The Bossier banner., 1894-06-07
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or walk from Edinburgh to Arthur's
| seat, or in London clear around Hyde
park, than to walk that road that
Christ walked twice day from Jeru-
salem to Bethany. But He liked the
quietude of home life and He was love.
ly in His domesticity.
How He enjoyed handing over the
resurrected boy to his mother and the
resurrected girl to her father and re-
constructing homesteads which disease
or death was breaking up. AS the
song Home, Sweet Home" was writ
ten by man who at that time had no
home, SO l think the homelessness of
Christ added to His appreciation of
domesticity.
Furthermore, He was lovely in His
sympathies. Now, dropsy is a most
distressing complaint. 1t inf tines and
swells and tortures any limb or phys
ical organ it touches. AS soon as
case Of that kind is submitted to Christ
He, without any use of diaphoreticS,
commands its cure And what an eye
doctor He was for opening the long
closed gates of sight to the blue of the
sky and the yellow of the flower and
the emerald of the grass! What
Christ He was for cooling fevers with
out SO much as spoonful of febrifuge;
and strengthening crooked backs with
out any pang of surgery; and standing
whole choirs of music along the silent
galleries of deaf ear; and giving
healthful nervous system to cataleptics!
Sympathy! He did not give them
stoical advice, or philosophize about
the science of grief. He sat down and
cried with them.
1t Is spoken of as the shortest verse
in the Bible, but to rne it is about the
longest and grandest-"Jesus wept."
All! many of us know the meaning of
that When we were in great trouble,
some one came in with voluble conso-
lation and quoted the Scripture in a
sort of heartless way, and did not help
us at all But after awhile some one
else came in, and without saving a
word sat down and burst into food
of tears at the sight of Our, woe, and
somehow it helped us right away.
"Jesus wept." "You see, it was a
deeply-attached household, that of
Mary, and Martha, and Lazarus. The
father and mother were dead, and the
girls depended on their brother. Laz-
arus had said to them: "Now Mary,
now Martha, stop your worrying. l
will take care of you. / will be to you
both father and mother. My arm is
strong. Girls, you can depend on me!''
But now Lazarus was sick; yea,
Lazarus was dead. All broken up, the
sisters disconsolate, and there is
knock at the door. 'Come in" says
Martha. Come in" says Mary Christ
entered, and He just broke down. 1t
was too much for Him. He had been
so often and so kindly entertained in
that home, before sickness and death
devastated it, that He choked up and
sobbed aloud, and the tears trickled
down the sad face of the sympathetic
Christ ''Jesus wept." Why do you
not try that mode of helping? You
say: Il am man of few words" or
81 am a woman of few words" Why,
you dear soul, words are not necessary
Initiate your Lord, and go to those az
flicted homes and cry with them.
Oh, that we might all have some
thing of the great German reformer's
love for this Christ, which led him to
say: "If anyone knocks at the door OF
my breast and says, Who lives there?'
my reply is, Jesus Christ lives here.
. not Martin Luther" viii it not
be grand if when we get through this
short and rugged road of life we can
go right up into His presence and live
, with Him world without end? And
if, entering the gate of that heavenly
city we should be SO overwhelmed
, with our unworthiness on the one side
and the supernal spendor on the other
side. we get little bewildered and
should for few moments be lost on
the streets of gold and among the
; FURNISHED temples, and the sap
| phire thrones, there would be
> plenty to show us the way, and
= take us out of our joyful be-
r wilderment; and perhaps the woman
s of Main would say: Come, let me take
e | you to the Christ that raised my onI v
: boy to life." And Martha would say:
} "Come, let me take You to the Christ
e who brought up my brother Laz-
e arus from the tomb" And one
< | "a bAiV WOulu AOHlt,
t let me take you to the Christ
t who saved our sinking ship in
Il the hurricane on Gennesaret And
t Paul would say: "Come, and let me
4 lead you to the Christ for WHOM / died
t on the road to Ostia.' And whole
!, groups of martyrs would say: "Com !:
Q let us show you the Christ for whom sss
t ratified the chains, and waded the foo Is
e and dared the fires" And our cwr
r glorified kindred would flock arount
o rs. saying: 1--WE have been waiting
It good while for you, bnt before we tall
k over old times, and we tell you of wha
o we have enjoyed since we have beer
o here, and you tell us of wha
e you have suffered since we part
h ed. come, come, and let u
lie show you the greatest sight in al
ID the place, the most respondent throne
st and upon it the mightiest Conquerol
i the Exaltation of Heaven, the Them
IS of the immortals, the Altogether
r great, the Altogether-good. the Att
of gether-fair, the Altogether-foyely!