The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1895-10-09

the work. You had better thank God
that he has called you to be one Of the
picked men rather than to belong to
the host OF stragglers. Would not
you rather be one Of the 300 that fight
than the $4,000 that run? l suppose
those cowardly Gideonites who went
off congratulated themselves. They
said: I'VE got rid Of all that fighting
did we not? How lucky we have been.
That battle costs us nothing at all.
But they got none OF the spoils OF the
victory. After the battle the 800 men
went down and took the wealth of the
Midianites and out OF the cups and
platters of their enemines they feasted.
And the time will come, my dear
brethren. when the hosts of darkness
will be routed and Christ will say TO
his troops: well done, my brave
men. Go up and take the spoils. Be
more than conquerors forever And
in that day all deserters will be shot.
Again, l learn from this subject that
Gods way is different from mans, but
is always the best way. If we had the
planning of that battle, we would have
taken those 32, 900 men that originally
belonged to the army, and we would
have drilled them and marched them
up and down by the day and week and
month, and we would have had them
equipped with swords or spears, ac-
cording to the way of arming in those
times, and then we would have
marched them down in solid column
upon the foe. But that is not the way.
God depletes the army, and takes
away all their weapons, and gives them
lamp, and a pitcher. and trumpet,
and tells them to go down and drive
out the Midianites. / suppose some
wiseacres were there who said: That
is not military tactics. The idea of 800
men, unarmed, conquering such
great host of Midianites." 1t was the
best way. What sword, spear or can
non ever accomplished such victory
as the lamp, pitcher and trumpet?
Gods way is different from mans
way, but it is always best. Take, for
instance, the composition OF the Bible.
If we had had the writing of the Bible,
we would have said Let one man
write it. If you have 20 or 80 men to
write poem, or make statute, or
write a history, or make an argument,
there will be flaws and contradictions. "
But God says, LET not one man do 1t
but 40 men shall do it." And they did,
differing enough to show there had
been no collusion between them, but
not contradicting each other on any
important point, while they all wrote
from their own standpoint and tenn
permanent. So that the matter of fact
man has his Moses; the romantic ma
ture his Ezekiel the epigrammatlc his
Solomon; the warrior his Joshua; the
sailor his Jonah; the loving his John;
the logician his Paul Instead of this Bi,
BILE, which now l can lift in my hand
INSTEAD of the Bible the child can
carry to Sunday school, instead OF the
little Bible the sailor can put IN his
jacket when he goes to sea-lf 1t had
been left to men tc write, 1t would
been thousand volumes judging from
the amount of ecclesiastical controy-
ersey which has arisen. Gods wa IS
different from mans, but it is best, IN
fnitely best.
So it is in regard to the Christians S
life. If we had had the planning OF a
Christians life, we would have SAID !:
Let him have so years OF sunshine, a
fine house to live in. Let his surround
ings all be agreeable Let him have
sound health. Let no chill shiver
through his limbs, no pain ache his
brow or trouble shadow his soul. l
enjoy the prosperity of others so much
l would let every man havs as much
money as he want and roses for his
children's cheeks and fountains OF
gladness glancing in their large round
eyes. But that is not Gods way
It seems as if man must be cut and
hit and pounded just in proportion as
he is useful. His child falls from a
third story window and has its life
dashed out. His most confident In
vestment tumbles him into bankruptcy
His friends, on whom he depended, aid
the natural force of gravitation in TAX
ing him down. His life is Bull Run
defeat. Instead of $4,000 advantages,
he has only 1000. A-e, only 300
none, at all. How many good people
there are at their wits end, about their
livelihood, about their reputation. But
they will find out it is the best way after
awhile God will show them that he dep
letes their advantages just for the same
reason he depleted Tie army of Gideon
that they may be induced to throw
themselves on his mercy.
\ grapevine says in the early spring:
How glad I am to get through the
winter I shall have no more trouble
now. Summer weather will come and
the garden will be very beautiful"
But the gardener comes and cuts the
vines here and there with knife.
The twigs begin tofall, and the grape
vine cries out: Murder, what are
you cutting me for?' 'sAh," says the
gardener, II don't mean to kill you.
If 1 did not do this, you would be the
laughing stock Of all the other vines
before the season is over" Months go
on and one day the gardener comes un-
der the trellis, where gratest clusters OF
grapes hang, and the grapevine says:
THANK you, sir. You had to cut me
with that knife" Whom the Lord
loveth, he chasteneth." No pruning no
grapes no grinding mill, no flour; no
battle, no victory; no cross, no crown:
So Gods way, in the redemption Of
the world, is different from ours. If
we had our way, we would have had
Jesus stand in the door of heaven and
beckon the nations up to light, or we
would have had angels flying around
the earth proclaiming the unsearcha-
bic riches of Christ. Why is it that
the cause goes on so slowly? Why is
it that the chains stay on when God
could knock them off? Why do
thrones of despotism stand when God
could easily demolish them: 1t is his
way in order that all generations may
cooperate, and that all men may know
they cannot do the work themselves.