The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1895-09-25
ROUGH SAILING.
Christ Gan Calm the Troubled
Waters.
The Lessons We Should Learn from the
Tempest on the Sea of Galllee-h We
Have Christ In the Ship We
Need Have No Fear.

people of to-day. His text was from
Mark w., GG, 81: "And there were also
with Him other little ships, and there
arose great storm of wind"
Tiberias, Galilee and Gennesaret
were three names for the same lake. 1t
lay in scene of great luxuriance.
The surrounding hills, high, terraced,
sloping, gorged, were so many hanging
gardens of beauty. The streams rum
bled down through rocks of gray and
red limestone, and flashing from the
hillside, bounded to the sea. In the |
time of our Lord the valleys, headlands, |
and ridges were covered thickly with |
vegetation, and, SO great was the vari-
ETY. of climate, that the palm tree of the |
torrid and the walnut tree of the rig
orous climate were only a little way
apart. Men in vineyards and other gar
dens were gathering up the riches for
the oil press. The hills and valleys
were starred and crimsoned with flow
ers, from which Christ took His text,
and the disciples learned lessons of pa
tience and trust.
No other gem ever had so exquisite
setting as beautiful Gennesaret. The
waters were clear and sweet, and thick
ly inhabited, tempting innumerable
nets, and atfording a livelihood for
great populations Bethesda Chorazin
and Capernaum stood on the bank.
roaring with wheels of traffic and flash
ing with splendid equipages and shoot
ing their vessels across the lake, bring
ing merchandise for Damascus, and
passing great cargocs of wealthy pro-
duct. Pleasure boats of Roman gentle
men and fishing smacks Of the country
! people who had come down to cast
net there, passed each other with nod
and shout and welcome, or side by side
swung idly at the mooring. Palace
and luXuriant bath and vineyard, tow
er and shady Dor, looked off upon the
calm sweet scene as the evening shad-
ows began to drop, and Hermon, with
its head covered with perpetual snow,
in the glow of the setting sun, looked
like white-bearded prophet ready to
|
shall have quiet night! Not a leaf
winks in the air, or ripple disturbs
the surface of Gennersaret The shad-
ows of the great headlands stalk clear
across the water. The voices of even
ing-tide, how drowsily they strike the
ear-the splash of the boatmans oar,
and the humping of the captured fish
on the boats bottom, and those indie
scribablc sounds which fill the air at
nightfall. You hasten up the beach of
the lake little way, and there you
find an excitement as of an cmbarka-
ton. A fotilla is pushing out from
the western shore of the lalle-not d
squadron with deadly armament; not a
clipper to ply with valuable merchan-
disc; not piratic vessels with graphing
hook, to hug to death whatever they
could seize, but q fiotilla laden with
messengers of light, and mercy, and
peace. Jesus is in the front ship; His
friends and admirers are in the small
boats following after. Christ, by the
rocking of the boat and the fatigues OF
induced to slumber, and ! see Him in
the stern of the boat, with pillow
perhaps eNtemporized out of fisher
ermans coat, sound asleep. The breeze'
of the lake run their fingers through tn,
locks of the worn-out sleeper, and OF
its surface there riseth and falleth Tho
light ship, like child ON the bosom o
: it's sleeping mother. Calm night
Starry night Beautiful night. Run
up all the sails and ply all the oars
= and let the boats-thc big boat ant
the small boats-go gliding over gentl
Gennesaret.
The sailors prophesy a change in tn
weather. Clouds begin to travel up tn
sky and congregate. After while
even the passengers hear the moan 0
the storm, which comes on with rapi
strides, and with all the terrors of hun
ricane and darkness. The boat, caugh
in the sudden fury, trembles like dee
at bay, amid the wild clangor of tn
hounds. Great patches of foam ar
flung through the air. The loosene
sails, tapping in the wind, crack lik
spistols. The small boats poised on tn
white cliff of the driven sea trembl
like ocean petrels, and then plunge int
the trough with terrific swoop until
wave strikes them with thunder cracl
and overheard go the cordage, the tacl
ling and the mast, and the drenche
disciples rush into the stern of the boz
and shout amid the hurricane: Ma
ter, carest Thou not that we perish,
That great parsonage lifted His hea
from the fsherman's coat an
walked out to the prov of I'll
vessel and looked upon Il
storm. On all sides were the sma
boats tossing in helplessness, and fro
them came the cries of drowning me
BY the flash of lightning | see IL
calmness OF the uncovered brow
Jesus, and the spray of the sea dri
ping from His beard. He has tv
words of command-one for the win
the other for the sea. He looks in
the tempestuous heavens, and He erie
''Peace!' and then He looks down in
the infuriated waters, and llesays; u
still ~ The thunders beat a retrea
The waves fall fat on their face
The extinguished stars reliindled the
torches. The foam melts. The stor
= is dead. And while the crew are Il
tangling the cordage and the cable
= and baling out the water from the hc
of the ship, the disciples stand wondC
struck, now gazing into the calm sc
now gazing into the calm faceof Jes,
and whispering one to another; "Wh