The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1909-12-31

m = istry was pre-
eminently calculated to prepare the
way Of the Lord.
The Jews had q saying that their
good things came from the wilder.
ness; Moses, their lawgiver, the law
itself. the tabernacle. and particularly
their great prophet Elijah. Isaiah.
the prophet had spoken Of . mysteri-
GUS one who should be like q voice in
the wilderness crying. Prepare the
way of the Lord" True to the ancient
prophecy, when Christ was about 80
years Of age, John the Baptist came
forth from the wilderness, where like
Moses, Elijah. and Paul afterwards,
he had learned his message amid the
solitude Of the desert, alone with God
His appearance was wild, his ad'
vent startling. Like Elijah. his great
prototype he was clad with the skins
| of beasts and was nourished with the
dried locusts of the wilderness and
the honey gathered with his own
| hands from the rocks. And his mes.
sage was full of fiery reproof and ter
rible warning. The times demanded
q thunder storm to clear the moral at.
mosphere. Gentle corruption and
Jewish hypocrisy. everywhere prevail
! ed, and without respect OF persons
John hurled his fiery message against
the sins of all classes: the tetrack and
his paramour, the publicans and their
extortons, the soldiers and their vio-
lence, the Rabbis and their false ira
ditions, the Pharisees and their hypo-
crisies; demanding from all alike.
contrition. confession. restitution. con
version. There was one word that
was the key note Of all his ministry.
1t was the single word Repent
Repentance Demanded.
And a mighty reformation broke
out, as lre breaks out in dry grass of
tho prairie, and in a few days the
whole country was in q religious con-
fagration. Perhaps such q revival
the world has never seen. Tens of
thousands of people fiocked from
every direction until the wilderness
of Judea became o vast camp meet.
ing with penitents thronging the
preacher. Mobiles. ecclesiastics, sol.
diers. publicans crowded to the bap-
|
and seeking divine forgiveness. The
whole nation seemed swept of Its
feet by the supernatural tidal wave of
regeneration.
Yet in the midst of all this ecstacy
Of piety and almost universal success
John the Baptist kept \ level head
and never forgot the fact that he was
only the herald, the forerunner. the
doorkeeper, the avant courier Of the
king. They tried to fawn upon and
fiatter him, but he instantly repelled
them. They sought for his genealogy,
and his pedigree and he said In effect.
Don't look for it, It doesn't matter,
I am nothing but a voice, and have
only one thing to do. and that is to
cry, Prepare the way Of the Lord" !
am only the friend of the Bridegroom,
getting you ready to receive him.
am only morning star to herald the
dawn and then be quenched in the
blaze Of the king Of day. l am the
last prophet of the old dispensation
and the first of the new, shall soon
withdraw from sight. He must in
crease. but l must decrease. I bap.
tise you with water, He shall baptise
you with fire.
That was the message Of John and
1t awoke the nation like a trumpet
blast Is such preaching as that need
ed today? How many sermons have
you ever heard on the subject of re-
pentance? We have fallen upon
time when it is not considered good
form to utter such q disturbing wori
in many quarters. There Is sin IL
high places and in low places, sill
jeweled, perfumsd. brilliant. fragrant
bewitching. thrustiag its smirkine
face into all circles of society, but hoT
few there are with the spirit Of John
the Baptist to tear on the mask ol
beauty and reveal the deaths head
behind It
But II 10 Overmoro true that the
kiAg can not come into his own until
the way II somehow prepared before
him. Not by ignoring, humoring sin
can the highway be cast up for his ad
vancing feet To break a road through
the wilderness iS rough work. 1t Is
no holiday task. It cannot be done II
dressing gown and slippers. It re
Quires q vast amount of cutting, an
uprootinS. and ploughing. and illiIg
and blasting. and sxcAvAting. Blu
when It u done there 10 q broad a1c
level highway where once q tanglec
jungle obStTuctsd progress. and ovei
Euch . turnpike the king will come
We cannot all be reformOrs like Johr
the Baptist but We can hsarksn t.
and obey me voice OF such . mes
ssnesr When he appears and thus pre-
nara TIA WAY Of the I0rd and mAkE