The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1897-03-19

enter Ilc ISIS u war snail De Dcl"SSu
such and such an age. lest the folly of ex,
treme youth or the infrmity of advanced
age be a clog rather than an advantage.
Blu none is too young for Christ's req,
ment: none can be too old The hand
that is strong enough to bound a bali or
trundle a hoop is skilled enough to flght
for Christ, while many a hand trembling
with old age has crasped the arrow or
ruth, and, with a dim eye close to it. TAX
ing aim, has sent its sharp point right
through the heart Of the Kings nemie
Many of you have long ago Tad your
names written on the roll of celestial
troops, and you like the service vel. al
though you no:T bear the scars Of muiti-
tudinous conflicts and recount many a
| long march and tell OF siege guns opened
on you that you thought never would De
spiked. But there Uay he sore who have
not yet enlisted. Your being here implies
that you are seriously thinking about 1t,
and your attention makes me nope you
the aroused enthusiasm OF your nature,
come bounding into the ranks. while in
Through natural wodesty do you hold
back and say: Il will be of no advantage
to Christ. am too awkard to learn the
the shork OF hattle?' To you I make the
| ren1y. - Il. One hour under Christ's
| driN. nd you would so well understand
| his rules that the first step of your march
heavanwara would make the gates of hell
treTh'e o. their hinges. We NAV not be
as POLISHED and trim as many Christians
understand sharpshooting, but there Is
roreh york W. which ha we can a1em a1
and hew a pathway through the
forests. We may be spadesmen and
dig the trenches or throw I'D the fortiffca-
tons. We do not care where, we do not
care what-if we can only help in the
cause Of our king and shout as loudly as
any of them at the completion Of the con-
sERFs OR zOUAvEs.
There are nonprofessors who have a
very correct idea of what Christians
ought to be. You have seen members of
the church who were as proud as Ahab
and lied as badly as Ananias. and who
We're as foul hypocrites as Judas. You
Christ ought to he honorable, humble and
self denying and charitable and patient
and forgiving. Amen! So they ought.
Come into the kingdom of Christ. my
hearer. and ne just that glorious Chris
tan that you have described. Every
church has enough stingy men in it to ar
rest its charities, and enough proud men
in it to grieve away the Holy Ghost. and
enough lazy men in II TO hang On ehind
drag heavily. and enough worldly men to
exhaust the patience Of the very elect,
and enough snarly men to make appro.
pirate the Bible. warning. Beware Of
dogsr' TT anv of you men on the outside
Of the kingdom eXpect to make such
Omissions as that. we do not want you to
come. for the church has already a mil
lion members too many Of just that kind.
We do not want our ranks crowded with
serfs when we can have them filled with
ZOUaves.
There are men now. as in Christ's time.
possessed of seven devils. In some in
stances it seems as thnugh 1T conversion
out. while there remains still one in the
heart. the devil Of avarice, the devil of
lust or the devil of pride. Men Of the
elevated by the power of the gospel. now
is the time to come. 1t is no mean ensign
7 lift this hour. It is a time hono~ed flag;
IF has boon in terrific hattie ORA ODIp6
in the dust of a Saviour's humiliation
from bethlehem to Calvary. Rent by
helrs onset. the spears Of a maddened
said, Let him be crucified." With this
ensign in his bleeding hand the Saviour
scaled the heirhts of our sin. With this
amid its very smoke and flame and bias
phemy he waved his triumph. while de-
mons howled with defeat and heaven
Thronged his chariot wheels
And bore him to his throne.
Then swept their golden harps and sung.
The glorious work is done.
Again, when a grand victory has beer
won. it is customary to announce it by
flags floating from public buildings. and
from trees. and from the masts Of ships
They are the signal for eulogy and re.
joicing and festivity. So the ensign which
the church hoists is a banner of victory
There was a time when the religion OF
Men of learning and position frowned
upon it. Governments mathematical its
supporters. To be a Christian was to be
an underling. But mark the difference
Religi has compelled the worlds re.
spect. Infidelitv in the tremendous effort
it has made to crush it has complimentet
its power. And there is not now a single
; civilized nations but in its con:
pays cr homagf to fna the reiiigion 1rai O.
when Sir Archibald Campbell found in ar
hour of danger that the men he ordered
, to the field were intoxicated and asked foI
: the pious men whom the Christian Have
!. lock had under his management. he said
: call out Havelock's saints. They are
=, ready" That Christianity which gath
cred its first trophies from the fishermen:
r butts on the shore of Galilee now ha:
. Samsonian strength thrown upon tt
. shoulders and has carried off the gate!
of science and worldly power. We poin
not to fortresses and standing armies ano
: PROGRESS. We point to the men whom
Christ has redeemed by his blood.
What ii arsenals and navy yards do no
r r belong to the church? We do not wan
+ them. The weapons of our warfare ar
5 not carna., but sniritual and might,
strongholds. The world and satan hav'
\ no idea of the strength and heroisn
5 forces of darkness. AS yet they have ha,
: only one round from the first regiment
. The Lord Of hosts will soon appear in TIL
2 upon it, tina when God inspires the sou
r with a new life he puts in it the principle
of never give up In all ages Of tn,
:, church there have been those who hav'
, had a faith that was almost equal t.
sight. locking through persecution am
e reverses with as much expectation a
through palpable achievements. Their
. have been men for Christ who have act
ed as did the favorite troops of Brien
= attacked by Fitzpatrick of Ossory. TIL
e wounded soldiers begged that they Nigh
enter the fight with the others. The,
+ said. Let stakes be stuck In the groun'
O and suffer each Of us. tied to and support
4 | cd hV one Of those stakes fn hattie in I'll
+ ranks by the side of a sound man" It |
said that 700 or 500. pale and emanciate'
from former wounds. and thus %supporte4
by the stakes. struggled through the com
s bat. Thus has it been that multitudes o
: the children of God, though feeling them
selves weak and wounded, perhaps il
n body. perhaps in estate, perhaps in soul
supported by the staff Of Gods promise
have warre0 it up to the hilt in the sub
h jugation of a world of wickedness.
\ THE BATTLECRY.
We are mighty in this cause, for we hav
f the help of the pious dead. Messenger