The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1898-03-09

On. If this bc so, the multltudcs OF the
saved will te III vast majority.
Take all the congregations that have
today assembled for worship. Put them
together and t!ey would make but
small audience compared with the thou
sands, and tens Of thousands, and ten
Thousand times ten thousand, ard the
hundred and forty and four thousand
that shall stand around the throne.
Those flashed I'D TO heaven il! martyr
fires; these tossed Cor many years upon
the invalid couch; those fonght i'll the
armies Of liberty and rose as they fell;
those tumbled from high scafIoldinss or
slipped from the mast or were washed
off into tie sea. They came up from
Corinth, from Laodicea, frCm tie Red
sea bank and GeEesareth's wave, from
Egyptian brickyarls and Gideon's
thrashing floor. Those, thousands Of
years ago, slept the last sleep, and these
are this moment having their eyes clos
ed and their limbs stretched out for the
sepulcher.
a general expecting al attack from
the enemy stands on hill and looks
through 1ielGglass and sees in the
great distance multitudes approaching,
but has no idea Of their numbers. He
says: Il cannot tell anything about
them. merely Know that there are
great number. And SO John, without
attempting to count, says, "a great
multitude that no man can number.
JOY of Heaven.
We are told that heaven is place Of
happiness, but what do we know about
happiness: Happiness in this world is
only half fiedged thing, q fiowery path
with a serpent Kissing across it, a bro
ken pitcher from which the water las
dropped hefcre we could drink it, thrill
of exhilaration, followed By disastrous
reactions. To help rs understand the
JOY of heaven the Bible takes US to
river. We stand OH the grassy bank.
We see the waters flow on with cease
less wave But the filth of TIE cities is
emptied into it, and the banks are torn,
and unhealthy ezhalations spring up
1IOul II, dlill VIZ 1C11 W SSc e~13 3ACfS VI
the river CT life il heaven.
We set very imperfect ideas of the
reunions CT heaven. We think Of some
festal day Gil earth when father and
mother were yet living and the children
came home. 4 coed time that! But
it had this draw back-all were not
there. That brother went off to sea and
never was heard from. That sister-did
we not lay her away in the freshness OF
her young life, never more III this world
to look upon her: All, there was skel-
eton at the feast, and tears mingled
with our laughter on that Christmas
day. Not so with heavens reunions. 1t
will be al uninterrupted sladness.
Many Christian parent will lcok
around and find all his children there.
"Ah," lie says, 'can it be possible that
we are all here-life's perils over? The
Jordan passed and not one wanting:
Why, even the prodisal is here. al
most gave him up. How long he de-
spised my counsels! But grace hath til.
umphed All here, all here! Tell the
mighty Joy through the city. Let the
bells ring and the angels mention it in
their song. Wave it from the top cf the
walls. AL here"
Face to Face.
No mere breaking Of heartstrings,
but face to FACE. The orphans that were
left poor ai:d in a merciless world,
kicked and cuffcd CT many hardships,
shall join their parents, over whose
graves they 20 long wept, and gaze into
their glOritied countenances forever, face
to face. We may come up from differ
ent parts of the world, Cne from the
land and another from the depths Of
tie sea, from lives afflrent and prosper
ous, CT from scenes of ragged distress,
but we shall all meet in rartnre and
jubilee, face to face.
Many OF our friends have entered
upon that JOY. \ few days ago they sat
with Us studying these gospel themes,
but they only saw through 4 glass, dark
ly. Now revelation hath come. Your
time will also come. God will not
leave you fOunderipg in the darkness.
You stand wonder struck and amazed.
You feel as if al the loyeliness OF life
were dashed out. You stand gazing Into
the cDen chasm of the grave. Wait a
little. In the presence OF your departed
and Of him who carries them III his
bosom YOU shall soon stand face to face.
Oh, that Cur last hour may kindle up
with tiiis promised joy! May we te
able to say, like the Christian rot long
ago departing, Though a pilgrim,
walking through the valley, the noun
tain tops are cleaning from peak to
peak,'' Ul, like my dear friend and
brother, Alfred Ccoknan, who took his
fight to the throne of God, saying III
| his last ricMeLt that which has already
gone into Christian classics, Il &m
sweeping through the pearly gate,
| washed il the Elo~l Of tie Lamb. "
a Sarc:stjc jc Postmaster,