Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1892-09-10
REV. DR.. 7ALMAGH.
The Eminent Brooklyn Divines Sun.
day Sermon.
Subject. ncelestIal sympaihiser...

Ing one of the grandeSt ruins of the world
the amphitheatre. The whole building
sweeps around you in circle You stand
IN The arena where the combat was oncs
fought or thu race run, aud on all sides the
seats rise, tier above tier, until you count
forty elevations or galleries, as / shall see
1t to call them, in which sat the senators,
the kings and the twenty-five thousand ex.
cited spectators
At the sides of the arena and under the
galleries are the cages in which the lions
and tigers are kept without fool UNTIL
treDzed with hunger and thirst they are let
out upon some victim who, VITA his sword
and alone, is condemned to meet them.
think that Paul himself once stood in such a
place, and that it was not only figuratively
out literally that he hal fought with
beasts at Ephesus"
The gala day has come. From all the
world the people are pouring into Verona.
Men, women and children, orators and sena-
tors, great men and small, thousands upon
Thousands come, until the first gallery is
I'LL, and the second, the third. the fourth,
the fifta-all the way up to the twentieth.
all the way up to the thirtieth all the way
up to the fortietb. Every place IS filed,
/ immensely OF audience sweeping the great
circle. Silencel The time for the con.
test has come. A Roman official leads forth
he victim into the arena Let him get his
word with firm grip into his right hand.
The twenty-five thousand sit breathlessly
watching. hear the door at the side of tho
irena ersak open. Out plunges the half
starved hon, his tongue athrst for blood,
and with roar that hriugs all the galleries
% their feet he rushes against toe sword of
the combatant
DO you know how strong a stro&e a man
will strike when his lie depends upon tie
drst thrust of his blades The wild beast
an IA III eli Il
;lde OF the arena; then, rallyiu5 his wasteF
strength, he comes up with fiercsr eye and
more terrible roar than ever, only to be
drlYen back with a fatal wound, while the
comnatant comes in with stroke after stroke
until the monster is dead at his feet, and the
twenty-five thousand people clap their hands
and utter shout that makes the city
tremble
Sometimes the au iience came to sea
race sometines to sec gladiatorS fight eacl
other, until the people, compa ssionate for
the tallen turned their thumbs down as an
appeal that the vanquishsi be spared, ana
sometimes the combat was with wild bsasts.
To one of the Roman amphithe atrical
audiences Of one hundred thousand peopls
raul refers when he says: 1--WE ara COM
passed about with SO great a crowd of wit
nesses" The direct references in the last
passage is made to race, but elsewhere
aaving discussed that. | take now Paul's
'avorite idea OF the Christian life as a CON-
BAT.
The fact is that every Cdristain man has
L lion to fight. Yours is a bad temper. The
gates of the arena have been opened, an
yhis tiger has come out to destroy your SOU.
IL has lacarated you with many a wound.
You have been thrown by it time and again,
but in the strength OF God you have arisen
to drive it back. 1 verify believe you will
conquer. l think that the temptation is
getting weaker and weaker Hou hava
given it so many wouuts that the prospect
is that it will die an you shall be victor,
through Christi Courage, brother Do not
let the sands OF the arena drink the blood of
your SOUL
Your lion is the passion for strong drink.
You may have contended against it twenty
years, but 1t is strong of body and thirsty Of
tongue. You have tried to fight it back
with broken bottle or empty wine flask.
Nay that is not the weapon. With one
horrible roar he will seizs thes by the throat
and rend thee limb from limb. Take this
weapon. S arp and keen-1eaci up and get
it from Gods armory-ths sword of the
Spirit. With that thou mayest drive him
back and conquer,
But why specify, when every man and
woman has a lion to fight. II there be one
here who has no besetting sin, let him speak
out: for him have l offended. If YOU have
not fought the lion, it is because you have
let the lion eat you up This very momen,
the contest goes on, The Trojan celebration
where ten thousand gla 1iatogs fought and
eleven thousand will beasts were slain, was
not 50 terrific struggle as that which al
this moment goes on i'll many soul. Th'
combat was for the life Of the body; this i.
for the life of the soul That was with wild
beasts from the jungle; this is with the roar
ing lion OF he'll.
Men think when they contend against an
evil habit that they nave to fight it all alone
No. They stand in the centre OF an i'm
meuse circle OF sympathy Paul had besi
recitiug the names Of Abel, Enoch, Noah
Abraham, Sarah Isaac, Joseph. Gideon and
Barak, and then says: Being compasset
about with so great a cloud of witnesses"
Before l get through [ will show you tina
you fight III an arena around whicl circle
in galleries above each other. all the kin
ding eyes and all the sympathetic hearts o
the ages; and at every victory gained thar
comes down the laundering applause OF
great multitude that no man eau number
ing rom2assed about with so great ,
Cloud of witnesses y
/ Though the arena be crowded with tenn
tatlons we sna l. with the angelic he o
strike them down in the name Of Que Co
and leap on their fallen carcassesl o bend
ing throng OF bright angelic faces ana swift
wings and lightning footl hail you to day
from the aust and struggle of the arena,
look again and ses the gallery OF tn
/ propaetS and apostles. Who are thoy
mighty ones up yonder2 Hosea and Jsrs
mIah and Daniel and Isaiah and Paul anc
Peter and John and James. There sit.
Noah, waiting for all the world to come into
the ARK; ami Moses waiting till the last
FED Sea shall divide, and Jeremiah. waiting
Tor the Jews to return: and John. of the
A pyqIf 1-r font hsNs- go,
angel that lime shall be no longer. Gloriou,
Splrltsi He were howie1 at; We were stoned
ye were spit upon They have been in this
tight themselves. and they are all with Us.
Daniel knows all about lions. Paul fought
wlt5 beasts at E3heSus
In the ancient a,uphitheatre the peopls
got so excited that they would shout from tn
galleries to the men in the arena: AT it
again" Forward Zone more stroke 81
/ Look out' Fall oackw 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 lionsw David exciaims, "de
viii not suffer thy foot to be movedm Isaiah
calls out, Fear not! l am with thsei BE
not dlsmayed" Paul exclaims Victory
through our Lord Jesus Caristm That
throng OF prophets and apost es caunot keeu
still. They make the welkin ring with
Shouting and halleluiahs
I / iooS again ami l see the gallery of the
martyrs. Who is that Hugh Latimer,
/ sure enough! He would not Apologies for
the truth preached, aud so he died the night
/ before swinging from the bedp0st in perfect
glee at the thought of emancipation. Who
1 are that army of six thousand six hundret
aud si1ty-5iN? They are the Theoan legion
VINO died for the faith. Here is a larger nos
I in magnificent array-eight hundred anC
eighty-.our thou sand-who persisted fol
Christ in the prosecutions of Diocietian.
/ Yonder is a family grouo. Felicitas, o.
Rome, and her children. Whils they wer;
dying for the faith she stood encouraging
them. One son was whppsi to death by
/ tnorns. another was hlny from a rock, an
other was bsleadei. At last the moshsr
"a family group IN heaven Yonisr l.,
I john Bradford, WAC said in the fire. I'VE
, shall have a merry supper with tue Lord
tonight" Yonier is Henry Voes, who e1'
C aim I'd as he diei. IF | hs tn heads they
should all fall off for Christi
The gr at throng OF the martyrs! They
had hot lead pourel down their throats,
horses were fastened TO their han1s, ana
other horses to their feet aud thus they
were pulled apart; they had their tongue.
pulled out by red hot pincsrs: they were
sewed up in the skins Of animals and then
thrown t. the dogs; they wers daubst with
Combustibles ami then set on fire, If all
/ the martyrs stakes that have besn kiniled
could be set at proper distances they would
make the midnight all the world over as
bright as MONDAY.
And now they SIT yon Ter in the MARTYR
/ gallery. For them the fires OF pers 4cltion
have gone out. The swords are saeathed