The Tupelo journal., 1903-02-13

the surface and rest upon a secure
foundation. And as one plants his feet
upon each stone in succession he is
thrilled, with the sense of it's unfailing
security and is able to see beneath the
rock Christ Jesus upon which it rests.
In crossing the stream upon the
stepping stones do You remember how
it was but one stone at time, and that
you were % ready for the third stone
until the second had been passed and
the fourth followed, and so on until the
last stone was reached in due time?
Do you also remember how confused
and dizzy you became when you took
your eyes off the stepping stone and
looked at the rushing waters as they
whirled by? 1t was one stone at a
time, and you had to keep your eyes on
each stone to keep from making a mis-
step, and falling into the stream. The
stepping stones Of Gods promises Grc
to be taken in the same way, and He
who lifts his gaze from the promise
and looks off into the rushing waters
of sin and unbelief is sure to slip and
fall, and then it will be a desperate
struggle to get back on the rock again.
Fix your eyes upon Gods promises, o
soul! Plant your feet upon them, for
they are the only SUR thing on which
to stand!
The First Stone and the Last.-The
first stone marks the beginning as the
soul comes in touch with God and puts
its trust in Him; the last is gained as
the feet rest on the other side the
river of death and find the golden road
way which leads into the City of God.
The first stone is the promise of saliva
ton in Christ Jesus. believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be
saved!" The last stone is the promise:
When thou passeth through the wa
tiers, | will be with thee" and the as
surance that though l walk through
the valley. of the shadow of death, I
will fear no evil, for Thou art with
me-" And between the two stretch out
for every step of the journey of life
the promises which if claimed and
stood upon will enable the soul to pur-
u a safe pathway and to rejoice in
the Lord, Away"
Did you ever realize that from the
moment Jesus rested in the manger at
Bethlehem a babe until the day He
was caught up into Heaven through
the clouds His feet constantly rested
upon the promises of His Father? 1t
was all He had to depend upon, the
eternal Word of God. And if at M
point in His earthly life He had lifted
His feet from the stepping stones of
Gods promises, He would have failed
in His great and marvellous mission of
r%edeeming the human race. But
thanks be to God! He did not, and
thus not only did the promises uphold
Him but they were fulfilled and es-
tablished in Him. And now it is our
privilege in Christ Jesus to claim every
promise He claimed, to walk safely
over every step of the journey of life.
The Pathway of Joy.-At the very
close of the earthly life of Jesus, He
spoke of the joy which filled His
heart. What was the secret of that
JOY? Was it in Himself? Was it in
the cruel path He had travelled? Was
it that at the end of His earthly career
He was rejected and crucified by the
nation to which He had come as Mes
siah and King? No. JOY is never found
in ones self, in the things we have or
the pathway of life we travel. Jesus
joy was found in the sure promises Of
God. He knew His feet rested upon
that which would abide long after the
heavens and earth has ceased to be.
He could see the glorious CLEANS from
the promises of God shining over the
cross, through the tomb and marking
a pathway of light back to the pres
ence of the Father. Joy, oh, what joy!
1t is the joy which may be ours, for
Jesus, after testing every one of Gods
promises and establishing them in
Himself, said: These things have l
spoken unto you, that My joy might
remain in you, and that your joy
might be full"
The Glory of the Promises.-And
herein is where the glory of the prom
ises shines forth. Our text declares
that the promises of God are sure
unto the glory of God by u.s." Aprom-
Use of God linked with a human life
flashes forth a glory that will only
find it's equal and counterpart in the
matchless glory and magnifcence
of the Heavenly city. The corn Of
wheat needs to be linked with the
black soil, the rain and the sunshine
before the glory of its fruitage can be
revealed. The diamond shut within
the narrow dark prison of it's plush
case is not a whit different than the
bit of glass which may rest at it's side,
but lift it from its case and link it with
the flashing beams of sunshine and it's
glory stands revealed, while the bit of
glass remains but a piece of unre-
sponsive glass still. So it is with man
and Gods promises. Shut man up to
himself and the promises of God are
dead and meaningless, but let him
once open his life and heart to the
streaming light of the promises and he
flashes back their beauty in a thou
sand CLEANS of light to the glory of
God. If man needs Gods promises on
which to step from earth to Heaven,
Gods promises need man to realize
their fulfillment and reveal their
glory. All. how necessary is God to
man and man to God! What infinite
love is Gods, what glorious privilege
is mans! Yea, verify, "the promises
Of God in Christ are yea, and in Christ
Amen, unto the glory of God by u.s."
Prafse and Prayer.
Let praise-I say not merely thanks.