Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1903-10-15

| ccnOcd throughout the villages, but al
so throughout the great capital itself
The rich and the poor, the old and the
young, The government officials and the
peasant alike kft their homes TO sit at
his feet. Great crowds swarmcd about
this strange teacher wherever he went
They pressed into his caves as though
| they were temples. As result John
built up a great school of dcvotccs and
baptized his followers Ivy hundreds and
| thousands. Many Of them were ready
| to bow down ana worship him as a
! temporal as well rs a spiritual king.
Yet when Jesus appeared this Illus
| triouS man was ready, and gladly
ready, TO surrender all for Christ Like
John the Baptist, are we willing to lay
our fame, our wealth and our entire
| life work Mt Jesus feet?
Great was John the Baptist! At the
risk of his life he was ready to de-
nouncc and attack the intrenched and
the practically invulnerable sins Of
that day. lie was not one of those men
who always asop and ask. Docs it
/ payT before tfley attempt to do what
they ought to do. lie preached on the
duties of men and wagcd war against
wickcdness in high places. He declar-
cd against evils as mighty in his day
us the liquor traffic is in ours and never
condoucd crime though the criminal
WGs a king. He was ready to lool; the
hidcous monster sin sIuarcly in the
face ana then hit at that sin, though
/ his arm might scom to be as hclplcss
and weak rs the hand Of a young girl
striking Mt the wild beast lcaping upon
her in the Roman arena. He called a
spade a spade. Il lie lie, an adultery
an adultery, blasphnmy blasphemy ana
hypocrisy hypocrisy wherever they
were found. lie denounced and ex-
coriatcd the sins Of the Jewish church.
/ When ilcrod, the governor, fell in love
with lis own brothers wife and MUIR.
iered Philip that he might marry her
John instantly hurled the divine con-
domination AGAINST the ruler He raised
such storm OF popular Indignation
that Uero1 dung him into prison, and
Iaftervard. at the behcst Of his step.
daughter, who was dancing before him
at drunken feast, ne bpheadcd John
and gave 90 her the bloody trophy upon
Il charger. Oh, my brother. dare We
with Johns courage, attack inrenchod
sin wherever it may he found? Like
John the Baptist, are we great enough
and brave enough, no matter what tie
direct cost may be- to uphold the great
principles of gospel truth in the store
the home, the factory. the city ball
aye. through the sacred aislpS of the
,church itself? Dare we do this oven
though the earthly "poWers that be-
should unsheathe the elIttcrin+ sword
of death ana wave 1t over our heads
and the heads of our loved ones! When
Gclcyu de Mulcr was lcl forth to die.
he said, Were the heavens n rearl and
lhe earth n globe Of gold, and were l
The owner OF all, most cheer,uliY would
| give them all to live with my wife
and children; vet I dare not and can
uol r,nounce the truth Would You
and !, If necessary, rather than re
.nounce the truth be brave enough, like
Il Muler q Huss, a Paul, Il John TIE
Baptist, to have our bleeding bodies
laid MS a sacrifice upon truths altar?
Great In Death.
But, though John the Baptist was
great in life. ne was also great in
death. Like the pioneer who enters the
American forests and cuts away the
trees and pulls mp the stumps and
builds the home and plants the corn
n order that his children may reap tGe
ARRESTS after the father is gone, SO