Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1900-06-15

Christian girl. Her father dcspises the
Christian religion; her mother despisess
the Christian religion; her brothers and
sisters scoff at the Christian religion; she
can hardly find quiet place in which TO
say her prayers. Did she find 1t smooth
sailing when she tried to follow Jesus
Christ? Oh, no! All who would live the
life of the Christian religion must suffer
persecution. If you do not find it in one
way you will get it in another way: But
be not disheartened! Take courage. You
will see you through all trials, and he
will deliver you.
Ny subject also impresses- with the
fact that good people sometimes, get fright
ened. In the tones Of these disciples as
they rushed into the back part OF the
boat find they are frightened almost to
death. They say, Master, carest Thou
not that we perish% They had no reason
to be frightened, for Christ was in the
boat. / suppose if we had been there we
would have been just as much affrlghted.
Perhaps more. In all ages very. good peo'
pie get very much affrighted. It is often
so in our day, and men say: "Why, look
at the bad lectures. Look at the yarl0ns
errors going over the church OF god. we
are going to founder. The church is gong
many good people are affrightcd by in.
EQUITY in our day and think the church OF
Jesus Christ is going to be. overthrown,
and are just DIS much affrighted. as were
the disciples Of my, text! Don't worry,
don't fret, as though iniquity were. gong
to triumph over righteousness a hon
goes into cavern to sleep. He lies down
with his shaggy name covering the paws.
Meanwhile the spiders spin web across cross
the mouth of the cavern and say, we
have captured him." Gossamer thread
after gossamer thread until the. whole
front of the cavern, is covered WIN cr rhe
lion is done; the lion is fast" After
awhile the lion has got through sleeping.
He rouses himself, he shakes his name, he
walks out into the sunlight: He does not
even know the spiders web is spun, and
with his roar he shakes the mountain. 80
men come spinning their sophistries and
skepticism about Jesus Christ: He seems
to be sleeping. They say: 1--WE have cap
tured the Lord. He will never come forth
again upon the nation. Christ is overcome
forever His religion will never make any
conquest among men," hut after awhle
the Lion of the tribe of Judah will rouse
Himself and come forth to shake nightly
the nations. What's spiders web to the
aroused lion? Give truth and error Jar
grapple, and truth will come off victor.
Do not be afraid OF a great revival. On,
that such gales from heaven might sweep
through all our churches! Oh, for such
DAYS as Richard Baxter saw i'll England
and Robert McCheyne saw in Dundee!
Oh, for such days as Jonathan Edwards
saw i'm Northampton l have often heard
my father tell of the fact that in the carly
part of this century there broke out re-
vival at Somerville, n. j., and some pc.oo'
pie were, very much agitated about it.
many people into the church at once,,|
and they sent down to New Brunswick
to get John Livingston to- stop the, re-
| vival. Well. there was no better soul N
all the world than John Livingston. He
went and looked at the revival. They
wanted him to stop it. He stood III The
pulpit on the Lords day and looked over
| the solemn auditory and he said: This,
brethren, is in reality thu. work, OF God.
| Beware how you stop it," And ne vas
| an old man, leaning heavily on his staff ~
very old man, And he, lifted that star u
| and took hold of the small end of the staff
and began to let it fall slowly through be.
tween the finger and the thumb, and nc
said: "Oh, thou impenitent, thou art fall
| ing now-falling from life, falling away
| from peace and heaven, falling as certain;
" as that cane is falling through my. hand
| failing certainly, though perhaps falling
slowly" And the cane kept ON falling
through John Livingston's hand: The re-
ligious emotion in the audience was over
towering, and men saw q. type OF their
doom as the cane kept falling and falling
until the knob of the cane struck MI
" and said: ".But the grace of God can
stop you as l stopped that cane, and
then there was gladness all through the
house at the fact of pardon and peace and
salvation. 'Well," said the people after
the service, 81 guess you had better send
Livingston home. He is making the re
vival worse" Oh, for gales from heaven
to sweep all the continents! The danger
of the church of God is not in reyivals,,
| | learn once more from this subject thai
Christ can hush tempest. 1t did seen
as if everything must 90 to ruin. The dis
ciples had given up the idea of managing
the ship; the crew were entirely democrat
lied: vet Christ rises, and the storm
crouches at His feet. Oh, yes Christ car
hush the tempest! You have had trouble
Perhaps it was the little child taken away
from you-the sweetest child of the house
hold the one who asked the most curious
questions. and stood around you with TIT
greatest fondness, and the spade cut dow
through your bleeding heart. Perhaps !
was an only son, and your neart has eve
since been like desolated castle, the owl
of the night hooting among the fallel
arches and the crumbling stairways. u
all your property swept away, you SAID
al had so much bank stock; had so man,
Government securities; j had SC, man.
houses: I had so many farms-all gone
al gone" Why, sir, all the storms tina
ever trampled with their thunders; all tn
shipwrecks have not been worse than TIN
to you. Yet you have not been completee
ly oyerthrown. Why? Christ says: .
have that little one in My keeping. ca
than YOU can. o bereaved mother!" Hush
ing the tempest When your property wen
away away, God said, "rhere are treasure
in heaven in banks that never break.
Jesus hushing the tempest.
| There is one storm into which we WI
all have to run. The moment when W
let 90 of this world, and try to take hol
of the next we will want all the grace po,'
sible. Yonder I see Christian soul rocf
ing on the surges of death. All the power
of darkness seem let out against that sol
the swirling wave, the thunder OF IN
sky, the shrek Of the wind, all seem I
unite. together. But that soul IS nc
troubled There is no signing, there are
tears; plenty of tears in the room at tn
departure, but he weeps no tears.caln
satisfied and peaceful; all is well. BY tn
fash of the storm you see the harbor Ju'
ahead. and you are making for that ha
Dor. All shall be well. Jesus being Oh
pilot.
Into the harbor of heaven now we glide;
We're home at last, home at last.
Softly we drift on the bright, silvry tide
We're home at last.
GLORY to God, all our dangers are Ger;
We stand secure on the glorifed shore
Glory to God, we will shout evermore,
We're home at last.