The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1899-11-02
the Gospel of Jesus Christ. "With long
life will l satisfy him.

Of longevity in the fact that it removes
all corroding care about a future exist
ence. 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 a ship, you want to know
into what harbor it is going to run.
And if you should tell me you have no
in what is to be your future
destiny would, in as polite way as l
know how, tell you l did not believe
you. Before l 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 l make two or three experi-
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, and
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 a 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-
BILE" 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 l 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. l have only one more to
make, and If 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: II take
the sins and sorrows of the ages into
my own heart. l am the expiation.
Witness, earth and Heaven and hell,
I 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!" II will by no
means clear the guilty!" Then there
was silence for half an hour, and the
lightnings were drawn back into the
scabbard of the sky, and the earth
ceased to quiver, and all the colors of
| the sky began to shift into q rainbow
woven out of the falling tears Of Jesus,
and there was red as of the bloodshed-
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: II was
bruised for their iniquities," and along
the line of red l saw the words: "The
blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from
all SIM" and along the line of the green
saw the words: "rhe leaves of the
Tree of Life for the healing of the ma
tions," and along the line of the orange
l saw the words: 1.-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 retreating to another heaven,
and, planting one column of it's colors
on one side of the eternal hill, and plant
the other side the eternal hill, it rose
upward and upward, land, behold.
there was rainbow about the throne
Accept that sacrifice and quit worrying
Take the tonic, the inspiration, the lon
gevity, of this truth. Religion is sun.
shine; that is health. Religion is fresh
air 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.
| What do you want in the future
world? Tell me, and you shall have it
Orchards? There are trees with /:
manner of fruits, yielding fruit every
month. Water scenery? There is til,
river of Life from under the throne o
God, clear as crystal, and the sea o.
glass mingled with fire. Do you wan
music? There is the oratorio OF th'
Creation led on by Adam, and the ora
torio of the Red sea led on by Moses
and the oratorio of the Messiah led OF
| by St. Paul, while the archangel witt
swinging baton controls the Ia, 900 VIII,
make up the orchestra. Do you wan
reunion? There are your children wait
, ing to kiss you, waiting to embrace yog
waiting 10 twist garlands in your hail
You have been accustomed to open II,
{ door on this side the sepulcher.. / one