Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1893-10-27


| objections to bands and surplice
| and all the paraphernalia of cler-
] ical life; but these things make no
! impression-make no more impression
! on the great masses of the people than
! the ordinary business suit that YOU
| wear in Wall street. A tailor can not
| make minister. Some of the poorest
| preachers wear the best clothes; and
| many backwoodsman has dismounted
from the saddle-bags. and in his linen
buster preached sermon that shook
| earth and Heaven with it's Christian
eloquence. No new Gospel, only the
old Gospel in way suited to the time
No new church, but church to be the
asylum, the inspiration, the practical
sympathy and the eternal help of the
people.
But while half of the doors of
the church are to be set open
toward this world, the other half
Of the doors of the church must lie
set open toward the next 1ou and
tarry here only a brief space We
want somebody to teach US now to get
out OF this life at the right time and in
the right way. Some fall OUT of life
some go stumbling out Of life. some 90
groaning out of life, some go cursing
out of life. We want to go singing
rising, rejoicing, triumphing We
want half the doors Of the church set
in that direction. We want half the
prayers that way, half the sermons that
way. We want to know how to get
ashore from the tumult of this
world into the land of ever
lasting peace. We do not want to
stand doubling and shivering when we
go away from this world: we want ou:'
anticipations aroused to the highest
pitch. We want to have the eXhilara-
ton of a dying child in England, the
father telling me the story. When he
said to her. is the path narrow?' she
answered, The path is narrow: it is SO
narrow that can not walk arm in arm
with Christ; 50 Jesus goes ahead, and
lie says. Mary, follow" Through
ward how many of your friends and
mine have gone? The last time they
were out of the house they came to
church. The earthly pilgrimage ended
at the pillar Of public worship, and
then they march out to a bigger and
brighter Assem- bIage. Some of them
were so old they could not walk with
out a cane or two crutches; now they
have eternal juvenescence. Or they
were SO young they could not walk eN-
cept as the maternal hand guided
them; now they bound with the hilari-
ties celestial The last time we SAW
haJ lar .,1
or pulmonic disorder; but now they
have no fatigue, and no diff
Guilty of respiration in the pure
air Of Heaven. How | wonder
when yon and l will cross over. Some
of you have had about enough Of the
humping and failing of this life. \
draught from the fountains of Heaven
would do You good. Complete release
you could stand very well. If you got
on the other side. and had permission
to come back. YOU would not come
Though YOU were invited to come back
and join your friends on earth YOU
would say: No, let Inc tarry here
until they come; ! shall not risk going
better stay there.
va, L IOlH hdlttS Will you lllS Iloi IL
ing in that uplifted splendor.
When the shore is Won at last.
Who will count the !ilows past:
In Freybourg. Switzerland. there is
the trunk of d tree four hundred years
old. That tree was planted to con-
memorate an event. About ten miles
from the city the Swiss conquered the
BurgundianS, and Il young man wanted
to take the tidings to the city, lie
took a tree branch and ran with such
speed the ten miles that when he
reached the city waving the tree
branch he had only strength to cry,
"Victory!" and dropped dead. The
tree branch that he carried was plant
ed, and it grew to be great tree TWEEN
ty feet in circumference, and the re-
! mains Of it are there to this day. My
hearers, when You have fought
your last battle with sin and death
! and hell, and they have been routed
! in the conflict, it will be q joy
/ worthy of celebration. You will fly
| to the city and cry ''Nictory..' and
\ drop a the feet of the great King. Then
/ the palm branch of the earthly race will
| be planted to become the out branching
! tree of everlasting rejoicing.
! When shall these eyes thy Hcaven-built walls
/ And pearly gates behold,
| Thy bulwarkS with salvation strong,
1 And streets with shining gold.
q