Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1896-04-02
SOCIAL DIVERSIONS.
THEY THAT USE THIS WORLD AS
NOT ABUSING 1T.


Corinthians vii, 81: "They that use this
world as not abusing It," Judges xvi, 25:
"And it came to pass, when their hearts
were merry, that they said, call for Samson,
that he may make us sport"
There were 5000 people assembled IN
the temple of Dagon. They had come to
make sport of eyeless Samson. They were
all ready for the entertainment They be-
gan to clap and pound, impatient for the
amusement to begin, and they cried,
Fetch him out, fetch him outW Yonder
see the blind old giant coming, led by
the hand Of a child into the very midst of
the temple. At his first appearance there
goes up shout of laughter and derision.
The blind old giant pretends he is tired,
and wants to rest himself against the pill
lars of the house. So he says to the lad
who leads him, "Show mo where the main
pillars arel' The lad does so. Then the
strong man puts his right hand on one
pillar and his left hand on another, 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 wine 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 amusements
that are destructive, and bring down dis
aster and death upon the heads of those
who practice them. While they laugh and
cheer, they die. The 5000 who perished
that day in GAIA are as nothing compared
to the tens of thousands who have been
destroyed by sinful amusements.
Lawful Pleasures.
But my first text implies that there is q
lawful use of the world as we'll as an un-
lawful abuse of 1t, and the difference be-
tween the man Christian and the man un-
Christian Is that In the former case the
man masters the world, while in the lat,
ter case the world masters him. For whom
did God make this grand and beautiful
worldP For whom this wonderful expend
iture of color, this gracefulness 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 anG
sky come clashing their oymbals2 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 sum- For all men, but more
especially for his own dear children.
If you build q large mansion and spread
a great feast after it to celebrate the COM
pletion 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 flelds9 Oh,
no! You say, II am very glad to see
strangers in my mansion, but my own
sons and daughters shall have the first
right there" Now, God has built this
grand mansion of a world, and he has
spread a glorious feast in it, and while
those who are strangers to his grace may
come in 1 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 and say,
"Abba, Father" You cannot make me
believe that God gives more advantages to
the world than he gives to the church
bought by his own blood. If, therefore,
people of the world have looked with dol
orous sympathy upon those who make pro-
fession Of religion and have said, "Thoso
new converts are going down into priva,
tion and into hardship; why did they not
tarry little longer in the world and have
some of it's enjoyments and amusements
and reoreations'-I say to such men of
the world, "You are greatly mistaken"
and before get through will show that
those people who stay out of the kingdom
of God have the hardships and self denials
while these who come in have the joys and
satisfactions.
In the name Of the King of heaven and
earth, l serve writ of ejectment upon all
the sinful and polluted who have squatted
on the domain of earthly 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 given them. Hitheto Christian phi
lanthropists, clerical and lay, have busted
CIOIlSSlNC5 Ill
recreations, but feel we have no right to
stand before men and women in whose
hearts there is a desire for recreation
amounting to positive necessity, denouno-
ing this and that and the other thing,
when we do not propose to give them
something better. God helping me and
with reference to my last account, I shall
enter upon sphere not usual in sermoniz-
ing, but a subject which think ought to
be presented at this time propose now
to lay before you some of the recreations
which are not only innocent, but posi-
lively helpful and advantageous,
Influence of Music.
In the first place, 1 commend, among
indoor recreations, music-vocal and in
strumental. Among the first things Gre
ated was the bird, so that the earth might
have music at the start. This world,
which began with so sweet serenade, is
finally to be demolished amidst the ringing
blast of the archangel's trumpet, so that
rs there was music at the start, there shall
be music at the Close While this heavenly
art has often been dragged into the uses of
and dissipation, we all know
it may be the means of high moral culture.
Oh, it is grand thing to have our chill
dren brought up amidst the sound of cul-
tured voices and amidst the melody of mu-
steal instruments.
There is in this art an indescribable fas-
cination for the household. Let all those
families who have the means to afford it
have flute or harp or piano or organ. AS
soon as the hand is large enough to COM
pass the keys teach it how to pick out the
melody. Let all our young men try this
art upon their nature. Those
who have gone into it fully have found in
it illimitable recreation and amusement.
Dark days, stormy nights, seasons of sick
ness business disasters, will do little
tnwnrd danresSinn tho soul which can GAL