The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-04-27

death for Christ's sake. For Him
Blandiana was tied to post and wild
beasts were let out upon her. and when
life continued after the attack of tooth
and paw, she was put in a net. and
that net containing her was thrown to
a wild bull, that tossed her with its
horns till life was extinct All for
Christ. Huguenots dying for Christ!
Albigenses dying for Christ! The
Vaudois dying for Christ! Smithfeld
fires endured for Christi The bones
of martyrs, if distributed, would make
path of moldering life all around
the earth.
Furthermore, He was lovely in His
sermons. He knew when to begin,
when to stop, and just what to say.
| The longest sermon He ever preached,
so far as the Bible reports Him, name
", the Sermon on the Mount was
about sixteen minutes in delivery at
the ordinary rate of speech. His long
est prayer reported. commonly called
THE Lords Prayer" was about half
minute.
And His sermons were so lovely for
sentiment and practically, and SIM
| plicity. and illustration: the light of a
candle, the crystal of the salt; the
| cluck of hen for her chickens; the
hypocrite's doiorous physiognomy;
the moth in the clothes closet; the
black wing of a raven: the snow
bank of white lilies: our extreme
botheration about the splinter of
imperfection in some one else's
character; the swine fed on the pearls;
wolves dramatizing sheep: and the
| peroration made up of a cyclone in
which you hear the crash of a tumbling
house unwisely constructed. No tech
nicalities; no splitting of hairs between
north and northwest side; no dogmat-
les; but great Christlv throb of help
fulness- | do not wonder at the record
which says: when He was come down
from the mountain great multitudes
followed Him" They had but one
fault to find with His sermon-it was
too short God help all of us in Chris
tian work to get down off our stills
and realize there is only one thing we
have to do-there is the great wound
of the worlds sin and sorrow, and here
is the great healing plaster of the gos-
pei. What you and | want to do is to
put the plaster on the wound. ALL
sufficient is this gospel if it is only APP
piled.
Yea, Christ was lovely in His chief
life's work There was a thousand
things for Him to do, but His great
work was to get our ship-wrecked
world out of the breakers That He
came to co. and that He did: andHe did
it in three years. He took thirty years
to prepare for that three years activ-
ity. From II to so years of age we
hear nothing about Him. That inter
vening eighteen years think He was
in India But He came back to Pales-
tine and crowded everything into three
years; three winters three springs.
three summers, three autumns Our
life is short, but would God we might
see how much we could do in three
years
Aye, Christ was lovely in His demise.
He had right that last hour to deal
in anathematiZation. Never had any
one been so meanly treated. Cradle of
straw among goats and camels-that
was the worlds reception of Him!
Rocky cliff, uwith hammers pounding
spikes through tortured nerves-that
was the worlds farewell salutatioul
The slaughter of that scene sometimes
hides the loveliness of the sufferer.
Under the saturation of tears and blood
we sometimes fail to see the sweetest
face of earth and Heaven. Altogether
lovely! Can coolest criticism find
an uukini word He ever spoke, or an
unkind action that He ever performed,
or an unkind thought that He ever
harbored? What a marvel it is that all
the nations of earth do not rise up in
raptures of affection for Him! Is it an
impertinence for me TO ask, do you, my
hearer-you, my reader, love Him?
Has He become a part of your nature7
Would you like to have His hand to
guide you? His grace to comfort you?
His sufferings to atone for you? His
arms to welcome you? His love to en-
circle you? His Heaven to crown you?
Oh, that we might a II have something
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?' nv 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 in
to 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 splendor on the other |
side. we get little bewildered and |
should for a few moments be lost on |
the streets of gold and among the bur- |
nished temples, and the sapphire |
thrones. there would be plenty to show |
US the way, and take US out of our joy |
full bewilderment; and perhaps the |
woman of Main would say: Come. let |
me take you to the Christ that raised |
my only boy to life" And Martha |
would say: Come, let me take you to |
the Christ who brought up my brother
Lazarus from the tomb" And whole |
groups of martyrs would say: Come, |
let us show you the Christ for
whom we ratified the chaina, |
and waded the floods, and |
dared the fires" And our own |
glorifed kindred would flock around |
US. saying: I'VE have been waiting Z
good while for you, but before we tall
over old times, and we tell you of what
we have enjoyed since we have beeY
here. and you tell US of what you have
suffered since we parted, come, come
and let US show you the greatest sight
in all the place. the most Respondent
throne, and upon it the mightiest Con-
queror, the Exaltation of Heaven, the /
Theme of the immortals, the Alto