The Yale expositor., 1896-04-03

|
Fetch him out, fetch him out" Yon'
der / see the blind old giant coming
led by the hand of child into the
very midst of the temple. At his hrS'
appearance there goes up shout OF
| laughter and derision. The blind old
giant pretends he is tired, and wants
| to rest himself against the pillars OF
the house; so he says to the TAU VINO
! leads him, "Show me where the main
| pillars are!' The lad does so. Then
the strong man puts his right hand on
one pillar and his left hand on another
pillar, and. with the mightiest push
that mortal ever made, throws himself
| forward until the whole house comes
down in thunderous crash, grinding
the audience like grapes in VINE
press. And so it came to pass. when
their hearts were merry, that they SAID
Call for Samson, that he may make US
sport. And they called for Samson out
of the prison-house; and he made them
sport"
In other words, there are amuse-
ments that are destructive, and bring
down disaster and death upon the
heads Of those who practice them.
While they laugh and cheer, they die.
The three thousand who persisted that
day in GAIA, are as nothing compared
with the tens OF thousands who have
been destroyed by sinful amusements.
But my first text implies that there
is o lawful use of the world, as well
as an unlawful abuse of it. and the
difference between the man Christian
and the man un-Christian is, that in
the former case the man masters the
world. while in the latter case the
world masters him. For whom did God
make this grand and beautiful world?
For whom this wonderful expenditure
of color, this gracefulne5s of line, this
mosaic of the ground, this fresco OF the
sky, this glowing fruitage of orchard
and vineyard, this full orchestra of the
tempest, in which the tree branches
flute, and the winds trumpet, and the
thunders drum, and all the splendors of
earth and sky come clashing their, Gym
balls? For whom did God spring the
arched bridge of colors resting upon
buttresses of broken storm-cloud? For
whom did he gather the upholstery OF
fire around the window of the setting
sun? For all men; but more especially
for his own dear children.
II you build large mansion, and
spread a great feast after it, TO cele-
brate the completion OF the structure,
do you allow strangers to come in and
occupy the place, while you thrust your
own children in the kitchen, or the
barn, or the fields? Oh, no! You say,
II am very glad to see strangers in
daughters shall have the first right
there" Now, God has built this grand
mansion of world, and he has spread
a glorious feast in it, and while those
who are strangers 10 his grace may
come in, Think that God especially in.
tends to give the advantage to his own
children-those who are the sons and
daughters of the Lord Almighty, those
who through grace can look up am.
say, Abba, Father" You cannot make
me believe. that God gives more advan
tages to the world than he gives to the
church bought by his own blood. If,
therefore, people of the world have
looked with dolorous sympathy upon
THOSE who make profession of religion,
and have said, Those new converts are
going down into privation and into
hardship. Why did they not tarry
little longer in the world, and have
some of its enjoyments and amuse-
ments and recreations%'-I say to such
men of the world, rYou are greatly mis-
taken;" and before l get through | will!
show that those people who stay out
OF the Kingdom OF God have the hard
ships and self-denials, while those who
come in have the joys and satisfac-
tons. r
In the name Of the king of t.eaven
and earth, l serve writ of ejectment
upon all the sinful and polluted who
have squatted on the domain of Garth
ly pleasure as though it belonged to
them, while claim, in behalf of the
good and the pure and the true, the
eternal inheritance which God has Civ
en- them. Hitherto, Christian phi!an-
thropists, clerical and lay, have bugied
themselves chiefly in denounc.ng sinful
recreations but feel we have no right
to stand before rlen and women in
whose hearts there Is a desire for reg
reation amounting to positive neces-
sity, denouncing lnis and that and the
bther thing, when We do not propose
10 give them something better. God
helping me and with reference to my
last account, l shall enter upon
sphere not usual in sermonizing, but
q subject which | think ought to be
at this time. propose now
to lay before you some Of the recrea-
tons which are not only innocent, but
positively helpful and advantageous.
IN the first place, commend, among
indoor recreations, music-vocal and
instrumental, Among the first things
created was the bird, so that the earth
might have music at the start. This
world, which began with so sweet a
sorenade, is finally to be demolished
amidst the ringing blasts of the arch
nrEels trumpet, so that as there was