The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1895-09-12

glorious themes These harvests Of
grace spring up quicker than we can
sickle them. Kindling pulpits with
their fire, and producing revolutions
with their glory, they are the sweetest
thought for the poet, and they are the
most thrilling illustration for the ora
tor and they offer the most intense
scene for the artist, and they are to
the ambassador. Of the sky all eDthu-
siasm. Completes pardon for direst
guilt. Sweetest comfort for ghastliest
agony. Brightest hope for grimmiest
death. Grandest resurrection forrdark-
est sepulcher. Oh what a Gospel to
preach! Christ the chief. His birth,
his suffering, his miracles, his para
bles, his sweat, his tears his blood, his
atonement his ntercession-what glo-
rious themes! Do we exercise faith?
Christ is it's object Do we have love?
1t fastens on Jesus. Have we fond
ness for the church? It is because
Christ died for it. Have we hope Of
heaven? 1t is because Jesus went
there the herald and the forerunner.
The royal robe Of Demetrius was so
costly, so beautiful, that after he had
put it off no one ever dared to put it
on; but this robe Of Christ, richer than
that, the poorest and the weakest and
the worst may wear "Where sin
abounded, grace may much more
abound"
"Oh, my sins, my sinsv' said Martin
Luther to Staupitz, my sins, my
sins"' The fact is that the brawny
German student had found a Latin
Bible that made him quake; and moth
ing else ever did make him quake; and
when he found how, through Christ,
he was pardoned and saved, he wrote
to friend, saying: "Come over and
join us great and awful sinners saved
by the grace of God. You seem to be
only slender sinner, and you don't
much eXtol the mercy of God; but we
that have been such very awful sin
ners praise his grace the more now
that we have been redeemed" Can it
be that you are so desperately egotis-
tical that you feel yourself in first-rate
spiritual trim, and that from the root
of the hair to the tip Of the toe you are
scalless and Immaculate? What you
reed is looking glass, and here it is
in the Bible. Poor and wretched and
miserable and blind and naked from
the crown Of the head to the sole of
the foot, full of wounds and purify
ing sores. No health in us. And then
take the fact that Christ gathered up
all the notes against us and paid them
and then offered us the receipt! And
how much we need him in our sor-
rows! We are independent of circum-
stances if we have his grace. Why,
he made Paul sing in the dungeon,
and under that grace st. John from
desolate Patmos heard the blast of the
apocalyptic trumpets. After all other
candles have been snuffed out. this is
the light that gets brighter and bright
er unto the perfect day; and after, IN
der the hard hoofs Of calamity, all the
pools Of worldly enjoyment have been
trampled into deep mire. at the foot
OF the eternal rock the Christian, from
cups of granite llly-rimmed. puts out
the thirst Of his soul
Again I remark, that Christ is chief
in dying alterations. / have not any
sympathy with the morbidity abroad
about our demise. The Emperor of
Constantinople arranged that on the
day of his coronation the stcnemason
should come and consult him about
the tombstone that after awhile he
would need. And there are men who
are monomania cal en- the subject of de-
parture from this life by death. and
TIL, more they think of it the less they
are prepared to go. This - an IN
manlinesS not worthy Of you, not
worthy of me-.
Saladln, the greatest conQuerOr of
his day, while dying ordered that the
tunic he had on him be carried after
his death on his spear at the head OF
80 army, and that then the soldier,
- and anon. should stop and say:
Behold all that is left of Saladin. the
emperor and conQueror! OF all the
states he conquered. of all the wealth
he accumulated. nothing did he retain
but this shloud. l have no sympathy
with such behavior, or such absurd
demonstration, OF with much that we
hear uttered in regard to departure
from this life to the next. There is a
commensenSical idea on this subject
| that you need to consider-there are
only two styles of departure. A thou
sand feet underground, by light of
torch, toiling in miners shaft, a
ledge of rock may fall upon us, and
we may die miners death. Far out
at sea, falling from the slippery rat
lines and broken on the halliards, we
may die sailors death. On mission
VI ueASy Ill uOSplldl d1llu broken
bones and reeking leprosies and rag
ing fevers, we may die a philanthro-
pist's death. On the field of battle,
serving God and our country; slugs
through the heart, the gun cartridge
may roll over us, and we may die Il
patriots death. But, after all, there
are only two styles Of departure
death of the righteous and the death
of the wicked-and we all want to die
the former.
God grant that when that hour comes
you may be at home. You want the
hand of your kindred in your hand
You want your children to surround
you. You want the light on your pill
low from eyes that have long reflect
ed your love. You want your room
still. You do not want any curious
strangers standing around watching
you. You want your kindred from
afar to hear your last prayer. l think
that is the wish of all of us. But is
that all? Can earthly friends hold us
up when the pillows of death come up
to the girdle? Can human voice charm
open heavens gate? Can human hand
pilot us through the narrows of death