Democratic messenger., 1894-04-07

speak loves God wants all the world to
love him. l. not ashamed 10 carry a bun
Glo of clothes up that dark alley To the
poor. Which of those young men do
You admire the better! The one sham,
the other prince imperial.
Oh. do you know of anything. my
hearer, that lis more beautiful than to see
young man start ont for Christi Here
is ssome one falling; lac lifts him up. Here
is vagabond boy; he introduces him to
a mission school. Here is family freez-
ing 10 death; he carries them a scuttle of
coal. There are sOO, ,OO0, ,00O perishing i'll
midnight heathen darkness. BY all pos
sible means he tries To send them the
gospel. He may be laughed at. and he
may he sneerei at. and he may be carl
catured. but he is not ashamed to 90
everywhere saying: Il am not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ. 1t is the power
of God and the wisdom of God unto sal
yation."
Such young man can go through
everything. There is no force on earth
or i'll hell that can resist him. / show
you three spectacles:
CERTAIN SPECTACLES.
Spectacle the First Napoleon passed
by with the host that went down with
him to Egypt and up with him through
Russia and crossed the continent ON the
bleeding heart of which he set his iron
leel, and across the quivering flesh of
which he went grinding the wheels of his
gun carriages his dying moment ask.
ing his attendants to put ON his military
boots for him.
Spectacle the Second Voltaire, bright
and learned and witty and eloquent, with
tongue and voice and strategem Internal.
warning against God and poisoning whole
kingdoms with his infidelity, yet ap-
plauded by the clapping hands of thrones
and empires and continents-h last
words. in delirium supposing Christ
standing by the bedside-his last words,
Crush that wretch!"
Spectacle the Third Paul-Paul, in.
significant in person. thrust out from all
refined association, scourged, spat on,
bounded like wild beast from city to
city. yet trying to make the world good
and heaven full; announcing resurrection
to those who mourned at the barred gates
of the dead; speaking consultations which
light up the eyes of widowhood and
orphanage and want with glow Of Ger
tain and eternal release; undaunted be-
fore those who could take his life, his
cheek flushed with transport and his eye
ON heaven: with one hand shaking de-
fiance at all the foes of earth and all the
principalities of hell. and with the other
hand beckoning messenger angels to
come and bear him away as he says: II
am now ready TO he offered, and the
time of my departure is At hand. have
fought the good fight: have finished my
course; | have kept the faith. Hence
forth there is laid up for me u crown of
righteousness. which the Lord, the right
cons Judge. will give me-
Which of the three spectacles do you
most admire. When the wind of death
struck the conqueror and the infidel,
they were tossed like sea gulls i'll
tempest, drenched of the wave and torn
of the hurricane. their dismal voices
heard through the everlasting storm,
but when the wave and the wind of
death struck Paul. like an albatross. he
made throne of the tempest and one
day hoated away into the calm. clear
summer of heaven. brighter than the
dove, its wings coverni with silver, and
its feathers with ye.cow gold. oh, are
you not i'll love with such religion-a
religion that can do so much for man
while he lives and SO much for man
when he comes to die.
A CONTRAST.
/ suppose you may have noticed the
contrast between the departure of a
Christian and the departure of an infidel
Diodorus. dying i'll chagrin because he
could not compose joke equal to the
joke uttered at the other end of his table;
Zeuxis. dying in Il fit of laughter at the
made by his own hand: Mazarin, dying
playing cards. his friend holding his
hands because he was unable To hold
them himself.
All that ON one side. compared with
the departure of the Scotch minister
who said TO his friends: Il have no in
terest as TO whether live or die. If
die, shall be with the Lord, and if
live the Lord will be with me-" Or the
last words of Washington. 1t is we'll.
Or the last word of Mcintosh. the learn
ed and the great. Happy" Or the last
words of Hannah More, the Christian
poetess, joy" Or those thousands OF
Christians who have gone. saying: Lord
Jesus. receive my spirit! Come, Lord
Jesus, come quickly" 20 death. where
is thy sting: y grave, where Is thy vic
tory"
Behold the contrast. Behold the charnl
of the one, behold the darkness of the
other Now. know it is very popular
in this day for young men to think there
is something more charming in skepti-
cism than in religion. They are ashamed
of the old fashioned religion of the cross,
and they pride themselves on their fire..
thinking Oh all these subjects. My
young friends | want to tell you what
know from observation that while skep-
ticism is "a beautiful land at the start, il
is great Sahara desert at the last.
AN APT STORY.
Years ago Il minister's son went of
from home 10 college. AT college ht
formed the acquaintance of "a young
man whom shall call Ellison. Ellison
was an intidel. Ellison scotfed at reli
gion. and the ministers son soon learned
from him the infdchty, and when he
went home on his vacation broke his
fathers heart by his denunciations of
Christianity. Time passed on. and vaca.
tion came. and the minister's 5 son went
off 10 spend the vacation and was ON
journey and came 10 u hotel. The hotel
keeper said: II am sorry that tonight
shall have To put You i'll IA room adjoin-
ing one where there is very sick and
dying man. can give You no other ac-
commodation." oh" sald the young
college student and minister's son, THAT
will make no difference to me, except
the matter of sympathy with anybody
that is suffering"
The young man retired to his room,