The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1898-09-23


aud four feet three inches in height and
depth, was the symbol of Gods pres
ence. AS the leaders Of the procession
lifted this ornamented and brilliant box
by two golden poles run through four
golden rings, and started for Mount
Zion, all the people chanted the battle
hymn of my text, Let God arise, let
his enemies be scattered"
The Cameronians of Scotland, out
ragged by James l., who forced upon
them religious forms that were Of
fensive, and by the terrible persecution
of Drummond, Dalziel and Turner, and
by the oppressive laws OF Charles /.
and Charles H., were driven TO pro-
claim war against tyrants, and went
forth to fight for religious liberty; and
the mountain heather became red with
carnage, and at Boutwell, Bridge and
Ards Moss and Drumclog the battle
hymn and the battle shout Of those
glorious old Scotchmen was the text
/ have chosen: LET God arise, let his
enemies be scattered"
What a whirlwind Of power was Oil
yer Cromwell, and how with his SOL
diers, named the "Ironsides," he went
from victory to victory! Opposing
enemies melted as he looked at them.
He dismissed parliament as easily as
a schoolmaster a school. He pointed
his finger at Berkeley Castle, and it
was taken. He ordered Sir Ralph Hop
ton, the general, to dismouut, and he
dismounted. See Cromwell marching
on with his army, and hear the battle
cry Of the "Ironsides," loud as a storm
and solemn as a death-knell, standards
Keeling before it, and cavalry horses
going back on their launches, and
armies flying at Marston Moor, at
Winceby Field, at Naseby at Bridge
water and Dartmouth-"Let God arise,
let his enemies be scattered"
So you see nay text is not like a
complimentary and tasseled sword
that you sometimes see hung up in
parlor, a sword that was never in bat
tie, and only to be used on general
training day, but more like some weap-
on carefully hung up in your home,
telling its story of battles. for my text
hangs in the Scripture armory, telling
OF the holy wars of three thousand
years in which it has been carried, but
still as keen and mighty as when Da-
vid first unsheathed it, 1t seems to
me that in the church of God, and in
all styles of reformatory work, what
We most need now is battle-cry. We
raise our little standard, and put on
1t the name Of some man who only
few years ago began to live and IT a
few years will cease to live. We go in
to contest against the armies of iniqui-
ty, depending too much on human
agencies. We use for a battle-cry the
name Of some brave Christian reform
er, but after a while that reformer dies,
or gets old, or loses his courage, and
then We take another battle-cry, and
this time perhaps we put the name OF
some one who betrays the cause and
sells out to the enemy. What we want
for a battle-cry is the name of some
leader who will never betray us, and
will never surrender, and will never
die.
All respect have for brave men and
women, but IL we are to get the victory
all along the line we must take the
hint of the Gideonites, who wiped out
the Bedouin Arabs. commonly called
Midianites. These Gideonites had
glorious leader in Gideon, but what was
the battle-cry with which they flung
their enemies into the worst defeat in
to which any army was ever tumbled?
1t was THE sword of the Lord and of
Gideon" Put God first, whoever you
put second. If the army of the Ameri-
can revolution is to free America, il
must be "The sword of the Lord and
Of Washington" If the Germans want
to win the day at Sedan, it must be
THE sword Of the Lord and Won Mott
ke." Waterloo was won for the Eng
fish, because not only the armed men
at the front, but the worshipers in the
cathedrals at the rear, were crying
1.-THE sword of the Lord and Yelling
ton"
The Methodists have gone in triumph
across nation after nation with the
cry, 1.-THE sword OF the Lord and of
Wesley" The Presbyterians have
gone from victory to victory with the
cry, THE sword of the Lord and John
Knox" The Baptists have conquered
millions after millions for Christ with
the cry, 1.-THE sword of the Lord and
of Judson" The American Episcopa-
lians have won their mighty way with
the cry, THE sword of the Lord and of
Bishop M'Ilvaine." The victory is TO
those who put God first. But as we
want a battle-cry suited to ell sects
Of religionists, and to all lands, I
nominate as the battle-cry OF Christen-
dom in the approaching Armageddon
the words of my text, sounded before
the ark as 1t was carried to Mount
Zion: LET God arise, let his enemies
be scattered"
AS far as our finite mind can Judge.
II seems about time for God to rise.
Does it not seem to you that the abom-
nations Of this earth have gone far
enough? Was there ever time when
sin was so defiant? Were there ever
before so many fists lifted toward God
telling him TO come on III he dare?