Sharp County record., 1914-07-10

have not believed in vain
|. TIE Believer In Christ Never Dies.
Jesus said "I am the resurrection
and the life: he that be1ieveth in me,
though he were dead, yet shall he
live: and whosoever liveth and be-
lieveth in me shall never die" And
again: IF a man keep my word, he
shall never see death" He shall new
er see" death-what does that mean?
It means that he shall never gaze up
On death as the outlook or the objec-
tive of his life. There are but two
spheres life, and death The mo-
ment a man believes in Jesus Christ
he passes out Of the sphere Of death
into that of life; life, not death, is
henceforth his outlook. The believer
is nowhere told to look forward to
death. Since he believed, death has
ceased to be the object Of his gaze,
The Christian shall never die" In
the words Of Jesus to Martha: Be
lievest thou this?" That those dead
shall one day live because Of him, is
not hard to believe; but that those
living Shall never die" because OF
heir faith in him, is more difficult to
believe. Nevertheless 1t Is fact. The
death of the body is no more to be
considered death to the Christian,
than the life Of the body is to be
counted life as compared with that
life which is life indeed" This does
not mean that Christians will not see
the grave, but that, in the deepest
sense they will not die The life OF
| faith survives the shock OF death,
which Is but a momentary shadow up
on the life which Is very far better
There are no Christian dead, The
| God Of the Christian Is the God OF the
| living, and not Of the dead, This Is
the truth enunciated by God to Moses
at the burning bush. Moses was to
understand that Abraham Isaac and
| Jacob were still living
II. Christians Fall Asleep In Christ.
A distinction is made between "dy-
ing" and failing asleep" For II we
believe that Jesus died so them al
so which sleep In Jesus will God bring
with him" Jesus died, that Is, he
tasted and drained the cup to It's BIT
terest dregs, In order that we might
not have to do the same. He died; we
sleep. He has abolished death and
brought life and Immortality to light
Three things are suggested by the
term sleep" continued existence, re-
pose, awakening, In what the world
calls death the believer simply closes
his eyes upon all that Is mortal and
Immediately opens them upon that
which Is eternal What a blessed
awakening! "Why make ye this ado,
and weep? The damsel Is not dead,
but sleepeth"
The living presence OF Christ Is
what greets the Christian In the place
OF death How beautifully this is
brought out In the Shepherd Psalm
Yea. though | walk through the val
ley OF the shadow OF death, ! will fear
20 evil. for thou art with me; thy rod
md thy staff they comfort me-" Note
he change in the personal pronoun
tip to this point, the psalmlst has used
the third personal pronoun "ho;" but
| now he uses the second person, thou
why? Because In the hour when we
faes through the valley Of the shadow
40 third person no loved one, parent
or child, can 20 with us through that
narrow vale, The valley Is 80 narrow
mat a mother cannot take her one
lay old babe with her II we have nc
'hrlet, we press our way through that
y0lley alone, and missing him, our
stumbling feet must fall
,. 10 have no Christ no Savior, no hand
10 clasp thine own
| Through the dark, dark vale or shadows,
thou must press thy way alone
The assurance Of the believer Ia
that Christ win be with him In the
Nou- of departure; that he viii stand
by HIS bedside 0s the light Of oorth
faIla, ready 10 lead rim through the
Jalley into the home beyond The skies
II was the assurance Of this presence
hat led MIR Moody to say whom dy.
ns, "la this de0th7 why there IL nc
lark valley he Ia with me-" The lly
ng Christ takes the place In the OK
,erienee Of the believer Of what The
world calls and is In reality to The
tofldling death
| Ana when, n last hear ihp shore
Ana the fearful hreNhers ro0r
| TwiSi f'e nnd INV heavenly rest
| Fkpn while leaning an thy bruBpt may