Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1899-07-21

gives one swallow. ana the dFOncuafA
disappears forever. He strained out 4
gnat: he swallowed n camel.
Christ's scaIpel.
While Christ's audieuoe was yet
smiling at the apposilcncss aud Wit OF
his illustration-tor smile they did. un-
less they were too stupid to under.
stand the hyperbole-Christ practical
ly said 10 them. THAT is you" Pune
tlious about small things; reckless
about analrs of great magnitude. No
subject ever WINGED under a surgeons
knife more bitterly than did the Phari-
sees under Chrst's scalpel Of truth
As an anatomist will take a human
body to pieces and put the pieces un-
der a microscope for examination. so
Christ finds his way to the heart Of
the dead Pharisce and cuts ii ont and
puts 1t under the glass Of inspection
for all generations to examine. Those
Pharisees thought that Christ would
hatter them and compliment them.
and how they must have wrlthed I'M
der the redhot words rs he said, "Ye
fools. ye whted sepulcherS. ye blind
guides. which strain out a gnat and
swallow n camel
There are in our day a great many
gnats strained out and a great many
camols swallowed. and it is the object
OF this sermon to sketch a few per-
soas who are extensively engaged in
tl,at business.
First, remark. that all those minis
ters of the gospel who are very scru-
pulous about the conventionalities of re-
ligion. but put no particular stress up
on matters OF vast Importance. are
photographed in the text. Church Sery-
ices ought to be grave and solemn.
There is no room for fryolity in re-
llgious conyocation. But there are il
ustrations. and there are hyperboles
like that of Christ in the text, that
will irradiate with smiles any intelli
gent audience There are men Ike
those blind guides of the text who adj
vocate only those things In religious
service which draw the corners of the
mouth down and dcnounce all those
things which have tendency TO draw
the corners of the mouth mp. and these
men will 20 TO installations and 20
presbyteries and TO conferences and 90
associations their pockets full Of fine
sicves to strain ont the euats. while
I'm their own churches al home every
Sunday there are 30 people sound
asleep. They make their churches 4
great dOrmitory. and their somniferous
sermons are a cradle and the drawlcd
ont hymns lullaby. while some wake
ful soul in n pew with her fan keeps
the flies OF unconscious persons mp.
proximate. Noy. / say it is worse TO
sleep in church than 10 smii" In church.
for the latter implies nj least atten-
flon. while the former implies the i'm
difference Of the hearers AMI the stu
pidity Of the speaker.
In old age or from physical indrni
~ or from long watching with the
sick drowsneSS win sometimes over
power one. hut when minister Of the
gospel looks of upon an audience and
finds healthy and Intelligent people
struggling with drowSineSs it is time
FOR him 10 give out the doXology or
pronounce the honpdictiOn. The great
.ault OF church services today is not
too much viyacity. but too much
somnolen.e. The one is an irritating
,,nat that may be easily strained out;
the other is great. spfawling and
sleepy eyed camel OF the dry desert.
In all our sabbath schools. in all our
Bible classes. IN all our pulpits we
need to brighten UP our religious mes
sage win such Christlike vlyacity as
we find in the text.
Wit and Humor.
| take down from my library the
biographies of ministers and writers
of the past ages, inspired ana unln-
spired who have done the most to
bring souls to Jesus Christ. and find
| that without Il single exception they
consecrated their wit and their humor
to Christ. Elijah used it when he ad'
yised the BaaliIes. as they could not
make their god respond. to call louder,
as their god might be sound asleep or
gone a-huntng job used it when he
said to his self conccitcd comforters'
| "Wisdom will die with YOU Christ
not only used il in the text but when
he ironically complimented the cor
rupt Pharsees, saying, THE whole
need not a physician" and when 10y
one word he described the cunning of
! Herod, saying. "Go ye and tell that
fox" Matthew Henry's commentaries
from the first page to the last cor
ruscated with humor, as summer
clouds with heat lightning.
John Bunyan's writings are as full
of humor as they are of saving truth.
and there is not an aged man here who
has ever read "Pilgrim's Progress
who does not remember that while
reading Il he smiled rs often as he
wept. ChrySostOm. George Herbert
Robert South. George Whitctield. Jerc-
my Taylor. Rowland Hin. Ashael Net
Teton. Charles G. Finney and all the
men of the past who greatly advanced
the kingdom Of God consecratcd their
wit and their humor TO the cause or
Christ. So it has been in all the ages.
and say to all our young theological
students, sharpen your wits until they
are as keen as Scimiters and then take
them into this holy war. II is very
short bridge between smile and n
tear. a suspension bridge from eye to
lip. and it is soon crossed over. and n
smile is sometimes just as sacred rs a
tear. There is as much religion. and !
think a little more in spring morn
ing than In starless midnight Re-
ligious work without any humor or wit
in II is a banquet with a side Of beef
and that raw and no condiments and
no dessert succeeding. People will not
sit down to such n banquet. BY all
means remove all frivOlity and all
, bathOs and all lightneSs and vulgarity
strain them out through the sieve OF
holy discrimination: but. on the Other
hand. beware Of that monster which
overshadoNs the Christian church to-