The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1900-04-26

crecds IS tnat they try TO tell us all about
the DEGREES Of God. Now, the only human
being that was ever competent to hnndl,
that subject was Paul, aud he would moi
have been competent had he not been in,
spired. believe In the sovereignty OF God
and believe In mans free agency, but nc
one can harmoni2e the two. 1t Is moi
necessary that we harmonize them.
Every sermon that / have ever heard
that attempt ed such hnrmonigation was tc
me as clear rs n London fog. as clear n,
mud. My brother Of the nineteenth cen.
tury, my brother OF the sixteenth century
glvo us PauPs statomont and leave out
your own.
Better ono chapter Of Paul on that SUBJ
iect than all OF Calvlns institutes, able
ana honest and mighty MS they are. Dc
not try TO measure either the throne OF God
or the thunderbolts OF God with your llttlt
steel pen.
What do YOU know about the decreesi
You cannot pry open the door OF Gods
eternal counsels. You cannot explain the
mysteries of Gods government now. much
less the mysteries OF His government five
hundred quintlllion ye ars ago.
"A But now that the Old creeds have been
put under public scrutiny something rRdi-
cal must be done. Somc would split them
some would carve them, some would elon.
gate them, some would abbreviate them
AT tho present moment in the present
alive, but hnmpercd with the old grave.
clothes. IL you want ono glorious church
FREQ and unincumbered, take or the cere.
ments OF old ecclesiastical vocabulary
Loose her, and let her gol
Again, my text has good advice concern.
ing any Christian hampered ana bothered
and bound by fear OF his own dlssoIution.
10 such the book rofers when IL speaks OF
those who through foar Of death were all
their lifetime subject to bondage. The
most OF u.s. cvCn ii we have tho Christian
hope, are towards about death.
Backed up by the teachings OF your Bible
Just look through the telescope somo bright
night and see how many worlds there arc
ana reflect that all you have seen, COM
pared with the number Of worlds in exist.
ence, are less than the fingers Of your right
hand as compared with all the fingers OF
the human race. How foolish, then for MS
to think that ours is the only world 1T foI
us to stay in.
One of our first realzations in getting
out Of this world, | think, will be that In
this world we were very much pcnt up and
had cramped apartments and were kept on
the limits. The most, even OF our small
world, is water, and the water says to tho
human race, 80 on't como here or You will
drown A fcw thousand feet up the at.
mosphere is uninhabitable, and the at,
mosphere says to the human race, "D ont
come up here or you cannot breathe" A
few miles down the earth is II furnace oil
lire, and the fire says, I'D on't come here OF
you will burn" The caverns of the mount
aims are full of poisonous gases, aud the
gases say Don't come here or you will be
asphYXiated"
Aud pneumonias and pleurisies ana con-
sumptions and apopleXies go across this
earth in llocks, In droves, in herds, and it
Is world OF equinOXes and cyclones and
graves. Yet we are under the delCsior
that 1t Is the only place ut to stay In. We
want to stick to the wet plank in midocean
while the great ship, the City of God, OF
the Celestial line, goes sailing past and
would gladly take us up !u II lireboat. My
Christian friends, let me tear of your de.
spondencles and flights about dissolution.
My Lord commands me regarding you
saying, Loose him, and let him CO."
Heaven is ninety-llve per cent. better
than this world, Il thousand per cent bet
ter, million per cent. better. Take the
gladdest, brightest. most jubilant days
you ever had on earth and compress thcm
ali into one hour, and that hour would be
requiem, u fast day, Il gloom, Il horror,
MS compared with the poorest hour they
have had in heaven since the first tower
was built or Its llrst gates swung or its
first song caroled.
"Oh, you say, "that may be true, but !
nm so afraid OF crossing over from this
world to the next, and ] fear the snnpping
of the cord between soul aud BODY Well
all the surgeons and physicians and sci.
entists declare that there is no pang at the
parting OF the body and soul and All the
restlessness at the closing hour OF life l.
involuntary and no distress mt all.
"But, you sny, 81 fear to 20 because
tho future Is 50 full of mystery" Well ]
Will tell you how to treat the mysteries
The mysteries have ceasod bothering me
Tor do rs the judges OF your courts often
Il linn, all .
case, and they say, II will tuko thes G
papers and give you my decision next
week." SO | have heard all the arguments
in regard to the next world, and sCme
things arc uncertain and full of mystery,
and so | fold up the papers ana reserve
until the next world my decision about
them. l can there study all the mysteries
to better advantage, for the light will be
better and my faculties stronger, and /
Will ask tho Christian philosophers, who
have had all the advantages Of heaven for
centuries, to help me, aud 1 may be per.
mitted myself humbly TO ask the Lord and
think thsro will be only one mystery left;
that will be how one so unworthy rs myself
got into such an enraptured place.
The only part of the journey / made
years ago to Palestine that | really dread.
ed was tho landing ut Joppa. That is the
port Of entrance for the Holy Land, and
there are many rocks, and in rough wealth
OF peOple cannot lunu ut all. InO bouts
taking tho people from the steamer to the
docks must run between reefs that looked
to me to be about nifty feet apart, and one
misstroke OF an oarsman or an unexpected
wave has sometimes been fatal, and
hundreds have perlshed along those
reefs. Besides that, rs we left Port
Said the evening before, an old. tray.
eler said: "Tho wind Is Just right TO
give you rough landing ut Joppa; indeed
think you will not be able to land at all :"
The fact was that when our Mediterranean
steamer dropped anchor near Joppa aud
wo put out for shore In the small boat, the
water was as stlll as though 1t Lad been
sound nsleep hundred years, ana we
landed as easily as l catered this pulpit.
Well, your fears have pictured for you an
appalling arrival at the end OF your Yoyage
Of life, and they say that the ceas will run
high and that the broakers Will swallow
you up, or that II you reach Canaan ut all
it will be II very rough landing.
The very opposite will be true II Won
have the eternal God for your portion.
Your sembnrkation for the promised
land will be ~ smooth MS was ours at
Palestine. Christ will meet you far ont at
sea and pilot you into complete sufety, and
you will land with Il hosanna on one side
Of you and halleluiah on tho other.
Land ahead" It's fruits are waving
O'er the hill OF fadeess greea
And the living waters lavlng
shores where heavenly forms are seen,
Rocks and storms I'll fear no more
When on that eternnl shore