The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1904-09-16

ing the Church, the Decorating OF the
house OF God by social snd secular enter
talnments and methods of raising money
| which appeal 10 the selhshness and friyoi-
! iry OF man, and the using Of Christianity
IN any way as a cloak OF covetousness. as
| an advertisement OF business, as "a means
OF social preferment or secular gain-these
are things which are 80 common on every
| side OF Us that me hearts of many OF Gods
| children have been filed with humiliation
and sorrow. and moved to earnest prayer
Tor the coming Of the King once more %
cleanse His Temple and purge from His
church these shameful profanations.
The second cleansing q the Temple
would seem % suggest that before the
Lords coming there Ii 10 be q profound
work Of sanctifcac.oa among the people
| OF Cod answering 20 that first cleansing
OF which We read 80 fully in the early
| chapters Of the Acts .; the Apostles.
| Still more fully does i apply 70 the in
dIyidual experience Of the Christian.
Here, too, there Is second cleansing
which the Lord corles % bring when He
Himself enters the coHsecrated heart, not
only saving. but sanctifying and separating
us unto Himself in deeDer sense than
VIC can possibly know. even in the early
JOY Of conversion. Have we received this
" The Children King This was not
an ordinary crowd wrere the children
always love TO be IA front, but il was a
genuine outburst of heaven inspired love
! and loyalty that made them cry, 'Hosan-
nan in the highest" For the Lord Jesus
Himself bore testimony 70 the genuineness
OF their praise and indeed gave it the high
est place over all Others as He poted the
| ancient Scripture, out OF the mouths OF
babes and sucklings Thou has perfected
praise" Others might join IN the accla-
encc Of an excited multitude but theirs
was perfect praise" As usual the Phari-
secs were ready 20 scorn their juvenile en-
thusiasm, but the Lord Jesus was also
ready 10 vindicate them as He had once
before
Let US never forget that Jesus is the
chlldren'S King. By and by. when We wei
come Him to His helvcn.y throne, we shall
find that vast proportion OF that ran
somed crowd vii consist OF little chill
dren. Let us train our little ones 10 know
Him and crown Him as their King. The
word used here IN their childish praise IL
the Hebrew word "Hosannah." 1t is not
quite the same as IIalelujah. the usual ex-
preston for worship and praiEe. Literally
it means Lord save us." Our Hallelu-
jahs must begin in Hosannahs. Even the
children. too, must learn that they are
sinful children. and that they also require
His cleansing blood. ana only as they ac-
cept 1T and honor it will their Hosannahs
become Hallelujahs. and the Lord pro-
nounce their homage perfect praise
" The Blessing of the King. Immedi-
ately after Christs triumphal entry into
Jerusalem and His cleansing OF the Tenn
pie, we read these significant words, "and
the blind and the lame came TO Him in the
Temple and He healed them" Purifca-
ton always leads on To power. The cleans
ing of the Temple was followed by the .
healing OF the sick and the revelation OF
the great and good Physician. So, still it
will be found IN our personal experience.
This was not a momentarv gleam OF divine
benefcence over dark and suffering
world, but Jesus Christ is the same yes
terday, to-day and forever.
"And warm. sweet. tender even yet
A present help is He
And love has still its O,ivet
And faith its Galilee
The healing of His seamless robe
Il by our beds OF Uain.
We touch Him mid LIES pain and strife
And we are who.e again
But. OF course. all this awaits it's perfect
fulflment in that happier time when the
King shall come to His own again "and
the ransomed OF the Lord shall return and
come to Zion with songs and everlasting
Joy upon their heads; they shall obtain
Joy and gladLess, and sorrow and signing
shall flee away.
Then. when this earth is purged of all
iniauity, Will 1t be also true the inhabitant
shall no more saw II am sick. and the
their iniquity.'
"Come. Lord. and take away
The sin, the wrong. the pain.
And make this blighted world OF ours
Thine own fair world again
VI The Curse Of the King. But the
King has not only blessing, but also judg
| ment in His mighty hand. Tie only mira
Gle of judgment recorded in all the life Of
Jesus Christ Immediately followed these
" n
rem fig tree, to which He came seeking
fruit and encouraged to expect lt by the
luxuriant leaves that ,overed It's branches:
but 10! there was nothing but leaves"
and He pronounced upon 1t the witherlng
words at left it leafcss an dead.
This las, of course. a type of the fruit
less nation that he had already referred
to under the parable OF the Barren Fig
Tree, and 1T forecasts the solemn Judgment
that awaits every professed follower of
Christ who shall meet Him at last with
empty hands and fruitless life.
But there is beneticent aspect. even in
| the curse OF the kinc. 1t tells Us OF One
that has the power to consume and destroy
| the things which we are unable TO cast out
of our Ives. There are fig trees of sinful
| habit and physical disease which our hut
man strength cannot throw off alone. Oh,
| how glad we are sometimes TO have God
who is "a consuming fire, and from whose
presence Satan, sin and sickness flee away
| He tells us we may enter into his de-
structive power against these things and
hand over to His flaming sword adver-
saries and obstacles too great for us to
| overcome.
II am so glad" said a little child once.
Chat | have a God that can shake the
world" Our Christ IL not all soft and
| easy benevolence. Back of His gentleness
| is an arm Of might and holiness as
| inexorable a. the lightnings OF the sky.
| Oh, sinner. whatever e.se YOU dare, be-
| ware of "the wrath of the Lamb"
VII The Sceptre OF he Kingdom. In
| the closing verses OF our lesson, chapter
u. verses ~ TO 81 the Lord reveals the
secret of His own power and tells the
| disciples how they may share 1T also.
| The secret of IL Is faith. IF ye have
! faith and doubt not, We shall not only do
| this which u done to the fig tree, but,
| also, If We shall say unto this mountain,
be thou removed and be thou cast into
| the sea, 1T shall be done. and all things
whatsoever We shall ask in prayer, beiiev-
ing. We shall receive And 40 He passes
| over TO US His sceptre. and tells rs that
| we may exercise the same omnipotencc
OF faith through which He wrought His
mighty works. II was by faith that He
overcame and became for va the Author
| and Finisher OF our faith" But we may
| exercise the same faith, too. Some time
in that coming kingdom we shall be like
Him and exercise power over the uni
verse of God, Of which. could we fully
| realize il now, We would be amazed and
| appalled,. But He is training Us now in the
use OF this mystic sccptre. and teaching
ia the lessons Of that Faith cf which He
4 thinrs are DosSfble with