Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1901-08-28

Copyright, Leafs klopsch, l9oi.1

GS forth practical and beautiful
truth. text IL. Corinthians Si., %,
Through window in a BASKET was |
let down By the wall.
Sermons on Paul in jail, Paul on Mars
hill, Paul in the shipwreck. Paul before
the sanhedrin. Paul before Felix, are
plentiful. but in my text we have Paul in
basket.
Damascus is city of white and glls-
tening architecture, sometimes called IA
pearl surrounded by emeralds," at one
time distinguished for swords OF the best
material called Damascus Dla,.es, and
upholstery Of richest fabric called dam
ask 4 horseman of the name of Saul,
riding toward this city, had been thrown
from the saddle. The hors, nad dropped
under flash from the sky, which at the
same time was so bright it blinded the
rider for many days and, think, so per-
nianently injured his eyesight that This
defect Of vision became the thorn in the
flesh he afterward speaks of. He started
for Damascus to butcher Christmas, but
after that hard fall from his horse he
was changed man and preached Christ
in Damascus till the city was shaken to
its foundation.
The mayor gives authority for his ar
rest, and the popular cry is: xiii hiiA.
Kill him. The city is surrounded by
high wall and the gates are watched by
the police lest the Cilician preacher es-
cape. Many of the houses are built on
the wall, and their balconies projected
clear over and lowered above the gardens
outside. 1t was customary to lower
baskets out of these balconies and pull up
fruits and flowers from the gardens. To
this day visitors at the monastery of
Mount Sinai are lifted and let down in
baskets. Detectives prowled around from
ouse to house looking for Paul, but his
friends hid him, now in one place, now
in another He is no coward, as fifty in
cidents in his life demonstrate, but he
feels his work is not done yet and so he
evades assassination. rs that preacher
here? the foaming mob shout at one
house door. rs that fanatic here?" the
police shout at another house door. Some
times ON the street incognito he passes
through a cloud of clinched fists and
sometimes he seeretes himself on the
house top. l.
Paul's Provideutiai Escape.
At last the infuriate populace get on
sure track of him. They have positive
evidence that he is in the house of one
of the Christians, the balcony of whose
home reaches over the wall. Here he is,
Here he is" The vociferation and bias
phemy and bowling of the pursuers are
at the front door. They break in
Fetch out that gospelizer and let us
hang his head on the city gate. Where
is he!' The emergency was terrible
Proyidentially there was a good stout
basket in the house. PauFs frieads fas-
ten a rope to the basket Paul steps into
it. The basket is lifted to tie edge of
the balcony on the wall, and then while
Paul holds the rope with both hands his
friends lower away, carefully and eau
tiouSy, slowly but surely, farther down
and farther down. Hhtil the basket strikes
the earth and the apostle steps out and
afoot ana alone starts on that famous
missionary tour the story Of which has
astor.zaed earth and heaven. Appro-
pirate entry in Paul's diary of travels:
Through a window in Il basket was
let down by the wall"
| observe first on what q slender tenure
great results hang. The ropemaker who
twisted that cord fastened to that lower
ing basket never knew how much would
depend upon the.strength of it, How if
it had been broken and the apostles life
had been dashed out? What would have
become of the Christian church? All
that magnificent missionary work in
Pamphylia, Cappadocia, Galatia, Mace.
dona would never have been accom-
plished. All his writings thit make up
so indispensable and enchanting a part
of the New Testament would neyer have
been written The story of resurrection
would never have been so gloriously told
as he told it. That example of heroic and
triumphant endurance at Philppi, in the
Mediterranean Euroclydon, under fiagel-
lation, and at his beheading, would not
have kindled the courage of 10000 mar
tyrdoms. But that rope holding that bas-
ket, how much depended on it, So again
and again great results have hung on
slender circumstances.
John Wesley Was Saved.
The parsonage at Epworth, England. is
on fire in the night. ana the father rushed
through the hallway for the rescue of his
children Seven children are ont and
safe on the ground but one remains in
the consuming building That one awakes
and, finding hi bed on fire and the build
two peasants make a ladder of their bod.
les, one peasant standing on the shoulder
of the other, and down the human ladder
the boy descends-John Wesley. Ii YOU
would know how much depended on that
ladder OF peasants. ask the millions OF
Methodists on both sides of the sea. Ask
their mission stations all around the
world. Ask thlsr hundreds Of thousands
already assembled 10 join their founder,
who would have persisted but for the liv-
ing stairs of peasants shoulders.
Practical inference: There are no in
signifcances in life. The minutest thing
is part of a magnitude. Inhniry is made
up Of infnitesimals great things an ag-
gregation Of small II ings. Bethlehem
manager pulling on star in the eastern
sky. One book in drenched sailors
mouth the evangelization of a multitude.
One boat Of papyrus ON the Nile freight
ed with events for all ages. The fate Of
Christendom in a basket let down from
window on the wall What you do. do
well. If you make rope, make It
strong and true. for you know hot how
much may depend on your Workmanship.
If you fashion a boat, let 1t be water
proof. FOR you know not who may sail
in il If you put q Bible in the trunk Of
your boy as he goes from home, let il be
remembered in your prayers, for It may
have a mission as fsrreaehing as the
book which the sailor carried in his teeth
70 fha Pitcairn boaaf The r4I2{nast man