The Penn's Grove record., 1894-02-09

years. and l told him that many OF tn
churches opened the Sabbath morning ser
vices with his old hymn, "Welcome, Swee
Day Of Rest" and celebrated their gospe
triumphs with his hymn, ''Salvaticn, Oh tn
joyful Song ~ and often reused their devo
Mons by his hymn, Come, We That Low
che Lord
while we were talking he introduced IN
10 another OF the song writers and said
Iris Is Charles Wesley, who belonged oil
earth to a different church from mine. bu
we are all now members OF the same church
the temple Of God and the Lamb" And
told Charles Wesley that almost every Sab
bath we sang one Of his old hymns, Arm o
Inc Lord, Awake" or, "Come, Let Us Joil
Our Friends Above" or, Love Divine, AL
Love Excelling." And while we were talk
ing on that street called Song row, Kirl
White. the c~onsumptive college student, nov
eVerlastingly well. came up, and we talked
over his old Christmas hymn, when Mar
shaded on the Nightly Plain" And william
CoWper came up, now entirely reeovare
from his religious melancholy and not look
ing as il he had ever in dementia attempted
suicide, and we talked over the wide earthly
celebrity and heavenly power Of his oil
hymns, when Car Read My Title Clear,
and There Is a Fountain Filled Will
Blood"
And there We met George W. Bethune o.
wondrous Brooklyn pastorate, and told him
d how his comforting hymn had been sung
1t ohsequies all around the world-''It l.
Not Death to Die" And Toplady came up
md asked about whether the church was
'till making use OF his old hymn, Crock Of
Ages, Cleft For Me-" And we also met on
Song row Newton and Hastings and Mont
zomery and Horatio Bonar. and we heard
boating from window to window snatches oi
he old hymns whichthey started on earth
md started never to die.
But, say some Of my hearers, "did you
pee anything of our friends in heavenY" Oh.
yes, l did. Did YOU see my children there?'
says some one 'and are there any marks o
their last sickness still upon them?" Ibid
seethem, but there was no pallor, no cough,
40 fever, no languor. about them. They are
all well and ruddy and songful and bound.
tng with eternal mirtb. They told me to give
heir love to you that they thought OF you
hour by hour, and that when they could be
excused from the heavenly Fairgrounds they
zane down. AMI lowered over you, AMI
sissed -FOUR cheek, and filled your dream
With their glad faces. and that they would be
1t the gate to greet YOU when you assembled
10 be with them forever.
"But, " say other voices, Hiid you see our
slorifled friends Yes. I saw them. and
hey are well in the and across which nc
pitlIllOutt- IT 1t sites OF uTDDSIeS OF INDnOltS
sver sweep. The aroma blows over from or
charts with trees bearing twelve manner oil
fruits, an | gardens compared with which
Chatsworth is a desert. The climate is q
mingling of an earthly June and October
The balm Of the one aud the tonic of the
other. The social life in that realm where
they are is superb and perfect. No contro-
yersies or jealousies or hates, but love, uni.
yersal love, everlasting love. And they told
meto tell you not to weep for them, fortheir
happiness knows no bound, and it Is only a
question OF time when you shall reign with
them in the same palace and Join with them
in the same exploration of planets and the
same tour of worlds.
But yonder in this assembly is an up
turned face that seems to ask how about the
ages of those in heaven. DO my departed
children remain children, or have they lost
their childish viyacity? Do my departed
parents remain aged, or have they lost the
venerable out OF their ndture?" Well, from
what l saw | think childhood has advanced
70 full maturity Of faculty. retaining all the
residence OF childhood, and that the aged
had retreated to midlife, freed from all de.
cadence, but still retaining the charm of the
venerable. In other words, 1t was fully de-
yeloped and complete life of all souls.
whether young or oh.
Some one says, "Wlll youtell US what most
impressed you in heaven?" / will. | was
most impressed with the reversal of earthly
conditions. knew. of course. that there
would be differences of attire II residence
n heaven, Tor Paul had declared long age
hat souls would then differ "as one star diff
cred from another. as Mars from Mercury,
IS Saturn fromJupiyer. But Mt every step in
ny dream in heaven | was amazed to see
hat some who were expected to be high in
heaven were low down, and some who were
expected to be low down were high up. You
thought, for instance, that those born OF
pious parentage, and of naturally good dis
position. and Of brilliant faculties, and of all
styles OF attractiveness will move in the high
est range of celestial sIlendor and pomp.
No, no. l found the highest thrones, the
brightest c~oronets. the richest mansions,
werc occupied by those who had repro
bate father or bad mother, and who
Inherited the twisted natures oil
ten generations Of miiscreants, n who
had compressed in their body all the de-
praved appetites and all evil p~ropensities
but they laid hold of Gods arm, they cried
for especial mercy, they conquered seven
devils within and seventy devils without and
we're washed in the blood OF the Lamb, and
by so much as their contest was terrific and
awful and prolix their victory was consum-
mate and resplendent, and they have taken
places UNNECESSARILY higher than those OF
good parentage, who could hardly help be-
ing good, because they had ten generations
Of preceding piety to aid them. The steps by
which many have mounted to the highest
places In heaven were made out of the era
dies of corrupt ~parentage. When l saw that
[ said to my attending angel; "That is fair
that is right. The harder the struggle the
more glorious the reward.n
Then | pointed to one OF the most colon
naded and grandly domed residences In all
the city and said. "Who lives there?" and
The answer was, THE widow who gave two
.mites.' Sand who lives there?' and the
answer was, "The p~enitent thief to whom
Christ said, This day shalt thou be with Nc
in PARADISE" "And who lives there?' |
said, and the answer was, 9Th blind beggar
who prayed, Lord that my eyes may be
opened"
Some of those professors OF religion who
were famous on earth l asked about, but no
one could tell me anything concerning them.
Their names were not even in the city dire.
tory ofthe New jerusalem. The fact Is that
suspected som OF them had not got there at
all. Many who had ten talents were living
on the back streets of heaven, while many
with one talent had residences fronting OF
the Kings park. and a back lawn sloping tC
the river clear as crystal, and the highest no.
bility of heaven were guests at their table,
lit uIttn tue NlliAp JIG vi I'm WIN ndIl
the moon under His feet" champed its bit al
their doorway. Infinite capsize of earthly
conditions! All social life in heaven graded
according to earthly struggle and usefulness
as proportional to talents glveni
As / walked through those streets I ap
preciated for the first time what Paul said l.
Timothy. '''If we suffer, we shall also reigI
with Him" It surprised me beyond deserip-
ton that all the great OF heaven were great
sufferers. ''Not ali?' Yes, all. Moses, hin
OF the Red Sea, a great sufferer. David, hin
of Absalom's sunhlial behavior, and Ahitho
phel's BETRAYAL, and "A Nations d~ethronement
a great sufferer. Ezekiel, him of the captiv.
ity, who had the dream on the banks OF the
Chebar, a great sufferer. Paul, him of the
diseased eyes, and the Mediterranean ship.
wreck, and the Mars Hin derision, and Tho
Mamertine enlargement, andthe whipped
back, and the headsman's ak on the road Ia
ostia, a great sufferer.
Yea, all the apostles after lives OF suffering
oied BY violence, beaten to death with full
er's club, or dragged to death by mobs. o.
from the thrust OF a sword, or by exposur,
ON a barren island, or by decapitation. All
the high up in heaven great sufferers, and
women more than men, Felicitas and 81. &c,
celia and St. Agnes and st. Agatha and 81
Lucia and women never heard oF o,t