Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1898-06-29
NO. 90

In most or our churches we have three
prayers-the opening prayer, what IL
| called the "long prayer" and the closing
| prayer. There are many people who
spend their first prayer in arranging their
apparel after entrance, and spend the Sec
ond prayer, the "long prayer" in wishing
1t were through, and spend the last
prayer in preparing to start for home.
| The most insignificant part OF every re-
| ligious service is the sermon. The more
| important parts are the Scripture lesson
| and the PRAYER. The sermon is only man
talking to a man. The Scripture lesson is
| God talking to man. Prayer Is man talk
ing to God. oh, II we understood the
grandeur and the pathos Of this exercise
OF PRAYER instead Of being a dull exercise,
we would imagine that the room was full
OF divine and angelic Appearances.
But, my friends, the old style church will
not do the work. We might as well now
try to take all the passengers from Wash
ington to New York by stage coach. or all
the passengers from Albany to Buffalo by
canal boat, or do all the battling OF the
world with bow and arrow, as with the old
style Of church to meet the exigencies OF
this day Unless the church In our day
will adapt itself to the time, 1t will become
extinct. The people reading newspapers
and books all the week, in alert, pictur-
es1ue and resounding style, will have no
patience with Sabbath humdrum.
But while halt of the doors Of the church
are to De set open toward tuiS Woriu, tue
other half of the doors of tie church must
be set open toward the next. You and
tarry here only brief space. We want
somebody to teach US how to get
out OF this life at the right time
and in the right way. Some fall out OF
go groaning out of life, some go
cursing ont of life. We want to go
singing, rising, rejoicing. triumphing.
We want half the doors of the church set
In that direction. We want haif the pray
ers that way, half the sermons that way.
We want to know how to get ashore from
the tumuit of this world into the land OF
everlasting peace. We do not want to stand
doubling and shivering when we go away
from this world; we want our anticipation
aroused to the highest pitch. We want to
have the exhilaratiOn OF a dying child in
England, the father telling me the story.
When he said to her, ''Is the path mar
row?" she answered. The path is narrow;
1t is so narrow that can not walk arm in
arm with Christ, so Jesus goes ahead, and
He says, Mary, follow" Through the
church gates set heavenward how many of
your friends and mine have gone? The
last time they were out of the house they
came to church. The earthly pilgrimage
ended at the pillar of public worship, and
then they marched out to bigger and
brighter assembage. Some OF them were so
old they could not walk without cane or
two crutches; now they have eternal
juvenescence. Or they were so young
they could not walk except as the ma
ternal hand guided them; now they bound
with the hilarities celestial. The last time
we saw them they were wasted with mala-
rial or pulmonic disorder; but now they
have no fatigue, and no difficulty OF res
piration In the pure air of heaven. How |
wonder when you and l will cross overi
Some of you have had about enough OF tho
humping and failing of this life. A
draught from the fountains of heaven
would do you good. Complete release you
could stand very well. If you got on the
other side, and had permission to come
back, you would not come. Though you
were invited to come back and Join your
friends on earth, you would say, mo, let
me tarry here until they come; shall not
risk going back; IL a man reaches heaven
he had better stay here
Oh, join hands with you in that uplift-
ed splendor.
In Freybourg. Switzerland, there is the
trunk of tree four hundred years old.
That tree was planted to commemorate an
event. About ten miles from the city the
Swiss conquered the Burgundians, and
young man wanted to take the tidings to
the city. He took n tree branch and rau
with such speed the ten miles, that when
he reached the city waving the tree
branch he had only strength to cry, "Vic-
toryl'' and dropped dead. Thet tree branch
that he carried was planted, and 1t grewtJ
be a great tree twenty feet in circumier-
ence, and the remains of it are there to
this day. My hearer, when you have
fought your last battle with sin and death
aud hell, and they have been routed in the
conflict, it will be a joy worthy of celebra-
ton. You Will fly to the city and cry
Victory" and drop at the feet of the great
King. Then the palm branch ofthe earthly
race will be planted to become the out
branching tree of everlasting rejoicing:
When shall these eyes Thy heaven built
walls,
And pearly gates behold,
Thy bulwarks with sal"ation strong,
And streets Of shining gold?