The Penn's Grove record., 1903-03-13
A SERMON FOR SUNDAY
AN ELOQUENT DISCOURSE ENTITLED
THE END OF TIME"
fhe Rev. DIR. David j. BurreI1 Discourses
Instructively on a Theme That in Less
Eloquent Mouths Might Seem Thread
FRAGMENTS IF Tina

bare-Economize Fragments of Time.
New YORK C1rY.-The Rev. DR.. David
james Burrell, pastor of the Marble Cole
gate Church, Fifth avenue and Twenty
ninth street, preached on '"The End Of
Time" He took his text from Revelations
x: 3 and 6: And the angel which | saw
stand upon the sea and upon the earth
lifted up his hand to heaven, and sware
by Him that hyeth forever and ever, who
created heaven, and the things that therein
are, and the earth, and the things that
therein are, and the sea, and the things
which are therein, that there should be
time no longer"
Our theme is a triae t~hreadbare, but per-
haps lone the less profitable on that ac-
count. it is an easy matter to make a
homily on time, but not all homilies are as
much to the point as that Of the court jes-
ter Jacques:
Good morrow, fool" quoth I.
mo, sir" quoth he;
"Call me not fool till heaven hath sent me
fortune"
And then he drew a dial from his poke,
And, looking on it with lack-luster eye,
Says very wisely, 'It is ten O'Clock;
Thus may we see," quoth he, show the
world wags;
lis but an hour ago since it was nine;
And after one hour more twill be eleven;
And so, from hour to hour, we ripe and
,ipe,
And then, from hour to hour, we rot and
rot;
And thereby hangs a tale"
Let this melancholy "tale" engage us for
a while. The issues of interminable aeons
may depend upon the attention we give to
the circling hands on the dial. He who
learns Alright the lessons Of time is ready
to meet the responsibilities of eternity.
But what is time? Cline is money!
ize it. A man went into Benjamin Frank
Inns book store and inquired the price OF
answer. "Call your employer" said the
would-be purchaser. When Franklin was
asked the price of the volume he answered,
Zone dollar and a quarter" why, your
clerk asked only a dollar" ITO be sure,
but you called me from my printing press
and am charging you for my time" The
Presently he said, Now, Mr.. Franklin,
really what IS your lowest figure for this
book?" Gone dollar and a half" "Pre-
posterous! You only asked me a dollar
and a quarter" eyes, but my time is val
liable, and every minute sends the book
up" This was sound philosophy and good
business. II our days and hours were all
marked with a price in plain figures we
should probably be less prohigate Of them.
We have nc such scrupie about wasting
time as we would have in throwing gold
eagles into the sea.
But time is more than money. It is "the
stuff that life is made of" It stands for
privilege, opportunity. responsibility, judg-
ment, heaven or hell. You may throw
away a dollar and earn another, but no
two moments overlap. The last one said
farewell forever; the next is-already gone!
Time is a talent, a talent of gold stamped
with the image and superscription of the
King. God made it, as He made the trees
and mountains, and He owns it. He has
entrusted it to US, to be put at usury for
Him. Twill a mar rob God? Yet We have
robbed Me, saith the Lord of hosts" The
misrepresentation or misuse of days and
hours and moments is as really dishonest
as the tapping of an employers till. This
is a serious matter, and gives us sufficient
Q Tor Thought, ioar question were
pushed no further. But we cannot stop
here.
Wrinkled and curved with many worldly
cares,
"Time is the warp of life" he said, 20 tell
The young. the fair, the brave to use it
WELL"
I asked the mighty angel and silvery
M spneres, -
inose prlghe chrohoneeers Oh passing
mi years, ~
iney answered. Lime Is Out d meteor :
giare,
Anu o"ue IN ~ 'ensy piepoi'
I asked the mighty angel who shall stand
One foot on sea, the other on the land;
mortal" he cried, "the mystery is DER;
Lime was, TIME l' ous 'i"e shdn De III
more.
a step further brings US TO the inquiry,
What Is time Tor! or to what end has tins
momentous trust been reposed IN us! Let
it be understood that time IS not Tor US to
live IN. we are not ephemera; we live tor
ever. lime IS gwen US Tor preparation.
Ih 5 is only the antechamber OF life, where
we stand waiting until the door opens and
we pass in. Death is the angel that opens
the door. The only reason why we tear
death Is because we know that as time
leaves US eternity finds US. Death ends
probation. We cross the line with our
characters chrystalized: He that is unjust,
let him be unjust still; ne that is holy, let
him be holy STILL" These are our school
days; death is Commencement" Here
we serve an apprenticeship; death is going
to work.
The sntler day a young newspaper re-
porter said to me, ON my refusing an inter
view: ~ wish you would help me along.
I'm on probation, and whether / get an
engagement or not depends upon my sue
cess in this sort of thing" l wonder how
some Of the people who are now wasting
their probation can expect to be taken
into service in the kingdom of God. What
can they do? Let the great Employer ask
them, .sWhat can you do?" How will it
seem to answer, II can sell dress goods; /
can lead the german; I can make money or
spend it; | can drive a bargain; / can sail
q schooner or run an engine; |. can re-
ceiye' and sentertain;' I can make money!
These NAV be good as far as they go, but,
in ali soberness, how far do they 90 as a
nrenarat;or for the tasks of heaven? Do
Won know friend. how to comfort the grief
stricken and rescue the wandering? How
to minister TO the need of the wounded
traveller on the Jericho road? How to give
fha c,,n of cold water to one of Gods little
oness How tn noint q penitent sinner to
the lamb Of God? How to speak the
nra;ses Of tbe One altogether lovely? How
r s;no s.Holv Holv Holy. Lord God AL
m;oh4vao r. not what a bawildering sort
- nlsee heaven would be to wont What
= p,a o. a. for3 Heaven i nc nlaee for
"nsL;l cd labor What can Won do9 Time
- n;ren Won for This very burmese. to Get
raadv for tba things further on.
ied p.;y Nv munb Fine have we9 Enougb.