# The Lutheran Pioneer_St. Louis_1898_S15 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) ‘The Lutheran Pioneer. “Afraid of a Shadow.” a shadow that will pass; and when it has passed, you will see the everlasting hills in their unclouded glory. Rest assured that Christ is with you in the valley of the shadow of death, and do not fear the shadow.”’ The old shepherd covered his face with his trembling hands and for a few minutes was silent, then letting them fall straight on the coverlet, he said, as if musing to himself, ‘“‘Well, well, I have conned that verse a thou- sand times among the heather on the hillside, and I never understood it so before — afraid of a shadow, afraid of a shadow!’’ Then, turning upon his pastor a face bright with joy, he exclaimed, lifting his hands reverently to heaven, ‘‘Yes, yes, I see it all now. Death is only a shadow with Christ behind it, a shadow that will pass. No, no! I’m afraid no more.’’? Then he added slowly with folded hands: ‘‘Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou, dearest Saviour, art with me.’’ From the resurrection of Christ we know that death is swallowed up in victory. They that believe in the Saviour need not fear death. Still some of God’s children shrink from the thought of death, though their faith assures them that it is but the gateway to everlasting life and happiness. So it was with an old Christian shepherd. He lay on his dying bed, and when his minister came, he said to his wife, ‘‘Jane, give the minister a chair and leave us for a bit, for I would see the minister alone.’’ As soon as the door was closed, he turned his sad eyes upon the pastor and said in a voice shaken with emotion: ‘‘Minister, I’m dying, and—and—I’m afraid.”’ Knowing him to be a child of God, the pastor began at once to repeat the strongest promises of God’s word, but in the midst of them the old shepherd stopped him, say- ing mournfully, ‘‘I know them all, I know them all.’’ “Do you believe them?’’ asked the pastor. “‘With all my heart,’’ the shepherd replied earnestly. ‘Where, then, is there any room for fear with such a saving faith?’’ ‘For all that, minister, I’m afraid.’’ The pastor took up the well-worn Bible which lay on the bed and turned to the 23d Psalm. ‘*You remember the 23d Psalm,’’ he began. ‘Remember it!’’ the shepherd said vehe- mently; ‘‘I knew it long before you were born; you need not read it; I’ve conned it a thousand times on the hillside.’’ ‘But there is one verse which you have not taken in,’’ said the pastor. The shepherd turned upon him a half- reproachful look. The pastor slowly repeated the verse: “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.’’ ‘Then he added: ‘‘You have been a shepherd all your life, and you have watched the heavy shadows pass over the valleys and over the hills, hiding for a little while all the light of the sun. Did these shadows ever frighten you?”’ ‘“Frighten me?”’ the shepherd said quickly. “No, no! A shadow could not well frighten me.”’ “But did those shadows ever make you be- lieve that you would not see the sun again, that it was gone forever?” “No, no; I could not be such a simpleton as that.’’ ‘“Nevertheless,’’ said the pastor, ‘‘that is just what you are doing now.”” The shepherd looked at him with incredulous eyes. **Yes,”” the pastor continued, ‘‘the shadow of death is over you, and it hides for a little the Sun of righteousness, who shines all the same behind it; but it’s only a shadow. Re- member, that’s what the Psalmist calls it— se or oo He Was Silenced. A French infidel, after much intense study, formulated a new religion. Finding that his new idea was not readily approved and adopted, he complained to Talleyrand, the statesman, of the difficulty he had in intro- ducing it. “Y’m. not surprised,’’ said Talleyrand; ‘‘it is not an easy matter to introduce a new re- ligion. But there is one thing I would ad- vise you to do, and then perhaps you might suceeed.”’ ‘What is it? What is it?’ asked the other with eagerness. “It is this,’’ said Talleyrand; ‘‘go and be crucified, then be buried, and then rise again on the third day, and then go on working miracles, raising the dead, and healing all manner of diseases, and casting out devils, and then it is possible that you might accom- plish your end!’’ And the philosopher, crest- fallen and confounded, went away silent. ————«@o@0 - 0 oe “Whiter Than Snow.” A little girl went out one day to play in the fresh snow, and when she came in she said, ‘‘Mamma, I could not help praying, when I was out at play.” ‘What did you pray, dear?’’ “J prayed the snow prayer, mamma, that I Jearned once in school: ‘Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.’’’ Psalm 51, 7. What a beautiful prayer! And here is a precious promise to go with it: “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow,” Isaiah 1, 18. ‘And what can wash away sin? The Bible answers: “They haye washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb,”’ Rev. 8, 14. How a Heathen Put a Christian to Shame. The captain of an English war vessel once invited the Queen of Tahiti, and her train, on board the ship, and gave a feast in their honor. The most sumptuous repast had been prepared and the captain without any further ceremony invited his guests to partake of it. But to his surprise none responded. He then turned to Missionary Pritchard, who had also been invited, and said: ‘‘Dear friend, I see that I have failed to suit the tastes of my guests, notwithstanding my earnest efforts, for the Queen looks about as if the chief thing were missing.’’ The missionary smiled and said: ‘‘You ate right, captain. The chief thing is missing. Your table is indeed loaded with the choicest food, but you forgot to give thanks, and with- out this my spiritual children, as you see them here, will touch nothing. They hold fast to the apostle’s word, ‘Whether ye eat or drink or whatever ye do, do it all to the glory of God.’’’ With considerable embarrassment the captain asked the missionary to offer thanks, and as he spoke the words, ‘‘All eyes wait upon Thee and Thou givest them their meat in due season,’’ etc., the guests joined in, and when the ‘‘amen’’ was spoken, they partook of the bounteous repast. The Just for the Unjust. A poor old colored woman was once spoken to by a skeptic in the following way: ‘‘Well, Betty, and so you are one of the saints, are you? Pray, what sort of folks are they, and what do you know about religion, eh?’’ ‘‘Well, well,’’ replied the dear old creature, ‘vou know, sir, I’m no scholar, so can’t say much for the meaning of it; I only know I am ‘saved by grace,’ and that’s enough to make me happy here, and I expect to go to heaven by and by.’’ “But surely you can tell us something nearer than that? What does being saved feel like?’’ “Why, it feels to me,’’ said Betty, ‘‘just as if the Lord stood in my shoes, and I stood in His’n !?? Happy old Betty! She was right. ‘‘Christ suffered, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God,’’ 1 Pet. 3, 18. ————. ~ oo a God Speaks in the Bible. Luther says: ‘‘When Moses writes that in six days God made heayen and earth and all that is in them, let it stand that it is six days and make no gloss that would represent six days to be one day. If you can not under- stand how it could be six days, give the Holy Spirit the honor to believe that He is more learned than you, for you must in dealing with the Scriptures always keep in mind that it is God who speaks.””