The Baptist headlight., 1894-07-18

nere are others planted in Christi
sdFoen who are always ardent alwave
radiant, always impressive-mo IiIe
1ne roses In deep hue that we oc.
casionally find called "giants of battle,
-Ine Martin Luthers. St. PanIs Chry
sostoms, Wyklifs, Latlmers. and San
uel Rutherfords. What in other men
~ II Z spark, ln them is conflagration.
| When they sweat, they sweat Great
urops o1 blood. When thew nrav
Ihelr prayer takes fire. When thev
preach, it is Pentecost. When thcy
ight: H ls Thermopyla. When they
ole, II IS martyrdOm. You find .
great many roses in the gardens. but
ohly 1eW giants Of battle" Men
Fay, Why don't you have more of
1nem 5tI HI the church," l say, "Why
don you have in the world more M,
pO1eOns and HumbOldts and Wellinr-
TONS" God gives to some ten talents
to another one. 0'-'''
1he Snowdrop Of Christians.
ln this garden Of the church. which
Christ has planted, [ also find the
snOwdrops, beautiful but cold LOOKING
seemingly another phase of the win
ter. 4 mean those Christians who are
precise IN their tastes, unimpassioned.
pure as srOWdrOps and as cold. Thev
never shed any tears: they never get
excited; they never say ANYTHING
rashly; they never do anything pre-
clDltately. Their pulses never fiutter:
thelr nerves never twitch their indig-
natlon never boiIs over. They live long
er than most people, but their life is in a
minor key, They never run up to
,C'. above the staff. In the music of
thelr lie they have no staccatO pas
sages. Christ planted them in the
church, and they must be of some
service, or they would not be there.
SnoWdrOps, always snOWdrops
but have not told YOU of the most
beautiful flower in all this garden
spoken Of in the text. If you see
century plant" your emotions are
started. You say, why, this flower
mas been hundred years gathering
Up for one bloom, and it will be a nun
dred years more before other petals
viii come OUT But | have to tell
you OF a plant that was gathering up
from All eternity, and that 1900 years
ago put forth its bloom never to
wlther. 1t is the passion flower of the
cross. Prophets foretold it. Bethle-
hem shepherds looked upon it in the
bud; the rocks shook at it's bursting.
and the dead got up in their winding
sheets to see its full bloom. 1t is a
crimson nfiOwer-blood at the roots. blood
on the branches, blood on all the
leaves. Its perfume is to fill all the
nations. Its touch is life, its breath IS
Heaven. Come o winds, from the
North and winds from the South and
winds from the East and winds from
the West, and bear to all the earth
the sweet smelling SAVIOR of Christ. nv
Lord.
His worth, if all the nations knew.
Sure the whole earth would love Him too
Again, the church NAV be appropri-
ately compared to a garden, because it
is place Of select fruits. That would
be strange garden which had in it
no berries, no plums, no peaches or
apricOts. The cOarser fruits are
planted in the orchard or they are set
out on the sunny hillside, but the
choicest fruits are kept in the garden.
The Choicest Fruits.
So in the world outside the church
Christ has planted great many beau
tltul things patience. charity, gener-
Osity, integrity He intends the !
choicest fruits to be in the garden, and |
If they are not there then shame on
the church. Religion is not a mere
towering sentimentality. It is prac-
tical. life giving, healthful fruit not |
pOsies, but apples. ''Oh," SAYS some
body. III don see what your garden of
the church has yielded" Where did |
your asylums come from, and your hos
Ditals, and your institutions of mercy?
Christ planted every one of them. He
planted them in His garden When
Christ gave sight to Bartimeus. He
aid the cornerstone Of every blind
asylum that has ever been built.
When Christ soOthed the demoniac of
Ialile, He laid the cornerstone of
every lunatic asylum that ever has
Deen established. When Christ said
3 the sick man, Take up thy bed and
walk" He laid the cornerstone of
every hospital the world has ever
een. When Christ said, 81 was in
prison, and We visited me-" He laid the
of every prison reform as
OciatiOn that has ever been formed.
The church Of Christ is a glorious
garden, and it is full Of fruit. / know
here is some poor fruit in it. | know
here are some weeds that ought to
lave been thrown over the fence. [
NOV there are some crab apple trees
hat ought to be cut down. | know
here are some wild grapes that ought
Q be uprooted. but are you going to
estrOy the whole garden because of
title gnarled fruit? You will find
worm eaten leaves in Fontainebleau
nd insects that sting in the fairy
rroves Of the Champs Elysees. You
10 not tear down and destroy the
Whole garden because there are few
pecimens of gnarled fruit. l ADMIT
here are men and women in the
hurch who ought not to be there. but
ct us be just as frank and admit the
act that there are hundreds and thou
- E.l n l. u !