Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1899-11-03
n UMBER A.


life will | satisfy him"
Again, practical religion is friend
of longevity in the fact I hat it removes
all oorroding care about future exist
rnce. Every man wants to know what
is TO become of him. If you get on
board a rail train, You want to know at
what depot it is going to stop. If you
get on board ship, you want to know
into what harbor it is going to run.
AMI ii you should tell me you have no
interest in what is to be your future
destiny | would, in as polite way rs
know how, tell you did not believe
you. Before | had this matter settled
with reference to my future existence
the question almost worried me into
ruined health. The anxieties men have
upon this subject, put together, would
make a martyrdom. This is a state of
awful unhealthiness. There are people
who fret themselves to death for fear
of dying. ] want TO take the strain Off
your nerves and the depression off your
soul, and | make two or three expert
ments Experiment first: When you
go out of this world it does not make
any difference whether you have been
good or bad, whether you believed truth
or error, you will go straight to glory.
impossible" you say, "My common
sense as well as my religion teaches that
the bad and the good cannot live togeth-
er forever. You give me no comfort in
that experiment" Experiment the Sec
ond: When you leave this world you
will go into an intermediate state, where
you can-get converted and prepared for
Heaven. impossible" you say. "As
the tree falleth, so must it lie, aud ]
cannot postpone TO an intermediate
state reformation which ought to have
been effected in this state" Expert
ment the third: There is no future
world. When man dies, that is the
last of him. Do not worry about what
YOU are to do in another state of being.
You will not do anything. "Impossi.
ble," you say. "There is something that
tells me that death is not the appendix.
but the preface, to life. There is some
thing that tells me that on this side
of the grave | only get started and
that shall go on forever. My power to
think says forever my affections say
forever my capacity to enjoy or suf.
fer, forever"
Well, you defeat me in my three ex-
periments. | have only one more to
make, and il you defeat me in that am
exhausted. A mighty One on knoll
back of Jerusalem one day, the skies
filled with forked lightnings and the
earth filled with volcanic disturbances,
turned His pale and agonized face
toward the heavens and said: "I take
the sins and sorrows of the ages into
my own heart l am the expiation.
Witness, earth and Heaven aud hell,
| am the eXpiation." And the hammer
struck Him, and the spears punctured
him, and Heaven thundered: "The
wages of sin is DEATH" "The soul that
sinneth, it shall die!" 81 will by no
means clear the guilty." Then there
was silence for half an hour, and the
hghtnings were drawn back into tho
scabbard of the sky, and the earth
ceased to culver, and all the colors of
the sky began to shift into a rainbow
woven out of the falling tears of Jesus,
ana there was red as of the boodshed-
ding, and there was blue as of the bruis.
ing, and there was green as of the
heavenly foliage, and there was orange
as of the day dawn, and along the line
of the blue | saw the words: ~ was
bruised for their iniquities," and along
the Iine of red saw the words: "The
blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from
all SIM and along the line of the green
saw the words "The leaves of the
Tree OF Life for the healing of the ma
tons" and along the line of the orange
] saw the words: "The day spring
from on high hath visited u.s." and
then | saw the storm was over, and the
rainbow rose higher and higher until it
seemed rctreating TO another heaven,
ana, planting one column of its colors
on one side of the eternal hill, ard plant
ing the other column of its colors on
the other side the eternal hill. it ros,
upward and upward, "and behold.
there was rainbow about the throne"
Accept that sacrifice and quit worrying
Take the tonic, the inspiration, the lon.
gcvlty, of this truth. Religion is sun
shine; that is health. Religion is fresh
AR and pure water; they are healthy.
religion is warmth; that is healthy.
ASK all the doctors, and they will tell
you that quiet conscience and pleas
ant anticipations are hygienic | offer
you perfect peace now and hereafter.
what do you want in the future
world? Tell me, and you shall have il.
orchards? There arc trees with 12
manner of fruits, yielding fruit every
month. Water scenery? There is the
river of Life from under the throne of
God, clear as crystal, and the sea of
glass mingled with fire. DO you want
music? There is the oratorio of the
Creation led on by Adam, and the ora
lorio OF the Red sea led on by Moses,
and the oratorio of the Messiah led on
by st. Paul, while The archnngel with
swinging baton controls the IA, 900 who
make up the orchestra. Do you want
reunion? There are your children wait
ng to kiss you, waiting to embrace Won.
waiting to twist garlands in your hair.
You have been accustomed 20 open the
ioor on this side the sepulcher. ! open
'he door on the other side the sepul-
'her. You have been accustomed IN
walk in the wet grass on the top of the
grave show you the under side OF
NE grave. The bottom has fallen out.
ma the long ropes with which the pail
bearers let down your dead let them
clear through into Heaven.
Glory be to God for this robust
healthy religion! 1t will have a tend.
'ncy to make you live long in this world.