The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-02-10

~ - necessarily u enid OF God be-
cause he has done him service. Jehu
executed vengeance on Ahab but he was
murderer.
Bad Mans Usefulness.
We can find helpful lessons from a bad
mans life as well as from the life of a
good man. Thus today, as we see the
reVoiVing wheels of Jehu's chariot rush.
ing on toward Jezreel, We learn that
when success comes to a great. strong
lie 1t generally comes suddenly 1t is
not a gradual coming. 1t is a sudden
change. man wins fame, as a rule,
suddenly. A man goes to work as a
youth He works and labors year in and
year out for the most part IN compare
tive obscurity. Then, after he has gath
cred al the material and dug the founda-
lions for the temple of fame, it seems as
though that temple comes together and
takes form In the twinkling of an eye.
Opportunity knocks at the mans door,
crying, Wake upi I am herei Follow
me at once! The man leaps from his
couch and follows Opportunity, and. 10.
in an hour his success is wont Such was
the meteoric career of our Jehu.
Let US hunt up this Jehu a few days
before he steps into his chariot to ride
to the royal palaces in Jezreel. He was
at Ramoth -gilead fighting the Syrians.
Ramoth-gilead was frontier town,
SpiiiSAAiiVS OtipHSlHS W ISFdel ana SO1lR-
times belonging to Syria. At this time
1t belonged to Israel but the king of
Syria was trying to regain It, Joram,
king of Israel had been fighting and
had been wounded, so he retired to Jez-
reel til! his wounds healed leaving Jehu
and other officers in charge. When we
enter the officers quarters we see
council of war. Here are all the gem
erals or chief officers in earnest con-
versaton. In the midst of them is
strong, powerful face with set jaws and
a physique of iron. who is that MANI"
l ask one of the soldiers THAT is Cap
tain Jehu." why, I never heard of
him before. Who Is he? What great
battles has he fought and won? Is he
Goliath or a David?" We'll" says the
soldier by my side, "he might be if he had
the chance. but he never held anything
but a subordinate position. He has been
doing barrack duty for a long time. He
is one of those men whose names arc
not known by the world outside of their
own company" Just then some one
knocks at the door. Then this powerful
soldier, Jehu, calls, Come In. In walks
a young prophet rs Captain Jehu
here?" he asks. Il would like to see him
alone a moment" No sooner are the
twain alone than the prophet lifts his
hand and begins to pour the amounting
oil upon the soldiers head as he says:
of Israel have anointed thee king over
the people of the Lord, even over Israel"
In an instant Jehus opportunity was
given him. Thus it is with most strong
men They must labor in obscurity for
years. They must do barrack duty in
Ramoth gilead. They must pave their
way for success by the hardest, the Bit
terest, the most grinding work, and then
when the opportunity comes they must
grasp it at the instant. else it will be
gone from them forever.
Ruthless Rulers.
But as we hear the onrushing wheels
of this war chariot there is another les
son we learn from this furious driver. AT
every plunge of his horses l see the driV
ers face become more stern and set
As | climb into that chariot and stand
beside him l hear Jehu mutter: Yes, |
will grasp that throne. I will get 1t at
once. l will kill the king and his mother
Then l must kill all the princes of the
royal blood. Then | will kill all the leading
men of this country who were friends of
! the late king. Yes, l will kill them all!
| All who might be a menace to my throne
| will slay.' But" one may ask, "Jehu,
Is that right? Does God want thee to do
thus?" With that the flashing eyed char
ioteer turns upon us a look of seorn as
he answers: God? Who is God? God may
place me upon the throne, but it will DE
| my right arm and sword that will keep
me there Any man who may menace my
authority must die. l am king!'
Now, what do l learn from the muir
ders and crimes of this ancient Jehu, who
would slay men and women and chill
dren if thereby he thought he could hold
his crown with more ease? Why simply
| this-the higher a man goes in life the
| greater temptations he has TO bear. Tn
less we take Christ with us in our tenn
poral properties we shall surely fail
spiritually AS far as l can make out,
Jehu was a square. true man until he was
anointed king of Israel, but no sooner
did prosperity come to him than he was
swept by temptation off his feet. o man.
you who are now doing barrack duty In
Ramoth-gilead. beware IL you attempt
to go to the royal palaces of Jezreel with
out Christ. Beware when you begin to
win financial and temporal success! If
you do not cling close to Jesus. your spir-
itual fall will be as complete as was that
of Jehu.
Going Down Hill.
Oh, the awful temptations of success.
Who in his own strength can Withstand
them? Not one, not one. An old proverb
tells us that many man going up the
hill of prosperity meets his soul coming
down" Mr.. Spurgeon teaches this truth
by the opposite symbol: Many horses