The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1895-09-27

What manner of man is this. that
even the winds and the sea obey him?"
l learn. first, from TINS subject that
when you are going to take a voyage
OF any kind you ought to have Christ
In the ship. The fact is. that these
boats would have all gone to the bot
tom II Christ had not been there. Now,
you are about to voyage out into some
new enterprise-into some new bust
ness relation; you are going to plan
some great matter of profit. l hope 1t
Is so. II you are content to go along
In the treadmill course and plan moth
ing new, you are not fulfilling your
mission. What you can do by the ut
most tension of body, mind. and soul,
that you are bound to do. You have
no right to be colonel of a regiment If
God calls you to command ain army.
You have no right TO be stoker in a
steamer II God commands you to be
admiral of the navy. You have no right
to engineer ferry-boat from river
bank 10 river bank If God commands
YOU TO engineer a Cunarder from New
York to Liverpool. But whatever en-
terprise you undertake, and upon what
ever voyage you start, be sure to take
~ prospered. The seed of q small en-
terprise grew into an accumulated and
overshadowing success. Their cup of
prosperity Is running over. Every day
sees commercial or q mechanical tri-
umph. Yet they are not pulled up.
They acknowledge the God who grows
the harvests, and gives them all their
prosperity. When disaster comes that
destroys others, they are only helped
into higher experiences. The coolest
winds that ever blew down from snow
capped Hermon and tossed Gennesaret
into foam and agony could not hurt
them. Let the winds blow until they
crack their cheeks: let the breakers
boom-all Is well. Christ Is in the ship.
Here are other men, the prey of uncer-
tainties. When they succeed, they strut
through the world In great vanity, and
wipe their feet on the sensitiveness OF
others. Disaster comes, and they are
utterly down. They are good sailors on
a fair day, when the sky Is clear and
the sea is smooth; but they cannot out
ride a storm. After awhile the packet
Is tossed abeam's end, and 1t seems az
If she must go down with all the cargo
Push out from the shore with lIfeboat,
long-boat, shallop, and pinnace. You
cannot save the crew. The storm twists
off the masts. The sea rises up to take
down the vessel. Down she goes! No
Christ in that ship.
! speak to young people whose voy-
age in life will be a mingling OF sun
shine and of darkness, of arctic blast
and Of tropical tornado. You will have
many a long, bright day OF prosperity
The sky is clear, the sea smooth. The
crew exhilarant. The boat staunch
will bound merrily over the pillows.
Crowd on all the canvas. Heigh, no!
Land ahead! But suppose that sick
ness puts its cup to your lips; suppose
misfortune with some quick turn Of
the wheel, hurls you backward; sup
pose that the wave OF trial strikes you
athwart-ships, and bowsprit shivered.
and halliards swept into the sea, and
gangway crowded with piratical dis
asters, and the wave beneath, and the
sky above, and the darkness around are
filed with the clamor OF the voices Of
destruction. Oh! then you will want
Christ in the ship.
learn, in the next place, that people
who follow Christ must not always ex-
ciples got into the small boats they
said: What n delightful thing this
is! Who would not be a follower OF
Christ when he can ride in one of these
small boats after the ship In which
Jesus is sailing?" But when the storm
came down these disciples found out
that following Jesus did not always
make smooth sailing. So you have
found out and ] have found out. If
there are any people who you think
ought to have good time in getting
out OF this world, the apostles OF Jesus
Christ ought to have been the men.
Have you ever noticed how they got
out of the world? st. James lost his
head. ST. Phillip was hung to death
against a pillar. st. Matthew was
struck to death by halberd. st. Mark
was dragged to death through the
streets. st. James the Less had his
brains dashed out with fuller's club.
st. Matthias was stoned to death. ST.
Thomas was struck through with a
spear. John Huss in the fire, the Abb
genses. the Waldenses, the Scotch Cow
enanters-did they always find smooth
sailing? Why go so far? There is a
young man In q store in New York
who has hard time to maintain his
Christian character. All the clerks
laugh at him, the employers in that
store laugh at him; and when he loses
his patience they say: "You are
pretty Christian" Not so easy is II for
that young man TO follow Christ. If
the Lord did not help him hour by hour
he would fail. There arc scores OF
young men today who would be willing
to testify that in following Christ one
does not always find smooth sailing.