted than,a blessing followed on the heels
Eof the curse promising the coming of One
lfwho would destroy sin and make the whole
isworld a paradise. The deluge descends, but
linot until Noah had invited the people INTO
1.-THE ark The destroying angel comes upon
h Egypt for the shifting of the first born, but
ttIeft llnmolested every house whose door was
Issprinldcd with the blood of sacrifice
| Fiery tempests bear down upon Sodom,
| b1ltsnots,lntil two angels have warned Lot
| and his family to flee from the destruction.
Jerusalem was utterly destroyed. but not
until Jeremiah had sounded an alarm,
| bidding them turn from their denominations.
| On,the darkest cloud of wrath their is
rainbow of mercy Zechariah in his pro
L
| ical of fEiod's4government
| Theffrst chariot was drawn by red horses.
| They indicated the wars that were coming.
The second chariot was drawn by black
| horses. They indicated the coming of
famine land pestilence The third chariot
| was nby white horses. They indicated
| the spotless purity of His conquests. But,
mark we'll that the fourth chariot was
| drawn by horses ''grisled and bay" denoting
that mercy was mixed with all the desc
lating judgments of God. Sinai cannot
| thunder sc,E oud as to drown the invitations of
Calvary. The Lord utters the admonitlon,
'.The wages of sin is death" but exhaustless
| mercy responds, "Deliver him from going
down to thesl)it, for have found a ransom"
Hide Thee~luick in the rock Christ Jesus,
Let not this insignificant Now" absorb
Thee more than the great hereafter. The
path leading TO this side of the grave Is only
a few furlons,s, but the path which com
mences at thea other side CT tits without end.
The powers of darkness gather about your
soul and the temptations of an evil heart
and the asiurements OF the world know are
irving to drown the voice OF the preacher
but taking hogd of the silver trumpet of the
Gospel which, made Felix trelnble. and at
the Pentecosssa brought three thousand souls
out of their 1sepulcher, | would blow one
long, loud blast, crying, "Whosoever Will,
let him come"
Take this gopily religion which has done
nlllcn 1Ort1leulldu Il ttli t'hihhthi ~ W sii-
Without it | sSlouh hav1gone the whole
downward career. Stolid and phlegmatic
natures going astraytdo not go so far, but
nat,lres like mine, Slnguine, intense, emo
tional optimistic, ssoc3al to the last degree
and echoing to allt.he heights and depths OF
mirth if they get otfsthe track they go WIN
one wild leap to hell. As to the restraining
mower of this religion upon'a mercurial tenn
perament. testify. This is not abstraction
or something gottendrom books. speak or
what know Go out and ask all who have
tried this religions and ask them how 1t
works.
Three Young men.in factory came out
on the Lords side but two of them, over
come by the ieers Of their comrades, went
back and Joined thesi scoffers. The one held
ON to his Christian hope, and one day when
they pressed him hard and were telling now
much infidelity had done for the world, ana
that Christianity had done nothing, the per,
secuted Christian turned upon them ana
pointing to Henry and George, who had for
a little while followed Christ and then turned
back, he said:
''You have tried your principles on them
and know what they have done Tor them.
When they tried to serve Christ they We're
civil, good tempered, kind husbands ana
fathers. They were, cheerful, industrious
and ready to oblige. What have you made
them? Look and see. They are cast down
and cross: their months are full of cursing
and filthiness; they are drunk every week;
their children half clothed, their wives
broken hearted, their homeswretched. That
is what your principles have done. Now l
have tried Chrlstand His religion and what
has it done for me? You know well what L
used to be. There was none of you
that could drink so much, swear so
| desperately and fight SO mastery. i
had no money and nobody would trust me-
My wife was i'll used, L was i'll humored,
hateful and hating. What has religion done
for me? Thank God, l am not afraid to put
| it to you. Am i not happier man than
was2 Am l not a better workman and
\ kinder companion? Would once have put
up with what Ii now bear from your l
could beat any Of you as easily now as as, ever; ever
Why don't II Do youever hear foul WORD
from my mouth? Do you catch me at a
public housep Has anybody score against
me? Go and ask my neighbors II am not
altered for the better. Go and ask my wlte.
Let my house bear witness. God be
nraisel. here is what Christianity has done
for me; there is what 'intidelity has done Tor
Henry and George"
Out of this audience1 could gather thou