Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1902-02-26
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q who find life a struggle and shows
that we have many celestial sympathiz-
ers; texts, Hebrews xii, l. Seeing we
also are comprised about with so great a
cloud OF witnesses" l. Corinthians XIV,
80. Il have fought with beasts at Ephe-
sus''
Crossing the Alps by the Mont Gents
pass or through the Mont Gents tunnel,
you are in a few hours set down at We
roma, Italy, and in few minutes begin
examining one Of the grandest ruins of
the world, the Amphtheater. The whole
building sweeps around you in a circle.
You stand in the arena where the combat
was once fought or the race run, and on
all sides the seats rise, tier above tier,
until you count forty elevations, or gal
leries, as / shall see fit TO call them. in
which sat the senators. the kings and the
$1,000 excited spectators. st the sides
of the arena and under the galleries are
the cages in which the lions and tigers
are kept without food until. frenzied
with hunger and thirst. they are let out
upon some poor victim, who, with his
sword and alone, is condemned to meet
them. think that Paul himself once
stood in such place and that it was not
only fguratively, but literally, that he
had fought with beasts at Ephesus."
The gala day has come From all the
world the people are pouring into Verona.
Men, women and children, orators and
senators, great men and small, thousands
upon thousands come. until the first gal
lery is full, and the second, the third,
the fourth. the fifth--all the way up to
the twentieth, all the way up to the
thirtieth all the way up to the fortieth.
Every place is filed immensely of au-
dience sweeping the great circle. ST.
lence. The time for the contest has come.
A Roman official leads forth the victim
into the arena. Let him get his sword
with firm grip into his right hand. The
25,O0O sit breathlessly watching. | hear
the door at the side of the arena creak
open. Out plunges the half-starved lion,
his tongue athirst for blood, and with a
roar that brings all the galleries to their
feet he rushes against the sword OF the
complaint. Do you know how strong a
stroke man will strike when his life
depends upon the first thrust of his
blade? The wild beast, lame and bleed
ing, sinks back toward the side of the
arena; then rallying his wasted strength
he comes up with ierceT eye and more
terrible roar than ever, only TO be driven
back with fatal wound, while the COM
Blatant comes in with stroke after stroke
until the monster is dead at his feet,
and the $4,000 clap their hands and utter
shout that makes the city tremble.
Sometimes the audience came to see a
race; sometimes to see gladiators fgilt
each other, until the people, compassion
ate for the fallen, turned their thumbs
up as an appeal that the vanquished be
spared, and sometimes the combat was
with wild beasts.
All Have Lions to Fight.
To one of the Roman amphtheatrical
audiences of 100000 people Paul refers
when he says, I'VE are comprised about
with so great cloud of witnesses" The
direct reference in the last passage is
made to n race; but elsewhere having dis
cussed that, | take now Paul's fayorite
Idea of the Christian life as a combat.
The fact is that every Christian man
has lion to fight. Yours is a bad tenn
per. The gates OF the arena have been
opened, and this tiger has come out to
destroy your soul. 1t has la,erated you
with many a wound. You have been
strength of God You have arisen to drive
1t back. verify believe you win conquer.
| think that the temptation is getting
weaker and weaker. You have given it
so many wounds that the prospect is that
it will die, and you shall be victor,
through Christ. Courage, brother. Do
not let the sands of the arena drink the
blood of your soul!
Your lion is the passion for strong
drink. You may have contended against
1t for twenty years; but it is strong OF
body and thirsty of tongue. You have
tried to fight it back with broken bottle
or empty wine flask. Nay, that is not
the weapon. With one horrible roar he
will seize thee by the throat and rend
thee limb from limb. Take this weapon.
sharp and keen-reach up ana get it from
Gods armory-the sword of the Spirit
With that thou mayest drive him back
and conquer.
But why specify when every man and
woman has lion to fight? If there be
one here who has no besetting sin, let him
speak out, for him have | offended. If
you have not fought the lion, it is because
You have let the lion eat you up. This
very moment the contest goes on. The
Trajan celebration. where 10000 gladia-
tors fought and II 900 wild beasts were
slain, was not so terrific a struggle as
that which at this moment goes on in
many a soul. The combat was for the
life of the body; this is for the
life of the soul. That was with wild
beasts from the jungle; this is with the
roaring lion of hell
90
Before / get through l will show -ou
that you fight in an arena, around which
circle. in galleries above each other. all
the kindling eyes and all the sympathct-
ic hearts of the ages. and at every vic
tory gained there comes down the thun-
dering applause of great multitude that
no man can number. Being compassed
about with so great cloud of witnesses .
On the first elevation of the ancient
amphitheater, on the day of a eelebra-
ton. sat Tiberius or Augustus or the
reigning king So in the great arena of
spectators that watch our struggles aud
in the first divine gallery. as | shall call
it, sits our King. one Jesus. On his head
are many crowns. The Roman emperor
got his place by cold-bloodcd conquests.
but our KIDS hath come to his place by
the broken hearts healed and the tears
wiped away and the souls redeemed. The
Roman emperor sat with folded arms,
Indifferent as to whether the swordsuan
or the lion beat. but our Kings sympl-
thies are all with us-nay, unheard Of
condesceHsioD, / see him come down
from the gallery into the arena TO help
Us in the Gght, shout NJ until all up and
down his yoiFp is heard. Fear not,