Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1909-05-14


call and go about their work. Business
men may sleep later, but the rising sun
soon drives them to their banks, stores
and factories. Moon and stars which
have made the night glorious are now
out of commission. Grass, flower, shrub
and tree feel the touch of the warm
rays and revive. Every sunrise is truly
a great event in the history of the
world, though our familiarity with it
may cause us to overlook its impor-
lance. 1t regulates the movements of
kings in their palaces, generals at
the head of armies, parliaments and
legislatures. There is nothing hid
from the heat thereof" Every kind
Of life, animate and inanimate, well
comes its genial warmth and rejoices
In its quickening power.
The birth of Jesus was q sunrise
upon the world and all worlds adjust
ed themselves to it. 1t is interesting
to trace the rise of this Sun of right
eousness in prophecy. The promise
that the seed of the woman should
bruise the serpent's head is the first
CLEAN of light in the east The prom
Use to Abraham that in his seed all the
families of the earth should be blessed
is Frightening of the eastern sky;
and as we trace the Messianic idea
through the Old Testament, the light
grows brighter till in the ffty-third
chapter of Isaiah we are in the morn
ing twilight. John the Baptist, though
burning and shining light, is only
the morning star proclaiming that the
sunrise is near.
The birth of Jesus wakes up Herod,
that wild beast of darkness, who repre-
sents the pagan world powers. Herod
seeks to kill him, but his efforts are
like shooting arrows at the rising sun.
Children are slain and parents suffer,
but the sun shines on. World powers
down the ages have conspired to blot
this sun out of the heavens. But these
world powers have passed away like
mist before the sun, which shines all
the more brightly
Learning and Wealth.
The coming of the wise men from
the east suggests the proper relation
of learning and wealth to Christ. They
have seen his star in the east and have
come to worship him. Though be-
wildered on their arrival in Jerusalem,
they persist in their search until they
find the Child, before whom they bow
with their gifts of gold, frankincense
and myrrh. There is a yearning in the
human heart which nothing but God
can satisfy. Neither the study of the
stars nor the speculations of philos-
ophy will satisfy it. The knowledge
of the greatest things God has made
is no substitute for the knowledge of
God. Indeed, every star would lead
us back to its creator, and the more
we know of the works of God the more
we desire to know God, whose wis
dom, power and love they display.
Ignorance is not the mother of de-
votion, but of superstition.
All Should Lead to God.
Every one who has tried to write
poetry with God eliminated has been
a failure, and the explanation is easy.
The true poet interprets things as they
are, and any system of poetry or phil
osophy which ignores God Is unnat-
ural shallow and artificial. Astron.
omy, botany, physiology, history.
and philosophy join with religion in
leading us to God; and when, like the
wise orientals, we become earnest and
persistent in our search for God, we
will wend our way with them to the
manger in Bethlehem and see there
the mystery of the ages-God incar-
nate in a babe, born of a virgin moth
er, and our reason will join with our
sense of soul need in prompting us
to fall before him in worship, for it is
reasonable that God, if he wishes to
lift man from sin to purity, should be-
come himself pure man among men.
1t was also fitting that these wise
men should lay their wealth at the
feet of Jesus. AS God incarnate, he
owns all we have by right of crea-
ton; he owns US by right Of redemp-
ton We are his stewards. We do
business on his capital. The proper
place for us and our possessions is
at his feet.
These wise men brought franklin
cense and myrrh with their gold.
Frankincense was an aromatic resin,
which filled the air with its perfume
and symbolized praise. Myrrh was a
! bitter substance, which is good SYM
boil of repentance. Gold is acceptable
to Christ only when we bring 1t with