The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1896-02-08

Abimelech and his army come mp
they surround this temple, and theJ
capture Il without the loss Of . single
man on the part OF Abimelech. although
suppose some of the old Israelitish
heroes told Abimelch: "You are only
going up there to be cut to pieces.
Yet you are willing to testify to-day
that by no other mode-certainly not
by ordinary modes-could that temple
SO easily, SO thoroughly, have been
taken. Fathers and mothers, brethren
and sisters In Jssus Christ, what the
Church most wants to learn, this day
Is than any plan is right, Is lawful. Is
best, which helps to overthrow the
temple of sin. and capture this world
for God. We are very apt to stick
to the old modes OF attack. We
put on the old-style coat Of mail
We come up with the sharp, keen
glittering steel spear of argument, ex
pecting in that way to take the castle
but they have a thousand spears
where we have ten. And so the castle
of sin stands. Oh, my friends, we will
never capture this world for God by
any keen saber of sarcasm, by any
glittering lances of rhetoric, by any
sapping and mining of profound dis.
QUESTION, by any gunpowder explo-
sions of Indignation, by sharpshoot-
ings of wit, by howitzers of mental
strength made to swing shell five
miles, by cavalry horses gorgeously
caparisoned paving the air. In vain
all the attempts on the part of these
ecclesiastical foot soldiers, light horse
men and grenadiers.
My friends, I propose different
style Of tactics. Let each one go to
the forest of Gods promise and invita-
ton, and hew down branch, and put
1t on his shoulder, and let us come
around these obstinate iniquities, and
then with this pile, kindled by the
fires of a holy zeal and the flames of q
life, we will burn them
out. What steel can not do, fire may.
And announce myself in favor of any
plan of religious attack, however rad
ical, however odd, however unpopular,
however hostile to all the convention
alities of church and state. II one
style Of prayer does not do the work,
let us try another style. If the church
music Of to-day does not get the
victory, then let us make the assault
with backwoods chorus. If prayer
meeting at $40 in the evening does
not succeed, let US have one as early
n the morning rs when the angel
found wrestling Jacob too much for
him. If sermon with the three. au-
,horized heads does not do the work,
hen let us have a sermon with 90
heads, or no heads at all. We want
more heart in our song, more heart in
more heart in our prayer,
more heart in our preaching. Oh, for
ess of Abimelech's sword and more Of
Abimelech's conaagration! 1 had
,ften heard
There is fountain filled with blood,
sung artistically by four birds perched
IN their Sunday roost in the gallery,
Until / thought of Jenny Lind, and
Nilsson, and Sontag, and all the other
varblers; but there came not one tear
% my eye, nor one master emotion to
ny heart. But one night went down
o the African Methodist meeting
house in Philadelphia, and at the close
# the service black woman, in the
middle of the audience, began to sing
hat hymn, and all the audience joined
n, and we were hoated some three or
our miles nearer Heaven than have
,ver been since. saw with my own
yes that fountain filled with blood"
red, agonizing, sacrificial, redemp-
i've, and heard the crimson plash of
he wave as we all went down under 1t.
For sinners plunged beneath that food
Lose all their guilty stains.
Oh, my friends, the Gospel Is not q
yllogism; 1t is not casuistry; It Is not
'olemics, or the science Of squabbles.
{ is blood-red fact; 1t Is warm-hearted
invitation; 1t Is leaping, bounding fly
ng good news; It Is efflorescent with
III light; 1t is rubescent with all sum-
merry glow; 1t Is srborescent with all
weet shade. have seen the sun rise
N Mount Washington, and from the
'ip-top house; but there was no beauty
n that compared with the day-spring
rom on high when Christ gives light
o soul. I have heard Parepa sing;
tut there was no music in that COM
'ared with the voice Of Christ when he
aid: "Thy sins are forgiven thee; 90 In
'eace.n Good news! Let every one cut
Town branch of this tree of life and
wave 1t. Let him throw IL down and
tindle 1t. Let all the way from Mount
.almon to Shechem be filled with the
ossing Joy. Good news! This bonfire
4 the Gospel shall consume the last
emple Of sin, and will illumine the
ky with apocalyptic Joy, that Jesus
,hrist came into the world to save sim
ers. Any new plan that makes a man
Iuit his sin, and that prostrates a
wrong, am as much in favor of as
hough all the doc tors, and the bish-
ps, and the archbishops, and the sy-
ods, and the academical gownsm en-
4 Christianity sanctioned it. The tenn
lie Of Berth must come down, and I
% not care how 1t comes.
Still further, learn from this sub
oct the power of example. II Abb
nelech had sat down on the grass, and
old his men to go and get the boughs,
nd go out to the battle, they would
ever have gone at all, or IL they had