St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1903-03-07
DIVINE CERTAINTIES,
Gods Eternal Word the Only Sure
and Abiding Foundation.

Every Promise Has Been Tested by
Christ and Finds Its Falfllment
in Him-Se rmOn by the "HlEh-
| way and Byway" Preacher.
copyright, 1868, by A. N. Kellogg News
naper Col s=
Chicago, February 1, 1903.
Text: ''For all the promises of God in
| Him are yea, and in Him Amen, unto the
glory of God by us.''-lI Cor. 1920
A sure thing. That is what the world
is looking for. The business man, the
fnancier, the leader in the industrial
world, are all looking for sure thing,
and put their money, their brains and
their energy into that which promises
permanency and success. But under
the swift changes Of the ever-changing
human conditions, the sure thing OF
to-day becomes the fading memory OF
tomorrow. The sure thing of to-day
in the scientific world, becomes the I'M
certainty and incomplete fact in the
light of the new discoveries Of to-mor-
row. The accepted wisdom and theory
of to-day in the Intellectual world lose
their force and meaning as the chang
ing line of thought and doctrine of to-
morrow is developed. Trace the course
of human thought and events back
through history's pages and behold
how the thriving plant of one age and
genera ton has become the decay and
mold of the next. Man is as the grass
of the field, and his energy, his achieve
ments. his wisdom and his theories all
flourish in their day and then pass away
| to give place to new generation, new
age with it's own line of activities and
its own peculiar thoughts and theo-
ries. That which is of man is ephem-
eral, and the sure thing is not to be
| found in him.
The earth on which his feet rest and
over which they move in weaving the
activities and intricacies of life had its
foundations laid in the young and
budding days of the universe, and it
has remained through the ages which
have rolled around since then to the
present day. 1t has nourished it's teem-
ing population, has fed and sheltered
the children Of every cline and nation,
and has then opened it's dark bosom
| and mingled it's dust with the mortal
clay of the human frame. The lofty
mountains that rear their rocky
lengths. through the continents, and
the oceans that roll in ceaseless flow
at their feet, have seen each century
as it has unfolded in the mighty piano.
rama of time, and yet the earth, its
| mountains and it's vast waters, are to
pass away. The scientist will tell you
that. He even dares sometimes to fig-
ure out the probable time. And so the
earth is not sure thing.
The silver light of the full-orbed and
beautiful moon flooded with its soft
glow the sleeping earth the other
night. AS l rejoiced in the night glory
of the heavens the thought swept over
me: "And even thou, oh, moon! will
yet fail in thy light. Thy glowing face
shall be yelled and the universe which
has known thy faithful return, and thy
cheering light, throughout the CEN
turtles will know thee no more. And
thou. oh, stars! that have gemmed
the heavens and sparkled in ceaseless
splendor since God studded His uni
verse with your flashing beauty to be
silent witness to His glory, thy days
are numbered on the calendar of time.
Thou to whom Abraham SO long, long
ago lifted his eye of faith and sought to
count your innumerable host as they
marched across the heavens that he
might learn the number of the progeny
which God was yet to give him, thou
art yet to fail and fall from thy airy
heights!" And while Unused the great
silver ball rolled down the slopes of
the western sky and was lost to view.
The stars blinked out last good-by
and faded slowly from sight, and in the
east the great glowing, respondent
sun swept up the heavens and bestowed
the warmth of his goodmorning kiss
upon the welcoming face of the glad
earth. Thus had he done day after
day, day after day, throughout the
years and the centuries which have
elapsed since he was hung as a great
light in the heavens. Was here sure
thing? Nay, verify, for thou, oh, sun!
thou king of the heavens, shalt feel thy
life-giving heat turned to the chill of
death; thy light shall be swallowed up
and thou shalt cease thy faithful jour-
ney over thy wellworn path. No, the
sun, moon and stars cannot claim per-
manency and give us a sure thing, for
He whose hand laid the founda lions
of the earth and hung sun, moon and
stars in the heavens, has said: Heaven
and earth shall pass away"
And the lips of the Son of God had
not ceased to move as He spoke the
doom of the heavens and the earth ere
He had given man a sure thing on
which to stand, for He went on to de-
clare in the same sentence: "But My
words shall not pass away" Here
then is the sure thing that shall abide
with God throughout the unending
eternities. And our text gives us re-
casting Of the thought in the mold of
Paul's mind as, in writing to the
Corinthian church, he declares: Cali
the promises of God in Christ are yea.
and in Christ Amen, unto the glory Of
God by u.s."
The mariner in the midst of the
vast ocean studies the stars and
takes his bearings. Then he is sure
of his location and knows the exact
direction in which to steer to bring
him to the safe shelter of the home
port. Man sailing the sea of life
has the privilege OF studying the sure
CLEANS of Gods Word, and taking
his bearings. Then when his exact