Democratic messenger., 1903-01-31
Testament"
Rev. DR.. J. Wilbur
man.

Rev. DR.. J. Wilbur
man.
Cleanse Is Illustrated In
of the Old Testa.
ut Scriptures.
Y.-The following sermon
ospel in the Old Iesta-
he'd by the famous evan
ilbur Chapman, from the
en- the fowls came down
asses, Abram drove them
Is NV: ii.
of the word of God. both in
Iment and the New, we find
ion made for cleansing the
IN the light of all that has
we seel ourselves condemned
the day of awards came to-
!. should suffer loss and lose our
ough we shall be saved, yet so
:, this thought should come to
inspiration. that all our sins may
d out and our transgressIons for.
4 Is OF great cheer, therefore, for
udy the subject now given. Ii IL
essary simply that we should IA
e ourselves with the New Testa-
this Is, OF course, essential; but il
ould know Gods ability to cleanse
ught to know the Old Testament
tures, with ther types and eeremo
he birds of the Bib,c form an interest
subject for investigation. The first
ltion OF them in the Old Testament is
Genesis i: 2l-"And God created great
ales, and every living creature that
Neth, which the waters brought forth
asundantly, after their kind, and every
winged fowl after his kind; and God saw
that 1t was good. Since that time they
are TO be seen flying through many OF the
stories o. holy writ. filled with lessons OF
sweetness and power. Their songs have
been the sweetest. their piumage has been
the brightest, their teaching has been the
best. The eagle mounting up far above
the earth. and building its nest above the
clouds, Is 4 picture OF Christian eXhilara-
tion. Isaiah had it IN mind when he said:
They that wait upon the Lord shall re.
new their strength; they shall mount up
with wings as eagles; they shall run and
not be weary; they shall walk and not
faint. The same bird, preparing its nest
and pushing ont its little ones so that they
may learn To fly. offers a splendid illustra-
tion of the providence OF God. in thus
seeming severe. but with the outcome al
ways glorious. Every man who has come
to know God in Christ must certainly say.
with the apostle Paul. 'All things work To-.
gether for good, to them that love God"
I II.
and the waters had passed from his vision
and he himself was on the verge of star
vation. the birds fed him. Every little
sparrow that comes fitting through the
air Is reminder of what Jesus said: Not
sparrow falleth TO the ground but your
heavenly Father knoweth it
But as we read the Old Testament sto.
ries we find that there are also birds of
prey. They. too. have their lessons. but
the stories they tell are not so bright and
happy. This lesson in the text is along
this line.
Abram is a wonderful study for the
Christian. In the great events of his life
he perfectly typities the experience through
which every Christian has passed. When
God called him frcn Ur OF the Chaldecs
he was an illustration OF our being called
from the land of sin and death. When he
separated himself from Terah, his father.
in-law, II emphasized what Jesus said. "A
man must forsake father and mother and
his own life if he would be My disciple"
livery Christian. If he Is to be used of God.
must forsake the world. In Abrams sen.
aratlon from Lot he Is perfect illustration
OF the demand made in the New Testa-
ment that we must, ii We would be filed
with the Holy Spirit of God, separate our.
selves even from the flesh.
There Is great battle waging, as We find
when we read the connection of the text
Win othef verses OF scripture. 1t Is writ
ten IN Genesis xiv: l4-l6-"And when
Abram heard that his brother was taken
captive he armed his trained servants,
born IN his own house, 3lS, and pursued
them unto Dan. And he divided himself
against them, he and his servants. by
night. and smote them. and pursued them
unto Hobah, which is on the left hand OF
Damascus. And he brought back all the
goods. and also brought again his brother
Lot. and his goods, and the women also,
and the people,
1t is here we find real test of Abram.
Many man has gone down Just where
Abram stood. God Is Always giving us
tests of character
Read very carefully the twenty-first to
the twentyfourth verses of the fourteenth
chapter of Genesis. and notice Abrams an.
swer: And the king of Sodom said unto
ADram. Give me the persons and take the
goods to tnyself. And Abram said to the
king OF Sodom, / have lift up mine hand
unto the Lord. the most high God. the
possessor of heaven and earth, that |
will not take from thread even to a shoe
laehet. and that | will not take anything
that Is thine. lest thou shouldest saw.
have made Abram rich; save only that
which the young men have eaten. and the
portion OF the men which went with me,
Amer, Esehol and Mamre; let them take
their portion. 1t always paws 10 stand
for God as against men in this world.
This Is clearly taught in Genesis XIV: l-l0
Alter these things the word of the
Lord came unto Abram in vision. say
ing: Fear not, Abram; | am thy shield.
and thy exceeding great reward And
Abram said. Lord God, what wilt Thou
give me, seeing | go childless. and the
steward g my house is this Eliezer of
DaTaS:us: And Abram said. Benold. 10
me Ihou hast given no seed; and 10. one
born IN my house Is mine heir. And be-
hold. the word OF the Lord came unto him.
saying, This shall not he thine heir. but
he that shall come forth out of thine own
bowels shall be thine heir. And He
brought him forth abroad. and said. Look
now toward heaven, and tell the stars. If
thou he able to number them: and He said
unto him, So shall thy seed be- And he
believed IN the Lord; and He counted il
TO him for righteousness And He said
unto him. | am the Lord that brought thee
out of Cr of the Chaldees. to give thee this
land to inherit it, And he said. Lord God
whereby shall ] know that | shall inherit
1t: And He said unto him, Take Me
heifer of three years old, and a she goat
of three years old, and a ram of three
years old, and n turtle dove and Young
pigeon. And he took unto him all these.
and divided them in the midst and laid
each piece one against another, but the
birds divided he not
God never deserts His people. He some.
times delays, but never forsakes and there
Is promise of blessing which comes to
every one who will walk uprightlv. No.
tice the eighth verse of this fifteenth chan.
ter of Genesis: "And he said. Lord God.
whereby shall i know that | shall inherit