Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1902-06-18
FOLLOWING THE PATTERN.
BY Rev. Nehemiah BoyatoU.

| according to the patterns showed to thee
| in the manufacturers viii. ).
If we could have been present with
| those superstitious, half-tutored children
! Of Israel, as they stood at the base of
| that beautiful mountain OF antiquity and
watched the enyeloping cloud which re-
| ceiyed Moses ont of their sight, / am sure
| that We should have certainly failed of
| the larger satisfaction of that significant
| event. Their eyes were holden: they did
/ not see the larger part; they did not see
| at all. 1t is possible that we at this pres
| ent day are better able to estimate the
/ value of the vision upon that wonderful
| occasion than were the children of Israel
| themselves. For it is possible, is it not,
| to be so close to an event as TO lose The
| perspective of it. and in losing the per-
/ spectiye fail of the larger signiticanceF
! However much there may be Of OBJ
security, then. which gathers round our
| knowledge Of this great event in Old
Testament history, of one thing we may
! be very sure that Moses during those
forty days was not spending the major
| part of his time in committing to memory
| dimensions in feet and inches of the tab
! ernacle which was TO be built to the hon
| or of God; nor was he concerned very
largely in copying certain plans which
| had been revealed to him there.
! The song is always the singers soul 10
| begin with Writing the score is mat
| ter OF incident. The scheme is in the
| architects mind. Drawing it out upon
| paper is purely a matter of detail. Moses
| in the mount saw with clear eye the
! great and mighty ideal, meditated upon
! it until it became part and parcel of mis-
! nobler self.
/ What was that idealP 1t was this:
| That the heavenly Father would have
| an earthly tabernacle; that if he We're TO
| have an earthly tabernacle, it must be
a free-will Offering of the children who
! loved him. and if the children who loved
! him were to make free-will offering I'M
! to him, that offering must represent those
! children at their best it must be the best
in msteriai-gold, silver, precious stones,
/ linen fine and purple. 1t must be the
very best in proportio there must he
nothing angular about it. 1t must be :he
| best in ornamentation. 1t seems to ne
! that it is keen suggestion that although
| this tabernacle was to be built for God,
! and have its home in the wilderness, it
/ must be ornamented. God loves beauti-
| full things.
Now, Moses was a man with like pas
| sions as ourselves and with like powers
as well, and the only way in which God
| could communicate with Moses was 10y
and through those powers in Moses which
were most like God. Moses had spir-
| itual eye, through which he could see
! God So have you. Moses had a spirit
| ual ear. by virtue of which he could hear
| God. SO have you. Moses had not a
single power for seeing and hearing and
| knowing God which is not essentially rep
resented in your life and mine; and il
Moses in his vision of God. could catch
| the sense of high and holy ideal which
in its working out should represent Is
rael at its best, SO you and | personally,
in our visions of God can catch a sight
| of the high and holy ideal which he
| cherishes for our lives. and can have
grace TO begin to build our tabernacle
in the wilderness Of our life for him.
/ which shall represent these poor lives of
ours absolutely at their best in material
for God, best in proportion for God, best
| in workmanship for God, best in orna-
mentation for God.
That is the simple message of to-day,
| that just as the pattern was revealed I'M
TO Moses in the mount, by virtue of which
he was to make all things, so the pattern
may be revealed TO you and TO me for our
little lives, in order that in every RI spect
we may make those lives according the
| pattern which has been shown unto us in
the mount of our nearest approach to
/ God.
II we are to hold this fact just for a
little while before our minds, the very
thing which suggests itself is so common
| place that we do not discern the real pow
er of it, namely that God is all the while
and everywhere working by plan.
We see this truth as we look out into
| Gods beautiful world. n is very evil
dent anywhere for man who will look
to see it. There can not, by any posi-
/ bility, be such thing as one little twin
king star running wild in the blue frma-
ment, else all Gods plan for the universe
would be in jeopardy; there can not. by
any possibility be such thing as one
| little violet blooming independently in and
1 of itself in some wilderness of the world
without. by virtue of that fact, Gods
| great plans for his great universe being
in jeopardy.
If God has PLAN if Gods plan is in
| elusive, it follows that Gods plan for the
| human life may be known. You may
know what Gods purpose is for your
! life. and then be able to do all things ac-
! cording % the pattern shown unto you,
or course we understand that no man
ever entire and wholly apprehends the
plans of God. 1t requires a whole uni
verse to disI lay those plans to begin
with; but if one may not completely I'M
derstand the entire plan of God for his
| day, for his generation. for his universe,
| he still may catch a glimpse of the plan
of God for his own life.
If it is tTue that God has a plan. if il
| is true that that plan is inclusive of
your life and Of my own, it is also true
! that those will know most of the plan
| of God who are most continually in his
| presence. He that followeth me shall
not walk in darkness" If any man
| will do his will. he shall know" And
wherever there is man who dwells in
the secret place of the Most High, there
is a man who abides under the shadow of
/ the Almighty. and he it is who comes 10
know that God has planned for his own
life, and that by the grace of God,
1 through storm and sunshine, he IS BIZ +
/ ing his life according 10 the pattern Of
/ that plan which has shown unto him in
! the mount
/ Where IS the pattern? do Won ask. The
/ answer is so evident The pattern IS in
| the person. He was. and is, and IS t.
| be in Jesus Christ the son of the ever
! living God Multitudes Of people ia the
| world today have their theology ard
ffsrs-r slffsa AMI