The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1899-12-20

enced.
ask again OF the interpreter, "Has
death been bapished from the world?'
The answer is, "No, but people die now
only when the physical machinery Is worn
out, and they realize It is time to go and
| going into world where they will be In.
nnitely better of and are to live In q man.
sion that awaits their immediate oc.
cupaucy." But how was all this edected?'
I ask our escort. Answer: "By food ol
gospel power. You-wbo lived In the nine
teenth century never saw revival OF rell.
glon to be compared with what occurred
in the latter part OF the twentieth and the
early part OF the twenty.frst century
The prophecy has been fulfilled that "a
nation shall be born IN day'-that Is, ten
In twenty-four hours. In our church his.
tory we read OF the great awakening oil
1857, when five hundred thousand souls
were saved. But that was only drop OF
the coming showers that since then took
into the kingdom OF God everything be.
tween the Atlantic and the Pacific, be-
tween the Pyrenees and the Hlmalayas."
The evils that good people were in the
nineteenth century trying to destroy have
been overcome by celestial forces. What
human weaponry failed to accomplish has
been done by omnipotent thunderbolts.
As you and see In this terrestrial visit
alton Of the coming centuries that the
church has under God accomplished 30
much, We ask our escort, the spirit OF the
twenty-frst century, to show US the differ
ent kinds OF churches. So we are taken In
and out Of the>churches Of different demon.
nations, and We find that they IRE just as
different in the twenty-frst century as they
were different In the nineteenth when We
%STshiped In them. There Is unity In them
as to the 'grsal essentials Of salvation. But,
We enter the Baptist ChurSa., nal.s IT IS ts:p-
tismal day, anu Ge sec the candidates for
membership immersed. And we 10 into O
PRESBYTERIAN Church and see a group OF
parents around the baptismal font holding
up their children for the christening. And
we enter the Episcopal Church and bear
the solemn roll Of her liturgies, and her
ministers are gowned and surpliced. And
we enter the LutheEan Church, and we
hear in the sermon preached the doctrines
OF the greatest OF German reformers. And
We 20 into the Methodist Church just In
time to sit down ut u love feast and give
audible "Amen" when the service stlrs US.
At least fifty kinds OF churches In the
twenty-flrst century, as there were $50 dif-
fersnt kinds Of churches In the nineteenth
century.
80 spirit OF the twenty-Hrst century, will
you not show US something OF the CONNER
clal life OF your timer" He answers, "To-
morrow I will show you ALL" And on the
morrow he takes US through the great
marts Of trade and shows US the bargain
makers and the shelves on which the goods
Law and the tierces and hogsheads In which
they are contained. / notice that the
fabrics are Of better quality than anything
I ever saw In our nineteenth century, for
the factories are more skillful, and the
wheels that turn and the looms that clack
and the engines that rumble are driven BY
force that were not al century ago discov-
cred.
The prices Of the fabrics indicate rea-
sonable profit, and the firm, In the count
ing room and the clerks attbe counter
and the draymen at the doorway and tho
errand boy on his rounds and the mes.
seb9er who brings the mail and. the men
who open the store In the morning as
we'll as those who close 1t al night NIL
look as II they were satisfied and we'll
treated. No swallowing up Of small
houses OF merchandise by great houses,
no rulnous undersoillng until those In
the same line are bankrupt and then
the prices lifted, no unnecessary assign
ment to deiraud creditors, no over
drawing OF accounts, no abscondings, no
sharp practice, no snap Judgments, but
the manufacturer right In his dealings
with the wholesaler, and the wholesaler
with the retailer, and the retailer with
the customer. No purchasing OF goods TINT
will never be paid for. All right behind
the counter; all right before the counter.
No repetition Of what Solomon describes
when he writes, at Is naught, 1t Is naught,
saith the buyer. but when he Is gone his
way then he boasteth." 20 spirit Of the
twenty-flrst century, how glad I am that
you showed as these stores and factories
and places Of bargain and sale! It was not
always 80 in the nineteenth century. when
We were earthly residents. Many ofthose
merchants who are good at ciphering out
other rules in arithmetic never could cipher
out that sum in the rule OF loss and gain,
what shall 1t profit man II he gain the
whole world and lost his soul2"
"But," say to our escort, the Spirit OF
the twenty-drst century, and YOU and I
say to each other, "we must go home now,
back again to heaven. We huve staid long
enough on this terrestrial visitation to see
that all the best things foretold IN the
Scriptures and which we road during our
earthly residence have come to pass, and
all the Davidic, Solomonic and Paulinian
and Johanneanp prophecies have been full
filled, and that the earth, instead OF be-
ing ghastly failure, Is the mightiet sue
cess IN tho universe. A.star redeemed. A
planet rescued! A world saved! 1t started
with O garden, and 1t is going to close
with garden. What happiness that We
could have seen this old world after 1t was
righted and before 1t burned, for It's in
ternal fires have nearly burned out to the
crust, according to the geologlst. max
Ing It easy for the theologian to be.
lIeye In the conhagratiou that the
Bible predicts. One element taken
from the water and that will burn,
and another element taken from tho MIR
and that will burn, and surrounding plan
cts will watch this old ship OF world on
fire and wonder II all its passengers got
safely of. Before that planetary catas.
trophe, hle us back to heaven. Farewell,
spirit of the twenty-first century! Thanks
for your guidance! We can stay no longer
away from doxologies that never end, In
| temples never closed, in u day that has no
sundown. We must report to tue immor-
tals around the throne the transforma-
tions We have seen, the victories OF truth
on land and sea, the hemispheres irradi-
ated, and Christ on the throne Of Garth, as
He Is on the throne OF heaven"
And now you and I have left our escort
as we ascend, for the law Of gravltatton has
no power to detain ascending spirits. Up
through immensities and BY stellar and
lunar and solar spiendors, which cannot be
described by mortal tongue, We rise higher
and higher, till We reach the shining gate
US 1t opens for our return, and the ques-
tions greet US from all sides: "What Is the
news2 What did you find In that earthly
tower2 What have you to report In this
city OF the sum-" Prophetic, apostolic,
sanity inquiry. And, standing on the steps
of tho house OF many mansions, we cry
aloud the news: Clear 1t, all ye glorifed
Christian workers of all the past centurtesl
We found your work was successful,
whether on earth you tolIed with knitting
needle, or ,rung trowel on a rising wall,
or smote shoe last, or endowed univer.
sity, or swayed a sceptor; whether on earth
you gave q cup OF cold water in the name
OF disciple. or at some Pentecost preached
| Qnnn .o,,lu iof ha ID rdnp,