Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1900-09-08

k seems to me at this moment as If s
I Paul threw to us pOmOlOglst's cati
| logue OF the fruits growing in thI
| great garden Of Christ-love, JOY
= peace, patience, charity, brotherl
D kindness. gentleness, mercy; gloriou
] fruit, enough to fill all the baskets o
= earth and heaven.
The Tree of Mercy.
have not told you of the better tre
In this garden and of the better fruit
1t was planted just outside Jerusalem
a good while ago. When that tree wa
planted. 1t was so split and bruised ant
barked men said nothing would eve
grow upon it,, but no sooner had tha
tree been planted than it budded anC
blossomed and fluited. and the sol
diers' spears were only the clubs tha
struck down that fruit. and it fell int
the lap of the nations. and men begaI
to pick it up and eat it, and they foun(
In ii an antidote to all thirst, to al
poison, to all sin. TO all death. the
smallest cluster larger than the famous
one of Eshcol. which two men carried
on staff between them. If the one
apple in Eden killed the race, this one
cluster of mercy shall restore.
Again, the church in my text Is ap
propriately called garden because il
is thoroughly irrigated. No garden
could prosper long without plenty of
water. have seen a garden In the
midst Of desert. yet blooming and
luxuriant. All around was dearth and
barrenness, but there were pipes, aque-
ducts. reaching from this garden up to
the mountains. and through those aque-
ducts the water came streaming down
and tossing up IHto beautiful fountains
until every root and leaf and flower
was saturated. That is like the
church. The church Is garden in the
midst of u great desert Of sin and suf
ferng, but 1t is well irrigated. for "Our
eyes are unto the hills from whence
cometh our help" From the noun
talns Of Gods strength there flow
down rivers Of gladness. "There is a
glad the city of our God" Preaching
the gospel is one Of the aqueducts.
The Bible Is another. Baptism and the
Lords supper are aqueducts. Water
to slake the thirst. water TO wash the
unclean. water tossed high up in the
light Of the Sun of Righteousness
showing us the rainbow around the
throne. Oh. was there ever q garden
so thoroughly irrigated?
You know that the beauty Of Yer
sailles and Chatsworth depends very
much upon the great supply of water.
| came to the latter place. ChatswOrth.
one day when strangers are not to be
admitted. but by an inducement which
always seemed as potent with an Eng
lishman as an American. | got in, and
then the gardener went far up above
the stairs Of stone and turned on the
water. saw it cleaning on the dry
pavement, coming down from step to
step until it came so near | could hear |
the musical rush. and.all oyer the high
roaring down, until sunlight and wave |
In gleesome wrestle tumbled at my |
feet. So ii is with the church Of God. |
Everything comes from above; pardon |
from above Joy from above adoption |
from above sanctifcation from above.
Waters of Salvation.
Would that now God would turn on |
the waters of salvation, that they |
might flow down through his heritage, |
and that this day we might each find
our places to be Films" with II wells |
of water and threoscore and ten palm |
trees.
Hark. hear the latch of the garden |
gate, and look to see who Is coming. |
hear the voice of Christ. Il am come |
into my garden" say, Come in, o |
Jesus! We have been waiting for thee; |
walk all through the paths. Look at |
the flowers; look 9t the fruit; pluck |
that which thou wilt for thyself.
Jesus comes into the garden and up to |
that old man, and touches him, and |
says: almost home. father; not many |
more aches for thee; | will never leave |
thee; take courage a little longer and |
| will steady thy tOttcring steps and | |
will sOOthe thy troubles and give thee |
rest. Courage, old man" Then Christ |
goes up another garden path, and he |
comes to a soul in trouble and says:
Peace All is well. ! have seen thy |
tears. | have heard thy prayer. The |
sun shall not smite thee by day nor the |
moon by night. The Lord shall pre- |
serve thee from all evil; he will pre- |
serve thy soul Courage, o troubled |
spirit!'
Then see Jesus going up another |
garden path. and ! see great excite |
ment among the leaves. and | hasten |
up to that garden path to see what |
Jesus is doing there and. 10, he is |
breaking off flowers. sharp and clean |
from the stem. and say: Stop. Je- |
sus Do not kill those beautiful flow
ers." He turns to me and says. Il have |
come into my garden to gather lilies, |
and | mean to take these up to high |
er terrace. for the garden around my |
palace, anu there W Ill pihul lii0lh' |
and in better soil and in better air |
they shall put forth brighter leaves
and sweeter redolence, and no frost
shall touch them forever" And look
ed up into his face and said: well, 1t |
is thy garden, and thou hast a right to
do what thou wilt with it. Thy will
be done"-the hardest prayer a man
ever made.
Taking the BEST.
1t has seemed as if Jesus Christ took
the best. From many of your house
holds the best one is gone. You know
that she was too good for this world.
She was the gentlest in her ways, the
deepest In her affection and when at
last the sickness came you had no faith
III medicines. You knew that the hour
Of parting had come, and when, through |
the rich grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
,,o,, curronIarp1 that treasure Won |