The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1903-01-23
A SERMON FOR SUNDAY
ENTITLED "kuO THE TWELVE GATES
WE'RE TWELVE PEARLS"

in which There is Neither sickness
Nor sorrow, Death nor Crying.
NEW York CIrY.-The Rev. Dr. j. Will |
bur Chapman, who has recently resigned |
the past0ratc of the Fourth Presbyteuan /
Church IN this city IN order 10 devote him |
self TO cvangeistic work, has prepared the |
following sermon for the press 1t IS onu" |
tied "Aud the Twelve Gates Were Twelve !
Pearls and was preached from the text, |
And had a wall great and high, and had |
twelve gates, and ot the gates twelve an |
gels and names written thereon, which |
are the names of the twelve tribes OF the
children OF Israel" Revelation xxi: u.
When La Fayette last visited this coun-
try the people gave him q royal reception.
A feet of vessels went out 10 meet hlm,
the band played "Ilail 10 the Chief" and
the national music of France, and IL is told
that he was unmoyed.
As ne came ashore land and water trcm-
| blod with the power of artillery Old sol
| diers saluted him as they shouted ms wei
/ come, and he was still unmoycd. WITH
| waving banners and under trlumphal
| arches he vas taken TO Castle Garden,
| where most of the great men of the nation
we're gathered together TO give him greet
/ ing, and he was still not moved. But when
] he had taken his seat IN the great amphl.
! theatre and when the curtain was hited
| he saw before him a perfect representation
/ OF the place in France where he was born
and brought up, and when ne saw the old
home so filed with tender memories, the
! home where his father and mother had
! lived and died, it Is said that the great
/ man was touched and bowling his face IN
| his hands he wept Ike a child. II could
| only draw aside the veil which separates
the seen from the unseen, so that you
| could behold that city which hath founda-
. | ha fop m
preach, for in the very thought OF heaven
YOU would be almost overwhelmed. / have
read descriptions of cities both in ancient
and modern times, but never such de-
scription as this; adorned like a bride for
her husband; a city in which there IS
neither sickness nor sorrow, death nor cry
ing; a city Of walls and gates; on the east
three gates. on the west three gates, on
the south three gates, on the north three
gates, and the walls had twelve founda-
tons and in them the names of the twelve
apostles Of the Lamb. The angel that
made the revelation had a golden rod IN
his hand with which he was measuring the
city. and found that the length was equal
to the breadth and that the wall was ia
cubits; that the building of the wall was
of Jasper: that the city was pure gold, and
that the twelve gates were twelve pearls
/, Tt is said that they were wide open by day
there is no night there, and in that city
there was no need of the sun, for the glory
of the Lord did tighten it, and the Lamb
! was the light thereof.
It comes to me like an inspiration that
one day I shall enter that city. Can you
say it? Your children are going in, your
) parents are going in, your husband IS going
it, your wife is going in; are you gong IN!
IL is a great Joy to know that the things
that bring us the representations of heaven
/ are so substantial. Some people tell us
a that heaven is a state, not a place What
then did Christ mean when He said, 81 &c
to prepare a place for YOU" and what
, again when He said, "In My Father
r house there are many mansions" What
is the doctrine of the resurrection? Is II
that only the spirits of men are raised
o This is not our teaching. There must bt
p some place for the resurrected body. Wher
= Christ went out with His apostles to Beth
, any and a cloud received Him out of thei
:, sight, He arose bodily from their presence
i 1t is certain, absolutely certain, that heav
n en- is a place.
Z Perhaps some may question. at first, tn
y meaning of the text. and yet | am yer,
), sure if we only had the mind of the Spiri
Il we would find in it much Of beauty, sweet
ness and power.
. WHAT is HEAVEN?
= 1t is a place OF overpower;ng brightness
sr tells us so. Chariots so bright that tn
r. only thing to which they could be likene
- was fire Angels with faces shining so tina
IL men must veil their eyes before then
n Moses and Elias so surrounded with glor
10 that the three disciples were overcom
- with the vision on the mount Of transh
" uration. The walls are like great jewe
re the streets Of pure gold and every sing
gate pearl. Hou know the brightness
one little gem as it sparRles on yor
w finger, but O! the wonderful thought thu
It. every gate is a pearl, and the day will con
q when we may go sweeping through Il
" gates If we will God has done everythiT
- that He could do and our entering in no
Is. rests upon ourselves. But the brightne
Of heaven, aside from the presence
Christ, is not due to the gates, nor to Il
walls, nor to the streets, but to the pre-
ence of those who have been redeemed.
have been told that the deeper t
on water the larger the pearl Whether tn
ot be true or not | can not tell, but lnC
~. that from the greatest depths God SON
times takes His brightest Jewels, LII Is
cause for disbursement if you have be
great sinner. Paul was a persecutC
Bunyan a blasphemer Newton libertir
ha and yet they shine to-day as the jewels
Christ
IS biologists tell US that the diamond
it only crystalized carbon, charcoal glorlhc
=, This book tells us something better tn
9n that, that Though your sins be as scarf
or they shall be as white as snow; thou
wv they be red like crimson, they shall be
80 wool"
-9' Heaven is a place of unutterable swe
IN ness Can you imagine the number of
lief tie children there? Can any one desert
NV the sweetness Of a child's song? A
ny when you remember that your own lit
Of one may be there! What wonderful siI
ed ing it is as their lips are touched by
~ finger of Christ, and their hearts
~ thrilled with His presence.
- 80, the Joys that are there mortal eye hi
ny not seen,
an o, the songs they sing there with hos