Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1896-05-01
REV. DIR. TAIMAGE
SUNDAYS DISCOURSK ny IHE
NOTED DIVINE.
Subject Christ. Exile"

Far up ant far hack in tho history 10
heaven there came a period when IL most
illn-irtuus Citizen was about 20 absent Him
self. H. Nas not going to sail from lea u 10
beach We haze often done that IL wa not
going 70 put out from one hemisphere 10 uIi-
other hemisphere, many 81 u- have done
that. But H. was 90 sail from world 10
world, tho spaces guexplarad ani the im.
Ineu-itir- ultraviolet. No world has ever
h1ilssi heaven, aud heaven has never hailed
any other world. | think that the win
duw7 aud the balconies We're thraugsi
and that the pearly beach was crowded
with those who had come to See HIM -ail
out VI the harhOr 81 light into the ocean
beyond. Out anI out and out, aud on
and un aud on AMI down AMI down aud
down lie sped, until oLe night. with only
one 10 greet Him when He arrived, Hi- dis
emharkatiou so uuVretunding 50 quiet that
II was not known on earth until tbs excite
meut in tbs cloud gave iutimaJion 10 the
Bethlehem ru~lics that something grand aud
glorious had happened. Who come, theref
From what port lid He saiy Why WAS this
the place 81 His destination: 1 question the
shepherds. question the camel drivers. !
question the angels. lhaye found out. He
was an exile. But the world had plenty Of
sXiles. Abraham, an exile from Haran
John. an exile from Ephesus; KOseiusko, an
exile from Poland; Ma2Zini, an exile from
Hugo, an exile from France; Kossuth, au rx-
lie IRON Hungary. But this one Of whom
speak to-day had such re-uunding farewell
aud came into such chilling Tereption-iOr
not even hOstler went out with his lantern
TO light Him IN that He Is more to be eele-
brated than any other eNpatriated exile Of
earth or heaven.
First, | remark that Christ was an i'm
peral exile. He got down Off a throne. He
took on tiara He closed q palace gate be-
hind Him. His family We're princes aud
Processes. Nashti was turned out OF the
thronero0m by Ahasuerus. David was de
throned by Absalom's infamy. The I'VE
kings were hurled into cavern by Jushuas
courage Some Of the Hcurys OF England
md some Of the Louis OF France Were iostiet
on their thrones by disconnected subjects.
/ But Christ was never more honored or more
! popular or more loved than the day He lett
heaven EXiles have suffered severely, but
/ Christ turned Himself out from throuero0m
/ into sheep pen, aud down from the top 70
/ the bottom. He was not pushed OF He
was not manacled for foreign importation
! He was not put out because they no more
wanted Him in celestial domain, but by
choice, departing and descending into an
| exile five times AS long rs that Of Napoleon
| at st. Helena, aud thousand times worse =
! the one exile suffering for that he had dS-
stroyed Nations, the other exile suffering be-
cause He came to save world. An Imperial
exile. King eternal. blessing aud honor
and glory aud power be unto Him that Sill
teth upon the throne
But / 60 farther and tell you He was IN
exile on barren island. This world is one
Of the smallest islands Of light in the ocean
81 immensely. other stellar kingdoms are
many thousand times larger than this.
Christ came to this small Patmos Of world.
When exIes are sent out, they are generally
sent TO regions that are sandy or cold or hot
some Dry. Tortugas OF disagreeableucSs.
Christ came as an exile 10 "a world scorchej
with heat and bitten with cold, 10 deserts 81
moon swept, toa bowling wilderness. TWAS
the back doOryard seemingly Of the universe.
Yea, Christ came TO the poorest part Of tht,
barren island of world--Asia Minor, with
its intense summers, unfit for the residence
OF a foreigner, and in the rainy season unfit
for the re4idenceoi n native. Christ came
not to such q land as America or England OF
France or Germany, but to land one-third
OF the year drowned, another third Of the
year burned up. and only one-third Of the
year just tolerable. Oh, 1t was the barren
island Of world! Barren enough for Christ
for 1t gave such small worship and such in
adequate affection, and such little gratitude
Imperial exile on the barren island OF {
world Tia ,"-th ne-~t--t Nj
I go further and tell YOU that He was ~
exile in hostile country. Turkey was neve
so much against Russia, France was never Sc
much against Germany, as this earth wa
against Christ Ii took Him in through tn,
door Of q stable. II thrust Him out at tn,
point Of spear. The Roman Government
against Him with every weapon OF its arm
and every decision OF its courts aud ever,
beak OF its war eagles. For years after Hi
arrival the only question was how best t
put Him out. Herod hated Him. the higl
priests hated Hin, the Pharlsees hated Him
Judas Iscarot hated Him, Gestas. the dyinl
, thief, hated Him. The whole earth seem
j., ingly turned into detective to watch Hi
| steps. And yet He faced this ferocity. Motto
that most Of Christs wounds were in front
, Some scourglng on the shoulders. but mos
OF Christ's wounds in front. He was not oil
retreat when He expired. Face to face will
= the worlds foroclty. Face to face with tn
= world'ssln. Face to face with the world
woe His eyes on the raging counte
nances OF His foaming antagonists whel
He expired. When the cavalry office
roweed his steed so that he Nigh
come nearer up and see the tortured visag
s OF the suffering exile, Christ saw it. Whe
[ the spear was thrust Mt His side. and wheI
the hammer was lifted for His feet, and whe
the reed was raised to strike deeper dow
u the spikes Of thorn, Christ watched the Who'll
Q procedure. When His hands were fastene,
a to the cross they were wide open still witt
benedc!ion. Mind you, His heal was no
fastened He could look to the right an,
He could look to the left, He could look III
and He could look down. He saw when tn
spikes had been driven home, and the hard
round, iron heads were In the palms OF Hi
t hands He saw them as plainly as you eve
saw anything in the palms OF your hands
No ether, no chlorofOrm, no morcitul anG-
" thetic to dull or stupefv but, wide awake
He saw the observation Of the heavens, tn
-, unbalancing OF the rocks, the countenance
~ quivering with rage and the cachinnntio
8 diabolic. Oh. II was the hostile as well a
r the barren island of II world.
/ go farther and tell you that this exil
was far from home. Ii is 95. 900 900 mile
from here to the sun, and all astronomer
agree In saying that our solar system is onl
% one OF the smaller wheels of the great ms
chinery Of the universe turning around som
Il one great center the center SO far distant
is beyond all Imagination and calculation
IT and II, as some think, that great center
I the distance Is heaven, Christ came far froi
~ home when He came here. Have you evt
- thought of the Inconsistencies of Christi Son
le of you know what inconsistencies Is when yo
have been only a few weeks absent from I'll
- domestic circle Christ was thirty-tlfrt
years away from home. Some OF you fe
Inconsistencies when you are hundred or
thousand miles away from the domest
circle. Christ was more million miles ava
from home than you could count II all YOU
life you did nothing but count. You kno
what It Is to be homesick even amid pleasal
surroundings, but Christ slept in huts, M
He was athrst, and He was a-hungered al
He was on the way from being born
another mans barn to being buried
another mans grave.
| have read how the Swiss, when they al
far away from their native country at Il
sound of their National air get so homesit
that they fall into melancholy, and som
times thtS die under the inconsistencies Blu
oh. lhh nnmnainLnnsa of Chrlstl Power