Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1896-11-14

OF speech, argument and apt smile and
bold metaphor and learned allusion as
unfit to express how he felt. and seizing
upon the appalling hyperbolism OF my
text cries out, II could wish myself &C.
cursed '-that is, struck of the thunder
bolts of the omnipotept God, sunk to
unfathomed depths, chained into servi-
tude to Abaddon and thrust into fur
naces whose fires shall never burn out,
if only those whom I love might now
and forever be saved. Mind you, Paul
does not say, II do wish" He says,
81 could wish" Even in the agony he
felt for others he did not lose his bal
ance. "I could wish myself accursed. "
l could, but 1 do not Only one being
that ever lived was literally willing to
give up heaven for perdition, and that
was the divine peasant whom L men-
toned few moments ago. He was not
only willing to exchange dominions OF
bliss for dominions of wretchedness, but
he did so, for that he forsook HEAVIER
witness the STOPPING star and all those
who saw his miracles Of mercy, and
that he actually entered the gates OF the
world of perpetual confagration the BIZ
BILE distinctly declares. He did not say,
with Paul, II could" but he said, Il
will, do" and for the souls Of men
he descended into hell. "
Pauls Cutlery.
In this last half of the last decade OF
the nineteenth century the temperature
in the churches is very low, and most
of the piety would spoil if it were not
kept on icc and taking things as they
are ordinary Christians will never reach
the point where the outcry Of Paul in
the text will not seem like extravaganza.
The proprieties in most of the churches
are so fixed that all Christian is ex-
pected to do on Sunday is to get up
little later in the morning than usual,
put OH that which is next to his best at
tire-not the very best, for that has to
be reserved for the levee-entcr the
church with stately STEP bow his head
or at any rate shut his eyes in prayer
time or close them enough to look sleepy,
turn toward the pulpit with holy dull
ness while the preacher speaks, put b
cent piece or if the times be hard l
cent piece, on the collection platter,
kind of showing it down under the other
coin SO that it might be, for all that the
usher knows, S. goldpiece, and then,
after tho benediction, 60 quietly home
to the biggest repast Of all the week.
That is all the majority OF Christians
are doing for the rectification Of this
planet, and they will do that until, at
the close Of life, the pastor opens
black book at the head of their casket
and reads, blessed are the dead who
die in the Lord; they rest from their Ia
bors, and their works do follow them. .
The sense Of the ludicrous is 80 thor
oughly developed in me that when
hear these Scripture words read at the
obsequies Of one Of the religious dc
notEings in the churches it Is too much
for my gravity. Their works do follow
them" What works? And in what d.
rcction do they follow them-up OF
down? And do they follow on foot or OIL
the wing? And how long will they follow
before they catch up? More appropriate
funeral text for all such religious dead
beats would be the words in Mattbe"
would think that such Christians wG-i+
show at least under whose banner they
are enlisted. In one Of the Napoleonic
wars woman, Jeannette by name, tool
her position with the troops and shout.
dered broomstick. The colonel said,
"Jeannette, why do you take such 6
useless weapon into the ranks?'
well, p" she said, II can show at least
which side am on. -
Now, the object of this sermon Is tc
stir at least one-fourth Of you to an am.
bition for that which my text presents
in blazing vocabulary-namely, pas
sion for souls. To provo thas 1t is pos
sible to have much Of that spirit, bring
the conservation of 1890 foreign mis-
sionaries. 1t is usually estimated that
there are at least 5000 missionaries.
make o liberal allowance and admit
there may be 10 bad missionaries out OF
the 8, 900, but l do not believe there is
one All English and American mer-
chants leave Bombay, Calcutta, Annoy
and Picking as soon as they make their
fortunes. Why? Because no European
or American in his senses would stay
in that climate after monetary induce
ments have ceased. Now, the mission
aries there are put down on the barest
necessities, and most of them do not
lay up 81 in 20 years. Why, then, do
they stay in those lands of intolerable
heat and cobras and raging fevers, the
thermometer sometimes playing at 100
and 140 degrees of oppressiveness, a.
900 miles from home, because of the
unhealthy climate and the prevailing
immoralities of those regions compelled
to send their children to England or
Scotland or America, probably neyer. to
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