The Bossier banner., 1894-08-30

| Psalm cxxvi., ,.
Thirty-eight times does the Bible
| make reference to this configuration of
| the features and quick expulsion of
| breath which we call laughter. Some
| times it is born of the sunshine, and
sometimes the midnight. Sometimes
it stirs the sympathies of angels, and
sometimes the cachinnation of devils.
| All healthy people laugh. Whether it
| pleases the Lord or displeases Him,
that depends upon when we laugh and
| at what we laugh. My theme to-day
is the laughter of the Bible. namely:
Sarah's laugh, or that of skepticism;
Davids laugh, or that of spiritual ex
ultation; the FOOLS laugh, or that of
sinful merriment; Gods laugh, or that
| of infinite condemnation; Heavens
laugh, or that of eternal triumph.
Scene: An oriental tent; the occu-
pants, old Abraham and Sarah, per-
haps wrinkled and decrepit. Their
three guests are three angels-the
Lord Almighty one of them. In re-
turn for the hospitality shown by the
oiu people. God promises Sarah that
she shall become the ancestress of the
Lord Jesus Christ. Sarah laughs in
the face of God; she does not believe
it. She is affrighted at what she has
done. She deniesi it. She says: ''I didn't
| laugh" Then God retorted with an
emphasis that silenced all disputation:
''But thou didst laugh" My friends,
the laugh of slzepticism in all ages is
only the echo of Sarah's laughter
God says He will accomplish thing,
and men say it can not be done. A
great multitude laugh at the miracles.
They say they are contrary to the laws
of nature. What is law of nature?
You ordinarily cross a river at one
| ferry. Tomorrow you change for
one day, and you go across an
other ferry. You made the rule. Have
/ you not the right to change it? You
| ordinarily come in at that door of the
| church. Suppose that next Sabbath
you should come in at the other door?
1t is habit you have. Have you not
right to change your habit? A law
of nature is Gods habit-His way of do
ing things. If He makes the law, has
He not a right to change it at any time
He wants to change it? Alas! for the
folly of those who laugh at God when
He says; Il will do thing" they re-
spending: "You can't do it." God says
that the Bible is true-it is all true.
Bishop Colenso laughs; Herbert Spen-
Ger laughs; Stuart Mill laughs; great
German universities laugh; Harvard
| to1 nhc lyf A of lo
learned institutions, with long rows ot
professors seated on the fence be-
tween Christianity and infidelity, laugh
softly. They say: "We didn't laugh
That was Sarah's trick. God thunders
from the heavens: ''But thou didst
laugh" The Garden of Eden was only
a fable. There never was an ark built
or, if it was built, it was too small to
have two of every kind. The pillar o1
fire was only the northern light; the
ten plaques of Egypt only a brilliant
specimen of jugglery. The sea parted
because the wind blew violently a
great while from one direction. The
sun and moon did not put themselves
out cf the way for Joshua. Jacobs
ladder was only horizontal and pictur
esque clouds. The destroying ange
shifting the first born in Egypi
was only cholera infatum become
epidemic. The gullet of the whale
by positive measurement, too
small to swallow a prophet. The
story of the immaculate con
ception a shock of all decency Th,
lame, the dumb, the blind, the halt
cured by mere human surgery. TIL,
resurrection of Christ's friend only /;
beautiful tableaux, Christ and Lazarus
and Mary and Martha acting theil
parts well. My friends, there is not ;
doctrine or statement of Gods holy
word that has not been derided by the
skcpticism of the day. l take up tn,
book of King James translation.
consider it a perfect Bible; but her,
are skepties who want it tore TO pieces
And now, with this Bible in my hand
let me tear out all those portions whicl
the skepticism of the day demand
shall be torn out. What shall g,
first? WELL" says some one in tn
audience, "take out all that abou
the creation, and about the first set
LIeueuU Ol Tile WDFtu. away zoe
Genesis. ''Now,' says someone, ''tak
out all that about the miracu1ou
guidance of the children of Israel il
in the wilderness" Away goes Exc
dus. Now" says someone else il
the audience, there are things il
Deuteronomy and Kings that are no
fit to be read" Away go Deuteronom
and the Kings. Now" says someone
'the Book of Job is a fable that ough
TO come out" Away goes the Book 0
Job. ''Now," says someone, 'thos
passages in the New Testament whicl
imply the divinity of Jesus Chris
ought TO como 4ut. Away go tn
Evangeiist~ Vow" says some one
1.-The Book OF Re elation-how prepoi
ferrous! 1t repres :nts man with tn
moon under his feet and sharp-swcr
Ia bis hand.n Away goes the Book &