The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1901-03-08

mas neon long cnOuB II ayYRy 5A;drQIs2
home to lose his prof sional opp ora
tunities. No man that was ever put
to death by sword or instruments Of
xss ss;;;;.;So ,-;;;:a:s :scrs se .nartyr thar
that man who has been wrung to
death by the demands of Official po.
sition. The scars may not be. visible,
! for these aro scars; OH the BRAIN,
and scars on the nerve and scars on
1 tho heart, but nevertheless arc they
scars and God counts them and their
reward will be abundant. 4 81
In all lands thero IRE Veterans OF
war who may not have had their faco
scraped with ono bullet or thoir foot
lamed by one bursting shell and who
could not roll up their sleeve and
show you ono mark suggestive OF
battle, yet carry with them weak
nesses got in exposures to disease
along malerlai swamps or from
many miles OF marching, and ever
and anon they feel q twinge Of. pain,
each recurrence OF which is sharper
or more lasting, until after awhile
thoy will DO captured for tho tomb
by disorders which started 20 or 30
or 40 years before. And their scars
aro all unscon by human eyes. But
those people aro MS certainly the VIC
Tins of war as though they had boon
blown up in on undermined fortress
OF thrust through with o cavalry
mans lance. What want to mako
out is that there are scars which
arc never counted cxcept rs God
counts thom, and I want to enlarge
Your r%sympathies.
There are many who can, in the same
sense that Paul uttered It., say: ~ bear
In my body the marks sot the Lord je-
}Bus'--;4Sthat3 IS, for the sake Of Christ
and His cause they carry sears which
keep their indenturo through all time
and oil eternity. Do you think that
Paul was accurate when he said that?
II you have studied his career, you have
no doubt Of it. In his youth he learned
how to fashion the hair Of the Cilician
goat into canvas, q quiet trade. and
then went to college, the president Of
which was Gamaliel, an institution
which scholars say could not have been
very thorough because OF what they
call Paul's imperfect command OF
Greek syntax. But his history became
exciting on the road to Damascus,
His conversion was a. conynlsion.
have left mark upon him know not,
but the mob soon took after him and
fiogged and imprisoned and maltreated
him until he had scars more than
enough to assure the truthfulness Of
his utterance: II bear in my body the
marks Of the Lord Jesus"
All Of Paul's suffering was for
Christ's sake. He had intellectual
powers which GOULD have achieved for
him all worldly suecesses. You 500
what he could do in o courtroom when
with extemporaneous speech he made
tho judicial bench tremble; when on
Mars hill he confounded tho Athenian
criticsi 6 hen he preached amid the OK.
sitemeht Of tumbling penitentiary;
when in storm at sea he took com.
mand Of the ship, the only one on board
ool headed. With his inspired logic,
and his courage Of utterance, and his
power of illustration, and his capacity
to move audiences, and his spirit OF de-
Gance, there was no height OF worldly
power he might not have gained.
What Hannibal was to nm army,
what Draco was In making 6 laws. what
Homer was to poetry, what Demos.
themes Was In, power Of persuasion,
what Socrates was 10. philosophy, what
l3Aeschyl1ls Yasto t ho drama, that Paul
|, mig 1T have been to all centuries God
never before and never since made an
othnr human being like him. But with
all his capacity and opportunity Of
aohieving worldly renown no turns his
back on homo and becomes an exilo, on
bountcous tables and eats his hard
crust by the roadside, on tho pleasure
yachts that sailed the Moditerran can
and embarked on freightboat from
Alexandria, on scholars In Athens and
talks to fishermen. Instead Of plaudits
OF aroused and enthusiastic as.
semblages ne addressed audiences that
talked back and asked insolent ques-
tions and broke up in riot. Instead
OF garlands flung at his feet they hurled
stones upon his head. Five times he
was scourged, at each whipping 80
strokes, the forticth stroke spersd not
from mercy, but because 40 strekos
were the seyerest punishment tho low
allowed, and they feared, through
counting wrong, they might make it
Il and SO themselves bo punished.
Why, raul must have been Scared all
over, und no only tells tho plain truth
without any commentary when no de-.
clares, IT bear in my body tho marMs
Of the Lord Jesus" It was as much az
to say: "See those long scars? There
10 where they whipped mo. See you
that ugly indenture. That is where
they. stoned me. SEQ you that encir.
ling scar on my wrist? That Is where
they handcuffed me. See those ugly
curves around my ankles? There IS
whore they made my feet fast in the
stoolss."
There are many who. like that apos-
tolio martyr, have on them the mark
of the Lord Uesus. There is the great
army of foreign missionaries, some
times maligned by dissolute American,
English and Scotch merchants, who at
Hong-Kong and Calcutta and Constan.
tinople have had their wickedness re-
proved by the pure home life Of those
missionaries. There is the great array
Of the ministers OF the Gospel, now in
Heaven, who, on small Baiaries and
amid fatigues that slew them, served
their day and generation. There is an
other great army OF private Christians
who, in Sabbath schools and in traot
distribution and In humanitarian and
'evangelistic efforts have put their life
In sacrifice on the altars OF God. There
is anothers army Of Christian Invaders
who lost their life In overwork for the