The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-01-13
T os ANGELES, Cal. January 6-In
this sermon the preacher, taking the

this sermon the preacher, taking the
IL unreeorded life of Christ as an IL
lustration shows that consistency de-
mands that Christian principles should
govern us in our private and domestic
affairs as well as in public. The text is
John xxi, Is, 1.-THE which II they should
be written every one"
"Have you ever heard of our buried
treasurer a gentleman asked me some
time ago. NO. What treasured" well"
said he II will come around this after
noon with my team and take you cut
for a drive and then I will tell you the
story"
That afternoon my friend drove up to
where 1 was stopping In the country
and off we went. We drove through the
vineyards Of that region; then we climbed
a small hill which overlooked the valley
for miles around. There, upon the top,
we found the ruins of the foundation of
an old home. Then, as the horses rested,
he told me that many years ago one
of the old Spanish settlers owned this
home. He built It there not only for its
wonderful view but also for protection
Like many of those old houses, his home
| Il
old settler lived here for many, many
years, He grew enormously wealthy. and
as there were no banks In those days.
like Monte risto he gathere most of his
gold into a chest and buried 1t. No one
knew where that gold was hidden. The
old man was without family, so he talked
about his gold to no one. He was taken
suddenly sick and died before he could
! tell this secret. When he felt himself
going he gasped, "Gold hldden!" and he
was gone.
No sooner did his breath leave the
| hody than the people began to hunt for
his hidden gold. Lawyers, doctors, mer-
chants, as well as common laborers, have
| been digging for 1t ever since. You can
see how all the land around this founda-
ton is filled with holes. Every tree. every
rock, every landmark, as far as the eye
can see in this valley, has also been
dug about, In order to find this buried
! treasure. The gold seekers have been
| hunting everywhere for this gold of the
old man. And [ suppose men will con-
tinue to dig for this treasure in this
region for centuries to come"
Thus was the story told me as I sat
in the wagon by the ruins of that old
Mexican home upon the hilltop overlook
ing the Cucamonga valley.
But on my way back to the city that
afternoon I soliloquized thus in the train:
Are not most acts OF man hidden away
from the eyes of the public at large as
that treasure chest of the old California
pioneer was secreted and hidden from
! prYing eyes? Are not the recorded ao-
tons of a mans career only an inf1ntesi-
NAL part of his life? Can 1t not be
said Of us what st. John wrote about
Jesus in the last verse of his gospel?
And there are also many other things
which Jesus did, the which, If they should
be written every one, | suppose that even
the world itself could not contain the
books that should be written"
The biographies on our library shelves
are all of that kind. A long story is told,
sometimes in three volumes. and we sup
pose it tells all about the man, but how
much there must have been in that life
that was never recorded How much
there is in our lives that we never re-
veal even to our most intimate friends!
So 1t was, as John tells us, with Jesus.
We wish we could know all he did and
said, even If 1t had multiplied volumes,
as John Supposed. We can never know
now, but we can imagine from what we
do know something of the facts that were
never revealed. Let us try to think this
morning what those facts may have been.
ST. Johns Biography.
l was struck, In the first place, with
the fact that Johns gospel opens with the
fully developed physical, mental and
spiritual Christ IT'S true the first verse
of the first chapter begins with the
words, in the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the
Word was Cod but almost Immediately
after st. John introduces to us John the
Baptist and the Jordanic baptism. In
other words, the biography of st. John
opens with a fully developed Christ.
| "a
physical period between infancy and
young manhood is entirely omitted. OF
what he did during the springtime of his
childhood, when life was in the blossom,
as the little bud changes into the rounded
form of fruit, there is not a word said.
OF course we read In another gospel about
Jesus in the temple with the doctors.
But outside of that al 1.-The biographies
are silent about Chrlst's childhood days
And yet, my friends, In all mans life
l do not believe there is time when
In his own realm or sphere person has
more influence for good than does the
cody child within the four walls of a
home.
Oh, the patience and the gentleness of
holy spirit filled little child There is
nothing like unto it this side of Heaven.
Christ said: IF you want to become the
greatest In the kingdom of Heaven, then
you must become like one of these little
there Is no one who can walk closer with
God than do some of our children. Some
time ago 1t was my privilege to call
upon one of my Sunday school boys. The
lad was about 10 years of age There he
lay in bed, bound up with bandages, suf-
fering the most excruclating pain from
rheumatism. Yet not one complaint came
from his lips. AS I left the sick room
the father seid to me: THAT boy Is diff
ferent from all the other children. He
seems to live so close to God that at times
am afraid we cannot raise him.
often say to the older children: You must
not become jealous of Hiram. Your moth
err and father love you just the same
But he is different from you. He lives
closer to God than any of u.s. And thai
boy is so different from the rest that
from the time he was born we have never
had to punish him or to say harsh word
to him." My brother, you know just
what mean. You know how children
vary. Most of them seem to be made OF
the same stuff you are made of, but there
is one child who is different from all the
rest. She is so gentle, so kind so help
full, so loving, so filled with the Christ
life, that she seems to be the gospel
leaven which leaves the whole home
Oh, yes, within its own sphere there Is
no influence of the Christian child. And
yet, putting aside the monkish legends
and traditions about the Savours In
fancy, Of all He did and said during His
childhood there is reliably recorded hard
ly word.
A Beautiful Leuend.
The great Dean Stanley illustrated the
influence of the Christian child life In this
beautiful way. Many years ago there