Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1900-09-28

| NO orator ever Won SuCH UidUutIS us lie
| might have won from sanhedrin and syn
| agogue and vast audiences by the seaside:
| no physician ever got such reputation
| for healing power as He might have OBJ.
tanned If He had performed His wonder
| full cures before the Roman aristocracy
say these things to let you know what
| Paul meant when he SAID, ''He pleased not
| Himself" and to show something of the
wonders of His self sacrifice All human
power together could not have thrown
! Christ into tho manger if He had not
| chosen TO 20 there: all satanic strength
| could not have lifted Christ unon the
| cross II He had not elected Himself to the
| torture.
To save our race from sin and death
| and hell He faced all the sorrows Of this
world and the sorrows of eternity. How
| much of that self sacrifice have we?
What is self sacrifice? IL is my walk
ing a long journey to save you from ia
tigue: 1t is my lifting a great number OF
pounds to save YOU from the awful strain:
il is a subtraction from my comfort and
prosperity so that there may be an addi-
ton to your comfort and nrosnerlty. How
much of that have we? Might not l
rather say. "How little have WEI"
Two children brother and sister. were
passing down the road They were both
very destitute The lad had hardly any
garments at all. His sister had a coat
that she had outqrown It was very
cold day. She said. Johnnie. como I'M
der this coat" ooh" he said. mo; the
coat isn't large enough" oh" she said,
at will stretch" He comes under the
coat, but the coat would not stretch. So
she took off the coat and put it on him.
Self sacrifice. pure and simple. Christ
i i. Ill. oh
Self sacrifice! ] have not any Of 1t, nor
have you. compared with that. The sac
rifce of the Son Of God.
Christ walked to Emmaus: Christ
walked from Capernaum TO Bethany;
Christ walked from Jerusalem TO Col
gotha. How far have Won and | walked
for Christ? His head ached; His heart
nched: His back ached. How much have
we ached for Christ?
How much of that humility have we?
Ii we get a few more dollars than other
people or gain little higher position, oh,
how we strut We go around wanting
everybody to know their place and say.
'1s not this great Babylon that | have
built for the honor of my KINGDOM and by
the might of my strength" Who has
ANYTHING of the humility of Christ?
The disposition of Christ was also the
spirit of prayer. Prayer on the mount
aims, prayer Qp the sea. PRAYER among the
sick--prayer everywhere. Prayer for lit
tie children Father, thank Thee that
Thou hast hidden these things from the
wise and nrudent and revealed them unto
babes" Prayer for His friends Father.
J will that they be with Me where ! am
Prayer for His enemies. Father, forgive
them: they know not what they do"
Prayer for all nations, Thy kingdom
come"
How little OF that spirit you and | have!
How soon our knees get tired! Where is
the vial full of odors which are the pray
ers of all the saints! Which of us can
Keep our mind ten minutes on prayer
without wandering? Not you: not |. Oh,
that we might have the spirit OF prayer
which was the spirit of Christ,
We want more prayer in the family,
in the legislative hall. more prayer among
the sick more prayer among the aged,
more prayer among the young. The great
advancement OF the church is to be in that
direction vet.
The spirit of Christ | remark lastly,
was spirit of hard work. Not one lazy
moment in all His life. Whether He was
talking to the fishermen on the beach,
or preaching to the sailors on the dock,
OF administering to the rustics amid the
mountains, OF spending an evening IN
Bethany. always busy for others With
hands, heart, head, busy for others-hew
ing in the Nazareth carpenter shop, teach
ing the lame how to walk without crutch-
tions for the hungry hest. Busy, busy,
busy The hardy men who pulled the
net out of the sea filled with foundering
treasures, the shepherds who hunted up
grassy plots for their Aocks to nibbe at,
the shipwrghts pounding away in the
dockyards, the winemakers of Engedi dip
ping ths juices from the vat and pouring
them into the goatskins. were not more
busy than Christ Busy, busy for others!
From the moment He went out of the car
avansary of Bethlehem to the moment
when the cross plunged into the socket ON
the bloody mount busy for others. Does |
that remind you of yourself? 1t does
not remind Inc of myself. If we lift bur- |
den it must be light; ii we do work. it |
must be popular; if we sit in the pew, it |
must be safe: if we move in sphere of |
usefulness, it must be brilliant; if we have |
to take hold of a load, give us the light |
end of the log. In this way to heaven fan |
us, rock us, sing US to sleep. Lift us up |
toward heaven Oh the tips of your fingers |
under a silken sunshade. Stand out of |
the way, all you martyrs who breasted |
the fire; stand out of the way and let
this colony of tender footed modern Chris
tians come up and get their crowns!
What has your Lord done to you, o |
Christian, that you should betray him?
Who gave you SO much riches that you can
afford to despise the awards of the faith
full? At this moment, when all the armies
Of heaven and earth and hell are plungng
into the conflict, how can you desert the
standard? Oh, backslidden Christian, is
It not time for you to start anew Tor God
and anew for heaven?
Now, / have shown you that the dispo
sition of Christ was spirit OF gentleness,
spirit of self sacrifice, spirit OF humil
ty, spirit Of prayer, spirit OF hard
vork-fve points. Will you remember
them? Are you ready now for the ire
nendous announcement OF the text IF |
any man has not the spirit of Christ, he
s none of His?" Are you ready for that
statement? Can we stand up and say.
Yes, we have the spirit of Christi Not
)ne of us can make that answer to the full
question, yet j am to declare to you there
$ no Encouragement in this subject for
christian people. You have the seeds of
hi; character planted in your soul 1T
10th not yet appear what we shall be-
You might as well blame an acorn for
lot being an oak of thousand years as
o blame yourself because YOU are not
qual to Christ. You have the mplanta
ion within you which will enlarge and
levelop into the grandest Christian char
cter, and there is no Encouragement III
his text for you to try to love and serve
he Lord. Aim high. Sheathe not your
word until you have gained the last vic
DRY. Climb higher and higher until you
each the celestial hills. Crowns bright
nd radiant for all the victors. but death
o every deserter.