The Grit-advocate., 1900-07-20

name Of Simon. Peter urges his way
through the crowd around the door
and stands In the presence Of the dead.
What demonstration Of grief all about
him! Here stand some of the poor
people. who show the garments which
this poor woman had made for them.
Their grief cannot be appeased The
apostle Peter wants to perform a
miracle. He will not do it amid the
excited crowd, so he orders that the
whole room be cleared. The door is
, shut against the populace. The apos-
tie stands now with the dead. Oh,
it is serious moment, you know.
when you are alone with a lifeless
body The apostle gets down on his
knees and prays, and then he comes to
the lifeless form of this one all ready
for the sepulcher. and in the strength
Of him who is the resurrection he
cries. "Tabitha. arise!" There is a
stir In the fountains Of life; the heart
dutters; the nerves thrill; the cheek
Pushes; the eye opens; she sits up!
We see In this subject Dorcas tho
disciple. Dorcas the benefactress, Dor
cas- the lamented Dorcas the resurrect-
ed.
II had not seen that word disciple
in my text. would have known this
woman was a Christian. Such music
as that never came from a heart which
is not chorded and strung by divine
grace. Before l show you the needle
work Of this woman l want to show
you her regenerated heart, the source,
OF pure life and of all Christian
charities. l wish that the wives and
mothers and daughters and sisters Of
all the earth would initiate Dorcas In
her discipleship Before you cross the
threshold of the hospital, before you
enter upon the temptations and trials
of tomorrow, charge you in the name
of God and by the turmoil and tumult
of the judgment day, o women, that
you attend to the first, last and great
est duty Of your life-the seenr.s
God and being at peace with him.
When the trumpet shall sound, there
will be an uproar and a wreck OF
mountain and continent, and no hu-
man arm can help you. Amid the
rising of the dead and amid the boiling
Of yonder sea and amid the live, leap
ing thunders Of the flying heavens
calm and placid will be every wo-
mans heart who hath put her trust in
Christ-calm notwithstanding all the
tumult, as though the fire in the
heavens were only the gildings OF an
autumnal sunset, as though the peal of
the trumpet were only the harmony of
an orchestra, as though the awful
voices of the sky were but group OF
friends bursting through gateway
at eventime with laughter and shout
ing. "Dorcas the disciple!" Would
God that every Mary and every Martha
would this day sit down at the feet Of
Jesus!
Praise Of tho Needle.
Further we see Dorcas the benefac-
tress. History has told the story OF
the crown; epic poet has sung OF the
sword; the pastoral poet, with his
verses full of the redolence Of clover
tops and a-rustle with the silk of the
corn, has sung the praises of the ploW.
| tell you the praises of the needle.
From the fig leaf robe prepared in the
garden of Eden to the last stitch taken
on the garment for the poor the needle
has wrought wonders Of kindness, gen
erosity, and benefaction. 1t adorned
the girdle of the high priest, 1t fash
ioned the curtains In the ancient tab
ernacle, it cushioned the chariots Of
King Solomon, it provided the robes OF
Queen Elizabeth, and in high places