Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1906-09-01


whose country home was stopping.
These archwnys would form perfect
trcllis where the vines could cling.
Then. the first view the visitor has of
the house Is from this driveway. In
stead of planting most of your flowers
toward the east side of the house /
would plant them on the west "Ah."
said my friend. nothing | would like
better than that. but my flowers will
aot grow here. You must remember
That the sun rises IN the east and that
ulcans that during the morning hours
from the light Of the sun. That means
the ground here Is always cold. Seeds
and flowers must have heat In which
to grow" Heat means life for the
vegetable world. and cold always
means death. So you see that fire Is
not always destructive. but Is the sym
boil of life. Now. when | hear Christ
say. II am come 30 send fire upon the
earth" in Il broad sense ! seem to
hear Christ say. II am come in order
to put children into the cradles of the
nurseries and to weigh down the or
clard branches with fruits and to COW
err up the harvest fields with golden
headed grain and to fiji the gardens
with busy bees and to hatch out tho
salmon eggs which have lain In the
shadows of the rivers" OH the won
dcrs of nature as revealed In the mi
raculous creations Of life. Have you
ever ceased 10 lie amazed az the first
sentence of the Apostles Greed. Il be-
licve in God the Father Almighty. Max
or Of heaven and earth. and in Jesus
Christ. his only Son. our LordT
Need of "a Providence.
Utter folly Is 1t To deny the Father
hood Of Cod and the divinity Of Jesus
Christ ~ revealed in the creations of
nature. Many years ago In debating
society the Earl of Rochester in order
10 ill out the list of debates. tried TO
prove that this world had no need OF
an overrulng or creating Providence.
won the applause of his auditors he
turned and said. How can Il man who
walks upright. who sees the wonderful
creations of God and has the use of his
senses aud reason use them 10 the de-
nyng of his CREATOR" So say we all
of lis. When we witness the mlraeu-
loils effects of heat In the creation of
life. we bow before the great God who
has built the fires of reproduction upon
every hillside and In every valley.
whether we see that life illustrated in
the wing of Il bird, the leaf Of tree
or in the throbbng heart of mortal
and yet immortal man.
But | find that fire is the symbol of
rs well as OF creation.
When Christ says he will send fire.
To take the dross out of the hard me-
tallIc heart. This il as truly a part of
his mission rs 10 create the seeds OF
life and by heat burst those seeds into
the white blossoms of the springtime.
The more study Christ's life the
more ! am impressed with the fact
that Christ continually has 10 make us
over aud purify us. even as the nuggets
of gold must h" burned IN the smelling
furnaces 10 separate the alloy from the
true gold. What you say; "allf"
Yes: all. There IL no exception 10 the
rule. We have all erred and strayed
like lost sheep We have all followed
too much the devices aud the desires
of our own hearts. There Is none that
doetI good-no. not one.
Atmosphere Not Antiseptic.
We have all been contaminated by
sin from the very atmosphere which
we have brcathed. To II certain extent
IL is possible in an operating room TO
poisonous infection. In the first place.
the patient before being operated upon
has his body thoroughly cleansed.
Then lie Is ethcriZcd and carried to the
operating table. There every instru-
mcnt and every piece of furniture
and cloth has been made antiseptic
to receive the patient There the
nurses and the doctors are all dressed
in pure. clean, antiseptic linen. They
even wash their hands, their faces and
their hair In carbolic solution. The
very atmosphere is filtered through
aperturcs covered with gauZe. Thus Is
the sick patient cared for in the oper-
atng room. The attendants are thus
careful that no external dust or impu-
rity touch that patient. But the atmos-
plerc we breathe IN life is not made
antiscptic from sin. The hands that
touch rs upon the streets are not al
ways pure hands The lips which
speak To us are not always pure lips.
Behold. we were born IN sin: we have
grown mp amid the yitiating atmos-
phcre of sin. Though we have again
and again bowed NJ the mercy seat
and made the publicans prayer. God
be merciful 10 me. II sinner" yet today
we find that we have just as great
need of Christ the Purifier as we ever
had of Christ the Creator OF our souls
and physical bodies.
Now. how does Christ purify our
lives? IL is done by the hot fires of
trouble. \ fire Is always the best OF
all purifiers. stand ut one Of the