The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1895-09-06

4 llC III Aol AOEs ~
burn at the stake, on his way thithei
broke away from the guardsmen and
went bounding and leaping and jump
ing toward the fire, glad to go to Jesu
and to die for Him. Sir Charles
Hare, in his last moments, haC
such rapturous vision that he cried
Upward, upward, upwardr AND
so great was the peace o
one of Christ's disciples that hi
put his finger upon the pulse in hi
wrist and counted it, and observed it
and so great was his placidity thai
after awhile he said: ''Stoppedr' and
his life had ended here to begin in
Heaven. But grander than that, was
the testimony of the wornout first
missionary, when, in the Mamertint
dungeon he cried: 81 am now ready
parture is at hand; have fought the
good fight. have finished my course
l have kept the faith; henceforth there
is laid up for me a crown of righteous
ness, which the Lord, the righteou:
Judge, will give me in that day, and
not to me only, but to all men that
love His appearing" Do you see that
Christ is chief in dying aleviations?
Toward the last hour of our earthly
residence we are speeding. When | see
the sunset, say: "One day less to live. y
When see the spring blossoms scat
tered, l say: Another season gone
forever!" When 1 close the Bible on
Sabbath night, | say: Another Sab
bath departed. When l bury a friend,
say: Another earthly attraction gone
forever" What nimble feet the years
have. The roebucks and the lightnings
run not so fast From decade to decade,
from sky to sky, they go at bound.
There is place for us, whether marked
or not, where you and | will sleep
the last sleep, and the men are now
living who will, with solemn tread,
carry us to our last resting place. Aye,
it is known in Heaven whether our de-
parture will be a coronation or ban
ishment. Brighter than a banqueting
hall through which the light feet of
the dancers go up and down to the
sound of trumpeters will be the
sepulcher through whose riffs the holy
light of Heaven streameth. God will
watch you. He will send His angels to
guard your slumbering dust, at Christ's
behest. they shall roll away the stone.
So. also. Christ is chief in Heaven.
The Bible distinctly says that Christ is
the chief theme of the celestial ascrip-
tion, all the thrones facing His throne,
all the palms waved before His face,
all the crowns down at His feet
Cherubim to cherubim. seraphim to
seraphim. redeemed spirit to redeemed
spirit. shall recite the Saviour's earth
ly sacrifice.
Stand on some high hill of Heaven,
and in all the radiant sweep the most
glorious object will be Jesus. Myriads
gazing on the scars of His suffering, in
silence first. afterward breaking forth
into acclamation. The martyrs, all the
purer for the flame through which they
passed. will say: This is the Jesus
for whom we died" The apostles, all
the happier for the shipwreck and the
scourging through which they went,
will say: This is the Jesus whom we
preached at Corinth, and at Cappadocia,
and at Antioch, and at Jerusalem"
Little children. clad in white. will say:
This is the Jesus who took us in His
arms and blessed us. and, when the
storms of the world were too cold and
loud. brought us into this beautiful
place" The multitude of the bereft
will say: This is the Jesus who com
forted us when our heart broke" Many
who wandered clear off from God and
plunged into vagabondism. but were
saved bv grace. will say: This is the
Jesus who pardoned us. We were lost
on the mountains. and He brought us
home. We were guilty and He has
made us white as snow" Mercy,
boundless, grace unparalleled. And
then. after each one has recited his pc
culiar deliverances and peculiar mer-
cies, recited them as by solo, all the
voices will come together into a great
chorus. which will make the arches
echo and re-echo with the eternal re-
verberation of triumph.
Edward /. was so anxious to go to
the Holy Land that when he was about
to expire he bequeathed 100000 to
have his heart. after his decease, taken
to the Holy Land in Asia Minor, and
his request was complied with. But
there are hundreds to-day whose hearts
are already in the holy land of Heav-
en-. Where your treasures are, there
are your hearts also. Quaint John Bum
yam caught a glimpse of that place,
and in his quaint way he said: And
l heard in my dream, and, 10, the bells
of the city rang again for joy; and as
they opened the gates to let in the
men l looked in after them, and 10! the
city shone like the sun, and there were
streets of gold, and men walked on
them, harps in their hands, to ring
praises withal; and after that they shut
up the gates, which when l had seen l
wished myself among them!'