St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1904-01-09

by !. N. Edson.) .ss-ss-se-.@s-gzr
known, vet it is still true that all
that willlive Cody in Christ Jesus snaii
suffer persecution" The devil has not
ceased his opposition to the Gospel OF
Jesus Christ, but he has been forced TO
alter his methods OF attack. Ridicule ana
petty annoyances and inhumanit1es nave
come to be favorite weapons. Inc 1oi-
lowing Of Jesus means the bearing OF
cross to-day as much as it ever dld, ana
''he that taketh not his cross and 1ol-
loweth after Me, is rot worthy OF Me.
1t would almost seem that Jesus. boxing
beyond the centuries of ahNe ana
bloody persecution of His followers to
the present day, uttered His woe unto
you when all men shall speak well OF
you" with special emphasis for HIS 1ol-
lowers to-day. The Christian all too
often walks arm in arm with the world,
and thereby wins its favor and com
mendation, but the woe of Jesus
sounds out against these and HIS
blessed" is reserved for those who are
reviled and prosecuted and accused OF
all manner of evil falsely for His sake.
h lot only is the suffering of persecu-
| v ton for Jesus sake the fulhllment
of prophecy, but it is proof OF Divine
favor. When the apostles of the early
church preached Jesus to the multi
tudes at Jerusalem they incurred the
deadly hostility of the Sanhedrin, as
Jesus Himself had done before His
crucifixion They we're dragged before
the council and cruelty beaten. But, IN
stead of being crushed and disheartened
by the persecution, they departed from
the presence of the council, rejoicing
that they were counted worthy to suffer
shame for His name Their suffering
and distress were welcomed as spe-
cial evidence of the Divine favor. Think
Of it! Test the temper of Christians to-
day and the true ring of devotion to the
Lord Jesus fails to sound forth. We re-
joice rather when the way is smooth and
easy. The line OF the least resistance
is sought out. The truth Of the Gospel
is often compromised in order to avoid
friction and antagonism. But the early
disciples welcomed persecution when 1t
came as a result of faithful living and
preaching of Jesus Christ, as sure tes-
| timOny of their dear Saviour's love and
| favor. Though their backs ached and
the blood stained their garments, the
inward presence and peace of their
Lord made them rejoice. They felt
honored because they were permitted
to suffer for His sake. Paul bore In
his body the marks of manifold perse-
cutions, but they were all made beau
tiful in his eyes by seeing in them
the proofs of the Divine favor. The,
were the marks CT the Lord Jesus
Himself. N.yer does there come &
persecution to disciple of Jesus Christ
as a result of faithful and obedien
service, but that it is a sure evidences
of the presence of the Lord with thu
disciple and of the effectiveness O.
the work being done. Oh, I'VE neet
to-day to learn the joy OF being count
ed worthy to suffer shame for Jesus
sake. / think sometimes the Christian
ought to pray for the persecution tina
will send the roots down deeper ant
strengthen and solidify the life ant
make fruit bearing more possible
The sapling may groan under the lasl
of the tempest, but the lengthene'
root, the enlarged trunk and the loft
Ter reach into the sunshine, and tn
dewy night, are witnesses of Mothe
Natures love and devotion. And SO i
is with the Christian. Whom tn
Lord lovetn,. He 4chasteneth.s And H
lets the rods of men perform the worl
of discipline Persecution is a. proc
of Divine favor
A ND persecution Is the evidence q
n Divine fellowshfp-fello i
His suffering. The only way 20
really can know and understand tn
pain. of your friend who has undergon
an operation is to feel the cut of tn
surgeons knife yourself There is
. fellowship between your friend an
. the one lying on the cot next to his a
, the hospital that you and he cannot en-
joy unless you, too, have suffered sim
, ilarly. Here is a mother bowed i
grief over the loss Of her little ont
Her friend comes in to speak the wor
, of comfort, but she herself has n-ve
known such sorrow Something
lacking to make her sympathy com
, plete. But here comesaa mother who's
| little one has gone and left the, heal
and the home ,desolate.@ She sits
silence by the side Of the weepin
I mother. The pressure of her hand
felt. No word is spoken, but they bot
/ understand. There is fellowship {
, suffering and each is comforted by tn
thought that the other knows and III
derstands. We are entering the sacre
precincts Of the inmost heart when
speak of the fellowship of suffering
we are treading on sacred ground, an
y / believe that every one of the mark
E in Paul's body brought him nearer
, his blessed Lord and his Lord neart
! to him. In his letter to the Philil
plans he says: II count all thing
f but loss, for the excellency OF tt
f.; knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lore
: for whom I have suffered the loss I
e all things, and do count them b.
' dung, that I may win Christ, ;.
t and that I may know Him, and tt
- = %I~N II