Year: 1870

Suffering Adjunct or Christian I.ife-Ser-


mon by Rev. j. =. Willis.


The Seventeenth street Methodist Episcopal
church, situate between First and Second avenues.
is thus between Mackerelvlle and the East side
Deau-monde. The worshippers within ITS walls,
therefore, comprise the rich and ragged. the poor
and the proud. Yesterday morning during service
collection taken up for the purpose Of creating
fund for the building of an asylum where destitute
old women who have no trends would be cared
for. When each person had been visited and had
contributed his mite brother Willis, the pastor. ad-
dressed the meeting, taking for his text, "But the
Lord said unto him. go thy way, for he is q chosen
vessel unto me- to bear my name before the Genties
and kings and the children Of Israel. For will
show him how great things he must suffer for my
names sake"-Acts tx. 16 II. lie commenced by
speaking of the conversion Of 81. Paul. and drew
many sound conclusions from the lifo OF that great
disciple or Christ. Suffering was, he said, an ad-
junct Of Christians life, and In many cases was
the means OF saving souls by purifying them, and
giving better idea of the holl0wness Of temporal
affairs. This suffering is in


THE KAME OF CHRIST,


and consequently becomes trial which II met in a
Christian spirit will rebound to the benefit of the soul
and bring 1t nearer to God There is much suffering
in the world which is not trial. beca 1t is not ap.



advantage OF the soul by being taken In Christian
spirit Thus the sunlight will kinde fire, but not
unless its rays are concentrated by lens. Suffer-
ing increases the moral cohesveness OF the SOUL AZ
patten clay, which when soft IS USELESS when mar
dened by fire becomes valuable. So our broken
systems weak until trial intensi1es our cohesive
ness Suffering increases our moral beauty, by re-
moving all those imperfectlOnS which encircle the
soul of man, as the diamond by being cut sparkles
brilliantly. Trial Is Intended as revelation Of


OURSELVES TO OURSELVES.


God knows us well enough already, but we must
know ourselves also, and how else than by trial
shall We knOwp How should we know the cast OF
own features had not some one invented tho
lookingglassS True we might have gathered q
partial idea from the shadOwy back ground or some
window pane or the silent pool under the beecnen
shade, when we strained our eyes looking at the
tiny fishes we could catch in the depths below. But
this preston were confused and indefinite;
moral features are often little better than con-
selirghteousness Till God brings US face to face with
the looking glass OF trial. All truly converted souls
must comprehend this condition Of the SOUL and
take any trials which the justice OF God sends to
them part OF their reparatlOn for past offences.
This world Is made up OF trials and 1t Is only the true
Christian that can make them beneficial to his soul
spirit that Christ took the GROSS placed upon his
shoulders or the


BLOODY CROWN OF THoRNs
thrust upon his brow. III Christian were only to
say to himself ~ Will follow in my Masters foot
steps, he would find 1t easy to bear with the little
prvatiOns and crosses which he meets with every
day. Think, then, OF what our Lord suffered; and
when the time OF trial comes you Will feel strong
and your faith will grow III intensity by contact
with suffering.
in the fire Of suffering and TO purge themselves Of
their sins. Sin had to be atoned for and suffering
and trial was the means God used to elbow his
creatures to repair their fault In having offended
HIM.