The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1903-01-23

at BelshaZZar's feast unless we could
place the greatest emphasis upon this
idea. II would be appalling to depict
the horror Of a sinners eternity, unless
at the same time we could offer a par
don for all sins to all people if they
would only all be willing TO be cleansed
Of their sins In the blood of the Lamb.
The entrance into Belshazzar's ban
quet hall Of sin is not one Of unalloyed
Joy. The poet tried to describe the
wild exultation Of that feast when he
imaginatively wrote these words:
Oh. ne'er in Babylon did blaze sight
More richly grand. magnihcently bright
Bearing his crown and S'essed in robe OF
state,
High on his throne Of gold Belshazzar
safe:
In shining robes and stretching far away.
Like billows quiyering meath the sunset
ray,
Chiefs. mobiles, Stood the red lamps foat-
ing Ger
The golden chains and purple robes they
wore.
But in all that vast throng there was
many a sad heart, many a hopeless
despair. To me Belshazzar's feast is
better described by the artist by whom
/ saw it pictured at Buffalo. \. Y, In
the worlds fair Of 1901. Ushered into
a dark room, we sat there awhile in
total darkness. Then, by the magical
effects Of lights, it slowly became
brighter and brighter, until, upon the
side Of the wall we could see dim fig
ures begin to form themselves. They
looked at first like hideous phantoms.
Then, as ii became lighter and lighter
until the whole room glowed with
light, we saw the inside Of a huge
palace. There were the broad stairs
leading upward There were the
bodies Of men and women lying pros
trate upon the floor, amid overturned
tables and spilled decanters and
broken furniture. IL was a scene of
grandeur, but also a scene Of filthy !
bestalities. In the center Of the stair
case stood the horrihed king, with |
strained eyes looking at the letters Of
fire burning themselves into the wall,
while of in the distance could be seen
the Persian soldiers with drawn |
swords. ready to dilute the spilled wine |
with human gore and to change the /
floor into a reservoir Of blood. Then !
the lights Of the room began to dim,
and il grew darker and darker and |
blacker and blacker until at last it
seemed as though we were incarcer-
ated in the dungeons OF the eternally
lost and the destroyed.
So when the would be sinner would
enter the banquet hall Of sin he al
ways goes there at first like one crop
ing about in the darkness, as fearing
that he may be walking upon the edge
Of a preclplce. He enters with horror
and trembling, in terror and with tears.
Then in the midnight hour Of the car
niyal the banqueter in the hall Of sin
sees that fatal handwriting upon the
wall. You, o sinner, today see IT,
You see il with Mortified eyes, as Bel
saw it; you see it written by
the dead fingers Of those who have
lifted the same cup Of death to their
lips that you are lifting at the present
time. Then, as I'm the room where /
saw the picture at the worlds fair,
you feel that it begins to grow darker
md darker. The light IN the reveler's
yes can no longer keep your courage
lp. Already in that darkness you can
gee the advancing messengers Of Gods
rengeance. 1t is horror at the opening
# the banquet; it is horror In the mid
lie Of the banquet; It will be unutter
lble horror at its close when God shall
inally say to you, o sinner, Thou art
weighed in the balances and art found
So. in closing, as / plead with you to
lee from the banquet hall Of sin, ]
lgain invite you into the other ban
luet hall where Christ the Divine ]
is to be married to the ,
hurch. his bride. | would invite you
nto that banquet hall, which Is filled 1
With the great multitudes Of the re- ]
Ieemed. / would earnestly invite you !
o come, because there is a vacant Z
,lace at that gospel banquet table
which, | am sure, has been reserved {
or you. 1t Is I'm the center Of a group
( your loved ones. 1t is right next to
our sainted mother and father and
wife and sister and child, and by the
ooks Of yoHr loved ones / think they
re waiting for you. o sinner, are
ou ready today to leave the reyelers
( sin and to quaif the water Of life,
yhlch will fit you for entrance among
be sainted hosts, or shall you, as re-
nit Of this spurned gospel Invitation,
e weighed in the balances and for
yer found wantlngi God is even now
oldlng high the balances May every
ne of us, by the power of the Holy
pirit. decide how the balances Of God
hall be moved May we, one and all,
eclde that the scale OF sin. through
le countervalllng weight Of the cross.
hall 20 up and not 90 down.
UneonSciouS Prom CrOuD.