The Yale expositor., 1896-01-24
other days, the Last Day, God will say

|
There are men to whom life is a grind
aEd conflict, hereditary tendencies to
be overcome, accidental environments
to be endured, appalling opposition to
be met and conquered, and they never
| so much as had rose pinned to their
coat lapel in admiration. They never
| had a song dedicated to their name.
They never had a book presented to
them with complimentary word on
the lily leaf. All they have to show for
their lifetime battle is scars. But in
the Last Day. the story will come out
and that life will be put in holy and
| transcendent rhythm, and their courage
and persistence and faith and victory
will not only be announced, but re-
warded. These are they that come
out of great tribulation and had their
robes washed and made white in the
blood of the lamb" God will say SO!
We miss one OF the chief ideas Of a
Last Judgment. We put into the pic
ture the fire, and the smoke and the
earthquake, and the descending angels
and the uprising dead, but we omit to
put into the picture that which makes
the Last Judgment a magnificent op-
portunity. We omit the fact that it is
to be day Of glorious explanation and
commentator. The first justice that
millions of unrewarded, and unrecog-
nized, and unappreciated men and
women get will be on that day, when
services that never called forth so
much as newspaper line of finest
pearl or diamond type, as the printers
term it, shall be called up for corona
ton. That will be on the day for en-"
thronement for those whom the world
called Melodies" Joshua, who COM
manded the sun and the moon to stand
still, needs no last judgment to get
justice done him, but those men do
need last judgment who at times,
in all armies, under the most violent
assault, in obedience to command,
themselves stood still. Deborah who
encouraged Barak to bravery in bat
tie against the oppressors Of Israel,
needs no Last Judgment to get justice
done her, for thousands of years have
clapped her applause. But the wives
who in all ages have encouraged their
husbands in the battle of life, women
whose names were hardly known be-
You'd the next street or the next farm
house, must have God say to them,
You did well, You did gloriously!
| saw you down in that dairy. |
watched you in the old farmhouse,
mending those children's clothes.
heard what you said in the way Of
cheer when the bread winner of the
household was in despair. l remember
all the sick cradles you have sung to-
| remember the backaches, the head
aches, the heartaches. / know the
story Of your knitting needle az well as
| know the story of a queens scepter
Your castle on the heavenly hill is all
ready for you. Go up and take it,
And turning to the surprised multi
tudes of heaven, He will say, "She did
what she could" God will say SO.
And now 1 close with giving my own
personal testimony, for | must not en-
join upon others that which l decline
myself to do. Born at Boundbrook, n.
j., of Il parentage as pious as the world
ever saw, I attest before earth and
|
elevating and restraining influences of
having had good father and good
mother, and if l am able to do half as
well for my children as the old folks
did for me I will be thankful forever.
The years Of my life passed on until,
at about eighteen years of age, l felt
the pressure of eternal realities, and
after prayer and religious counsel |
passed into what took to be saved
state, and joined the church, and at
test before earth and heaven that
| have found it most helpful and in
spring association. | like the com
partnership so well that l cannot be sat
| isfed if l have a day less of it than
all eternity. After graduating at col
! legiate and theological institutions
had the hands of ten or twelve good men
put upon my head in solemn ordina-
ton, at Belleville, New Jersey, and
attest before earth and heaven that
the work of the gospel ministry has
been delightful, and l expect to preach
until my last hour. Many times l have
PASSED through dep water Of bereave-
ment, and but for the divine promise
of heavenly reunion, would have gone
under. but / attest before earth and
heaven that the comfort Of the gospel
is high, deep, glorious, eternal. Many
times have / been maligned and my
work misrepresented but all such
| falsehood and persecution have turned
out for my advantage and enlarged
my work, and l attest before earth and
! heaven that God has fulfilled to me the
promises, 10! 1 am with you always
/ and "The gates of hell shall not pre-
vail against you"
For the cheer Of younger men in all
departments, let me say you will come
out all right If you mind your own
business and are patient. The assault
of the world is only being rubbed down
by rough Turkish towel, and it i'm
proves the circulation and makes one
more vigorous. While the future holds
for me many mysteries which l do not
pretend to solve, | am living in expec-
tation that when my poor work is done
/ shall go through the gates and meet
= \ Il \.