Democratic messenger., 1894-07-07

logue of the fruits growing in this y.cat
garden of Christ-love. joy, peace, pa
thence, charity, brothcrly kindness, gen
tlencss. lnercy-glorious fruit, enough
TO fill all the baskets of earth and
heaven
have not told you of the better tree
in this garden and of the better fruit
II was planted just outside Jerusalem
good while ago. When that tree was
planted. it was SO split assi bruised and
barled men said nothing would ever
grow upon il, but no sooner had that
tree been planted than it budded and
blossomed and fruitcd and the soldiers
spears were only the clubs that struck
down that fruit, and il fell into the lap
of the nations, and men began to pick
it up and eat it, and they found in it an
antidote to all thirst, to all poison, to
all sin, to all death-the smallest clus-
ter larger than the famous one of Esh-
col, which two men carried on staff
between them. If the one apple in Eden
killed the race, this one cluster Of mercy
shall restore.
Water For the Garden.
Again, the church, in my text, is ap-
propriately called garden because it Is
thoroughly irrigated. No garden could
prosper long without plenty of water. ]
have seen garden in the midst of n
desert. yet blooming and luxuriant.
All around We're dearth and barrenness,
but there were pipes, aqueducts reach
ing from this garden up TO the moun
tains, and through those aqueducts the
water came streaming down and tossing
up into beautiful fountains until every
root and leaf and flower was saturated.
That is like the church. The church is
a garden in the midst of great desert
of sin and suffering. 1t is well irrigat
ed for ''our eyes are unto the hills, from
whence cometh our help" From the
mountains of Gods strength there flow
down rivers of gladness. There is a
river the stream whereof shall make
glad the city of our God. Preaching
the gospel is one of these aqueducts.
The Bible is another. Baptism and the
Lords supper are aqucducts. Water
to slake the thirst. water to restore the
faint, water to wash the unclean. water
tossed high up in the light of the sun of
righteousness. showing us the rainbow
around the throne. Oh, was there ever
u garden so thoroughly irrigated: You
know the beauty of Versailles and
Chatsworth depends very much upon
the great supply of water. came to the
L.. ,&la... xx-tsn.,
strangers are not to be admitted, but
by an inducement, which always seemed
as applicable to an Englishman as an
American, / got in, and then the gar
dencr went far up above the stairs OF
stone and turned OH the water. saw il
cleaning on the dry pavement, coming
down from step to step. until it came sc
near could hear the musical rush, and
all over the high, broad stairs it came
foaming, flashing. roaring down until
sunlight and wave in gleesome wrcstle
tumbled at my feet. So il is with the
church of God. Everything comes from
above-pardon from above, joy from
above. adoption from above. sanctifica-
tion from above. Oh, that now God
would turn on the waters of salvation,
that they might flow down through his
heritage. and that this day we might
each find our places TO be Films.
with l2 wells of water and threescore
and ten palm trees.
A Hard Prayer.
Hark! hear the latch ut the garden
gate, and l look TO see who is coming.
l hear the voice of Christ. Il am come
into my garden" i say: Come in. OI
Jesus; we have been waiting for thee.
Walk all through these paths. Look at
the flowers Look at the fruit. Pluck
that which thou wilt for thysclf" Jesus
comes into the garden and up to that old
man and touches him and says, AL
most home, father: not many more
aches for thee. l will never leave thee.
! will never forsake thee. Take courage
a little longer, and l will steady thy
tottcring steps, and / will soothe thy
troubles and give thee rest. Courage,
old man. Then Christ goes up another
garden path, and he comes to u soul in
trouble and says: Peace! all is well.
/ have seen thy tears; have heard thy
prayer. The sun shall not smite thee by
day, nor the moon by night. The Lord
shall preserve thee from all evil; he
will preserve thy soul. Courage, Ol
troubled spirit. " Then l see Jesus going
up another garden path, and see great
excitement among the leaves, and
hasten up that garden path TO see what
Jesus is doing there, and, 10! he is break
ing off flowers, sharp and clean, from
the stem, and / say, Stop, Jesus; don't
kill those beautiful flowers" He turns
to me and says: Il have come into my
garden to gather lilies. and mean TO
take these up to higher terrace, and
for the garden around my palace, and
there will plant them, and i'll better
soil, and in better air. They shall put
forth brighter leaves and sweeter redo
lence, and no frost shall touch them
forever" And / looked up into his face
and said, "Well, it is his garden, and
he has a right to do what he will with
il. Thy will be done'-the hardest
prayer "a man ever made.
Heartsease.
notice that the fine gardens some
times have high fences around them,
and cannot get i'll. 1t is so with the
kings garden. The only glimpses you
ever get of such garden is when the
king rides out in his splendid carriage.
1t is not so with this garden-thc
Kings garden. throw wide open the
gate and tell you all TO come in. No
monopoly in religion. Whosoever will.
may. Choose now between desert and
a garden. Many of you have tried the
garden of this worlds delight. You
have found il has beoi chagrin. So
it was with Theodore Hook. He made
all the world laugh. He makes us laugh
now when we read his poems, but he
could not make his own heart laugh.