The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1899-01-13


are those who can most skillfully
WELD the battleax. Blessed are those
who can stab the deepest with spear or
roll q chariot wheel over the most
wounded or put his chargers hoof on
the most dead." The entirely new the
DRY Of our Christ was blessing for ours
ing; prayer for those who despitefully
use you; foundries TO turn spears Into
pruning hooks. redhot furnaces to
melt swords into molds shaped like
plowshares. II gigantic acerbities and
worldwide tigerisms had, without any
Gospel opposition. gone on until now
and been augmented by 1.S9s years OF
ferocity. BY this time what would this
world have been turned into? You
need not remind me OF the awful wars
since the opening of the year ] OF our
Christian era. for If the earth has been
again and again liberated into an Acel-
DANA. through improved weaponry OF
death and more rapidly of fire. Prus-
sian breechloader, which In 1866
startled the nations with unprecedent-
ed havoc. eclipsed by ~contrivances that
can sweep vastcr numbers to death by
one volley. and telegraphy adding to
gunnery new facilities for slaughter by
Instantly ordering armies to where
they can do the most Wholesale murder
II say If all this woe has been wrought,
how much worse would it have been II
the Christly revelation had not been
let down from Heaven on fve-runged
ladder OF musical scale. and there had
been no preaching Of good will all up
and down Christendom for 10 cen
tdries! The Bethlehem manger has
given the most potent suggestion OF
peace the world has ever received. The
cavalry horses cannot eat out of that
manger.
take another step forward in show
ing the narrow escape you and ! had
and the world had in the secretion OF
Christ's birthplace from the Herodic de-
tectives and the clubs with which they
would have dashed the Babes life out
when l say that without the life that
began that night in Bethlehem the
world would have had no illumined
deathbeds. Before the time OF Christ
good people closed their earthly lives
in peace while depending upon the
Christ TO come. and there were ante
diluvian saints, and Assyrian saints,
and Egyptian saints and Grecian saints,
and Jerusalem saints long before the
clouds above Bethlehem became a bal
o filed with the best singers OF .
world where they all sing, but cannot
read that there was anything more
than a quieting guess that came to
those before Christ deathbeds. JOB
said something bordering on the confi-
dent. but it was mixed up with a story
OF Skin worms" that would destroy his
body. Abraham and Jacob had a little
light on the dying pillow. but. COM
pared with the after Christ ~deathbeds,
it was like the dim tallow candle OF old
beside the modern cluster OF lights
electric. l know Elijah went up In
memorable manner, but II was a TERRI
bic way To- goa whirlwind Of fire that
must have been splendid to look at ny
those who stood on the banks OF the
Jordan, but 1t was a style Of ascent that
required more nerve than you and |
ever had, to be a placid occupant Of .
chariot drawn by such q wild team.
The triumphant deathbeds, as far Is I
know, were the after Christ dtathbeds.
What ! procession Of hosannas have
marched through the dying room Of the
suinta Of Jfhe list I = 1siesi What