# The Lutheran Pioneer_St. Louis_1889_S15 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) The Lutheran’ Pioneer: : 15 ——— Joy in Obedience. his religion—one who is put to death because he will not do something he knows to be a sin against God, and which a king or some person with authority and power commands him to do. There were men once who could not bear to hear even the name of Jesus, and who hated all who loved Jesus, and these men knew a man named Stephen, who loved Jesus with his whole heart, and delighted to speak about Him. So they were exceedingly angry against Ste- phen, and because he did not give up his love they took up stones, rushed on him, and dashed the stones at him till they killed him. So Ste- phen is called a martyr, the first martyr for Christ. Now let us follow the procession along the shore. Whilst we have been talking the sol- diers have set up two posts in the wet sand— one is away yonder, down close where the sea waves are breaking. To that they make the aged woman stand, and, having bound her to it with ropes, they ask her what to her means, “Will she deny God and honor the king?’ Her life hangs upon the answer. But to her the sweetness of pleasing God is far better than the sweetness of living; so, very naturally she answers, she cannot. Then they leave her there, and retire to the second post, which is farther from the sea, and near to the town. Then they order the girl to stand up to that; she obeys and they bind her to it with ropes, and then ask her what to her means, ‘* Will she deny God and honor the king?’’ The girl’s life depends upon her answer. But she has no hesitancy. For the bare idea of disobedience to God is simply unutterable wretchedness to her. She turns sick at the thought, and firmly and calmly replies, she cannot. Then they point her to the stake near the sea. The tide is coming in. Already the waves are rising round it; slowly, wave by wave, they reach its top, and the aged woman is no more: the wa- ters have covered her; she is drowned. Again the young girl is asked to save her life. She may do so, or be drowned like her companion. But she tells them her joy is to obey God; a life without His favor were a life not worth living. To obey Him is better than life. Then they fasten the ropes round her tighter, and make her sob with pain. They have no need to do this. She does not try to get away, but they are angry with her, they do not under- stand her; a young girl like she is, throwing away her life! She seems to them to be ob- stinate and foolish. Perhaps they mean to be kind by their anger; they are sorry for her to throw away, as they think, her fair young life. They have made her watch the waves rise, inch by inch, around her companion till she was drowned, in the hope of frightening her into submission. But though she had turned deadly pale, and her lips had quivered with prayer for strength, the sight had failed. And now they think the pinch of ropes round her limbs will persuade her to yield; butitdoes not. So their anger, becomes cruel, and they sneer and jest, while the sea rolls in its cold waves, wave chas- “‘ Thy loving kindness is better.than life.?’ Ps, 62, 3. Go with me toa town in Scotland which is -on the sea-coast. ‘There are houses along the :shore, and there is a long stretch of sand coy- ‘-ered with shallow pools of water left by the outgone tide; and past these pools of shore is the wild, billowy sea, on which are rocking at :anchor the boats of the fishermen who live in the town. The place is all alive with excite- ‘ment. Long lines of people are wending their ‘way down the narrow streets. What has hap- ‘pened? They look like streams of people com- sing from church; for their manner seems un- ‘usually serious, and most of them are talking -about religion, and in a subdued tone. Still, ‘they are not coming from church, for there is no service there to-day. It is a week-day, and ‘business may be done as usual; yet there is no business doing, and the shop-keepers are turn- ing the keys in their doors and joining the ‘crowd in the streets. Where are they going? They are not going home, for all their faces are in one direction; they are making for the shore. Why do they go there? ‘There are rich and poor, old and young. What are they going to see? You cannot guess what the sight is to be. But watch awhile. Yonder comes something to which all eyes are turned. As it comes nearer we see that it is a little group of priests and soldiers, and two women. One of the women is old and feeble, and her hands are bound together with strong iron rings, and a rope is round her waist. One of the soldiers has hold of the rope, and is dragging her along, though there is no need to drag her; she is willing to go quietly enough. » Behind her is a girl, and she, too, is bound—her hands with iron and her waist with a rope—and another soldier is dragging her along. What a strange procession! It reaches the shore, and the crowds make way, and the busy hum of talk is hushed. Some pity the old woman, but all pity the fair young girl. They have just come from prison, and now they are being led out to die. But what have they done to be imprisoned and put to death? They are full of joy in obeying God, and cannot obey man. That is all. ~ And for that they have been sent to prison, with foul, damp walls, filthy, slimy floors, all cold and dark. They did not like these things: they were very painful to them; and doubtless they had some good cries over their miseries there. Yet they might have come out again and gone to their homes in peace if they would only have done what the king told them to do; but they could not, for they knew that it was a wrong thing and would grieve God; and the miseries of a horrible prison were not so miserable as the mere thinking about grieving God. So, while they respected the king of Scotland, they obeyed the King of Glory, and for that obe- dience they are to die. It is to see these two martyrs I have asked you ‘to come with me to this shore of the Scot- tish town. A martyr is a person who dies for ing wave, till at length. the sea surrounds her, and the soldiers withdraw. At last the work is done, and from the grey, wild sea her glad spirit goes to God. Such was the girl’s joy in obedience to God; pain and death could not change it. ————> +o “Coals of Fire.” Avslave in one of the islands in the West In- dies, who had originally come from Africa, hay- ing been brought under the influence of religi- ous instruction, became singularly valuable to his owner on account of -his integrity and gen- eral conduct, so much so that his master raised him to a situation of some consequence in the management of his estate. His owner, on one occasion wishing to purchase twenty additional slaves, employed him to make the selection, giving him instructions to choose those who were strong and likely to make good workmen. The man went to the slave-market and com- menced his scrutiny. He had not long sur- veyed the multitude offered for sale before he fixed his eye intently upon an old and decrepit slave, and told his master that he must be one. The master appeared greatly surprised at his choice, and remonstrated against it. The poor fellow begged that he might be indulged; when the dealer remarked that, if they were about to buy twenty, he would give them the old man to the bargain. The purchase was ac- cordingly made, and the slaves were conducted to the plantation of their new master, but upon none did the selecter bestow half the attention and care that he did upon the poor old decrepit African. He took him to his own habitation and laid him upon his bed; he fed him at his own table and gave him drink out of his own cup; when he was cold he carried him into the sunshine, and when he was hot he placed him under the shade of the cocoanut trees. Aston- ished at the attention this confidential slave bestowed upon a poor fellow-slave, his master interrogated him upon the subject. He said, “You could not take so intense an interest in the old man but for some special reason; he is a relation of yours—perhaps your father?” ‘‘No, massa,” answered the poor fellow, ‘he no my fader.” - “He is then an elder brother?” “No, massa; he no my broder.’? ‘Then he is an uncle, or some other rela- tion??? Ss “No, massa; he no be of my kindred at all —not even a friend.” ‘Then,’ asked the master, ‘ton what ac- count does he excite your interest?”’ ‘‘He my enemy, massa,’” replied the slave; ‘the sold me to the slave-dealer; and my Bible tell me, when my enemy hunger, feed him; and when he thirst, give him drink.”” ——s ~