The Penn's Grove record., 1901-04-05

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succor all those who are tempted.
In a violent storm at sea the mate told
a boy-for the rigging had become entan-
gled in the mast-to go up. and right y.
A gentleman standing on the deck sald:
Don't send that bow up. He will BE
dashed to DEATH The mate said. II
know what 1 am about" The boy raised
his hat in recognition of the order and
then rose hand over hand and went 70
work. And as he swung in the storm the
passengers wrung their hands and eN'
pected to see him fall. The work done,
man said to him. "Why did you go dowgn,
in the forecastle before you went upt
"Ah!" said the boy, II went down to
pray. Nv mother always taught me, be,
fore 1 undertook anything great to pray"
/ care not how great the height or how
vast the depth, with Christ within US
and Christ beneath us and Christ above
us and Christ all around us, nothing can
befal us in the way of harm. Christ HIM
self having been in the tempest will de-
liver all those who put their trust in Him.
Blessed be His glorious name forever!
The third installment paid for our re-
demption was the agonizingy prayer IN
Gethsemane. As ] sat in that garden!
at the foot of an old gnarled and twisted
olive tree. the historic scene came upon
me overwhelmingly. These old olive trees
are the lineal descendants of those under
which Christ stood and went and knelt.
Have the leaves OF whole botanical gen
e~rations told the story of our Lords
agony to their SUCCESSORS?
Next to Calvary, the solemnest place in
Palestine is Gethsemane, While, sitting
there it seemed as if 1 could hear our
Lords prayer. laden with sobs and
groans. Can this be the Jesus who gath
cred fragrance from the frankineense
broupht to His cradle and from the lilies
that flung their sweetness into His ser
mons and from the box of alabaster that
broke at His feet? Is this Jesus the com
forter of Bethany. the resurreetor at
Main, the oculist at Bethsaida? Is this, the
Christ. whose frown il, the storm, whose
smile is the sunlight. The spring morning
His breath, the thunder His voice, tue
ocean a drop on the tip of His finger,
heaven a sparkle on the bosom Of His
love. the Universe the dust of His chariot
Wheel? Is this the Christ who is able
to heal a heartbreak. or bush a tempest,
or drown a world. or food immensely with
His glory? Behold Him in prayer. the
globules of blood bv sorrow pressed
through the skin of His forehead What
an installment in part payment of the
greatest. price that was ever paid
The fourth installment paid for our
redemption was the Saviour's sham trial.
l cali it a sham trial-there has never been
anything so indecent or unfair, in any
criminal corrt as was witnessed at the
trial of Christ. Why, they hustled Him
into the courtroom at 2 o'clock in the
morning. They gave Him no time for
counsel. They gave Him no opportunity
for subpoenainp witnesses. The rutiians
who were wandering around through the
midnight, of course they saw the arrest
and went into the courtroom. But Jesns's
friends were sober men, were respectable
men. and at that hour. 2 o'clock in the
morning, OF course they were at home
asleep. Consequently Christ entered the
courtroom with the rufians.
Oh, look at Him! No one to speak q
word for Him. | lift the lantern until ]
can look into His face, and as my heart
friend the world ever had, Himself now
utterly friendless. an officer of the court
room comes up and smites Him in the
mouth. and | see the blood stealing from
gun and lip. Oh, it was a farce Of a
rial, lasting only perhaps an hour, and
then the Judge rises for sentence. Stopl
1t is against the law to give sentence
unless there has been an adjournment OF
the court between condemnation and sem
tence. But what cares the Judge. for the
law? "The man has no friends. Let
Him die" says the Judge. And the ruff
fans outside the rail cry: "Aha. ahal
That's what we want! Pass Him out here
to usl Away with Him! Away with
Hint"
Further I remark, the last great install
ment paid for our redemption was the de,
dark days. Many summers ago there
was a very dark day when the sur was
eclipsed. The fowl at MONDAY went to
their perch. and we felt a. gloom as We
looked at the astronomical wonder. 1t
was a dark day in London, when the
plague was at its height and the dead
with uncovered faces were taken in open
cars and dumped in the trenches. 1t was
a dark dav when the earth opened and
Lisbon sank, but the darkest day since
the creation OF the world was when the
carnage Of Calvary was enacted.
1t was about noon when the curtain be-
gan to be drawn. 1t was not the coming
on of a night that soothes and refreshes,;
it was the swinging OF a great gloom al
around the heavens. God hung it. As
when there is a dead one in the house you
bow the shutters, or turn the lattice, so
God in the afternoon shut the windows
of the world. As it is appropriate to
throw a black pail upon the coffin as it
passes along, so it was appropriate that
everything should be sombre that day
as the great hearse OF the earth rolled
on bearing the corpse of the King, A
mans last hours are ordinarily kept
sacred. However yon may have hated or
caricatured a man, when YOU hear he Is
dying silence puts its hand on your lips,
and you would have a loathing for the
man who could stand by a deathbed max
ing faces and soothing, But Christ in His
last hour cannot be left alone. What
Pursuing Him yet after so long a pursuit?
You have been drinking His tears. Do
you want to drink His blood? They CONT
up closely. so that Notwithstanding the
darkness they can glut their revenge
III a.. .a-Hz,A,a,1 81 H., aNtntapan1
They examine His feet; they want to feel
for themselves whether those feet are
really spiked: they put out their hands
and touch the spikes and bring them
back wet with blood and wipe them on
their garments.
Women stand there and weep, but can
do no good. 1t is no place for the ten
der-hearted women, 1t wants a heart
that crime has turned into granite. The
waves Of mans hatred and Of helps ven
geance dash up against the mangled feet,
and the hands of sin and pain and torture
clutch for His holy heart. Had He not
been thoroughly fastened to the cross
they would have torn Him down and tram
pied Him with both feet. How the cav,
champed their bits and reared and
snuffed at the blood! Had a Roman
officer called out for a light his voice
would not have been heard in the tumult,
but louder than the clash OF spears, and
the wailing of womanhood. and the neigh.
ing of the chargers, and the believing of
the crueiiiers there comes a voice crash
ing through-loud, clear, overwhelming,
terrific. 1t is the grooming of the dying
Son of God. Look! What a scene! Look,
world. at what you have done!
l lift the covering from the maltreatel
Christ to let You count the wounds and
estimate the cost. Oh, when the nails
went through Christ's right hand and
through Christ's left hand, that bought
both your hands with all their power to
work and lift and write. When the nails
went through Christ's right foot and
Christ's left foot, that bought your feet,
with all their power to walk or run or
climb. When the thorn went into
Christ's temple, that bought your brain,
with all its power to think and plan,
When the spear cleft Christ's side, that
bought your heart, with all its power
to love and repent and pray.
When the Atlantic cable was lost in
1865, do you remember that the Great
Eastern and the Midway and the Al
bany vent out to find it? Thirty times
they sank the grapnel two and a half
miles deep in water, After awhile they
found the cable and brought it to the
surface, No sooner had it been brought
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