Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1899-04-08

Of sin n he will not surrender Women
saved by the grace of God and on glorious
mission sent detained from Sabbath
Glasses because their new hat is not done
Churches that shook our cities with great
REVEALS sending around Ia ask some dem
onstrative worshiper If he will not please
10 say amen and hallcluiah little
softer II seems as If in our churches we
wanted baptism of cologne and balm of
thousand flowers when we actually
need baptism Of fire from the Lord God
Of Pe1'ecost But we are 50 afraid some.
body " i'll criticisc our sermons or criticise
our prayers or criticise our religious work
that our anxiety for the worlds rcdcmp-
tion j. lost in the fear we will get our
hand hurt, while Eleazar went into the
eonilict, and his hand clave unto the
sword -
But see in the next place what hard
thing it was iur Elcazar To get his hand
and his sword parted The muscles and
the sinews had been 80 long graspcd
around the sword he could not drop il
when he proposed 20 drop it, and his three
comrades suppose. came up and tried To
help him, and they bathcd the back part
Of The hand hoping the sinews and mus
cles would relax But. no. His hand
claye unto the sword. - Then they tried
to pull open the fingers and To pull back
the thumb. but no sooner were they pulled
back than they closed again, and his
hand clave unto the sword - But after
awhile they were successful. and then they
noticed that the curve in the palm Of the
hand correspondent exactly with the curve
of the hilt Ills hand clave unto the
sword -
Yon and have seen il many time.
There are in the United States today many
aged ministers of the gospel They are
too feeble now Ia preach In the church
records the word standing opposite their
name is emeritus, or the words are,
"a minister without charge They were
"A heroic race. They had small salaries
and but few books and they swan spring
freshcts To meet their appointments. But
they did in their day mighty work for
God They took off more Of the heads Of
Philistine iniquiiy than you could count
from noon 10 sundown You put that old
minister of the gospel now into prayer
meeting or occasional pulpit ora sckroom
where there is some one To he comforted,
and il is the same old ring TO his voice,
and the same old story of pardon and
peace and Christ and heaven. His hand
has 80 long clutched the sword i'm Chris
tian conflict he cannot drop IL. His hand
lave unto the sword =
Artor For Christ.
had in Iny parish in Philadelphia a
very aged man who in his early life had
been the companion and adviser of the
early presidents, Madison and Monroe
He had welded vast influence, but only
knew him rs n very aged man. The most
remarkable thing about him was his ardor
for Christ When he could not stand up
in the meetings without propping. he
would throw his arm around pillar OF
the church, and, though his mind was
partially gone, his love for Christ was so
great that all were in deep respect and
profound admiration, and were moved
when he spoke | was called To see him
die. | entered the room. and he said
MIR. Talmage, l cannot speak TO you
now. He was in a very pleasant de-
lirium. rs he imagined he had an audience
before him. He said. Il must tell these
people 10 come 10 Christ and prepare for
heaven And then in this pleasant de-
lirium. both arms lifted. this octogenarian
preached Christ and told of the glorics of
the world TO come There. lying on his
dying pillow, his dying hand clave to his
sword
oh, if there ever was any one who had
"A right 10 retire from the conflict. il was
old Joshua. soldiers come back from bat
tie have the names Of the battles on their
flags, showing where they distinguished
themselves, and IL Is "A very appropriate
inscription. Look at that flag of old GEN
cral Joshua On IL. Jericho. Gideon, Ha-
Ear. city Of Al, and instead of the stars
sprinklcd on the flag the sun and the moon
which stood still There he is, 40 years
old He Is lying fiat on his back. but he is
preaching. His dying words are hattie
charge against idolatry and rallying cry
for the Lord Of Hosts a. he says, = Behold,
this day | 20 the way Of all the earth. and
God hath not failed To fulfil his promise
concerning Israel. His dying hand clave
unto the sword
There is the hcadless body Of Paul on
the road to Ostca His great brain and
his great heart have been severed The
elmwOod rods had stung him fcarfully
When the corn ship broke up, he swan
ashore, coming up drcnehcd with the
brine. Every day since that day when the
horse reared under him in the suburbs of
Damascus. a. the supernatural light fell,
down 10 this day. when he i iS years of
age and i'll from the prison cell Of the
Mamcrtine, he has been outrageously
treated. and he is waiting to die How
does he spend his laSt hours Telling the
world how badly he feels and describing
the rheumatism that he got in prison, the
rheumatism affecting his limbs. or the
neuralgia piercing his temples, or the
thirst that feyers his tongue? oh, no. His
last words are the battle shout for Chris
tendon: II am now ready To bc offered,
and the time Of my departure is at hand.
| have fought the good fight And so his
lying hand clave unto the sword.
II was i'm the front room ON the second
floor that my father lay a-dying II was
saturday morning. o'clock Just three
years before that day my mother had left
him for the skies. and he had been home
sick to join her company. He was 81
years of age. Ministers of the gospel came
in 10 comfort him, bat he confortcd them.
How wonderfully the words sounded out
from his dying pillow, Il have been young
and now am old vet have | never seen
the righteous fursakcn or his seed begging
bread They bathcd his brow. and they
bathcd his hands and they haihcd his feet,
and they succeeded in strengthening out
the feet. but they did not succeed in bath
ing open the hand So il would stay open.
They Lathed the hand open. hut it came
shut They bathcd it open again. but il
came shut What was the matter with the
thumb and the fingers Of that old hand:
All. it had 50 long touched the sword of
Christian conflict that his hand clave
unto the sword
The sermon as ~ Tonic.
intend this sermon "a - tonic want
you To- hold the truth with incradicablc
grip, and | want you Ia strike so hard for
God that IL will react. and while you take
the sword the sword will take you You
notice that the officers of the northern
army every year assemble, and you notice
that the officers of the southern army every
year assemble soldiers coming together
arr very apt Ia recount their experiences
and to show their SCARS Here is "a soldier
who pulls up his sleeve and says. There,
was wounded in that arm, and shows
/ the scar And another soldier pulls down
his collar and says. There. was wound
cd in the neck And another soldier says
/ have had no uSc Of that limb since the
/ gunshOt fracture. Oh. my friends. when
the battle of life is over and the resurrcc.