Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1896-08-17

and down will go their souls to perdi-
! ton. O world of the greedy eye and
the hard heart, come on the stand now
and testify in behalf Of the prosecution
against this Christian soul on trial.
What do you know about this Christian
man? ooh. . says the world, Il know
a great deal about him. He talks about
putting his treasures in heaven, but he
is the sharpest man in trade I ever
knew. He seems to want us to believe
that he is a child of God, but he is just
full of imperfections. I do not know
but I am great deal better than he is
now. Oftentimes he is very earthly, and
he talks so little about Christ and so
much about himself. I am very glad to
testify that this is bad man.
Stop, 0 world with the greedy eye
and nard heart. I fear you are too much
interested in this trial to give impartial
evidence Let all those who hear the
testimony of this witness know that
there is an old family quarrel between
these two parties There always has
been a variance between the world and
the church, and while the world on the
witness stand today has told a great
deal of truth about this Christian man,
you must take it all with much allow
ance, remembering that they still keep
the old grudge good. O world of the
greedy eye and the hard heart, that will
do; you may sit down.
The second witness l call in this case
is conscience. Who art thou, O con-
science? What is your business? Where
were you born? What are you doing
l,
born in heaven. I came down to be-
friend this man. have lived with him.
/ have instructed him. / have warned
him. I showed him the right and the
wrong, advising him to take the one
and eschew the other. ] have kindled
great light in his soul. With whip
of scorpions I have scourged his wicked
ness, and [ have tried to cheer him
when doing right, and yet [ am COM
PEELED to testify on the stand today that
he has sometimes rejected my mission.
Oh, how many cups Of life have [
pressed to his lips that he dashed down,
and how often has he stood with his
hard heel on the bleeding heart of the
Son of God It pains me very much
that / have to testify against this Chris
tian man, and yet I must, in behalf of
him who will il no wise clear the
guilty, say that this Christian man has
done wrong. He has been worldly. He
has been neglectful. He has done
thousand things he ought not to have
done and left undone thousand things
he ought to have done" That will do,
conscience. You can sit down.
Important Testimony.
The third witness I call in the case is
an angel of God. Bright and shining
one, what doest thou here? What hast
thou to say against this man on trial?
ooh" says the angel, 81 have been
messenger to him. have guarded him.
/ have watched him. With this wing I
have defended him, and oftentimes,
when he knew it not, [ led him into
green pastures and beside the still wa
tiers. I snatched from him the poisoned
chalices When bad spirits came upon
him to destroy him, I fought them back
with infinite fierceness, and yet [ have
to testify today that he had rejected my
mission. He has not done as he ought
to have done. Though I came from the
sky, he drove me back Though with
this wing I defended him and though
announce his multiplied imperfections
I dare not keep back the testimony, for
then [ should not dare to appear again
amongst the sinless ones before the
great white throne.
There is only one more witness to be
called on behalf of the prosecution, and
that is the great, the holy, the august,
the omnipotent Spirit of God. We bow
down before him. Holy Spirit, knowest
thou this man? "Oh, yes, says the
Holy One, 81 know him [ have striven
with him 10000 times, and, though
sometimes he did seem to repent, he fell
back again as often from his first estate.
Ten thousand times 10, 900 has he
grieved me, although the Bible warned
him, saying: 'Grieve not the Holy
Ghost Quench not the Spirit. Yes, he
has driven me back. Though I am the
third person of the Trinity he has tram
pied on my mission, and the blood of
the atonement that | brought with
which to cleanse his soul he sometimes
despised. I came from the throne of
God to convert and comfort and sancti-
fly, and yet look at that man and see
what he is com pared with what, unre-
sisted, / would have made him. =
The evidence on the part Of the prose-
cution has closed. Now let the defense
bring on the rebuttal testimony. What
have you, 0 Christian soul, to bring in
reply to this evidence of the world, of
the conscience, of the angel and of the
Holy Ghost? No evidence? Are all these
things true? eyes. Unclean, unclean,'
says every Christian soul What? Do
you not begin to tremble at the thought
of condemnation?
Summing Up.
We have come now to the most inter
esting part of this great trial. The evil
dence all in, the advocates speak. The