Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-02-16
REV. DR., 'TAEMAGE
The Eminent Brooklyn .Divins's Sun =
/, s. r+ day Sermon.
Subject. GA vision of Heaven"

TOu..' Ezekiel j., J..
Expairiated and in far exileon the b1nks
! OF the river Chehar. an affluent of the Eu-
/ phrates, sat Ezekiel. 1t was there he had an
immortal dream, AMI it is given to us in tho
| Holy Scriptures. He dreamed Of Tyre and
Egypt. He dreamed Of Christ and the COM
ing heaven. This exile, seated by that river
Chebar had more wonderful dream than
you or ever have had or ever will have
seated on the banks OF the Hudson or Ala
hama or Oregon or Thames or Tiber or
Danube.
But we all have had memorable dreams,
some of them when we were half asleep an /
half awake, so that we did not know whether
they were born of shadow or sunlight.
whether they were thoughts let loose and
disarranged rs in slumber, or the magma
ton of faculties awake.
Such dream had this morning It was
about half-past ). and the day was breaking
IT was dream Of God. dream of heaven.
Ezekiel had his dream on the banks of the
Chebar; | had my dream not far from the
banks of the Hudson. The most ofthe stories
OF heaven were written many cantuties ago,
and they tell US how the place looked then.
or how it will look centuries ahea1 Would
sou not like to know how it looks now? That
is what am going to tell YOU I was there
got into that city Of the sun know not.
Which OF the twelve gates / entered is to me
uncertain. But my first remembrance Of the
scene is that l stoo on one Of tho main ave-
nues, looking this way and that. lost in rap
lures, and the air go full Of music and re To-
lence and laughter and light that knew not
which street to take. when an angel of God
accosted me AMI offered TO show me the o.
lects OF greatest interest, and conduct me
from street TO street, and from mansion TO
mansion. and from temple to temple ami
from wall to wall. / said to the angel. GLOW
long hast thou been in heaven?" and the an
eWer' lhirty-two years according TO the
earthly calendar"
Ihere was secret about this angels name
that was not given me. but from the ten1er-
ness and sweetness and affection and inter-
est taken IN my walk through heaven. and
more than all in the fact of thirty-two years
residence, the number of wears since she
assembled. think it was my mother. Old
age and decrepitude and thetired look were
all gone, but / think it was she. You see r
was only on visit to the city and had not
9e. taken up residence, and l could know
only in part.
ioOhed IN Tor few moments at the great
temple Our brilliant and lovely Scotch es
eaylst: Mr.. Drummond, says there is no
cnurch IN heaven, but he did not look for it
on the right street. st. John was right when
~ ~ ms Patmosic vision, recorded in the third
chaPter OF revelation, he speaks of 'The
temple of my God" I saw if this morning
the largest church ever saw. as hio az eli
Inc churches and cathedrals of the earth mt
together and it was throngei. Oh. what a
multitude l had never seen SO many peo-
pie together All the audiences of ali The
OF all The earth put together would
make a poor attendance compared with thu
RssemblaSe. There was fashion in attirs
and headdress that immediately took NV at
tention. The fashion was white All in
White, save one, AMI the headdress was q
garland OF ros> and lily AMI mignonette.
mingled with green leaves culleI from the
royal gardens and bound together with bands
of gold.
And saw some young men with rinc on
the tlnger OF the right han AMI said to my
accompanying angel, -"Why those rings on
the,-hngers of the right hanls?" and I was
told that those who wore them were prc1igal
sons and once fed swine in the wilderness
and lived on husSs, but they came home. AMI
the rejoicing father said, Put ring on his
hand"
But said there was one exception to this
fashion ofwhite perya1ing all the auditorium
and clear up through all the galleries. It
was the attire OF the ono who presided in
mlghtiest. the loveest person in all the
place. His cheeks seemedt be flushed with
Infinite beauty and his forehead was
morning sky, AMI his lips were elouuence
0mnlpotent. But his attire was of deep
colors. They suggested the carnage through
which he had passed, and | said to my at
tending angel, "What is that crimson robe
That he wearsY and was told, "They are
dyed garments from Bozrah," and "He trod
the wine press alone"
Soon after entered this temple they be-
gan to chant the celestial litany It was un-
IKE anything had ever heard for sweetness
and power, and have heard the most sweet
OF the great organs and the most of the
great OratOrios I said to my ACCOMMODATING
az gel, who is that standing yonder with
ire harp and the answer was. "David = |
|lld said "WhO is that sounding that |
trumpetY and the answer was Gabriel
md l sud, "Who is that at the organ?' AMI |
the answer was "Handeir' And the music |
oiled on till it came to doxology extolling |
Christ Himself, when all the worshpers, |
lower down and higher up, thousand gal |
leries OF them, suddenly dropped or their
I,nees and cnanted, "Worth is the Lamb that
was slain. Under the oyerpoweriny har-
lnony fell back. said: "Let us &C. This
Is too much for mortal ears. cannot bear
But noticed as | was about to turn awav
that on the steps Of the altar was something
like the lachyrmll, or tear bottle, as l had
seen it in the earthly musems, the lachry-
mails, or tear bottles, into which the orien-
fals used TO weep their griefs and set them
AWAY as sacred. But this lachyrmal. or tear
bottle, in stead of earthenware, as those the
orientals used, was lustrous and fiery NTH
many spiendors, and it Yves towering and OF
great capacity. And | said to my attending
angel, "What is that great lachrymal, or
ear bottle. standing on the step of the altar"
and the angel said "Wby, don't YOU know?
That is the bottle to which David, the psalm
st, referred in this f1fty-sixth psalm when he
aid, Put thou my tears into thy bottle. 1t
g full of tears from earth--tears of repen-
ance, tears of bereavement, tears of JOY,
ears OF many centuries" And then l saw
low sacred tothe sympathetic God are earth
y sorrows.
As l was coming out of the temple I saw
Il along tho pictured walls there vera
helves and golden vials were being set up
II all those shelves. And said "Why the
citing up OF all these walls at this time?
hey seem Just now to have been filed"
nd the attending angel said, "The week OF
rayer all around the earth has Just closed,
nd more supplications have been made than
ave been made for Il long while. and these
ew walls, newly set up, are what the Bible
peaks Of as golden via's full OF o1ors.
'hich are the prayers ofsaints." And l said
, the accompanying angel. "CIn it be posi-
lie that the prayers OF earth are worthy of
eng kept in such heavenly shape?" "Why,
aid the angel. "there is nothing that SO
moves heaven as the prayers of EARTH and
hey are set up in sight Of these infinite
ATTITUDES, and. more than all, in the Sign {
f Christ, and He cannot forget them, an I
hey are before Him world without end.