The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-03-14
bis table, George entertained tho lords
OF England at banquet, Napoleon III
Welcomed the czar Of Russia and tho sui
tan Of Turkey to his feast, the emperor Of

George Bancroft, sit down with him at his
table, but tell me, ye who know most Of
the worlds history, what other king ever
asked the abandoned and the forlorn and
| the wrotched and tho outcast to come and
sit beside himp
Oh, wonderful invitation! You can tsko
1t today and stand at the head of the dark.
est alley in any city, and say: "Come
Clothes for your rags, salve for your soros
a throne for your eternal reigning." A
Christ that talks like that and doks like
that and pardons like that-do you won
der that Stephen stood looking at him? /
hope to spend eternity doing the Same
thing. must sec him; must look upon
that face once clouded with my sin, but
now radiant with my pardon. want to
touch that hand that knocked off my shao-
kles. l want to hear that voice which pro-
nounced my deliveranoe. Behold him,
little children, for If you live to threescoro
years and ten you will see none 80 fair.
Behold him, ye aged ones, for he only can
shine through the dimness Of your failing
eyesight. Behold him, earth. Behold
him, heaven. What moment when all
around Christi All faces that way. All
thrones that way, gazing on Jesus.
His worth II all the nations knew
Sure the whole earth would love him too,
Stephens NIartyrdom. -
pass on now and look at Stephen
stoned. Tho world has always wanted to
get rid of good men. Their very life is an
assault upon wickedness. Out with Ste
'phen through the gatos of the city. Down
with himo over tho precipices. Let every
man come up and drop a stone upon his
head. But these men did not so much kill
Stephen as they killed themselves. Every
stone rebounded upon them. While these
murderers were transfixed by the s.orn Of
all good men Stephen lives in the admira-
ton Of all Christendom. Stephen stoned,
but Stephen alive. So all good men must
be pelted. All who will live godly In
Christ Jesus must suffer persecution. It
is no oulogy of man to say that every
body likes him. Show me any one who is
doing all his duty to state or church, and
! will show you men who utterly abhor
him.
If all men speak well Of you, ills be-
cause you are eithor laggard or dolt
If steamer makes rapid progress through
the waves, the water will boil and foam
all around 1t. Brave soldiers Of jesus
' Christ will hear the carbines click. When
sec man with voice and money and in
1uence all OIL tho right sido and some car
feature him and some sneer at hiu and
some dcnounce him and men who pretend
to be actuated by right motives conspire
to cripple him, to cast him out, to destroy
him, say, "Ssephen stonodp'
When l see a man in some great moral
or religious reform battling against grog-
shops, exposing wickedness in high places,
by active means trying to purify tho
church and better the worlds estate and
find that some of the newspapers anathe-
matize him and men-oven good men
oppose him and dcnounce him because,
though he does good he does not do it in
their way, Isay, Stephen stoncd! The
world, with infinite spite, took after John
Frederick Oborlin and Paul and Stephen
of the text, but you notice, my friends,
that while they assaulted him they did not
succeed really in killing him. You may
assault good man. but you cannot kill
him.
On tho day of his death Stephen spoke
before few people in the sanhedrln.
Now he addresses all Christendom. Paul
the apostle stood on Mars hill addressing
handful of philosophers who knew not
so much about science as modern school
girl. Today he talks to all the millions Of,
Christendom about the wonders of justifl-
cation and the glories of resurrection.
John Wesley was howled down by the mob
to whom he preached, and they threw
bricks at him, and they denounced him,
and they jostled him, and they spat upon
him, and yet today, in all lands, he Is ad
mitted to be the great father of Metho-
dism. Booths bullet vacated tho presden-
tial chair, but from that spot of coagulated
blood on the floor in the box of Ford's
theater there sprang up tho new life of a
nation. Stephen stoned, but Stephen
aliyel
Stephens Dying Prayer.
Pass on now and see Stephen in his dying
prayer. His first thought was not how
the stones hurt his head, nor what would
become of his body. His first thought
was about his spirit. "Lord Jesus, re-
ceive my spirit" Tho murderer standing
on the trapdoor, the black cap being drawn
over his head before tho execution may
grimace about The future, but you and 1
have no shame in confessing some anxiety
about whero wo aro going to come out.
You are not all body. There is within
you soul. see itgloam from your eyes
and soc it irradating your countenance.
Sometimes am abashed before an audi
ence not because come under their phys |
ical eycsight, but because l realize the
truth that stand before so many immor-
tai spirits. The probability Is that your
body will at last find sopulcher in some
Of the cemeteries that surround your town
or city. There is no doubt but that your
obsequies will be decent and respectful,
and you will be able to pillow your head
under the maple, or tho Norway spruce
or the cypress, OF the blossoming fir, but
this spirit about which Stephen prayed
what direction will that take? What guide
will escort it? What gate will open to re-
ceive it2 What cloud will bo cleft for its
pathway After it has got beyond the
light of our sun, will there be torches
lighted for it tho rest Of the way? Will
the soul havo to travel through long des-
erts before it reaches the good land9 If
We should lose our pathway, will there bo
o castle at whose gate we Lay ask the way
to the city; Oh, this mysterious spirit
within us! 1t has two wings, but II Is in
cnge now. 1t Is locked fast to keep 1t,
but let tho door of this cage open the least,
and that soul ia off. Eaglo's wing could
not catch it. The lightnings are not swift
enough to take up with it, When the soul
leaves the body, it takes 50 worlds at
bound. And havo no anxiety about itf
Have you no anxiety about itP
do not care what you do with my body
when my soul is gone or whether you be-
love in cremation or inhumaton. shall
sleep just as woll in a wrapping Of sack
cloth as in satin lined with eagles down.
But my soul-before this day passes will
find out whore 1t will land. Thank God
for the intimation Of my text, that when
wo dio Jesus takes u.s. That answers all
questions for ne. What though there were
massive bars between here and the city Of
light Jesus could remove them. What
though there were great Saharas Of dark
ness, Jesus could illume them. What
though I get weary on the way, Christ
could lift me OH his omnipotent shoulder.
What though there were ohasms to GROSS,
his hand could transport me. Then let
Stephens prayer be my dying litany,
Lord Jesus, receive my spirit" 1t may
be in that hour we will be too feeble to
gay long PRAYER. 1t may be in that hour |