Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1910-03-04
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AT THE BEAUTIFUL GATE.
Bv Rev C. A. S. Dwight. Phi. D

RAO WuACu is Cal10Q beautiful, " dSh
an aims of them that entered into the
temple. Acts 3: 2.
The lame man of old was laid daily
at the gate of the Temple which is
called Beautiful The gate 30 de-
scr1bed was probably the gate Oh the
east which led from the court of the
women" to the inner court While the
other gates were overlaid with gold
and silver this portal, according to Jo-
sephus, was made "of Corinthian
bronze, and much surpassed IN worth
those enriched with silver and gold .
The lame man was perhaps one of the
most unfortunate individuals in Jerus-
alem, having no means of earning a
livelihood, being quite friendless and
certainly forlorn-yet he was we'll
placed.
The situation at the door of the
Temple was both pathetic and prom
Using. He could not walk in, but his
thoughts could enter; he might not
join in the praises OF the worshiping
hosts within, but he could catch some
thing of the enthusiasm which bright
ened their faces as they came out.
While he was outside the circle of
inner intimate communion he was yet
in the line of blessing and could make
daily proof Of the fact that it was bet
ter to be a lame door-keeper in the
house of God than to dwell luxurious
~ in the court of a riOtOus Herod.
1t is impossible to tell how pure
were the motives OF the lame man in
habitually frequenting the doorstep of
! the Lords house. He was certainly
after money-but if all who are after
money in some shape were excluded
from the sanctuary congregations to-
day would be much thinner than in
many communities they are. To n
| degree the lame man needed coin, and
! to a certain extent every man needs
| it, but if his thoughts and desires had
| been wholly centered upon money it
| is not likely that Peter and John would
J ever have been attracted to him, or
been empowered by the Lord TO work
I in his case d miraculous cure. Let US
suppose that the lame man had some
sincere interest In the Temple itself
| as we'll as in the tolls which he col
| lected from the charitable, and that,
| while not Indifferent to the silver and
| the gold, he cared most of all for the
spiritual message which such men as
! Peter and John had to give.
| 1t was fine thing then that the
! lame man got as far as the Beautiful
/. Gate. Rich or poor, men alike need in
| their lives the identifying touch, and
| hard prosaic lives need it most OF all.
| Even if the lame man could not enter
| the Temple recesses he could look up
| and admire the architectural beauty
about him, and the CLEAN Of that Cor
J inthian bronze brought u touch Of
| BRIGHTNESS into his life. The geranium
| plant in the window Of the city teno-
/ ment, the tree struggling for stunted
| growth in city street, all these are
| glimpses and gladdenings of the aes-
thetic sense-the sense for color. for
! proportion. for harmony, which, often
degraded to goddess art" are yet
| susceptible of serving, when purified
| and localized, the highest aims of the
| moral nature The lame man was de-
formed in himself, but he was trans
! formed by his daily look into the face
/ of the Beautiful above him.
All men, however, athletic or vigor-
! Gus Or full of pride, are at some point
weak-are somewhere in their being
lame and impotent and in need OF
aims. or of a spiritual uplift far better
| than aims There are beautiful Gates
| unto which we all alike need to come.
, God has made, not one nor two nor
| six. is in the Temple Of old, but many
| such portals, in different parts Of the
| pilgrim country of mortal sojourn and
| broad areas of higher experience.
There is first the Beautiful Gate of
! Faith If the lame man had not in
| some degree had faith he would not
J have received from the mfracle-WOrk-
! ing apostles what was better than
ainas-new health and strengthened
| what was better than physical health
and ouickening--the recreating OF his
| spiritual manhood, the renovation OF
his moral nature. Without faith it is
Impossible to please God, or 10 get any
thing worth while done. He who
! would be successful in this life must
be much at the Gate of Faith.
There is secondly the Gate Of Pray
t er. Prayer is faiths voice. Faith finds
i IT'S expression through prayer. The
prayerless man is always essentially a
weak and resourceless man. The lame
| man was weak, but he knew how to
use his voice in prayer, and SO he did
not remain weak.
There is the Beautiful Gate Of Love.
The lame man appealed to the love
that was IN Peter and John, and did
not fail TO receive a response. Love
is the very atmosphere of that land OF
delight into which the Gate Beautiful
opens. When love dominates and per-
meates a human life heaven itself at
once begins to be realized on earth.
There is always in love an inherent
beauty. an Understandable charm. and
lust because it Is so the devil tries