Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1903-09-30

ciple?
STRANGERS AND sOJOURNERS.
Ey Rev T. ". wood.
We are strangers before thee, and
sojourners, as were all our fathers
/ Chron. xxx. 10.
When David's long and eyentful life
time was drawing to a close, with
much to look back upon with thank
fulness, and with much also to con-
template with regret, the aged king
declared that. after all, we on earth
are but strangers and sojourners. Ii,
then, one so exalted as David was,
who had passed through so many
evontful periods of life-S'ho had done
50 rs uch for GDd and for his own peo-
pie, in spite of his shortcolpings-if
King David, who had left so much be-
h nd him TO tell Of his greatness, his
power. and his might, showing that he
had really lived TO accomplish mighty
purposes-if David could say truly,
when all was nearly over, I'VE are
strangers and pilgrims" surely we
should consider, now we are passing
through the world, as he once did,
that we also are strangers here, only
going through the world as if we were
on pilgrimage And yet how few
seem to reaize what they know well
is a plain and straightforward fact,
one there is no denying, though much
attempt at evading, or at least anSat-
tempt to persuade ourselves that our
soiourning here is far from being near
/ ~ over. and that our pilgrimage has
not nearly reached its termination.
| Yet strangers and sojourners we are,
and so we must remain to the end of
life in this world.
We use the word strangers" In
common talk in different ways; or, per-
haps. l should say, with different
meanings. We talk of people as
| strangers" at one time; but they do
not remain strangers aiways-e. g.:
when a lad first leaves home and goes
| out into the world he is stranger
/ among the people where his lot Is cast;
| but in course of time and by degrees
| he finds out that he knows them and
they know him. Then he is stran-
ger no longer. Again, man who is
| travelling In foreign country, know
| ing imperfectly the language of the
| people, unaccustomed 10 their mode of
| life. and feeling strange at sights and
| sounds with which he is not familiar,
is, indeed, stranger in strange
land, but supposiug he remains there
| for some years, by degrees the strange
ness wears off, and at length he feels
at home where once he seemed to be
much ont of place. SO he is a stranger
| no more. Or, again, let us imagine
/ another case Take an enterprising
traveller who, burning to make discov-
| cries. ventures across the boundaries
! of civilization and encounters people
| and objects which are new and alto
| gether different from what he or any
one else has experienced before. Every
man he meets is savage. and every
| savage perhaps thirsts for his blood.
! with such surroundings and among
| such people he is ever likely to remain
a stranger. md it is in some such
way as this we are taught to lock upon
| our passage through the world as be-
| ing, | mean, a place where we have
/ no continuing city. but are only stran-
| gers passing through 1t. At any mo-
inent we may find out this is true. for
at the time appointed. not by ourselves
| but by God. we may have to striAe our
! tent and the frail tabernacle in which
we W dwell may be- broken up. while
we ourselves are conveyed to another
scene.
And we may well ask ourselves,
/ what win that other scene be 10 us?
| We know that there remaineth n rest
to the people of God who have passed
as strangers and pilgrims through the
/ worlds And we know, moreover. we
are admonished to labor to enter into
| that rest. Let us strive. then. so to do,
and give all diligence. and take ali
| heed to enter into that eternal rest
when our sojourning here is over. Let
us not. through negligence or sloth,
come short of the promised rest As
| good soldiers of Jesus Christ let US
| fight manfully under his banner, lay
/ ing aside every weight and the sin
/ 6vhateyer Ii may be- which so easily
be7ets us. Let us run with diligence
| and patience the race which is set be-
fore us. looking unto Jesus, the au-
/ thor and finisher of our ia tn. Let Us
always remember that although cur
toiIing along here may not be always
! pleasant nor agreeable. yet there will
be g glorious and everlasting rest for
tn Sc who have passed through the
world as strangers pass through a
country which is no: their home. When
we now look tow lrds this home and
hope one day 10 enter therein. we may
truly say:
All! thea ray spirit faints
To reach the lard ] love.
The bright Inheritance Of saints,
Jerusalem above