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

idrBe quantity or wafer into the mill
can, and | said to him: Il think that
will do, and he insulted me, and |
+. Knocked him down. DO you think
ought to Join the church," Neyerthe.
less, that very same man. who was sc
harsh in his behavior, loved Christ. and
could not speak Of sacred things with.
out tears Of emotion and affection.
Thorns without, sweetness within-the
best specimen Of Mexican cactus ever
saw.
"Giants of Battle"
There are others planted in Christ's
garden who are always radiant. always
mpressive-mOre like the roses of deep
hue that we occasionally find, called
giants Of batte;" the Martin Luthers,
st. Pauls. Chrysostoms. Wycllffes.
Latimers and Samuel Rutherfords.
What In other men Is a spark in them
Is a confagration. When they sweat
they sweat great drops of blood When
they pray, their prayer takes fire.
When they preach. 1t is a Pentecost.
When they fight, 1t Is a Thermopyln.
When they die, it Is martyrdom.
You find a great many roses in the
gardens, but only few giants of bat.
tle." Men say, "Why don't you have
more Of them In the church," say.
"Why don't you have in the world
more Humboldts and WellingtonsW
God gives to some ten talents. to others
one.
In this garden Of the church which
Christ has planted also find the snow
drops. beautiful but cold looking, seem.
ingly another phase Of winter. | mean
those Christians who are precise in
their tastes. unlmpassiOned, pure as
snowdrops and as cold. They never
shed any tears, they never get excited.
they never say anything rashly. they
never do anything precipltately. Their
pulses never tlutter, their nerves never
twltch, their indignation never boils
over. They live longer than most peo-
pie, but their life Is In minor key.
They never run up to G above the
staff. In their music Of life they have
no staccato passages Christ planted |
them In the church, and they must be |
of some service or they would not be
there. Snowdrops-always snowdrops. |
But have not told you of the most |
beautiful flower in all this garden spo-
ken OF In the text. If you see a centu-
ry plant. your emotions are started.
You say. "Why. this flower has been a
hundred years gathering up one bloom,
and Ii will be n hundred years more
before other petals will come out" But
l have to tell you Of plant that was
gathering up from all eternity and that
1000 years ago put forth its bloom new
er to wither. 1t Is the passion plant Of
the cross. Prophets foretold 1t; Beth
lehenl shepherds looked upon 1t in the
bud; the rocks shook at It's bursting
and the dead got up In their winding
sheets to see its full bloom. 1t Is a
crimson fower-blood at the roots,
blood on the branches, blood on the
l6ayes. Its perfume is to fill all the
o winds from the north and winds
from the south and winds from the
east and winds from the west, and bear
to all the earth the sweet smelling sa-
vor Of Christ, my Lord.
His worth II all the nations knew,
Sure the whole earth would love him too.
The Place of Fruits.
Again, the church may be appropri
ately compared to q garden, because
It Is a place of fruits That would be a
strange garden which had In 1t no ber-
ries, no plums or peaches or apricOts.
The coarser fruits are planted in the
orchard or they are set out on the sun
ny hillside; but the choicest fruits are
kept In the garden. So in the world
outside the church Christ has planted
n great many beautiful things-pa-
tience, charity, generosity, integrity;
but he intends the choicest fruits to be
in the garden, and If they are not
there, then shame on the church.
Religion is not mere Towering SEN
1t is a practical, life CIV
ing healthful fruit-not posies, but APP
Piles. "Oh," says somebody, II don't
see what your garden Of the church
has yielded" Where did your asylums
come from, and your hospitals, and
your institutions Of mercy? Christ
planted every one Of them. He plant
ed them In his garden. When Christ
gave sight to Bartimeus he laid the
of every blind asylum that
has ever been built. When Christ
soothed the demoniac Of Galilee, he
laid the cornerstone Of every lunatic
asylum that has ever been established.
When Christ said to the sick man,
Take up thy bed and walk" he laid
the cornerstone Of every hospital the
world has ever seen. When Christ
said, 81 was in prison. and ye visited
me-" he laid the cornerstone of every
prison reform association that has ever
been organized. The church Of Christ
Is a glorious garden, and it is full Of
fruit. | know there is some poor fruit
In It, | know there are some weeds
that ought to be thrown ever the
fence. | know there are some crab
apple trees that ought to be cut down.
| know there are some wild grapes
that ought to be uprooted. But are you
going TO destroy the whole garden be-
cause of a little gnarled fruit? You
will find worm eaten leaves in Fon-
tainebleau and insects that sting in
the fairy groves OF the Champs Ely
sees. You do not tear down and de-
stroy the whole garden because there
are a few specimens of gnarled fruit.
I admit there are men and women In
the church who ought not to be there;
but let us be frank and admit the fact
that there are hundreds and thousands
Of glorious Christian men and women
holy, blessed, useful, consecrated,
and triumphant There is no grander
collection In all the earth than the col
lection of Christians. There are Chris
tian mon In avarv church whose rp-