THE DISCOURAGED MAN
Sunday Discourse by Dr. Chapman, the
Noted Pastor-Evangelist.
Mott PP,e DliMtlsflce BccsaM They If a
Too Artificial a LIT.
Tho Rev. J. Wilbur Chapman, D. D., is
now the moat distinguished and beat
known evangelist in the country. He u
second only to Dr. Talmage, but eince tho
death of that famoua preacher Dr. Chap
man haa the undisputed possession of the
fulpit aa the preacher to influence the
plain people. Ilia services aa an evangel
itt are in constant demand. Hit aermona
have stirred the bearta of men and women
to a degree unapproached by any latter
da divine. J. Wilbur Chapman waa born
in" Richmond, Intl., June 17, 1859. Hia
mother died when .he waa but twelve
. years of age, and his father died teven
years afterward. Consequently he waa
not only deprived of a mother's care at
. the formative age of boyhood, but he was
thrown upon his own resources before he
had reached early manhood. Ho waa edu
cated at Ooerlm College and Lake Forest
University, and graduated for the ministry
from the Lane Theologjcal (Seminary, Cin
cinnati, Ohio, in 1882. While there he
manifested the character and the spirit
which have followed him as an evangelist
all over the country, They have made hii
ministry a continual success aa pastor and
as a revivalist. Hia sermons are simple
snd direct, ao that their influence ia not
so much aue to exciting the emotions a
to winning the hearts and convincing the
minds of those who hear him. Dr. Chap
man is now ia charge of the Fourth 1'rts
byterian Church, New York City.
Nkw York Citt The Rev. Dr. J Wil
bur Chapman, America's most famous pas-tor-cvangclist,
who took charge of mori
bund church in this city several years ago,
and is now preaching to an overflowing
congregation, haa furnished the following
eloquent sermon to tho pre. j. It waa
preached from the text: I Kings, 10: 4,
''But he himself went a day's journey into
the wilderness, and came and sat down
under a juniper tree, a..d h; requested for
himself that he might die."
The history of Klijah begins with the
seventeenth chapter of I Kings and starts
with the word "and." The preceding
chapter tells us of the idolatry of tho peo
ple of the reign of lawlessness and tht
apparent triumph of iniquity. It seemed
as if the end of all things had come, and 1
suppose everybody living in that time
thought ao, but if this waa the impreaaion,
the fatal mistake had been made because
God is left out of all consideration. It ia
well for us to remember that He ia nevet
at a loss. The land may be overrun with
iniquity, Hia witnesses may be silenced,
but all the time He ia preparing a man in
some quiet village aa He prepared Klijah,
and at the right time He will send mm
forth with no uncertain testimony! There
is really no place for pessimism in the
kingdom of Cod. He haa never made a
failure in the past. He never will in the
future. "If God be for ua, who can be
against us." It is literally true that when
the enemy comes in liko a flood this spirit
of the Lord shall lift up a staudard againat
aim. i
' The story of Elijah ia moat intereating,
and we trace him trom t'in audden appear
ance here flashing like a meteor upon the
scene of action, down to Cherith, where
he is fed by the ravens, over to Zaiephath,
where he relieves the distress of the wom
an who meets him, but the most remark
able scene in hia life is on Mt. Carmel,
where, facing the prophets of Baal, after
their inability to call down fire from heav
en he .produces the lire from the very
hand of. God, which consumed the sacri
fice, licka up the water in the trenches
and gives him victory of a moat remarka
ble kind. The prophets of Baal are dis
tressed, and tho re wo concerning their de
feat is carried to Jezebel. She ia intensely
angry, and declarca that Klijah shall be as
her prophets are at a certain hour of the
day. Instead of looking up to Cod and
triumphing over this wicked woman Eli
jah does quite the opposite, and thus it is
that the text is written to describe his sad
fall.
How are the mighty fallen? It would
be difficult to imagine man in whose lite
there was more of real contrast; now he ia
master in prayer and the pendulum which
swings one way toward glory swings in
Lis life in the other direction toward de
spair, and the prayer for victory becomes
a wail of distress; now he is locking up
the heavena and holding the key and ap-
Earently at his own will the rain tarries or
ills, and now utterly dismayed he is rush
ing to the wilderness and wishing that he
night die. but Klijah ia not alone in this
desire. The most of men have at one time
or another wished that they might end all.
Moses did, "And if Thou deal thus with
me, kill me, I pray Thee, out of hand, if I
have found favor in Thy sight, and let me
not see my wretchedness. Numbers 11:
15. So also did Jonah, "Therefore now, Q
Lord, take, 1 beseech Tbee, my life from
me; for it is better for me to die than to
live." Jonah 4: 3. And even the great
Apostle Paul said, "I am in a atrait be
twixt two, having a desire to depart and to
be with Christ," but the trouble with the
most of us is we want to die our own way.
Elijah waa not willing to din nt tha hand
of Jezebel, but he was quite ready to aleep
himself away into insensibility under the
juniper tree in the desert. Klijah made a
great mistake in running away. If he had
stood hia ground he might have saved his
country, prevented the captivity of the
people, for I doubt not the 7000 that had
not bowed the knee U Baal would have
come forth, and they would have rushed
forward conquering and to conquer, but
Elijah is a picturo of ourselves, and we all
like him have been timea without number
under the juniper tree. The object of thia
sermon is to ask the question, "Why we
ate thus discouraged," and then to deter
mine if possible what the difficulty waa
with Elijah.
Why are we? There are thousands of
people to-day who ore utterly dissatisfied
with life bccauae'tlicy are living too artifi
cial an experience. We have very many
things that our ancestors did not possess.
The possensiou of thee things ought to
bring to us great blessings in every way,
but as a matter of fact it ia true that
neither happiness, nor brotherly love, nor
power nor jjood have been increased in
the least. Ve luvo indeed gone in the op
posite direction, and many of us are of
all men moat miserable. We are discon
tented because we are trying to be some
thing that wo are not. The business man
thinks he must keep pace with hia compet
itor whatever the cost to himself, and in a
little lime he finds himself out of his lati
tude In society thousands of people are
aping the customs and manners of those
who are in in entirely dilT-ieut set fron
themselves, by vihso ide ihey can never
stand, and ii they did tlit-y would be only
the more unhappy, and there are thousands
of homes where iiuteud of living a simple
life the members cf the household are liv
ing at a pace that is terrific, and all this
s killing the business man, the aociety
Woman, 'he parents aud the children, ana
instead of possessing joy and peace we are
under the juniper tree. The thirst for
pleasure in these days is so great that we
have become absolutely unscrupulous in our
attempt to gain the object of our de
ires.t We. ought, to be satisfied with just
what wu are and in the moat natural way
We have come into the world with differ
ent sifts, some oue with gold, others with
silver, -till other with rourblo and many
with only clay, and our task, is to fashion
these things into tho strongest manhood
and the tuiest womanhood, and to do it
u the most simile aud unattested man
ner. We are too aeiliv'.i In our living, w
long to satisfy our u'ipctitcs, our passions
and our desires. This longing ha become
uppermost in our living, and the man who
nukes it ao makes hi appetite stronger
than himself, and his need is dreadful, foi
no who lives simply to eat, to drink, to
leeu and to dress, whether he be uaupei
or prince, is on the downward grade to de-
pair.
Contentment is one of the greatest
blessings in the world. It. is not a question
of the possession of either poverty oi
riches. He who knows how to be content
paseases thu secret, not because he is
either poor or rich, but niniplv because b
"uohs how to bo content, Til mere fact
that v) are Clu-Utiuns does not amount
to much in many cases; if our religion in
vrese u:ir couli deuce, our hope, can- love.
It Is good, but If ft give us the spirit that
we are better than other people, if we seek
to control the interests of other people,
make them fashion their lives according
to our own plan, if we are good simp);
that we may escape punishment, such f
Jri0' jM',on religion is almost worthies.
Thu difficulty is not in our surroundings, but
in ourselves. "Joy ia not in things, it it
in us.
I met a young woman this winter in ths
South who told me that she was the poa
essor of a $10,(VK) violin, and with shin
ing face she said, "You should hear th
munc of that instrument," and yet in the
hands of very many people it would have
been just a producer of unharmoninuf
founds, while 11 tiie hand of this gifted
young woman it waa truly marvelous, and
all because the musie was in her. and the
violin was the best movement of the ex
presaion of that music.
When Ole Cull, the great violinist, plaved
In Princeton, one of the professor asked
him if the secret of his success waa in the
violin or in the bow or in himself, and h
aid, "The violin and the bow amount to
but little. I never play until I' feel that
there- is music in mo that must be ex
pressed, and then any instrument I touch
becomes remarkable. Many of ua are un
fitted for life because we have become too
artificial, have had wrong ideals and hav
tried to be what we never can be.
A friend recently sent me that wonder
ful little book, ''The Simple Life," bv
Charles Wagner, which every one would
do well to read. To the author of this
book I am indebted for some of the ex
pression used above, but in one of the
chapters he tell us in speaking of the
home life, "In the time of the Second Em-
fiire, in one of our pleasantest sub-prefec
ure of the provinces, a little way from
arune bath frequented by the Emperor,
there was a mayor, a very worthy man,
and intelligent, too, whose head waa sud
denly turned by the thought that hi sov
ereign might one day descend upon his
home. Up to this time he had lived in
the house of his fathers, a son respectful
of the slightest fsmily traditiona. But
when once the all-absorbing idea of receiv
ing the Emperor had taken possession ol
his brain be became another man. In thii
new light what had before seemed sufti
cient for hia needs, even enjoyable, all this
simplicity that his ancestors had loved, ap
peared poor, ugly, ridiculous. Out of tin
question to ask an Emperor to climb thii
wooden ataircase, ait in these old arm
chairs, walk over such superanuated car
peta. So the mayor called architect and
mason, pickaxes attacked walls and de
molished partitions, and a drawing-room
wa made out of all proportion to
the rest of the house in size and splen
dor. He and hia family retired into close
quarters, where people and furniture in
commoded each other generally. Then,
having emptied hia purse and upset hit
household by this stroke of genius, hi
waited the royal guest. Alas, he loon
saw the end of the empire arrive, but th
Emperor never. The folly of this pool
man is not so rare. As sottish aa he an
all those who sacrifice their home life tc
the demand of the world."
II.
What was the difficulty with Elijah!
First hi physical strength' had been over
taxed. He had been laboring under the
highest tension, hi nerves were unstrung,
and he was just in the position where
Satan could tempt him the worst. There
are many like him to-day. They are in
despair, and they need not so much a spiritual-physician
as the presence of a doctor
who can tell them that their bodies must
have rest, their nerves must be built up,
and they themselves must remember that
their bodice are the temples of the Hols
Ghost, and that they may sin against God
just aa truly when they break command
touching the body as when they commit
ins touching the soul. Elijah needed rest,
snd instead of taking it he prayed that he
might die.
Second, he looked away from Cod to hit
circumstance. Up - to that time he en
dured as seeing Him who was invisible,
then like Peter when he saw the wind that
was boisterous he began tu sink. I do not
think that any minister could preach to
day if he realized the iniquity that sur
rounded him, the hypocrisy in many
hearts, the awful aina in many lives; he
would grow faint and sick at heart, and
ill because he looked down, while it is
possible, on the other hand, for anybody
to preach in the midst of all thia desola
tion if he keeps his eyes turned up, and
Ihe difficulty with you is not that your
cower is dead, but that your eyes are fast
med upon the ground instead of turned
apward to heaven, and the cause of your
distress is not that your mother has gone
way from your homa. but that you are
itanding like Mary looking in at the tomb,
tvhen you ought to be standing with up
turned face lookin j by faith into the very
midst of the angel company in heaven.
IVIiat if the difficulties are great, let us
took to God in it all.
The other day in my mail came a little
Diece of poetry from a friend in England,
s-hich has been singing its way like a bird
f paradise through my aoul all the week.
'When the way seems dark and dreary.
Think of Him.
Lest thy heart grow faint and weary.
Think of Him.
For He knoweth all the wav,
Aru. His strength will be thy stay;
lie can cheer the darkest day,
Think of Him.
'When some sorrow sorely presses.
Think of Him.
For through trials oft He blesses,
Think of Him.
He" alone can understand.
Leave it all in His dear hand;
In His love for thee He planned.
Think of Him.
"When some anxious care perplexes,
Think of Him.
Lest thy inmost soul it vexes,
.. Think of Him.
Bring thy care and thou shalt see,
He will bear it all for thee:
lie would have thee peaceful be.
Think of Him."
nr.
Ilut there was still another difficulty
with Elijah. First, he was alone. In
verse 3 we read that he left hia servant
at Beersheba, and he himself went into
the wilderness. It ia a great mistake to
be alone when trouble conies. "Bear y
one another'a burdens, and ao fulfill the
law of God," gives us a picture of human
fellowship, while the verse, "Take mj
yoke upon you and learn of Me," gives U'
an idea of that fellowship which we may
have with Him.
John McNeill, the great Scotch preacher
has a fine illustration of this point in hii
sermon bated upon I Samuel, the 27tb
chanter and the ltrst verse, "And David
said in his heart, I ahall now perish one
day by the hand of Saul; there ia nothing
better for me than that I should speedily
escape into the land of the Philistines,
and Saul shall daepair of me, to seek mt
any more in any coast of Israel; so shall 1
escape out of his hand." "David said in
his heart," and John McNeill says it
would have been well if instead of aaying
it in his heart he would have eaid it out
loud. It is the thmg we say in our heart
that grow to such great proportion and
lead us to believe that we are on the
verge of despuir. Without question the
passage is true, and Mr. McNeill suggest
three cures. . ,
First-Why didn't David ear tt aloud
to his servant and let his servant argue
him out of his position, for there are many
things we think we would never dare to
sav to our dearest' friends.
Second Whv didn't David pray it. Ha
was a master in prayer, and if he had but
fallen on hia knees and said it to God, at
least have tried to aay it, he would have
found that hi very tongue would have
cleaved to the roof of hia mouth, for there
arc things we think that we would blush
. if we dared to sav tliem to usfl.
Third Why didn't he sing it. He waa
' much of a linger, was David, and if he had
I but put it in a song hia fuse would have
grown hot, and he would hat' ended with
! stammering and stumbling, and then said
j Mr. McNeill. "Why mav we not follow
this rule, and when we have a difficulty,
imaginary or real, let us sav it, or pray it,
or sing it, and if we cannot say it. and it
" won't pray, and will not sing thei- is
nothing in it. It is but the devil's delu
sion to ulunire us into despair.
Fourth Ho sat down. That was a great
mistake. He never should have given up.
If he had only k'pt going he would have
found victory. There a in o ntanv pennle
jn the church tn-r'ay who h.-ivs done iwL
exactly what Klijsn did. They have sat
down. The man who once taught a Sunday-school
class is now doing nothing and
fast slipning away from Christ. The mem
ber of the church who used to be faithful
at the nrayer meeting is now absent and
aitting down in his home he is of all men
most miserable. Thnt man who was once
in the church and loved the church has
sst down in the world, and be question
if he ever knew Christ, so let us keep
going. It ia when a man is idle that Satan
trins him up.
Fifth He wantd to dictate to Oct
when he said to Him "It me d'e." It is
a good thing that God did not take him nt
his word, for he would have died under a
cloud, and would have been buried In the
desert. What a mercv it ia that God does
not give us all we ask for. And my own
experience I doubt not ia yours, the things
that God has refuaed to me have been my
greatest blessings. Then let. ua remember
that "no" ia just aa much of an answer aa
"ves." and your experience in your hn-e
hit been that no for your children usnally
is the better answer. Tint how gracious
God is in Hi dealings with those who are
out of the wav. He eel's Adam in tender
wese when He says. "Where art thou?"
He, woos Pavid back ayam to virtue in
the story of the ewe lamb, and gives us a
picture of Himself in the seeking love of
the father of the prodigal for his boy, lets
u understand something of His forgive
ness when He send in the ncrson of His
Son to write upon the sand His disposition
to remember no mom the sin of a guilty
woman, and then whispered to Klijah as
lie is under the juniper tree in a still
small voice, and continues to whisper un
til at last Elijah is on his feet and fleeing
for hi life bark'avain into the light. Oh,
let us come out from under the juniper
tree. It ia a sad place to find a Christian
and good place to keep away from.
Spear Points.
The light from heaven can. never lead
astray.
The world must read the Gospel in liv
ing epistles.
Resignation i putting God between
one' self and one'a grief. ,
The most momentous truth of religion
is that Christ is in the Christian.
The time to show your Christian man
hood is when it ia put to the sore test.
You cannot dream yourself into a char
acter; you must hammer and forge your
self into one.
The light of the Christian shines bright
est for Christ, when he is least conscious
that it ia shining.
Not all God's messengers are angels.
Any hand that knocks at the door may
bring a call from the King.
It is better to build a life than to make
fortune. Character ia a greater accom
plishment than riches.
He who manifests humility, love and
gratitude when told of his faults haa
made large attainment in the Christian
life.
Spiritual sustenance cannot be effective
in an abstract form, as pure Truth; it
must come to ua through the energy of a
spiritual life.
We need a faith that will "grasp
Christ with the heart" in order to "en
dure to the end." Heart communion
alone will give us this grasp. Ram's
Horn.
Things That tha World Needs.
There are many thinga that the world
needs, and there is much work to be
done, in many directions: but most of all
does the world need God, most'a.of all
docs it need righteousness, faith,, hope
and love! The world needs better con
ditions for its poor and wretched, better
tenementa in which to house them; but
it needs also better lives for the tene
ments when built. .It needs better oppor
tunities for its teeming multitudes; but
it needs also clearer vision to see the op
portunities and stronger wills to grasp
them. The world needs scientific knowl
edge, but it needs religious emotion as
well. It needs its thunderous industries,
but it needs the sense of kinship to God.
It needs its practical ideals; but it need!
supremely the vision of the Highest. "As
the heart panteth after the water brooks,
so panteth my soul after Thee, O God!
My soul thirsteth for God, for the Living
God!" From Him we came, and we are
disquieted until we rest in His bosom
until we feel the ocean of His love flowing
about our imperfections swallowed up in
His perfection,- and our restlessness melt
ing into His everlasting peace. Rev. Mr.
Shutter.
A Child Messenger of God.
The still form of a little boy lay in a
coffin surrounded by mourning friends. A
mason camo into the room and asked to
look at the lovely face. "You wonder
that I care - so much," he said, aa the
tears rolled down his cheeks, "but your
boy was a messenger of God to me. One
tune I was coming down by a long ladder
from a very high roof and found your
little boy close behind me when I
.reached the ground. He looked up into
my face with a childish wonder and
asked frankly, "Weren't you afraid of fall
ing when you were up ao high?" and,
before I had time to answer, he said:
'Ah! I know why you were not afraid
you had said your prayers this morning
before you went to work.' I had not
prayed, but I never forgot to pray from
that day to this, and by God a blessing
1 never will."
The Reward or Prayer.
True prayer never fails to bring it
reward. Prayer consists of supplication
and thanksgiving. Petition is but an in
cident of prayer, and it may well be
doubted whether that which consists of
petition alone ia true prayer. Prayer is
communion with God. Spending a large
portion of time in company with God, we
become more and more like God. inti
mate relation are established between
our Heavenly Father and the -man of
prayer.
Three Gifts to Has.
God ha given three gifta to man, faith,
hope, love. Without faith there could
be no trust in anyone; without hope, life
would be darkness, and without love it
would be a living death. The three are
'in daily exercise toward men. Their
highest exercise is godward.
Custer's Groj hound.
"Talking about Indiana reminds me
of u paragraph In this column recently
concerning tome greyhounds which,
were said to be the descendants of an
animal owned by Gen. George A. Cua
tor," says a writer in the Philadelphia
Ledger. "I had It from an old post
office Inspector who knew Custer well,
and was In the Northwest on postal
business; that at the time of the mas
sacre of Custer and his command In
the Big Horn fight by Sitting Bull an!
his Sioux warriors, Custer had with
him the very greyhound which was
probably the progenitor of these latter-day
beasts. The Inspector told me
that be was In Bismarck, Dakota, at
the time, and that over a week after
tue battle the bound found Its way into
the town, having traversed al( the dis
tance, I'jme 40D or BOO miles, and found
the starting place by- some remarkable
inBtinct. It was one of tbe few sur
vivor of the. terrible fight In which its
herolo master had perished."
Career of Lieut, Mlreblsr.
The Lieut. Btrebler who captured
Gen. Lueban, the Filipino leader, la of
German birth and enlls'ed In the regu,
lar army before be was 29 year old.
He was promoted to a lieutenancy by
President McKlnley, being then a ser
geant serving hia third term. He has
een much active service, but newer
auetaJned any Injury.
t
Another German Prince to Visit I's.
Prince Adclbert, the third son of
the emperor of Germany, will likely
be the net member of the German
royal family to land In America, as he
Is a cadet on tha training ship Char
lotte, which will reach Baltimore
about the lut of May.
THE SABBATH SCHOOL
International Lesson Comments For
May 4.
Subcct: Tht Chnrch at Aatlocb la Syria, Act
xl., 19-30 Ooldes Text, Acts xL, 21
Memory Verses, 22-24 Commen
tary eo tbi Dty's Lessoo.
19. "Which were scattered abroad."
We r.ow turn back to chapter 8: 1-4, and
trace in a new direction the history of the
church. The authorities tried to blow out
the gospel fire kindled by the Holy Spirit,
but it only made it burn the brighter.
They lashed the tire, but it only sent the
sparks over the world. The wrath of men
was made to praise God. The disciples
went everywhere preaching the gospel.
We have seen their success in Samaria,
.Joppa, I.ydda and Caeaarca. "Phenice.
The district between the Mediterranean
and the mountains of Lebanon, extending
one. hundred and twenty miles from a
point a little south of Tyro, and embrac
ing the two cities of Tyro and Bidon.
" Cyprus." A large island in the Medi
terranean Sea, sixty miles from the coast
of Palestine. It was remarkable for its
richness of toil and the dissoluteness of its
inhabitants. U waa the birthplace of
Barnabas, and one of the fields of Paul's
labors. "Antioch." This city now be
comes the new religious centre. "Unto
the Jew only." This was the practice of
the Jewish Christians when they left
Jert aalom. Aa yet they did not know that
the Gentiles were to receive the gospel.
2. "But there were ome." (R. V.)
Some of those scattered abroad because
of the persecution. "Men of Cyprus, eta."
These were Greek -soeakinir Jews who.
having lived abroad, were less scrupulous
about mixing with the Gentiles than were
the Jews of Palestine. "Cyrene." A city
of northern Africa. "Spake unto the
Greeks." The Gentile Greeks.
21. "Hand of the Lord." A The hand is
the symbol of power. The expression is a
common one in the Old Testament to ex
press the direct interposition of God ia the
affairs of the world. "With them." Qod
showed them favor and evinced Hia power
in the conversion of their hearers.
22. "The report concerning them. "(R.
V.) This excludes the idea that it was
a communication aent from the brethren
at Antioch. It was natural that such a
remarkable occurrence aa the conversion
of a large number of Gentiles should be
reported at Jerusalem. "The church...
in Jerusalem." This was the original
church of Christianity; not the church of
Rome. There were Christian churches
founded in many places, which exist to
the present day, before Rome heard the
gospel. "They sent forth." To aid the
disciples and to give sanction and direc
tion to the work. They had done a sim
ilar thing at the time of the revival which
occurred in Samaria. Act 8: 14. "Barna
bas." He was peculiarly fitted for this
work. He was a Levite and a native of
Cyprus. "Aa far as Antioch." Implying
that there were churches on the way to
visit.
23. "When he came." The result is brief
ly recorded under three heads: 1. What he
saw the grace of Ood. 2. What he felt
he was glad. 3. What he did he exhorted
them all. "The grace of Ood." The favor,
mercy and power of Christ in the conver
sion of the Gentiles. "Was glad." He at
once owned the work and rejoiced ia it,
though the converta were uncircumciaed.
He saw nothing in the rork of which he
could disapprove: it wav genuine. "Ex
horted them." Entreated itiem. WW Bed
him exercising here tho peculiar gift for
which he was distinguished. Tue appella
tion which he received from the apostles
(chap. 4: 36) deacribea a particular trait
in his style of preaching. He comforted
and encouraged them. We owo every
thing to the people who encourage us.
You owe very little to the man who mere
ly finds fault with you. "Purpose of
heart." The heathen converts had much
to enduro for Christ's sake and to the
weak there were many temptations to re
lapse. Barnabus exhorted them to make
this their settled plan of life. "Cleave."
Adhere firmly,' constantly, faithfully to the
Lord.
24. "For." Here we seo the reason why
Barnabas was so successful. "Good man.'
Thus it is possible for poor, weak, sinful
man to be saved and cleansed from his sins
so that in the eyes of the Lord he will be
"good." Barnabas was deeply pious, and
exemplified the grace of God by living a
holy life. "Full of, etc." He lived in the
Spirit, wa controlled by the Spirit, and
was endowed by the power of the Spirit.
He was also full of faith. He had un
bounded confidence in Jesus Christ and
the gospel he was preaching. He knew
there was no chance for failure. "Much
people." There were many conversions
and accessions to the church.
25. "To Tarsus." Saul's native city; less
than a hundred miles from Antioch if the
journey was made by water. It will be
remembered that when the Jews at Jeru
salem sought to kill Saul the brethren
sent him to Tarsus. Chap. 9: 30. "To
seek Saul." Barnabas was well acquainted
with Saul and bad introduced him to the
church at Jerusalem (9: 27); and it has
been suggested that be may have known
him in his youth. -
26. "Assembled." .Wa doubt not they
assembled weekly, upon the Lord's day;
for the earliest ecclesiastical history finds
Sunday the sacred day at Antioch, and it
is utterly improbable that any alteration
took place of the day then first estab
lished by the apostles. "Christians." It
is most probable that this uame was given
them by the brethren in ridicule. But Dr.
Clarke seems to favor the idea that ihe
name is of "divine appointment." and was
given by Saul and Barnabas. There is no
necessity to discuss this question for the
name is from God even though the heathen
may have coined it.
27. "Prophets." This was applied (1)
to those who were engaged in preaching
or explaining the word of God (1 Cor. 14:
3), and also (2) to those who foretold
iuture events as Agabus did here.
28. "Agabus." We know nothing of
this prophet except what we learn here
and in chap. 21: 10. "By the Spirit."
While under the influence of the Holy
Spirit. "Great dearth." "A great fam
ine." R. V. "All the world.". " Thij
probably means here, the land of Judea
and adjacent countries; though some ap
ply it to the whole Roman empire. "Cajne
to pass." The famine continued two
years. A. D. 44. 45. During the reign of
Claudius (A. D. 61-84) there were four
famines in different parts of the empire.
29. "The disciples." The church at
Antioch. Note that "every man" sent
something. There evidently were no pe
nurious people in the church at that time.
"Which dwelt in Judea." They evidently
did not expect the fumine would extend
to Antioch.
30. "To the elders." To be distributed
to those in need. Thia was Saul'a second
visit to Jerusalem since hia conversion.
Maine's Spoon.
A curious find has Just been made
at Samrlshamn, In Sweden. At low
water a sailor discovered amoug the
stones on the beach of Massakasbay a
teaapooa of brass. After cleaning It
he found engraved on the Inside tbe
picture of a man-of-war, with the
word "Maine" and "6.800 tons." The
spoon would therefore appear to have
belonged to tbe ill-fated Maine, gunk In
Havana harbor In tbe spring of 1898.
and it needed four years of ocean cur
rents to wash this tiny object ashore
on tha coast of southern Sweden.
Aneleal EogUsh Bibles.
""Though the Bibles used at modern
coronations are lost to the public Eng
land poasessua In the Cottonlan Libra
ry a volume asserted to have oeen used
at the coronation of Englluh sov
ereigns 300 years before the atone now
in the coronation chair was brought
to England from Scotland. It la a
Latlu manuscript of tbe tour goBpels,
on which the tradition asserts the an
cient klugs or E:ulaud too't their cor
ouatluu oaths.
iTHE GREAT DESTROYER
SOME STARTLINC FACTS ABOUT
THE VICF OF INTEMPERANCE.
One of the "Devil's Jokes" The Devil's
Real Name Is Whisky Demoniacal
Prank It Played on a Policeman Don't
Let It Do Ton a Brnrvy Trick.
John .T. O'Brien, a policeman, who lived
at No. 1059 Tliirtv-fourth treet. in Brook
lyn, waa a good, honest man when sober.
He lived at the address mentioned a
few dvs ago with bis wife and young
children, to whom he was devoted when
At present h" lives in a cell charged
with murder. His wife is buried, killed
bv him, and his children are bereft.
The storv of the change in Policeman
O'llrienV life is very short, and he himself
described it better than anybody else
could possibly describe it.
He came home drunk. His wife told
him he ought to be ashamed to appear
dr'nk before the children.
He arose unsteadily, took hi revolver
from the mantlepicce, and shot his wife
dead.
Then he went out and gave himself up
to another policeman.. His explanation of
hi crime won aa follows:
"It's the devil' joke. No better wo
man than mv wife ever lived."
It wna indeed the devil's joko that out
an unfortunate wife in her grave, that
will inevitably aend O'Brien to the electric
chair or imprisonment for life, that makes
his three children fatherless.
The devil plays these joke on humanity.
Tt is the devil of the whiKky. and he plays
hi jokes every day in every big city and
in every little village of the world.
Sometime his jokes lead to murder,
sometimes to theft and other crimes. They
always lead to disgrace of some kind.
Once upon a time Policeman John .T.
O'Brien believed that a little whisky did
no harm.
A great many thousand men to-day be
lieve, as O'Brien did before he became a
murderer, that a little whisky does no
harm.
The voung man and the old man who
think that a little whisky does no harm
ought to have witnessed the lost meeting
on earth of O'Brien and his wife and their
three children.
O'Brien, sobered un, the whisky out ol
his head, was rilled with remorse, and
wept constantly. His grief was so great
that it was thmmht he would become in
sane, and the District Attorney in charge
of his prosecution consented to his attend
in his wife's funeral.
He was taken, handcuffed, to the house
in which he lived with his family before
the "devil' joke" took place.
The murdered wife lay in a coffin and
her mother sobbed at the head of the
coffin. The three young children, all under
seven years of age, atood at the foot of
tfie comn as the father and murderer,
handcuffed to a detective, leaned over the
coffin, his tears falling on his wife's face.
At the edse of the STave later on O'Brien
knelt down, and the detectives hand
cuffed to him knelt also the handcuffs
compelled them to kneel.
The dirt was thrown in, O'Rrien waa
taken to the prison, and the children went
awav in another direction.
The "devil's joke" had been plsved
out to an unusually successful end New
York Journal.
The Whisky Road.
Many a poor devil started on the
whisky road through no fault of his own.
But that will not excuse you if you take
thnt. path.
Have you strength of mind enough not
I? drink too much whisky? Good. But
prove n by drinking none at all.
And rei.:mber inis about the path that
starts out so pleasantly and ends among
broken bottle at the door of failure:
.You nevor meet a good bartender on that
path.
You never meet a successful whisky
manufacturer on that path.
The saloon owner wants, demands and
gets sober men as bartenders.
The whisky manufacturer will have
only sober men for Itis agents and man
agers. Young men, Wp off that path. It leads
only one way. Vou mav walk just so fur.
ston and come back. But why start at
all?
Human success is becoming more and
more matter of clear thou-ht. Keep
"our clearness of thought. Keep your
force, your vital energy to build up suc
cess. Pity the man who drinks ho needs pity.
But set him a mod example.
Remember this:
A drink of whisky never did for a man
anything that sleep will not do. And
whisky, whi'e it seems to rest you, hurts
you. Sleep builds up your brain.
Look at the man rolling out of a pin
nill in the morning; romoare him with
the fresh man going to his work after
natural sleep. Compare their eyes, their
gnit. thei- speech, their mental alertness.
Th difference between two such men is
th" difference between sleen and whisky.
atie sleen for your stimulant.
Take good thoughts and the companion
shin of cood. sober men and women for
yo'ir excitement.
Leave whisky to others. Xcw York
Journal.
f A Terrible Reckoning.
The saloonkeeper may make money, but
he heaps up a terrible reckoning. He scat
ters woe and destruction in hia pathway.
He creates moral blights and robs many
a home of its precious treasures. He does
not command either the respect or the
love of the good and patriotic. Hia busi
ness may be tolerated, but it is not admired
or sanctioned by those whose opinion
counts the most in a community. The
longer he continues in it, the greater and
heavier the moral indictment against him
and the more fearful the account he has to
render, Univerdalist Leader.
For "Total Abstinence."
"The following," says the Australian
Sunday-school Teacher, "is from a boy's
essuy on total abstinence. It is a whole
volume on temperance in a nut-shell. 'I
ntiHtaitied from alcoholic dnnks. because,
if I would excel us a cricketer, Grace eays,
a'-stain; as a walker, Weston says, ab
atain; as an Oarsman. Hanlon savs. nb
itain; r.s a swimmer, Webb says, abstain;
as a missionary. Livingstone says, abstain;
as a doctor, Clark says, abstain; as a
preacher, Farrar says, abstain. Asvlums,
prison and workhouse repeat the cry, ab-
Cause of Blot.
The Grand Jury investigating the Akron
riot, a short time since,-found (1) that the
original cause was a criminal made drunk
in a saloon: (2) that the leaders of the
riot were drunk; (3) that the mob re
turned again and again to the ncarhy open
saloons. iuHaming themselves for the wor'
of destruction.
A Had Pr-einlnenee.
The value of the spirits sold in Great
Britain during the year 1889 wa over
8UO,000,000. Thi wa $30,000,000 more
than the amouut sold in tbe United States.
In this year Great Britain led all the
other nations in the amount of spirits
consumed. Last year France attained
this pre-eminence. Journal of Inebriety.
Biiiidsy Closing;.
lo Cardiff, Wales, before the aaloons
were closed on Huuday, with a population
of 80 000, there were sixty-two convictions
for Sunday drunkenness in IHsl. Lut
year, with a population of 170,000, there
uei but nine cases.
TeetoUtliain Order.
The Chicago Great Western Railroad
haa adopted a rule forbidding its em
ployes to dunk liquor eveu when oK duty.
Many peoplu will think this is going too
tar. However, il simply follows the priu
cipie of tho survival of tho littest. A
between men who drink, even privately,
and the men who do not drink other
things being equal good sense should cor
taiiny favor the noil drinkers. Tin is a
matter of mere business policy entirely
Sfcparule from the ' question ot temper
uuey us g sentimental issue. Distillers do
not piik iut ili-uukui-du tu sell their whis
kies, temperance men properly lmve the
call every n iicrc.
CHRISTIAN ENDEAVOR TOPICS
May 4 -Prayer a Necessity." Mslt ixvL
tt-4.
Scripture Verses. Ps. xxxvll. 6;
Ixil. 8; Matt, xxl. 22; Mark xl. 24;
John xv. 7; Heb. xl. 6; Jag. I. 6, 6;
Pa. cxlx. 58, 170; cxlil. 6; cxllil. 9.
Lesson Thoughta.
There ia a difference between vain
repetitions and Importunity. Repeti
tion Is not always vain; when It Is the
result of our earnestness of desire,
then Ood will bear us for our very
importunity.
God docs not always give Just what
we ask; he know our needs better
than we know them ourselves, and
our Ofcklng must always be In hum
ble reliance upon his better wisdom:
"Not as I will, but as thou wilt."
God's power alone can enable us to
overcome temptations; In ourselves
we are utterly helpless. we may hav4
hia strength for the asking.
Selections.
Profitable prayer has Its foundation
In Bible knowledge. Its walls are
love for God's service. Its doorway
Is thanksgiving. Its windows are pe
titions. Its roof Is adoration. There
are aa many rooms as there are ex
periences and needs in life. Every
room is furnished in a different way.
If we are hungry. It is a dining-room;
If In doubt, a library; If weary, a
bed-room; if lonely, a parlor. For
every Christian, this house Is the
home of the soul.
When thou prayest, rather let thy
heart be without words than thy words
without heart, and remember emphat
ically, either prayer will make thee
cease from sin, or Bin will certainly
entice thee from prayer.
I know of no nobler picture of
prayer than Phillips Brooks's:
Prayer Is not conquering God's reluct
ance, but taking hold upon God's will
ingness. Suggested Hymns.
Tla the hallowed hour ot prayer.
Lord, at thy mercy seat.
Hear us. O Savior, while we pray.
Oh, I love to talk with Jesus.
Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour
of prayer.
I bring to thee, O Master
EPW0RTH LEAGUE MEETING TOPICS
May 4 Praytr a Necessity MatL xx, 36-46
The nature of prayer la found In the
nature of the aoul. A look Into one's
heart dlsoioeea the secret. Prayer
originates In the soul's aense of need.
Prayer la an appeal for help. It Is a
soul-search tor strength. It la an In
tuitional recognition of divine aupre
macy. Prayer asks some one for
something. Prayer pleads. It must
be a request In the Interests of right
eousness. It Is that spiritual process
ot the soul by which one partake ot
the divine nature. It Is soul-touch
with Ood. Prayer Is tbe holy Inter
mingling of the Spirit of Dlety and the
spirit of man. Communion Is loving
what God loves, willing what God
wlllu, and being in one's personal ca
pacity Godlike. Praise Is the soul's
thank offering to God. Prayer la the
tree. Praise is the blossom. Prayer
is the rap at the door. Praise la the
greeting to the host. Prayer is the
outstretched palm. PraUe Is the
warm hand-clasp. Praise ia the per
fection of prayer. The mercy of Ood
is .each that he will bestow many
material blessings on men whether
they pray or not. He sendeth his rain
on the unjust. The goodness of God
Is Buch that he bestows many natural
gifts Irrespective of prayer on the
part of the recipient. The Insistent
point is that prayer is necessary to
spiritual success. It Is inseparably
connected with the highest happiness
in this life. No man can make the
most of life who does not pray.
Prayer li necessary to spiritual
power. There may be natural strength
of personality. There may be In
tellectual power. These are to be
highly prized as good gifts from God.
They must never be held as Idle or
indifferent. But there Is a particu
lar order ot power that comes to the
soul only with the descent of the Holy
Spirit. Jesus said: "Ye shall receive
power after that the Holy Spirit is
come upon you."
Prayer is necessary to righteous
resignation. That seems to have been
true even with Jesus. In bis sore
Oethsemane trouble he Bald to the dis
ciples. "Sit ye here, while I go yon
der and pray." Yet he never did
aught that was unnecessary. If prayer
was a necessity to him, how much
more to us! If the loftiest life must
pray to he resigned to the highest
Ideal of service and sacrifice, it be
hooves the holiest of men to be much
in prayer.
Prayer is necessary to the successful
resistance of temptation. ' Watch and
pray, that ye enter not into tempta
tion," Bald this great Teacher of Gal
ilee. Never once did he advise the
doing of any unnecessary thing. Tbe
prayerless life is sure to be a fail
ure. RAM'S HORN BLASTS
EARS pay no tax
es. Stress makes
strong.
A recipe Is not a
cake.
Liking leads to
love and love to
likeness.
The braggart de
ceives no oue but
himself.
Religion without
Joy is a sun with
out light.
A stttui religion
does not make religious state.
The path of greatness with God lies
open to all.
Tbe great life is made up of great
ness in littles.
The church Is weakened by wicked
wealth.
Many a man must lose hia all to And
himself.
Sincerity la the best aormon against
hypocrisy.
Success la not salvation, but salva
tion li success.
No man falls of success who con
quera himself.
When God's showers cease man's
supplies fall.
A selfish success Is a aid failure.
Cowardly fear finds no favor with
God.
Many words do not make much wis
dom. Actual liberty centers In essential
loyallty.
God's sympathy Is not exhausted I:i
sighs.
A racket Is a rfivlval ol nothlnjt but
noiEa.
GOD'S MESSAGE TO MAIT
PREGNANT THOUCHTS FROM THE
WORLD'S CREATEST PROPHETS
Poemi My Task Hearst nt Net VtsteHaHsT
the Secret of Ood Needless Sei imm
To the Christian He la Sonsetlsssss
Hidden Ood as Silent Presence.
To love some one more dearly ev'rr day.
To help a wand'ring child to find hie war
To ponder o'er a noble thought, snd prajv
And smile when evening falls.
To follow truth aa blind men long for light.
To do my best from dawn of day till night
To keep my heart fit for His holy sight.
And answer when He ratle.
Maude Louise Ray, in Harper's Magasiae
The Blddeonsss of Ood.
Two girls, as they walked home
niaht from work, were ensaaed in e
est talk. A stranger who stood on the
sidewalk near them saw the play of ons
ious feeling on their faces as they topTt
a moment beneath a street lamp' dim
light. Suddenly one waa heard to aay ta
the other. "Yes, hut why ha no one erer
een God?" that wa all, just a fnsV
ment-word throbbing with pain and tv
gret. and they vanished again in the night.
How like humanity that waa! Like chil
dren, they pause now and then in the?
darkness of life, lift their weary facea ta
the pale lights glaring along the way, ssul.
peering into baffled eves, cry, "Why eass
we not sec our God?" It' waa Philm'av
old question, you remember, "Show ns tKe
Father." and all of us are now and thest,
in Philip's class, for it is large.
Afust I move on to the end with mvaw
tery ahead and uncertainty around, unahlcr
to lift even a little corner of life' misty
veil, or get the one clear word that wosridL
make all plain? Must I be forever dotn
so much and knowing so little, sure of Go4
to-day and doubting Him to-morrow? Ik
Miss Schreiner' legend of "The Hunter1
completely true, and must I, like him,
follow the vast white bird of Tratht
through the valley of Negation and Pain,
only at last, when withered and old, to
catch on-i little feather from his wings
Is it so? And' many, as they ponder ii
grow sad and wan and hopeless.
Yet it is a needless sorrow, this reeret
at not finding the secret of Qod. This
vagueness and uncertainty that men think
peculiar to spiritual things is everywhere,
not local to religion, but universal in alt
things. If it does not bother the merchant
at trade, why should it trouble the Chrav
tian at prayer?
Kxact knowledge of anything is impose
sible. What draws the aople earthward,
what is electricity, what is mind or con
science or will, how are soul and body
united? We cannot tell: we see these
things through a glass darklv. We know
some of their uses and operations, but ins
where they begin, and exactly what tW-r
are, we cannot know. "There ia enough
mystery," said Linnaeus, "in a handful oX
moss, to give one a lifetime's study."
All our complaining ia tbe old nomas
cry for greater assurance, and its explana
tion ia aa various aa ita cause. In part, it
is due to the fact that man is man audi
God ia God, that we are shareholders ia
two worlds the visible and earthly and
the sniritual and eternal. Destined for
vast future, and only able aa yet to know
and possess a very small part, mystery ia
the result. For mystery, as Dr. Clark says.
'i the halfway house between ignorance
an'd knowledge the twilight of the inter
ject." It is very good for us on the whole,
for it awakena the mind, stirs our imagi
nation, and incites to effort snd progress.
Yet, good as it is, it disturbs many weak
ouls, snd fills them with Shelley's regret
that
"Life, like a dome of many-colored glass.
Stains the fair radiance of eternity."
Even to the Christian sometimes Go&
seems hidden. In spite of the promise
that the pure in heart shall see God, nev
ertheless they often think they do sot
ee Him, and, aa far a their own mental
peace is concerned, the fancy might aa welt
be fact. But when God seems far off to
the Christian, is it not, in fact, becaaneti
He is so near? He is so blended with man's,
nature, He so penetrates and fills t he
chambers of thought, flows through t he
channels of feeling and rises through all
the springs of will, is so thoroughly identi
fied with all man's best and highest life,
that, while he seeks His marvelous appear
ance without, God, as a ailent presence, ia
filling the chamber of the soul.
God wa very near to some people in.
the Bible, and they knew it not. May He
not be equally near you, and you be igno
rant of that nearness?
The two who walked with the Risen Oner
toward Emmaus, though they looked into)'
His face and heard Hia voice, did nnbl
recognize the Master until later, when He
stood in their midst. Perhaps your heart'
also has burned within you. as He has
talked with you by the way, and you have
mistaken God-given emotions, heaven-sent,
thoughts, and eternal hopes and longings
for influences purely natural.
To the wicked, God ia hidden in a sens
different and more awful still. Jesus de
voted one whole parable to the illustratiom
of thia fact. The prodigal waa lost in ok
far country when he had taken all bar
could get, followed the wild voice of pas-;
sion, and apent hia all on self-gratification.
And selfishness always drives us so far
from God that God seems almoat non
existent. But when the prodigal awakeaest
to the fact that the highest happiness lira
in the service, not of self, but of one who
loves us best, then his father drew near
him again, and let him feel hia tender
embrace once more.
In many cases God to-day seems hidden
and spiritual realities vaguely unreal bo
cause of life's attrition, its wear and tear,
ita metallic custom and deadening ear,
the Tub of duty and the clash of ianglins;
interests. We do not reject God nowa
days, we simply let Him akme; and it is
not long before a neglected God become
a God far off, unfeatured and dim, anot
life's fair visiona and dreams of purity fail
to nerve and sustain.
Let us not charge God with our in
firmity and offense, nor think Him dis
tant and loveless when we are careless azuf
cold. The dust of neglect dims the finest
mirror, and the loftiest mountain fails to
awe when we turn our backs upon it'
Sunday-School Times.
Avoid Temptation,
What we arc taught to seek or shun in
prayer we should equally pursue or avoid
in action. Very earnestly, therefore,
should we avoid temptation, seeking Us
walk guardedly in the path of obedience.
We are not to enter the thicket in search;
of the linn. This lion may cross our path:
or leap upon us from the thicket, but we
have nothing to do with hunting him. He
that mcetein with him. even though he
winneth the day, will find it a stern strag
gle. Let tbe Christian pray that he may;
be spared the encounter. Our Haviour.
who had experience of what temptation
meant, thus earnestly admonished His dis
ciples: "Pray that ju enter nut into temp
tritiun.'1 ipurgeon.
Seir-Leve.
Think as liule s possible about any
good in yourself. Turn your eyes reso
lutely from sny view of your requirementa,
you influence, your plans, your success,
your following. Above all, apeak as)
little as possible about yoursvif. Tse
inordinateiies of our self love makes
speech about ourselves like the putting ot
a lighted torch to the dry wood which
has been Is id in order for burning. Noth
ing but duty should open our lips upon this)
dangerous theme, except it be in hunibua
confession of our sinfulness before God
Bishop Wilberforce.
-m
Heaven oft takes iu what earth casta
out.
It takes a great man to comprehend,
himself.
Tbe people ct truth lto deep in tbe
sea ot patience.
Tho truj martyr does not hire out
to a inusauin.
A man may be judged by bis Judg
ments ct others.
It Is hard to be healed when wis h' ia
cur wounds.
G?d vsttn flfiwiirs on hearts nun!
than l n itHmr-cliiths.