News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1892-09-08
bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh, blood

Once, in the ancient amphltneater, u
lion with one paw caught the combat
ants sword and with his other paw
caught his shield. The man took his
knife from his girdle and slew the beast.
The king, sitting i'll the gallery, said,
.sThat was not fair; the lion must be
slain by sword" Other lions were
turned out and the poor victim fell.
You cry, ''Shamel shameP' at such
meanness. But the king in this case is
our brother, and he will see that we
have fair play. He will forbid the rush
ing out of more lions than we can meet.
He will not suffer US to be tempted above
that we are able. Thank Godi The
King is in the galleryi His eyes are on
us. His heart is with US. His hand
will deliver US. BLESSED are all they
who put their trust in him."
THE CELESTIAL GUARDIANS.
l look again and | see the angelic
gallery. There they are; the angel that
swung the sword at the gate of Eden,
the same that Ezekiel saw upholding
the throne of God, and from which
look away, for the splendor is insuffer-
able Here are the guardian angels.
That one watched a patriarch; this one
protected a child. That one has been
pulling soul out of temptationl All
these are messengers of light! Those
drove the Spanish Armada on the rocks.
This turned Sennacherib's living hosts
into heap of one hundred and eighty
five thousand corpses. Those yonder
chanted the Christmas carol over Beth
LII 4hn
herds. These, at creation, stood in the
balcony of heaven and serenaded the
newborn world wrapped in swaddling
clothes of light. And there, holier and
mightier than all, is Michael, the arch
angel. To command an earthly host
gives dignity, but this one is leader Of
the twenty thousand chariots of God,
and of the ten thousand times ten thou
sand angels. | think God gives COM
mand to the archangel, and the arch
angel to the seraphim, and the seraphim
to the cherubim, until all the lower
orders of heaven hear the command
and go forth on the high behest.
Now, bring on your lions! Who can
fear? All the spectators in the angelic
gallery are our friends. HE shall give
his angels charge over thee. to keep the
in all thy ways. They shall bear thee
up in their hands lest thou dash thy
foot against stone. Thou shalt tread
upon the lion and adder; the young lion
and the dragon shalt thou trample I'M
der foot"
Though the arena be crowded with
temptations we shall, with the angelic
Ill in, fbn IF
our God and leap on their fallen car
cassesl o bending throng of bright an
gelic faces and swift wings and lightning
footl hail you today from the dust
and struggle of the arena!
l look again and see the gallery of
the prophets and apostles. Who are
those mighty ones up yonder? Hosea
and jeremiah and Daniel and Isaiah
and Paul and Peter and John and
James. There sits Noah, waiting for
all the world to come into the ark; and
Moses, waiting till the last Red sea shall
divide; and jeremiah, waiting for the
Jews to return; and John, of the Apoc.
alypse, waiting for the swearing of the
angel that Time shall be no longer.
Glorious spirits! Ye were howled at.
We were stoned; We were spit upon!
They have been in this fight themselves,
and they are all with us. Daniel knows
all about lions. Paul fought with beasts
at Ephesus.
THE INTERESTED WITNESSES.
In the ancient amph;.heater the peo-
pie got so excited that they would shout
from the galleries to the men in the
arena: cat it againr' Forward" Zone
more stroker' "Look out!' ''Fall
backr' "Huzza! Huzza!" So in that
gallery, prophetic and apostolic, they
cannot keep their peace. Daniel cries
out, ''Thy God will deliver thee from
the mouth of the hons!' David ex-
laims, ''He will not suffer thy foot to
oAmovedr' Isaiah calls out: Fear notl
with theei Be not dismay cdr
Paul exclaims, Victory through ouf
Lord Jesus Christi That throng of
prophets and apostles cannot keep still.
They make the welkin ring with shout
ing and halleluiahs.
look again and l see the gallery of
the martyrs. Who is that? Hugh Lati-
mer, sure enoughi He would not apollo
gize for the truth preached, and so he
died the night before swinging from the
bedpost in perfect glee at the thought Of
emancipation. Who are that army of
Xix thousand six hundred and sixty-six?
They are the Theban legion who died
for the faith. Here is larger host in
magnificent array-eight hundred and
righty-four thousand-who persisted for
Christ in the prosecutions of Diocletian.
Yonder is a family group, Felicitas, of
Rome, and her children. While they
were dying for the faith she stood en-
couraging them. One son was whipped
TO death by thorns, another was flung
from rock, another was beheaded. At
last the mother became martyr. There
they are together-a family group in
heaven. Yonder is John Bradford, who
said in the fire, 1--WE shall have a merry
supper with the Lord tonightP' Yonder
is Henry Woes, who exclaimed as he
died, eff had ten heads they should all
fall off for Christi"
The great throng of the martyrs!
They had hot lead poured down their
threats; horses were fastened to their
hands, and other horses to their feet,
and thus they were pulled apart; they
had their tongues pulled out by red hot
pincers; they were sewed up in the skins
of animals and then thrown to the dogs;
they were daubed with combustibles
and then set ON fret If all the martyrs
stakes that have been kindled could be
set at proper distances they would make
the midnight all tho world over bright
as MONDAY!
And now they sit yonder in the mar
tyrs' gallery. For them the fires of per-
secution have gone out. The swords
are sheathed and the mob hushed. Now
they watch us with an all observing
sympathy. They know all the pain, all
the hardship, all the anguish, all the in
justice, all the privation. They cannot
keep still. They cry: Courage! The
fire will not consume. The floods can
not drown. The lions cannot devourl
Courage! down there in the arena"
What, are they all looking? This
night we answer back the salutation
they give, and cry, "Haill sons and
daughters of the firer'
ALL BRETHREN IN CHRIST.
look again and see another gallery,
that of eminent Christians. What strikes
me strangely is the mixing in COM
partnership of those who on earth could
not agree. There is Albert Barnes, and
around him the presbytery who tried |
him for heterodoxy! Yonder is Lyman
Beecher and the church court that de |
nounced himi Stranger than all. there |