Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1915-01-22
BILLY SUNDAY HAS
G|DEON'S METHODS
He Has Strange Speech and Con-
ducts Amazing Campaign in
Philadelphia
THE IMMo MoRTAiL THREE
II L ID II L. ID
The International Sunday school les
son For January - i Gideon and
the Three Hundred. Judges q.


Some stories are so simple and
great that they have passed into the
common thought and speech OF the
people. Thus Gideon and his band
have became proverbial. Fortitude.
fidelity and efficiency are their trade
marks. Once more the countless COM
pany of Sunday School members are
called TO study this immortal hero
tale from ola Israers history. and to
learn its lesson for to-day.
The facts of the story are simple.
The Midianites from the East were
depressing Israel. Gideon had been
called by God to be the leader of His
people in conflict with the foe
Thirty thousand men of Israel ral-
lied to His banner. against the one
hundred and thirty-five thousand
Midianites. Lest Israel should think
Won 10y its might and courage and
strategy. Gideon was ordered to re-
duce his force by letting all the
armed men who wanted to do so re-
turn home. Still there were ten thou
sand left, quite too many for the di-
vine purpose.
So the curious yet inherently wise
test was applied. of choosing the men
who drank water by scooping il up
with their hands, rather than kneel-
ing down with their faces in the
water The difference. as has often
been pointed out, was the difference
between the way the dog drinks and
the way the cow drinks. The former
is alert, quick and ready for instant
action: the COW when drinking is
oblivious to all else. even to the beat
inss OF an attendance. One company
of men, skilled in the craft of the
open, drank fully ACQUIRED and with
every faculty on guard. They were
ready to fight on the instant and
COnll "a
ing to them was but part of the
preparation for their real work. The
other and larger group laid aside
their weapons. exposing themselves
TO sudden attack. while they knelt
and drank TO repletion. needless of
all save the satisfaction of their
thirst.
This severe test provided a fit band
of three hundred men. the whole
host winnowed down TO the highest
efficiency. They were ready for any
thing, wonderful instrument in the
hand of a shrewd leader. Gideon
gave each of these a torch covered
by a crockery vessel. so that it made
a primitive dark lantern. To each
he also gave a trumpet. so that in
the hands of these few were as many
trumpets and lights as usually would
serve a great army.
Deploying the three hundred on all
strategy provided that. at a given
signal. all the crockery should crack.
the lights flare forth. the trumpets
sound-and the terror OF the enemy,
thinking itself surrounded. would do
the rest. The scheme worked as we'll
as similar strategies in battle have
worked. The rout of the bewildered
Midianites was complete-and there
were no brazen Jewish soldiers swag-
gerinE about, declaring that their
prOwess had won the day. Every
body had to give God the praise for
the wonderful victory.
A Magazine Story
Nothing could he timelier than
this tale. Our old world. as 1t stands
on shaking foundations. needs most
of all is to learn the Gideon lesson of
being willing to win in Gods way,
even if our own vainglorious pride
does have to suffer. The Church is
not TO succeed by using. worldly
methods more shrewdly than the
world itself uses them. Peace for
the world is not 10 come by the an
cient method of arrogance over
topping arrogance, armament out
weighing armament
y remarkable story is told in the
current issue of the American Maya
zine 10y Ray Stannard Baker. who
turns aside for the occasion from his
wonted field as an interpreter of con-
temporary history. to a bit of fiction
in the form of history as il may be.
The narrative. dated a century hence.
recalls how one of the victorious
European armies determines to in
wade and conquer America. At once
this country is thrown into two
groups, the war party and the peace
party. The latter. led by a woman.
was at first small and treated with
disdain. The only way TO meet an
invader. according to all reason and
precedent, is by armed force. But
the peace plan prevailed. the in
vaders were met and conquered by
nonresistence.
II was the Gideon idea applied TO
national affairs. So dramatic and
pertinent is this article that it is GER
tain to re-echo in press and pulpit.
1t is an apt illustration of the old,
old truth that God chooses the weak
and the foolish to confound the
mighty.
Enter Billy Sunday
Within the realm of organized
religion our day is seeing a spectacu-
lar illustration of the Gideon way,
which is simply the way of letting
the Lord use His own methods. with
out respect to precedent or worldly
wisdom. perfectly impossible man,
"a mere baseball player, a log cabin
graduate, a speaker OF the lingo of
the street corner and the workshop,
has been chosen, like the jawbone
of the Samson story. for Staying more
of the enemies of Righteousness than
have fallen at the hands of any other
preacher for a century past. Billy
Sunday. who is now leading an
amazing, revival in Philadelphia. has
set the religious world by the ears.
Most of the large cities of the land
seem to be calling him to come to
them with his strange speech and
stranger methods.
Now the admitted truth is that no
ecclesiastical council that ever could
have been called would have dreamed
of devising, as the instrument for
calling this needless day of ours back
TO a thought of God, such a plan
and such methods as Billy Sunday
and his campaign. Had anybody by
a wild flight OF imagination. dared
suggest such a thing, he would have
been frozen by the outraged dignity
of his ecclesiastical associates.
Nevertheless. although he is as un-
conventional as Gideon's three hun
dred. and as contrary to precedent as
Gideon's warfare, Billy Sunday seems
to be Gods chosen man; and the
churches. to their praise be it said.
are brave enough and tolerate 1t
enough TO accept him. They see the
Midianites of evil routed. and so are
willing to accept smashing crockery
fiaring and fitful torches, and blatant
rams horns. as Gods chosen weap-
ons. And when the church gets to
the point OF being willing to let God