Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1903-10-30


world have had strong bodies. Go
and sit today in the gallery OF the Unit
ed States senate. aud you cannot gain
say this fact. Some of the Uniteo
States senators are now very aged
men. yet even in the decay OF their
physical organisms. as among the ruins
OF Melrose abbey, you can still trace
the strength and tie power of bygone
days. But. though the necessity Of
physical health should be an axiom.
yet the strange fact remains that most
people by countless follies are flagrant-
~ undermining the physical walls Of
the temple OF the Holy Ghost. They
are overworlsing the body. as you
sometimes see n tired horse compelled
TO pull too big a load. They are abus-
ing the body with the idea that God
will forgive them because they are try
ing to do his work. No. no. my friends.
This abuse OF the body must not be.
The temple Of the Holy Ghost should
be physically strong temple. The
broader q mans shoulders the heavier
is the load he can lift for Christ. The
louder his voice the farther. ali things
being equal. he can sound forth the
message OF Saviour's sacrifice.
Moral Cleanlinsss.
The temple Of the Holy Spirit, In the
next place. should be clean body.
There are some men whose bodies are
given over to moral flthiness. They
are like some of the ancient heathen
temples which were avowedly dedicat-
ed to the deities OF lust, drunkenness
and debauchery. the existence Of which
was a national dishonor. The worship
performed In those temples was so vile
that you could not describe Ii in public
without bringing a blush Of shame to
every modest check and demand for
silence from every modest lip. The pic
lures found on the walls OF the ex-
humed city of Pompeii show that those
temples were veritable charnel houses,
where bats and owls and carrion birds
gorged themselves on the decaying
corpses Of truth. purity and love. Let
the temple OF your body be clean. as
Christ wanted the Jerusalem temple
to be clean when he drove the traders
out OF that temple, crying. as it not
nations the house Of prayer, but we
have made 1t den OF thicves?' clean
as David wanted his physical altar to
be clean when he uttered the agoniz-
Ing prayer. "Wash me thoroughly from
my iniquity and cleanse me from my
SIM or that other pleading besecch-
ment, Cleanse thou me from secret
faults" or clean as Paul meant us to
be clean when I'm this same letter to
the Corinthian church he wrote these
warning words: IF any man deflle the
temple of God, him shall God destroy.
for the temple of God is holy. which
temple We are" Oh. the terrible con-
domination which is to be visited upon
those whose bodies are dcfiled by the
indulgence of degrading vices, Oh, the
awful doom awaiting the spiritual des-
ecration OF the temple of the Holy
Ghost!
Consuming Fire.
Have you ever seen a sanctuary OF
brick and stone which has been dedi-
Gated TO God destroyed by earthquake
or by fire? Well, l have. On dark.
stormy night l was awakened In my
Brooklyn home by the rumbling of the
hre engines. i heard n quick rap ut
my door, as my sister called: wake
up! The Tabernacle is In namesr' I
hurriedly dressed and nscended to the
cr0ola OF our house. which overlooked
tn" city. There the whole family were
gathered. The mir seemed charged
and surcharged with electricity. or
In the distance the public buildings of
the city looked like the great white
mansions or u celestial city. making by
contrast the scene more dramatic. The
church did not burn as other buildings
seemed to burn, but its roof IN it's en-.
tirety was mass OF living Goals. II
looked like an altar. n huge altar upon
which was being sacrificed the whole
iifes ministry Of the noble father who
stood by my side. Suddenly II swayed
ana shivered, like unto a dazed and
dying man. There II goesr' said
mother. Yes. there II went. With one
lurch II was gone, while we stood hud-
died together In the darkness. My IA
Their and i put on our greatcoats and
started out In the storm. As we push
Cd through the crowds outside the
ropes we found the congreCa-
don there assembled. not by the church
bell, but by the flreman's call. Some
or the people were weeping and sob
bling as though their hearts would
break. Some OF them had been bap-
TIED az children In that church. Some
Of them had found God there. Some
or them had mourned beside their dead
within those walls. All, IL Is q sad
sight to see a cathedral or a city
church or little village meeting house
destroyed by fire. But 1t will be In
hnitely sadder to see a human being.
whose body might be temple of the
holy Ghost. consumed by the fires OF
hideous passions and appetites. Be-
ware, o man, that you never desecrate
that temple Of your body or sacrifice on
the altar OF your heart, which should
be consecrated 10 God, offerings to the
lemons Of perdition.
The Temple OF Christ,
The temple of the Holy Spirit should
have beautiful body - beautiful in
reference to the glance of its eve.
beautiful in the tone of its voice:
beautiful as far as possible In refer
ence to its apparel: beautiful as Sarah
was beautiful, whose husband gave to
her one OF the sweetest and yet court.
lest Of compliments when he turned
ana In the quaint language of the east
SAID, Thou art fair woman to look
lpon." If God Almighty demanded
hat the children OF Israel should give
'f their gold and silver and precious
stones to beautify his Jerusalem sane
Iuary surely then we ought to try to
oeautify his temple OF the Holy Ghost
Christ has often been worshiped In
4 mud hut or an open barn, but he de-
serves the noblest and best Of human
architecture. We have all read how
millions upon millions OF dollars were
spent to make artistic the sanctuaries
of the east. The greatest of sculptors
nave chiseled for them their master
pieces and out of the solid stone have
made flower gardens to bloom at the
base and the ton of the YnasSfra MI