The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-11
THE VOICE OF THE PULPIT
FINAL TRIUMPH WILL. FOLLOW RE-
sIsTANCE TO TEMPTATION.
The Very Rev. r. J. MalIett, of Sc.
Matthew's Cathedral, Laramie,
Wye, ON success Despite Odds.v

Now. therefore. be not grieved nor angry
| with yourselves that We sold me hither for
God did send me before you to preserve
| jfe.-Gen. XIV 5.
| The old proverb, MAN proposes. but God
| disposes,'' occurs to us as we think of the
| romantic career of Joseph, the beautiful
| end favorite of the patriarch Jacob.
From his infancy he had been hated and
| feared by his jealous brethren. and great
| were the obstacles which beset his path
| for years. But he was destined to rise in
| the world Early in life he felt Within
| himself. not ambitious dreamings merely.
| but those solemn premonitions that come
| to persons who are called by God to do
| something out of the common humdrum
| life of the age.
| The things that should have helped him
| at the start, however proved hindrances.
| The very power wherein lay his futurs
greatness and usefulness-the Interpreters
| ton of dreams-was prime cause OF trou-
| bic in the family. Men have often depends
| ed family connections" for start I'm
life Joseph's family called him ugly names,
! and finally. when they saw him afar of.
| conspired against him to STAY him" Ana
| they said. behold this dreamer cometh:
| let us STAY him and cast him into some pit
land shall see what will become of his
| DIRE ANS
This was all his family intended doing
| for the younger brother. What familyi
| All. is envy any more tender to-day? Is
| jealousy less bitter and hateful? Three
| steps downward-envy. jealousy, murder.
| Why does the world hate its dreamers?
| Why is goodness Or genius prosecuted? The
| first chapter of Joseph's life ends, not ON
| bed of roses but in a pit. 1t has often
| happened so. Bunyan was a dreamer so
/ !. int fof
1--WE shall see what will become of his
Dreams" God overruled all that. and you
have his dreams in that wonderful book,
| 1.-THE Pilgrims Progress
| Nero hated the Christians and thought
| to silence the holy st. John by banshng
| him to the isle that is called Patmos, but
/ still he has his wondrous vision. And a d.
| vine voice says, What thou seest write
in book'-and we have the Apocalypse.
At length, through the cemency of one
| brother we find this Joseph-instead of be-
! ing slain outright or left to die in the pit
| sold to n passing band of Ishmaeltes for
| 80 pieces of silver. Was it chance. or luck,
or a rather strange coincidence" that
these merchantmen came along? We talk
| glibly of accident and chance i'm our ig-
| norance of Gods providental plans are
constantly in danger of attributiny to some
underlined accident coincidence what
properly belongs to the great arbiter OF
our destiny.
Joseph has disappeared; the next thing
q 20 cover their crime TO such men
these. expedients occur easily. deception
is their forte; so they took the innocent
Josephs coat and dipped it in the blood
of a. kid and sent it to their aged father
| W. evil message and a lie: This
l. We found; know now whether 1t be
/ son's coat or. no?'
| How they gloated over the misery ot
| the old man, who had made for his be-
loved son that same coat of many colors.
| Jealousy and hatred had degraded and in-
/ bruted these men until neither pity nor
| remorse the fear of God or man. influenced
| them. Not one of them has the moral cour-
age to step forth and confess his baseness.
that the old mans grief might be assuaged.
But in the far-of land the youth is be-
! ing cared for and blessed by the mighty
/ God of Jacob True, he is a slave, and
| things look dark; the father may have
! been weak and the young son vain, but
these minor characteristics and be-
meath them lay concealed the great prin-
ciples of a noble character and God de-
tends the right. Potiphar the ruler, now
owns the lad. and thus ends yet another
| chapter of this eventful life.
Joseph becomes steward to Potiphar.
| Here rough discipline awaited him, trials
of no ordinary sort; but these, when rightly
| entered and endured, were blessings in dis
| guise Numerous and severe as had been
his trials in the past they were not to be
| compared to those before him: the former
/ called for passive endurance, they affected
| his outward prospects and comforts merely.
| but his character. his moral strength
was to be tested. He had begun TO rise;
| from a mental he presently came 10 be i'm
| w ~ of
| ters domestic affairs; but it is seldom
| granted that prosperity should escape
| checks and reverses. He was unconscious
| ly perhaps, approaching an epoch in his
| history.
| Suddenly he was confronted with a ter
| rible temptation presenting itself daily in
the person of woman. What he had to
settle was this; Should he sin and retain
the favor of Potiphars wife? or should he
| cling TO honor and purity though 1t en-
tailed suffering and discharge from office?
You know his answer:
How can / do this wickedness end sin
against God?''
prison and Injustice were the result Of
/ such fidelity to God.
| Let us keep moral distinctions clearly be-
| fore US. He who ressts temptation.
whether it be OF a carnal or more exalted
/ character will, whether the seoffer believes
1
story surely may learn to respect those
| who in this age struggle against the APP
! petites and passions. who turn away from
/ seductive snares, close their eyes to be-
witching pleasures that tarnish the luster
/ of the soul. You may be tempted, you
must as men be tried. but
| Yield not to temptation, IL a
For yielding is sin; lsf .
| Each victory will help you
| Some other TO win.
| It is by resisting that character becomes
strongly developed. The eternal destiny OF
| a man Is fixed by this very thing. Have
| you thought of it? Did he yield 10 tempta-
tion until yielding became natural and nor
| NAL. or did he resist until resisting became
| natural? Here is the broad distinction
| fixed by God as law between grace and
nature. The true Christian. the spiritual
| ly minded man. through sore temptation
sometimes falls a prey to sin; but his daily
desire is to earnestly resist. And no ono
| knows how often he triumphs for
the frequent falls of our fellow-men. but