The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-01-28

that you understand hundredth parg
of the suggestiveness of that twenty
first chapter of Revelation without go
ing into some of the particulars of the
wall of heaven and dipping up some OF
its dripping colors, and running your
eye along some Of Its wondrous crystal
lizations, and examining some OF the
frozen light i'll its turquoise, and feeling
with your own finger the hardness OF its
sapphire, and shielding your eyes against
the shimmering brilliance in its beryl,
and studying the 1900 miles of emerald
without flaw? Yet all this only the out
side of heaven, and the poorest part of
the outside; not the wall itself, but only
the foot of the wall, for my text says, ''The
foundations of the wall of the city were
garnished with all manner of precious
stones" Oh, get down your harp if you
can play one! Get down palm branch
if you can reach one! Why, it makes us
all feel like crying out with James Mont
gomery:
! When shall these eyes thy heaven built walls
And pearly gates behold?
Oh, my SOUL If my text shows us only
the outside, what must the inside be?
While riding last summer through the
emperor's park, near st. Petersburg,
was captivated with the groves, trans
planted from all zones, and the flower
beds-niles this way and miles that way
--incarnadined with beauty, and the
fountains bounding in such revel with
the sunlight as nowhere else is seen,
said: "This is beautiful. I never saw
anything like this before"
But when I entered the palace and saw
the pictured walls, and the long line of
statuary, and aquariuns adoat with all
bright scales, and aviaries a-chant with
bird voices, and the inner doors of the
palace were swung back by the cham
berlain, and saw the emperor and en-
press and princes and princesses, and
they greeted me with cordially of old
acquaintanceship, forget all the groves
and floral bewitchment had seen out
side before entrance. And now ask, if
the outside of heaven attracts our souls
today, how much more will be the up
lifting when we get inside and see the
King in his beauty and all the princes
dlltt tjIltlCCSSCS VI D4lO Ptt1nNOo VI a1llC-
thySt?
Are you not glad that we did not stop
in our ascent this morning until we got
to the top round of the foundation wall
of heaven, the twelfth row, the anne
thyst? Perhaps the ancient Hebrews
We're not, after all, SO far out of the way
when they thought that the touch of the
NJ Irao frDr. tho
touch Of it this hour gives me a very
pleasant dream. Standing on this anne
thyst dream dream. close my eyes
and l see it all. We are there. This is
heaven! Not the outside, but the inside
of heaven.
With what warmth of welcome our
long ago departed loved ones have kissed
us. My! How they have changed in
looks! They were SO sick when they
went away, and now they are SO well.
Look! Yonder is the palace of our Lord
the king. Not kept q moment outside
we are ushered into the throneroom.
Stretching out his SCARED hand he says,
81 have loved thee. with an everlasting
love-" and we respond, "Whom have
in heaven bet thee:"
CHILDREN IN HEAVEN.
But, lookl Yonder is the playground
of the children. Children do not wanta
throne. A throne would not fit child.
There they. are on the Fairgrounds CT
heaven-the children. Out of the sick
cradle of earth they came into this
romping mirth of the eternal play
grounds. clap my hands to cheer them
in the glee. Yonder are the palaces Of
the martyrs, and before their doorway
the flowers, crimson as the bloody mar
tyrdoms through which they waded up
into glory. Yonder is Apostolic row,
and the highest turret is over the home
of Paul. Here is Evangelist place. Yon-
der are the concert halls in which the
musicians of earth and heaven are tax
ing part-Handel with organ, and David
with harp, and Gabriel with trumpet, and
four and twenty elders with voices.
And an angel of God says: '..Where
shall I take you? On what street Of
heaven would you like to live? What
celestial habitation would you like to
occupy" And I answer: ''Now that l
have got inside the wall made up of all
manner Of precious stones do not care
where you put me. Just show me where
my departed loved ones are. I have seen
the Lord, and next want to.see them.
s'But here are those with whom toiled
in the kingdom of God on earth. They
are from my old parishes at Belleville
and Syracuse and Philadelphia and
Brooklyn, and from many places on
both sides the sea where Ihave been per-
mitted to work with them and for them.
Give them the best places you can find.
Twill help steady them as they mount
the thrones. I will help you FURNISH
their coronets.
+. ..sTake these, my old friends, to as good
rooms as you can get for them in the
house of many mansions, and with win
dows looking o.lt upon the palace of the
great King. AS for myself, anywhere in
heaven is good enough for me. Halle
luiah to the Lamb. that was slain But