Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1895-02-22

NAV fence on and have all To OURSELVES IL |
Is not a kings park al which We may looA
through the barred gateway, wishing thai
we might 60 in and see the deer aud th'
stAtuary and pluck the flowers and fruits Il
the roval conservatory. No. IL u thu
Fathers orchard. and everywhere there ar
bars that we may let down aud gates that VT
NAV swing open.
In my boyhoOd next 10 the country school.
house there was an orchard Of apples, owned
bv very lame man. who. although there
were apples In the place perPetually decayina
aud by scores and scores OF bushels, never
would allow any Of Us to touch the truu
One DAY, in the sinfulneSs Of a nature inner
tied from our first parents, who We're ruined
by the same temptation, some OF us Invaded
that orchard, but soon retreated, for the man
came after Us at speed reckless OF making
his lameness worse and cried out, Boys,
drop those apples, or I'll set the dog on YOU
Well, my friends, there are Christian men
who have the church under severe guard.
There il fruit in this orchard Tor the whole
world, but they have a rough and I'M
sympathetic way of accosting outsiders, as
though they had no business here, though
the Lord wants them all to come and take
the largest and ripest fruit on the premises.
Have YOU an idea, because you Were baptized
at thirteen months Of age. and because you
have all your life been under hallowed In
fuences, that therefore YOU have "A right 10
! one whole side of the Lords table, spreading
Yourself out and taking up the entire rOomI
] tell You no. You will have to haul in your
elbows, for l shall place on either side of you
| those whom you never expected would sit
| there for as Christ said to His favored peO-
| pie long ago. so He says TO you and to
me, "Other sheep 1 have which are not OF
| this fold"
Macdonald, the Scotchman. has four or five
| dozen head of sheep. Some Of them are
| browsing on the heather; some OF them are
] lying down under the trees; some Of them are
/ in his yard-they are scattered around In eight
| orten different places. Cameron, his neighbOr,
comes over and saws: II see you have thirty
/ sheep. | have just counted Them "NO,
says Macdonald, Il have a great many II ore
sheep than that. Some are here aud some
are elsewhere. They are scattered all around
about. l have 1000 or 5000 in my focks.
Other sheep l have which are not in this
fold"
So Christ says to us. Here is a knot OF
| Christians and there is a knot Of Christians,
| but they make up Il small part OF the flock.
Here is the Episcopal fold, the Methodist
fold, the Lutheran fold, the Congregational
fold, the Presbyterian fold the Baptist and
the Pedo-Baptist fold, the only difference be-
! tween these last two being the mode ofsheep
washing, and so they are scattered all over,
and we come with our statistics and say there
are SO many thousands Of the Lords sheep,
but Christ responds: NO, no. You have
not seen more than one out Of 1000 Of My
flock. They are scattered all over the earth.
Other sheep | have which are not Of this
fold"
Christ in my text was prophesying thecon-
version of the gentiles with rs much conf
dence as though they were already converted.
and He is now, in the words OF my text,
prophesyng the coming of great multitude
of outsiders that you never supposed would
a BaHtr mn
"Other sheep have which ere not Of this
fold"
In the first place, I remark that the
Heavenly Shepherd will find many Of His
sheep among the nonchurchgOers. Thereare
congregations where they are all Christians,
and they seem to be completely finished, and
they remind one of the skeleton leaves which
by chemical preparation have had all the
greenness and verdure taken of them and
are left cold and white and delicate, nothing
wanting but glass case to put over
them. The minister Of Christ has moth
ing TO do with such Christians but to
come once week and with ostrich
feather dust OIL the accumulation of the
last six DAYS, leaving them bright and
crystalline rs before. But the other kind Of
a church is an armory, with perpetual sound
of drum and fife, gathering recruits for the
Lord OF Hosts. We say to every applicant;
DO you want 10 be on Gods side-the safe
side and the happy sideE II so, come in tne
armory and get equipped. Here is bath in
which to be cleansed. Here are sandals to
put upon your feet. Here Is helmet for
your brow. Here Is breastplate for your
heart. Here is a sword for your right arm,
and yonder is the battlefield. Quit your
selves like men,
There are some here who say, ~ stopped
going to church ten or twenty years ago.
My brother, is it not strange that you should
be the first man should talk to to-day?
know all your case | know II very well. You
have not been accustomed to come into rehg.
ious assemblage, but have surprising an.
nouncement TO make to you-yOu are going
to become one Of the Lords sheep. "Ah,
you say. lit is impossible. You don't know
how far am from anything of that kind
know all about it. have wandered up and
down the world. and understand your case
l have a still more startling announcement
to make in regard to you--you are not only
going to become one Of the Lords sheep, hut
you will become one to-day. You will stay
after this service to be talked with about YOU
soul. People Of God, pray for that man
That is the only use for you here. | shall moi
break of 50 much as a crumb for you. Chris
tians, in this sermon, for am going to Civ,
1t all to the outsiders. '0ther sheep | hay,
which are not of this fold.
When the Atlantic went to pieces on Mars
rock. and the people clambered upon the
beach, why did not that heroic minister Of
the gospel of whom we have all read sit dow
and take care of those men on the beach
wrapping them in fannels, kindling fire fol
them, seeing that they got plenty Of food
| All, he knew that there were others wht
would do that. He says: "Yonder are mel
and women freezing in the rigging of tina
wreck. Boys, launch the boat" And nov
see the oar blades bend under the stron.
pull. but before they reached the rigging
woman was frozen and dead. She wa
washed off, poor thing But he says, "Ther
is man to save" and he cries out: "Hol,
on five minutes longer, and | will save you
Steady; steady. Give me you hand. Lea
into the lifeboat. Thank God, he is saved
So there are those here to-day who ar
safe on the shore Of Gods mercy. | will no
spend any time with them at all, but SO
there are some who are freezing i'll the rig
gng Of sin and surrounded by perilou
, storms. Pull away. my lads! Let us reaC
them. Alas, one is washed off and gone
There is one more to be saved. Let us pus
out for that one. Clutch the rope Oh
dying man, clutch it as with a death griI
Steady, now. on the slippery places. Steady
7 There-saved, saved! Just as | thought
l For Christ has declared that there are som
still in the breakers who shall come ashore
, Other sheep l have which are not OF thi
| fold"
Christ commands His ministers to be fish
ermen, and when go fishing / do not wal
to go among other churches. but into tn
{ wide world, not sitting along Hoheku
creek, where eight or ten other persons ar
sitting with hook and line, but, like the fish
D ermen Of Newfoundland, sailing off an
;, dropping net away outside, forty or fit
e miles from shore. Yes, thase are nonchurcl
u goers here who will come in. Next Sabbat
b they will be here again or in some bette
;, church. They are this moment being sweE
n into Christian associations. Their voice wi
4 be heard in public prayer. They will die
= peace, their bed surrounded by Christia
}, sympathies asi to be carried out by dcvol
,. men to be buried and on their graves |
chisled the words. "Precious in the SIGHT