The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-11-11

TO prepare the ground for the seed. but ahar.y|
row which goes over after the seed Is sown,
lest the birds pick up the seed, sinhng It
down into the earth 80 that 1t can take root,
You know q harrow. II Is made OF bars Of
wood nailed across each other, and the un-
derside of each bar Is furnished with sharp
teeth, and the horses are hitched to II. It
goes tearing and leaping across the field,
driving the seed down into the earth until II y
springs up in the harvest. Bereavement,
sorrow, persecution are the Lords harrows
to sink the Gospel truth In your heart.
These were truths that you heard thirty
years ago; they have not affected you until I
recently. Some great trouble came over you, 1
and the truth was narrowed In. and II nA6a
come up. What did God mean IN TINS coun-s
try In 1852 For century there was the Cos
pel preached, but a great deal OF It produced
no result. Then God harnessed witGa
panic to a harrow of commercial disaster,
and that harrow went down Wall streer, and
up Wall street, down Third street, and up
Third street, down State street. and up State
street, down Pennsylvania avenue, and up
Pennsylvania avenue, until the whole land,
was torn to pieces as 1t had never been be-
fore. What followed the harrow A great
awakening In which there were 60O,0Nl
souls brought into the Kingdom OF ootts
our Lord. No harrow. no crop.
Again, remark, In grace as In the. farm
there must be q reaping. Many Christians:
speak Of religion as though 1t were matter
OF economics or insurance. They expect TO-
reap in the next world. Oh no! Now fs the
time to reap. Gather up the Joy OF the
Christian religion this morning, this AFTER
noon, this night. Ityou have not as much
grace as you would Ike to have, thank God
for what you have, and pray for more. You
are no worse enslaved than Joseph, no worse
troubled than was David, no worse scourged
than was Paul. Yet, amid the rafting ofS
fetters and amid the gloom Of dungeons, and
amid the horror Of shipwreck, they
triumphed In the grace OF God. The weakest
man In the house to-day has 500 acres OF
spiritual 10y all ripe. Why do you not go.
aud reap it2 You have been groanfng over
your inArmities for thirty years. Now give
one roEnd shout over your emancipation
You say you have 1t so hard; you might have
1t worse. You wonder why this great colo
trouble keeps revolving through your soul
turning and turning with blaek hand on
the crank. Alb, that trouble is the grind
stone on which you are to sharpen your
sickle. To the fields! Wake upl Take on
your green spectacles. your blue spectacles,
your black spectacles. Pull up the corners
of your mouth as far as you pull them down.
To the fieldsl Reap. reap! :.
Again, remark. In grace as In farm1ng,
there Is time for threshing. tell you
bluntly that Ia death. Just as the farmer
with a fail beats the wheat out OF the straw
so death beats the soul out OF the body.
Every sickness Is stoke OF the nail. and the
sick-bed Is the threshing floor: What say.
you, Is death to good man only taking the
wheat out Of the straw2 That ts all An
aged man has fallen asleep. Only yesterday
YOU saw him In the sunny porch playing
with his grandchildren. Calmly he received
the message to leave this world. he bade 81
pleasant Goodbye to his old fdendA The
telegraph carries the tidlngsS and on swift;
rail trains the kindred come, wanting once
more to look on the face Of dear old grand.
father, Brush back the gray hairs from his
brow; It will never ache again. Put him:
away In the slumber Of the tomb. he Will
not be afraid of that night. Grandfather was
never afraid Of anything. he viii rise IN
the morning OF the resurrection. Grandlath.
er was always the arst to rise. His voice haa5.
already mingled in the doxoiogy Of Heaven.
Grandfather always did sing IN church.
ANYTHING CHASTITY In that2 No. The thresh-
ina of the wheat out OF the straw. That is
all.
The Saviour folds lamb In His bosom.
The little child filled all the house with her.
music, and her toys are scattered all up and
down the stairs Just as she left them. Whist
II the hand that plucked four-o' clocks out
of the meadow is still2 It will wave In the
eternal triumph. What II the voice thaf
made music In the home isstill? ItwtuAngl
the eternal hosauna. Put white rose In onal
hand, red rose In the other hand ana aA
wreath Of orange blossoms on the b.ow; tho
white flower for the victory, the red flower
for the Ssyiour's sacrifice; the orange bloS-
SONS forher marriage day. Anything ghastss
Iy about that1 Oh, no! The sun went down
and the flower shut. The wheat threshedS
out of the straw. "Dear Lord, give me-
Sleep" said q dying hoy, the son Of one Of;
my elders, "dear Lord, give me sleep. g
And he closed his eyes and awoke In glory
Henry ". Longfeltow, writing q letter Of
coincidence to those parents, said, "ThoSes
last words were beautifully poetic. And
Mr.. Longfellow knew what Is poetic. Dear
Lord, give me sleep" sss
twas not in cruelty, not In wrath
That the reaper came that day; y:
twas an angel that visited the earth i:
And took the flower away.
So 1t may be with us when our work Is all.
done. "Deaf Lord, give mo sleep.
have ono more thought to present. "
have spoken Of the plowing. OF the sowing
of the narrowing, OF the reapinG, OF the
threshing. I must now speak moment o.
Where is the garner? Need tell ,You2s
Oh, no. SO many have gone out from your
own circles-yea, from your own family,
that you have had your eyes on that garnss
of them had! In Gethsemanes OF suffering,
thew sweat great drops of blood They
took the "cup OF trembling" and they put:
ii to their hot lips and they cried, "f II BE-.
possible, let this cup pass from me-" With.
tongues of burning agony they cried. 20
Lord, deliver my SOUL" But they got ovsf]
II. They all got over It. Gsrnered! Their
tears wiped away; their battles ell ended;a
their burdens lifted. Garnered! The Lord
of the harvest will not allow those sheayes3
to perish In the equinox. Garnered! Some
OF us remember, on the farm, that the
sheaves were put on the top OF the racK
which surmounted the wagon, and these
sheayes were piled higher and higher. and
after a while the horses started for the barn;
and these sheaves swayed to and fro In the
wind. and the old wagon creaked, and the
horses made struggle, and pulled so hard
the harness came up In loops OF leather onI
on their backs, and when the front wheel
struck the elevated door OF the barn e
seemed as II the load would go no father,
until the workmen gave great shout. and
then with one last tremendous sh ain, tnel
horses pulled In the load; they were unhar
messed, and forkful after forkful OF grain
fell into the NOW. Oh, my friends. our get
ting to heaven may be a pull, a hard pull.
very hard pull; but these sheaves are bound
to 90 In. The Lord OF the harvest has prom
ised it, I see tho load at last coming e
the door OF the heavenly garner. Th9
sheaves ofthe Christian soul sway to and IN
in the wind OF death, and the old body cresk
under the load, and as the load strikes th
floor OF the celestial garner, 1t seems as y
can 20 no farther. It Is the last strugGi
until the voices Of angels and the voices
our departed kindred and the welcom
voice Of God shall send the harvest roI
into the eternal triumph, while all up
down the sky the cry is heard: "Hal
homo! harvest home" ta