The Yale expositor., 1897-04-30

And the stars heard, and the sea;
And the sounding aisles OF the dim |
wood
Rang to the anthems of the free.
Life often seems to be a mere game.
where the successful player pulls down
all the other men into his own lap.
Let suspicion arise about mans
character, and he becomes like bank
in panic, and all the imputations rush
on him and break down In day that
character which In due time would
have had strength to defend itself.
There are regulations that have been
half century In building. which go
down under one push. as vast temple
Is consumed by the touch Of sulphur
Gus match. A hog can uproot CEN
fury plant
In THO world, so full OF heartless-
ness and hypocrisy, how thrilling II Is
to find some friend as faithful In days
of adversely as in days of prosperity!
David had such a friend in Hushai;
the Jews had such a friend In Morde-
cal, who never forgot their cause; Paui
had such a friend in Onesiphorus. who
visited him in jail: Christ had such In
the Marys, who adhered to Him on the
Cross; Naomi had such a one in Ruth,
who cried out, "Entreat me not to leave
thee. or TO return from following after
thee, for whittier thou goest, VIII go;
and whittier thou lodgest l will lodge;
thy people shall be my people, ana thy
God my God; where thou diest Will l
die, and there will / be buried: the
Lord do so To me, and more also. II
aught but death part thee and me.
Again, learn from this subject that
paths which open in hardship and dark
ness often come out in places OF JOY.
When Ruth started from Moab toward
Jerusalem, TO go along with her moth
er-in-law, ! suppose the people said:
"Oh. what a foolish creature TO go away
from her fathers house, to go OF with
! poor old woman toward the land or
judah! They won't live TO get across
the desert They will be drowned In
the sea. or the jackals of the wilder
ness will destroy them" 1t was very
dark rornirg when Ruth started on
with Naomi: but behold her in my
text in the harvest field OF Boaz. to
be affianced 10 one OF the lords OF the
| land, and become one OF the grand
mothers of Jesus Christ. the Lord OF
! glory. And SO ii often is that path
which often starts very darkly ends
very brightly.
When you started out for heaven, oh,
how dark was the hour of conviction
how Sinai Numbered, and devils tor
menteG, and the darkness thichened!
All the sins of your life pounced upon
you, and il was the darkest hour you
ever saw when you first found out your
sins. After awhile you went into the
harvest field of Gods mercy: you be-
gan to CLEAN in the fields of divine
promise. and you had more sheaves
than YOU could carry, as the voice OF
God addressed you. saying: Blessed
is the man whose transgressions are
forgiven and whose sins are covered.
A very dark starting in conviction. a
very bright ending in the pardon and
the hope and the triumph of the Cos
pei!
So, very often In our worldly bust
ness or in our spiritual career, We star;
off on a very dark path. We must go
The flesh may shrink back. but there
is a voice within, or voice from above
saying. You must co." and we have
to drink the gall, and we have to carry
the cross. and we have to traverse the
desert and we are pounded and failed
of Misrepresentation and abuse, ant
we have TO urge our way through ter
thousand obstacles that have been slaiI
by our own right arm. We have Il
ford the river, we have to climb tn,
mountain, we have to storm the castle
hut. blessed be God, the day OF rest ant
reward will come. On the tip-top o
the captured battlements we will shou
the victory; If not in this world. thel
in that world where there is no gal
to drink, no burdens to carry, no bat
, ties TO fight. How do know 1t? Know
III / know IL because God says so
"They shall hunger no more. neithe
thirst any more, neither shall the sui
| light on tnelu, uOA dhy neat, lOT III
Lamb which is in the midst of tn
throne shall lead them to living foun
tains OF water, and God shall wipe al
tears from their eyes"
: It was very hard for Noah 20 endur
the soothing of the people in his ia;
: while he was trying to build the arb
and was every morning quizzed abou
his old boat that would never be of an
practical use; but when the delug
came, and the tops Of the mountain
: disappeared like the backs of sea mon
sters, and the elements. dashed up 1
| fury, clapped their hands over
4 drowned world, then Noah in the ar
rejoiced in his own safety and In tn
safety Of his family, and looked OF
on the wreck OF a ruined earth.
O Christ, bounded of prosecutors. ID
k MED a pillow, worse maltreated tina
e the thieves on either side OF the eros
G human hate smacking its lips In sa
il isfaction after II had been draining h
a last drop OF blood. the sheeted dea
4 L.. l.t.x NJ n