The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1900-07-07

] A'och JNsuS pFONlut TtutMptIOnI
. Is not little salvation for this one,
little for that and little for the Other
but enough for all. "Whosoever will
let him come" Each man an ocean full
for himself. Promises for the young
Iromises for the old, promises for tn
Ipwly, promises for the blind, for tn
halt, for the outcast, for the aban
, 'doned. Pardon for all, mercy for all
Heaven for all. Not merely a cupfu
of Gospel supply, but 100 gallons. Aye
the tears of Cody repentance are gath
cred up into Gods bottle, and some day
standing before the throne, we will lif
our cup of delight and ask that it b,
filed with the wine of Heaven, ant
Jesus, from that bottle of tears, will
begin to pour in the cup, and we will
cry: stop, Jesus! We do not wan
to drink our own tears!" And Jesus
will say: know We not that the tears
of earth are the wine of Heaven" Sor
row may endure for night, but JOY
cometh in the morning.
l remark, further, Jesus does not
shadow the joys of others with His
own griefs. He might have sat down in
that wedding and said: 81 have SO
much trouble, so much poverty, SO
much prosecution, and the cross is com
ing. shall not rejoice, and the gloom
of my face and of my sorrows shall be
cast over all this group" So said not
Jesus. He said to HIMSELF: Here are
two persons starting out in married
life. Let it be joyful occasion. will
hide my own griefs. l will kindIe their
| JOY" There are many not so wise as
that. l knew household where there
are many little children, where for two
years the musical instrument has been
kept shut because there has been trou-
BILE in the house. Alas for the folly!
Parents saying: "We will have no
Christmas tree this coming holiday be-
cause there has been trouble in the
house. Hush that laughing upstairs!
How can there be any joy when there
has been so much trouble?" And so
they make everything consistently
doleful and send their sons and daugh-
tiers to ruin with the gloom they throw
around them.
Oh, my dear friends, do you not
know those children will have trouble
enough of their own after awhile?
Be glad they cannot appreciate all
yours. Keep back the cup of bitter
ness from your daughters lips. When
your head IS down in the grass of the
tomb, poverty may come to her, be-
trayal to her, bereavement to her
Keep back the sorrows as long as you
can. Do you not know that that son
may after awhile have his heart brok-
en-? Stand between him and all harm.
You may not fight his battles long.
Fight them while you may. Throw
not the chill of your own dependency
over his soul. Rather be like Jesus,
who came to the wedding hiding His
own grief and kindling the joys of
others. So l have seen the sun on
dark day, struggling amidst clouds,
black, ragged and portentous, but
after awhile the sun, with golden pry, |
heaved back the blackness. And the
sun laughed to the lake, and the lake
laughed to the sun, and from horizon
to horizon, under the saffron sky, the
water was all turned into wine.
learn from the miracle that Christ
is not impatient with the luxuries of
life. 1t was not necessary that they
should have that wine. Hundreds of
people have been married without any
wine. We do not read that any of the
other provisions fell short. When
Christ made the wine, it was not ne
cessity, but positive luxury. l do
not believe that He wants us to eat
bread and sleep on hard mattresses
unless we like them the best. think,
if circumstances will allow, we have a
right to the luxuries of dress, the lux
uries of diet and the Injuries of resi-
dence. There is no more religion in
IN old coat than in a new one. We can
serve God drawn by golden plated har-
ness as certainly as when we go
afoot. Jesus Christ will dwell with us
under fine ceiling as well as under a
thatcned roof.
What is the difference between a
Chinese mud hovel and an American
nome? What is the difference be-
ween the rough bear skins of the Rus
sian boor and the outfit of an Ameri-
IAN gentleman? No difference, ex-
,ept that which the Gospel of Christ,
firectly or indirectly, has caused.
When Christ shall have vanquished all
he world, l suppose every house will
,e a mansion and every garment a
ODE and every horse an arch necked
ourser and every carriage glittering
'ehicle and every man a king and
very woman queen and the whole
arth Paradise, the glories of the '
latural world harmonizing with the
-lories of the material world until the
cry bells of the horses shall jingle the
'raises of the Lord
Ilearn, further, from this miracle that d
'hrist has no impotence with festal
oy; otherwise he would not have ac-
epted the invitation to that wedding. Y
lie certainly would not have done
hat which increased the hilarity. Il
here may have been many in that
DOM who were happy, but there was
OF one of them that did so much for
he joy of the wedding party as Christ .
imself. He was the chief of the BAN d
ueters. When the wine gave out, He
upplied it, and so, take it, He will i
OF deny us the joys that are positive
Y festal. Z
1 think the children of God have a
lore right to laugh than any other II
eople, and to clap their hands as 0
'udly. There is not a single joy de- IL
led them that is given to any other .
eople. Christianity does not clip the V,
-ings of the soul. Religion does not l
lOst the flowers. What is Christian c,
y? take it to be simply procla- q
lation from the throne of God of eman- u
nation for all the enslaved and if a X