The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1908-04-03
CHRIST, THE WORLDS LIBERIA
TOR


arus, and by the old familiar path he
walks back to his old bone. This was
the master miracle of all which Jesus
wrought during his incarnation, but
He is still doing for imprisoned souls
what he did for the body of his Beth
any brother when it had lain four days
in the sepulcher.
! l looked not long ago with genuine
pity on a noble eagle, Gagged in pub
lie park. as an exhibition for school
boys. The old gray mountainer felt
| its CALLING Imprisonment, and Occas-
iOnally tapped its wings as if it were
hOmesick for the skies Loose him,
and let him 60" was the thought in
spired by the sorry sight, and how he
would have sailed off to fly in COM
pany with the sun! Eagles were not
born for slavery. | thought, too, as |
! looked at the chained bird, how much
he resembled some fettered souls, yes
some Christian souls that are terribly
people have enrolled themselves in
the cburch-sOme have entered the
ministry-with a heavy clog that
binds them to the lower earth. 1t
hampers them, binders them, and is
fatal to all spiritual JOY or growth in
holiness. Many a young convert be-
gins his religious life with doubling
and Responding spirit. He nurses his
fears in morbid way, and mistakes
all this grUesomenesS for humility.
He is a chained bird from the skies.
Others are fettered by besetting
sins, from which they have never cut
loose. They have never made a clean
break with the old sinful self, or with
| the beggarly elements of this world;
they are hObbled with practices and
associates that they have never cut
loose from. They have probably pass
ed from death unto life, yet they APP
| pear very much as Lazarus would
have looked if he had walked the
sreest of Bethany in his CHASTITY
| graveclOthes, This is a pitiable style
| OF religion lit brings but little JOY to
| its pOssessOr, and gives him or her no
! power in the community. While they
are content to be what they are. there
is no hope for such manacled profess
Ors. Their only hope is in a timely
and thorough repentance, and a fresh
work of Christ, a deeper and thorough
work, and for this they must earnest
" seek, or else they will be chained
birds in a church cage to the last.
Some really good people are clOgged
by bodily ailment- dyspeptic stOm-
ach or weak nerves, and they see but
little sunshine in their Christian ex-
perience. Bunyan has depicted sew
eral specimens of these pilgrims who
hobble toward heaven OH crutches,
until death unloosens them and let's
them go. Such Christians are to be
pitied more than blamed; they are
rather patients in Christ's hospital
than soldiers on his battlefelds.
False doctrine, false views of sin
and Of Christ are at the bottom Of a
great deal of this spiritual debility
? Every error is the enslaver of the
soul Truth makes us free indeed
Martin Luther was a chained eagle in
the Erfurt Convent, until that heaven
sent truth, The just shall live by
faith" Embossed him. Thomas Chal
: mers was another chained eagle, but
when the great doctrines Of mans
guilt and Christ's redemption liberat
ed him, he scared up in the empyrean
the king of ScOtlands gospelers
John Wesley never attained to a full
salvation until in that little London
prayer meeting his eye rested or
these words: The spirit of life il
Christ Jesus hath made me free from
the law of sin and death"
To every member Of our churches
who is dragging out a half-dead re
ligion, the Holy Spirit comes with the
arOusing call: eff We be indeed riser
with Christ, seek those things which
are above!" Instead of sitting in the
gates of the tomb, cast away your
graveclothes, and begin to live as
S Christ's freemen and Christs witness
l es, and the heirs of a magnificent in
t heritance. Look higher! Live higher
? Get a new grip of Christ, and the1
go out and labor to draw sinners from
+ the pit of hell! This is the revival We
2 all need.-TheOdore Cuyler, in Chris
- tan Advocate.