The Tupelo journal., 1903-08-07

soldiers declare in the dark
hour of death: Truly, this
mar was the Son of God!" They
could in avaricious zeal seize upon His
raiment and cast lots for His cloak, but
they could not rob Him of that mex
haustible mercy which reached out and
shortened the sufferings of the dying
thief and took him with Him into Para
disc. And that which was true of Jesus
is true of every one of His disciples. The
world may be able to take their silver
and their gold, and everything else
which they possess Of this worlds
goods, but 1t can never lay a soiling,
defiling hand upon the raiment of the
redeemed, which consists of the indwel-
ling Christ manifesting Himself In
their every thought and word and deed.
Put on your broadcloths, your silks and
satins and laces, and they may become
soiled and torn and ruined, but put on
the Lord Jesus Christ and the raiment
of the redeemed becomes the brighter,
and more beautiful, and more powerful
in the influence exerted the more 1t is
worn and brought into everyday use.
In fact, II Christ be not put on daily,
ii the soul fails to clothe itself with the
Divine presence. the raiment of the re-
deemed surely and swiftly is with
drawn, and the thoughtless, careless
Christian finds himself standing naked
before the world, a reproach to the pro-
fession which he makes and a dishonor
to the Christ whose name he bears.
A T the entrance to some of the great
~ coal mines where the fine black dust
of the coal settles upon everything with
soiling aud disfiguringtouch, theregrows
a little white flower which glistens and
CLOVIS In it's spotless purity amidst all
the blackness around it. The effect is
startling, and you wonder how it is that
the pure white of its petals is not soon
furnished and blackened by the ever-set-
Ting coal dust. All else about it is dingy,
but here is this little white flower which
the coal dust seems unable to injure in
the least degree. In searching for the
reason we find that the little flower has a
transparent enamel covering for its
white petals which is absolutely imper-
vious to the dust about it. The black
ness from the coal mine rolls from its
surface and leaves NO tell-tale marks
behind. The flower Is still possessed of
its purity and loneliness. 1t is so with
the Christian who abides under the shell
tering presence of his Lord. His gar
ments cannot then become furnished or
defled with the sin dust of the world,
but let him wander off into the path
way of sin and he has, like the Chris
tians at Sardis, soon defled his gar
ments. ts
p UT II the world may not rob the
- Christian of his raiment, or soil or
tarnish it, the Christian may soil his
own garments. In the message to the
church at Sardis We find the charge made
that there were not many who had not
defled their garments. Only a few there
were who had kept themselves unspotted
from the world. The majority had so
far forgotten the profession they had
made and the name they bore as to share
in the sinful pleasures and ambitions
of the world. The garments of Christian
profession had become soiled with the
filth of the world, had become torn by
its snares and temptations. Demas, a
co-laborer with Paul, and about whom
Paul sorrowingly had to write: "Demas
hath forsaken me, having loved this
present world" was one whose gar
ments had become. soiled and defled
with the touch of the world. While he
stayed with Paul and labored in the Cos
pei with him he came in contact with the
sin spots of the world; he went into the
dark and needy and foul places, but it
was not then that his garments became
defiled. Christ could touch the lepers
and not be u~nclean; He could feel the
pressure Of the ceremonial unclean wo-
man who was suffering with an incura-
BILE ailment and not be defled; He could
lift the sinful woman to her feet and tell
her to go and sin no more, and still be
spotless and pure; He could eat with
publicans and sinners, and still lift up
and save, for HE came, not to call the
but sinners to repentance"
And Demas could 60 with His Lord and
Master into the needy and dark places
and be untouched by the sin and dirt Of
the world, but when he went off by him
self into the world, drawn by his own
desires and longing for It's pleasures, he
at once lost that immunity, and the sin
and dirt of the world made hideous, dis
figuring marks upon the garments of his
Christian profession.
uDUT ye on the Lord Jesus" because
| the garments of the natural self
are but filthy rags. Gods Word gives
the picture of Joshua, the high priest,
standing before the angel of the Lord.
The contrast . is striking. Joshua is
clothed in filthy garments; the angel in
robes of spotless white. Joshua has
upon him the garments which he himself
has secured; the angel has those which
God has provided. And the command
goes forth: Take away the filthy gar
ments from him." And a change of raj
ment was provided for Joshua. He was
clothed upon by God. Although it was
Joshua, the high priest, who had been
for the people before the
Lord, still the righteousness of the ma
tural self were as but filthy rags in the
presence of God. He must receive gar
ments from the hand of God. 1t is so
with the Christian. To put on Christ
means more than mere acceptance of
Ham az q Saviour. 1t is the putting away
OF the natural self and allowing Christ
the supreme rule over and control in the
life. Joshua, until he came into the very
presence Of God, probably did not real
ize that his garments were filthy rags