"(.[<, 'i h«r- •4^%' riV-. . iV^'H'ij^rpf^ It 1 • > I i>-^'^ O' SEP 1031 -\ tl; iffontcntgi, SERMON I. THE THREE PICTURES. S. Matt. xxv. 15, page. " Unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one. " I SERMON II. THE BUILDERS. Psalm cxxvii. i. "Unless the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it." 8 SERMON III. THE THREE GIFTS. S. Matt. II. 11. "They presented unto Him gifts ; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." 14 SERMON IV. THE TRAVELLERS, fl.) Hebrews xiii. 14. page. Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to comci" 21 SERMON V. TEE TRAVELLERS. {II.) Hebrews xiii. 14 Here we have no continuing city, but we seelc one to come." 28 SERMON VI. THE TRAVELLERS, fill J Hebrews xiii. 14. Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come." 33 SERMON VII. THREE WISHES. S. Luke xxii. 42. ,/ " Not My will, but 1 hine, be done. 42 SERMON VIII. THE STRONG MAN. (I.J Revelation xxi. 7. " He that overcometh shall inherit all things." 49 SERMON IX. THE STRONG MAN. (II.) Revelation xxr. 7. page. "He that overcomelh shall inherit all things." 58 SERMON X. TEE BEAUTIFUL GARDEN. Romans v. 12. " By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin."' 65 SERMON XI. TEE NEW WOULD. Revelation xxi. i. "I saw a new Heaven, and a new earth." 75 SERMON XII. THE STRANGE GUESTS. Hebrews xiii. 2. "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." 84 SERMON XIII. TWO LIVES. S. Mark x. 14. (P' "Suffer the little children to come unto Me." 92 SERMON XIV. THE MAGIC MIRROR. S. Matt. vii. 5. page, " First cast out the beam out of thine own eye ; and thenshalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." 99 SERMON XV. THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING. Psalm xlviii. 2. "The City of the Great King." 106 SERMON XVI. THE II VI KG BOOK. I Samuel in. 9. ^ "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth." 117 paiaijle ^eimoii^ fax ©ijtHrrtn. SERMON I. THE THREE PICTURES. S. Matt. xxv. 15. "Unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one." You know, my children, that a parable has been called an earthly story with a Heavenly meaning. Now I am going to tell you an earthly story, and you must try to tell me the Heavenly meaning. The story is about a very famous Artist, who has painted the most wonderful pictures. These pic- tures are very many, and very different. They are great and small, some dark, others bright ; some make you sing with pleasure when you look at A ^Sarablc ^rrmoiiiS far Cijiltfrni. them, others make you cry with terror. One pic- ture shows you the great wide sea, sparkhng in the sun, and the shadows of the tall cliffs lying on it. That is a very lovely picture. Then another shows you an earthquake, where the houses and churches in a town have all fallen, and the men and women and little children are buried alive, and the black, threatening sky hangs over all. That is a very terrible picture. One picture is that of a little rosy child playing in a meadow : and another is that of a poor, white-faced lad, lying on his dying bed, his thin hand clasped in his mother's. Some- times this great Artist has painted very simple pic- tures, such as a bunch of snowdrops, or a butterfly with gay-coloured wings ; but whatsoever He has done, the picture is always well done. Now this great Artist had three sons, and when they were quite little children their Father taught them how to paint. He showed them some of His own pictures, and they learnt to make drawings for themselves. One day the Artist said to His sons, " I am going away on a long journey, I cannot tell you when I shall return, but you niust be very industrious, and work hard whilst I am away." Then He led them into His studio, or painting room, which was full of canvas, and easels, and paint- Crb^ Cbrrc IStrturriS. brushes, and pictures, and models. To each son the Father gave a piece of canvas to paint on. The eldest son had the largest piece of canvas, the second had a smaller piece, and the younge>t had the smallest canvas of all. Then said the Artist to His sons, " You must each try to paint me a good picture, the best you can, by the day when I come back to you. You cannot paint equally well, but you must do the best you can. All your pieces of canvas are not of the same size, but each is large enough for the picture which you can paint." Just before He left them, their Father told them that there were many pictures which they might copy, or they might look at the view from the window, and paint that ; but He advised them to make one particular picture their model. Then He drew aside a curtain, and showed them the portrait of a very beautiful Child The Child was carrying a white lily in His Hand, and there was a strange, dark shadow cast before Him. So the Artist went away on His long journey, and the three sons were left to their work. The eldest stood before his big canvas, and thought, " What sort of picture shall I paint?'* At first he determined to draw a grand battle scene, full of soldiers in gay uniforms, and plunging horses, and waving flags. Presently, when |3iiraftlc ^crmnniS far Cftiltirrn. he had mixed the colours, and taken the paint brush, he thought that he would paint a picture of a king on his throne, with all his lords and great men standing round him, and he proposed to draw his own portrait amongst the courtiers of the king. Then He looked towards the picture of the Beau- tiful Child, and the Child's eyes seemed to follow him sadly and reproachfully. So the young painter put away all thought of the battle scene and the court, and set himself to copy the likeness of the Beautiful Child. It was very hard work at first. The Child's face was so pure and lovely, that the painter felt that he could never imitate it exactly. Sometimes he grew angry and impatient at failure, and then he would make ugly blots and stains with his paint brush on the picture. Then he was very sorry, and would kneel down beside his vv^ork, and cry bitterly ; and he found, to his surprise, that wherever his tears fell the ugly blots and stains disappeared, and he was able to go on with his painting. At last the picture was finished, but the young, painter was not satisfied with it. He felt that it was not half good enough — but he /laJ done his best. Now, you remember, children, that the second son had a smaller picture to paint. For some time SDbe (Tljrcc i3tcturr9. '^ he did no work, asking himself the question, " What sort of picture shall I make ?" He thought to himself that he could not paint anything grand on so small a canvas, so he looked out of the window for a subject. He saw that a fair was being held in the town, music played, flags waved, and people laughed, and danced, and sang. He said, " I will paint the fair." But after a little while the music ceased, and the people went away, and the lights were put out, and the streets were dark, and sad, and deserted. So the boy grew weary of his pic- ture, and determined to paint another. Then he looked at the face of the Beautiful Child, and the gentle eyes seemed to follow him reproachfully. So he set to work to copy the Child's likeness. But he had wasted much time on other subjects, and he made many mistakes in his work, so that he often cried, " I shall never finish my picture in time." What was the youngest son doing all this time ? He looked at his small piece of canvas, and thought — " What is the use of trying to paint on such a little thing as this ! No one could make a good picture on it." So he put the canvas away in a drawer, and did not try to do anything with it, but spent all his time in sloth and idleness. One parable ^ciman^ for Cljinrrrn. day the great Artist came back quite suddenly. His first words to His sons were, " What work have you done for Me ? Show Me your pictures." Then He looked at his eldest son's work, and smiled approvingly, and said, " Well done, thou hast been good and faithful." The second son came with his picture, which was smaller, and on him his Father smiled approvingly, and said, "Well done, thou hast been faithful in a small thing." Last of all came the youngest son, blushing with shame, and carrying his empty canvas in his hand, and his paints and brushes all unused — " I could do no- thing with such a little thing," said he, " and so I hid it away out of sight." Then his Father was very sad, and very angry, and He led His two elder sons with Him into a new and beautiful house, where there were more lovely pictures than they had ever yet seen, but the youngest son was shut out. Now tell me, my children, the Heavenly mean- ing of this earthly story. The great Artist is God, who has made the Heaven and the earth, and the sea. And the three sons, who are they ? We our- selves, and all people in the world. And the pictures which we have to paint are our lives. The painting room is our place in the world, where we dT^e Cftrce ^icturrrf. are put to work. And the portrait of the Holy Child which we have to copy, is the example of the Lord Jesus Christ. I told you that in the picture of the Holy Child there was a long dark shadow. You know what that means ? It is the shadow of the Cross. That will come into our picture too. Now remember that every day you live you are painting a picture — your life ; some of you may be painting the picture of an ambitious life, full of battle scenes, and kings, and courtiers ; some of you may be painting a picture of pleasure and amusement, like the son who began to make a picture of the fair. But if you want to make a really good picture, if you want to lead a really good life, you must try to copy one likeness, that of the Holy Child Jesus. SERMON II. THE BUILDERS. Psalm cxxvii. i. " Unless the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it.'' I SPOKE to you lately, children, about the great Artist and His pictures. To-day I want to tell you a parable about some builders. There was a famous Architect, who had built great cities, and httle villages, marble palaces, and simple thatched cottages. Some of His buildings were very grand, others very simple, but all were alike well built. These houses were let to different people to live in, and some took care of them, and kept them in repair, and others did not. The great Architect Cbc JiuiltrcriS. had two servants or apprentices in His workshop, and He taught them how to build, and ahvays gave them these three pieces of advice — First, Always build on a good foundation. Next, Always choose good materials. Thirdly, Build slowly. After a time, the great Architect sent His servants into a new country, and told them each to build a good house that would stand. Well, the two servants emigrated to the new country, where they found many other people all building, some well, others badly. One servant remembered his master's advice, — Build on a good foundation. So he got workmen together, and searched about for a likely spot to build on. When he found it, he cleared away all the soil and rubbish, until he came to the solid rock, and there he built his house. Remem- bering his master's advice, — Ahvays choose good materials^ — he hewed out seven pillars of stone to support the roof, and to each pillar he gave a name. You must try to remember their names. The first pillar was called Faith^ the second Obedience^ the third Love^ the fourth Truths the fifth Gentleness^ the sixth Prayei\ and the seventh Work. And, again remembering the master's teaching, the ser- vant built slowly. On the top of the roof, high over all, he fixed a great stone Cross, so that when- 10 parable ;a'rrmoui^ for Cljinrrnt. ever the sun was shining, the house was under the shadow of the Cross. At last the house was finished. Now what was the other builder doing ? He went to work in a very different way. He laughed at his companion for taking so much pains, and went down to the river-side, where the sand lay smooth and yellow. He determined to built there, and forgot all about His master's advice, and the good foundation. And he forgot also the advice about building slowly, so he hurried on the work, that he might fmish his house, and enjoy himself. Neither did he choose good materials for his building, but used any wood or stone which came in his way. Instead of the seven pillars of the house, this builder had but one, and that was called StIJis/iness. The house was finished at last. But there was no Cross to cast its shadow over the building. The winter came, and the wind roared, and the storms raged, and the floods rose, and beat upon the two houses. The gentle river of summer became a foaming torrent, which dashed against the walls of the buildings. But the waves beat in vain against one house, and in vain the wind shrieked at the windows, and the lightnings flashed, the house stood firm. Why, my children ? Because it Cbe »uinifrrf. 11 was founded upon a rock, and was well-built of good materials. Now let us look at the other house. It seemed strong enough, and safe enough in fair weather, but when the storm came, the sandy foundation began to sink and tremble. The one weak pillar, called Selfishness, began to totter and give way, and pre- sently the whole building fell to pieces like a house of cards, and the flood swept away the ruins, and the poor foolish builder with them. Now we must think of the Heavenly meaning. You know, of course, that God is the great Architect, who has built up all the cities and villages, and the mountains and islands, \^'e are all His servants, and He sends us into this world, a new country, to build. What are we to build ? Good lives, lives which will stand, and last for ever. Remember the lessons of the Architect. First, we must build on a good foundation, and our foundation must be Jesus Christ, the Rock of Ages. There is a text in one of S. Paul's Epistles about this, " Other foun- dation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." (i Cor. iii. ii.) Next, we must choose good materials to build up our lives with. What are they, do you think ? Good 12 Parable ^trmau^ for Cbtltrrrn. companions, good books, good work, innocent amusement. And, thirdly, remember to build slo7vly. Good lives are built up by degrees. Great generals, and statesmen, and lawyers, and clergymen, became great slowly by learning, so do good Christians. Then we must remember the seven pillars of our house. Can you tell me their names ? The first pillar must be Faith in God, making us trust all to Him. And then comes Obedience^ for if we believe in God we shall try to obey Him. Then there must be Love, love to God, and to each other, no good life can be built up without the pillar of Love. Next comes Iruth. Every noble life is built upon Truth and Honesty. And we must not leave out Gentleness^ which makes our building so sweet and beautiful ; nor Prayer, without which we can- not make a good building ; nor Work, that we may be useful ourselves, and be able to help others. These are the seven pillars that keep up a good Christian life. And above all this life, my children, there must be the Cross of Jesus Christ. Our life cannot be good, cannot be what God loves, unless we deny ourselves, and give up our own way ; that is living under the shadow of the Cross. We have looked at the house built on the rock, Ct)c Jiuinrcr^. 13 the holy life founded on Jesus ; now look at the house which fell, the life which was lost. The foundation of sand is this world's pleasure and sin, the pillar is selfishness, not love, or faith, or obedience ; a building like that cannot stand against the storms. Those storms are the tempta- tions, and sorrows, and losses of this life, which come to all of us. The flood beat against both houses, remember, so troubles and temptations come to good and bad alike, but only the lives founded on Jesus can stand against them. Now, I want you to ask yourselves a very serious question, WJiat am I building 1 SERMON III. THE THREE GIFTS. S. Matthew ii. 11. ' ' They presented unto Him gifts ; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." It was the holy season of Epiphany, when the Christ-Child was first shown to the Gentiles. Among the many who went to Church, was a little boy, one who loved no place so well as God's House, with its " dim, religious light," and its fair white columns, and its solemn music. He was a very quiet little boy, and thoughtful beyond his years. His friends said he was a dreamer, and if so, he had very beautiful dreams sometimes. Often he would go into Church alone, when there was no etc Cbrcc ^tfW. lo service, and kneel down and think, and perhaps pray. It seemed to him that, when the hght streamed through the painted windows, and fell upon his Prayer-Book, he could see Heaven opened, and catch a ghmpse of that wondrous City which he had read about in the Revelation of S. John. It seemed, too, that sometimes the pictured saints and angels in the window used to smile upon him, as though they were pleased to see a little boy in Church. But there was one painted window at which the little boy was never tired of looking. It represented the wise men offering their gifts to the Child Christ. Whenever he looked at this picture there was always one thought in his mind— Oh ! that I might see Jesus, and that I might give Him an offering ! It was the same when the organ pealed through the Church, and the voices of choir and people sang of the Guiding Star, and the gladness with which men of old followed it to find Jesus. The child was always saying to himself — If I could only see Jesus, and take Him a gift ! One day, when he had heard the wondrous story of Epiphany over again, the little boy remained in Church, lost in thought. And there seemed to come a dream or vision to Him. He fancied that the organ was being played very soft and low, as though an angel's Ifi iSarable ^crmoniS for Cbinrrnt. fingers were touching the keys, and as the child gazed on his favourite window, gradually the figures in it seemed to live, and move. He saw a very brilliant star, like a comet, shining down from the sky, and making all the scene bright. The scene was a rude stable, and the oxen and other animals were standing there. And they seemed to the child's eyes to be real living cattle, and to be bowing their heads reverently before a little Baby, wrapped up in coarse, poor clothing. At first the little boy could not see the face of the Babe, but He observed that She who held Him in her arms was exceeding beautiful. But presently, as the wondrous light streamed on the scene, the little boy could see the features of the Babe, and he thought that they smiled lovingly upon him. After awhile, the child saw three strangers kneeling before the Mother and her Babe, and he knew that they must be the wise men, the three kings who had come from the East to worship Jesus. As he^ watched the wonderful scene, the child saw the wise men open their stores of treasure, and the first, kneehng very humbly, presented his offering of gold to the Holy Babe. The watching child could see the light flash upon the precious gift as it was presented. Then the second stranger drew near, and held in his hand a ^\)t nvte (SifW. 17 kind of silver dish, from which rose a sweet-smelHng smoke, and for a moment veiled the scene from the eyes of the child, and he knew that this was the gift of frankincense. Then the third of the strangers approached the manger, and offered some- thing wrapped in a fine linen cloth, and the child noticed that the faces of the Holy Babe and His Mother were sad, so the little boy remembered that this v/as the gift of myrrh in token of the burial of Jesus. By and by the scene faded away, and the child saw only the painted window as before. But now the longing to see Jesus came upon him stronger than ever, and as he kneeled in Church, he prayed most earnestly — " O Jesus, let me see Thee, and give Thee an offering." Then it seemed to the little boy that someone whispered in his ear, or perhaps he only remembered what he had heard before, but the words came back to him now, " Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me." When the child went home, his mother gave him a ripe, rosy apple, and the boy, for he was but a child, and thought as a child, was delighted with the fruit. Just as he was going to eat it, he remembered a poor, sick lad, who lived in a back street in the town. This lad had been a teacher in the Sunday B 18 iSarablc ^'crmaui^ for Ct)iltfrcn. School, and had won the love of all the children by his gentle schooling; specially he loved the little boy of whom I am telling you, and used to call him his little flower. Now the young teacher had been ill for a long time, and there was then no hope that he would ever be well again in this world. Presently the little boy was standing by the sick lad's bed, and giving him the apple of which he thought so much. It was not much perhaps, but it was all he had, and it brought comfort to the parched lips of the dying teacher. When next the child went to Church, and heard the glad lessons of Epiphany, he seemed to see once more the vision in the painted window. Once more the wise men brought their offerings, and to his surprise the child saw among the gifts which lay at the feet of Jesus an apple of pure gold. And there came back to him the old words, which the dying teacher had spoke to him, " Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me." And so the little boy learnt how he could offer gold to Jesus by doing good to His people. But still he wondered how he could offer frankincense and myrrh, as the wise men had done. That night when he was asleep, the child dreamed a very beautiful dream. He thought Cfie Cbtce ^I'fW. 19 an angel came to him, bearing a silver censer in his hand. And as he swung the censer to and fro there went up a cloud of sweet incense. And the angel smiled upon the child, and said, " these are the prayers of all holy children who pray to Jesus, and your prayers of to-day are among them.'' Then the little boy was very glad, for he knew that he had offered two gifts to Jesus — gold and frankincense. But what of the bitter myrrh? After awhile the young teacher died, and was laid in the Churchyard. The children of his Sunday Class, of which the little boy was one, agreed among them- selves, there were seven, that they should deck the grave with flowers each day in turn. And so for a year, the grave of the gentle teacher was tended by loving hands. One morning in summer, very early, when the grave-digger went to his work, he was surprised to find a litde child lying asleep upon the grassy mound where the teacher lay buried. The old sexton asked him how he came there, and the little boy answered that on the night before, it was his turn to deck the grave with flowers, and that he could not find any beautiful enough, and so, said the child, " I would not disappoint teacher, and I thought that, as he used to call me his ' little flower,' I would just put myself on his grave, to show how I loved him " 20 parable ^evmaii^ for Cf)illiren. Within awhile another grave was made beside that of the teacher, and on the tiny head stone they carved these words — "Little Flower; he gave himself to show his love." SERMON IV. THE TRAVELLERS. Hebrews xiii. 14. '' Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.'' I AM going to tell you a story which was first told by the Old Greeks, about a certain King and his companions, and I want to see if you can find some lessons and warnings in it. This King travelled over many lands and seas, and met ^vith many dangers and wonderful adventures. They had left their homes to fight in a long and terrible war, in a foreign land. When the war was over, they longed to go home again, but many difficulties and dangers stood between them and their native shores. I will 22 gamble ^crmaiig for €])ilxirtn, tell you about some of them. First, when they had begun their homeward journey, they met with some fierce and strong enemies with whom they fought. Having conquered them and driven them back, the companions of the King sat down to feast on the spoils which they had taken. The King, their leader, who was very wise, begged them to get to their ship and sail homeward at once, whilst they were safe, but they would not listen to his advice. Presently, whilst they were all feasting, forgetting their danger, their enemies, who had recovered their strength, rushed upon them and drove them back, wounding some of them very severely. Now the travellers were glad enough to escape to their ships, and to carry away their wounded friends to sea. Well, they steered their ships towards home, but they met with tempests and contrary winds, and were driven about hither and thither, till at last one day they came in sight of land. They went on shore, and found the country very beautiful. The sun was always shining, the air was hot and sleepy, it was " a land in which it seemed always afternoon," no one appeared to do any work, the people lived only to eat and drink and sleep. Presently the King and his companions found out the reason of this. The people of this strange land lived on the loius-fndt, €l}t Crabellcri. 23 which made them lazy and careless, and forgetful of everything but their own comfort. The wise leader of the travellers saw the danger before him. The fruit was very tempting, the life appeared very pleasant, if his companions should eat of the lotus they would forget home, and friends, and duty ; already some of them were looking longingly on the fatal fruit. " Most weary seemed the sea, weary the oar, Weary the wandering fields of barren foam ; Then some one said — ' we will return no more :" And all at once they sang — ' Our island — home Is far beyond the wave, we will no longer roam.' " Some of the travellers tasted the lotus-fruit, and at once became as sleepy and idle as the people of the country. Then their leader determined to act. He had them seized, and tied with thongs, and carried by force on board their vessels, then every sail was set, and they passed away from the dangerous shores of the lotus-eaters. The travellers had other troubles in store for them. They came one day to a wild and rocky shore, very different from the sweet, flowery land of the lotus. The people of this country were fierce giants called Cyclops, who were also cannibals. The King and his friends soon found themselves prisoners in the cave of one of them, who killed and devoured a ISarablc 5«crmon)S far C!)tltrrni. prisoner every day. Well, at last, when many of their friends had perished, the travellers managed to blind the giant, and escape from the cave to the sea. Joyfully the remainder of the little band got on board their ships, and as the blind giant came furiously to the shore, the King mocked at him from the deck of his vessel. Now in this the King was not wise. For the giant having cast some great stones at him without being able to hurt him, uttered some terrible curses. These curses did a great deal of mischief, and were the cause of a great many misfortunes to the travellers, as you shall hear another day. Now, my children, I want to see what lessons this story has for us. I think the old Greeks meant much of the story to be a parable, at all events, it shall be one to us. We will think of the king and his fellow-travellers as being ourselves, all mankind. We are sent from our home. Heaven, to a long war- fare in a foreign land, that is, this world. And we must conquer all our enemies, and pass through many trials and dangers, and cross a stormy sea of temptation before we can reach home. All went well with the travellers as long as they remembered their home and their friends. So it is with us, my children. We are citizens of Heaven, " here (!rt)C CrabrUcriJ. 25 we have no continuing city," we are all " strangers and pilgrims," and all goes well with us whilst we think of our home in Heaven, and of our friends there, God, and the saints and angels. The first mistake which the travellers made is just the mistake which we often make. When they had conquered some enemies, they sat down to feast, instead of going homewards. Our enemies are our sins. If we struggle hard, and conquer some sin, we must not sit down at ease, and say, " I am safe." The sin will attack us again stronger than ever, and when we think we are standing safely, we shall fall. We must keep out of the way of temptation. Having fought with our sin and got the better of it, we must try to get away from it as far as possible. When the travellers put to sea on their homeward journey, they met with storms and tenipests. You and I, my children, have to pass the waves of this trouble- some world before we can find our home ; and the troubles, and sorrows, and misfortunes of life are the storms which will meet us. After a while the travellers came to the shores of the lotus-eaters. I wonder if any of us have been there too ? I think that country means the land of iileness and sloth^ and the fruit of it \sforgd- fuhtess. Those who eat of it forget their duty, and 26 ^.irabljr s-crmauiS for Cljillfrrn. their home, and their God. Ah ! children, have none of you tasted that dangerous fruit ? When I see a child idle in school, careless and inattentive in church, lazy in his work, always thinking of eating and drinking, and playing, neglecting his prayers and his Bible, then I know that child has eaten the fatal fruit, he is forgetting his home and his friends. What must you do if you have tasted the fruit ? You must get away from the dangerous land of idleness as fast as you can. Put out to sea — the sea of work and duty — and never mind the stormy weather. Then again, the travellers fell amongst giants. Our bad habits are our giants, and they keep us prisoner, and eat us up by degrees. The boy who tises bad latiguage is living as a prisoner in a dirty cave with a foul giant. The idle child is sleeping away his life in a cave with his giant. The deceitful child is in a dark place with his giant. The dishonest child hides away his ill-gotten goods in the cave of his giant. And, sooner or later, the giant, the bad habit, destroys us. Boys and girls, some of you are kept prisoner by a giant. Make up your mind, get out of his cave, there is Some One who is stronger than the giant. Jesus will help you to escape. But what is the door out of the giant's cave ? Repentance. What is the key to open with ? Prayer. Use that Cl)e CrafacUfr^. 27 golden key now, and it will open for you a door of escape. And when you have got away from the giant,Mon't mock at it. " Fools make a mock at sin." If you look back and laugh at a bad habit, or an old sin, you will fmd it will follow after you, and overtake you again. And now may God bless you, and help you to understand these words. SERMON V. THE TRAVELLERS. (IL) Hebrews xiii. 14. "Here we have no continuing city, but^we seek one to come." I TOLD you lately, my children, about the king and his fellow-travellers, and some of their adventures in the land of the lotus-eaters, and among those terrible giants the Cyclops. And you will remember what lessons we learnt : that 7ve are all travellers on our way home, seeking that Heavenly City which is above; and that we must avoid the dangerous shore of sloth and forgetfulness, and the strong giants, which are Evil Habits. Now let me tell you some more about the ne Crabfltrr^. 29 travellers. When they had escaped from the giants, they sailed away over the lonely, homeless sea, seeking their native land. At length they came to the Country of the Winds, where the kmg of the winds made them welcome. Now we know, as Christians, that God is the God of all nature, God of the sea, and of the land : of the wind, and of the tempest. We know that " fire and hail, snow and vapours, wind and storm are fulfilling His word." We know that "He hath made summer and winter, and that by Him were all things made, and without Him was not anything made that was made." But the old Greeks, who were heathens, did not know this. They thought that there was one god of the winds, and another of the seas, and another of fire, and so on. When a storm arose they said that the god of the winds had sent forth his servants. When the sea raged, they thought the god of the sea was angry. You must remember this in order to understand me. I suppose that the king of the winds was really only a clever man who invented sails for ships, and so the Greeks made a god of him. Well, this king of the winds was very friendly to the travellers, and when they left him to continue their journey he gave them a leather bag, tied with a silver cord, and containing 30 Parable ^tvman^ fav €l)iUsren. all the stormy and adverse winds as prisoners. Only the sweet west wind was left out, that it might carry the travellers home. And so they took ship once again, and for nine days all went well with them. Gaily their ships sailed over the sea before the sweet west wind, and the king steered, trusting no other hand on the helm. At last they came within sight of home, they saw the rocky shore, and the green meadows, and waving trees, and the smoke going up from their own houses. Then it was, when they were almost safe in harbour, that the king, tired out with steering, fell asleep. And his companions were tempted by curiosity to examine the bag w^hich held the winds. They thought the silver cord must certainly tie up a treasure, and so in an evil moment they opened the bag. Out rushed the angry winds, and blew their ship far away from home, out of sight of their native land. When the king awoke, instead of seeing his house and friends close to him, he found that they were once more out on the desolate sea, and the winds raging around them. Now let us look at the Heavenly meaning of this. Perhaps we are going on very well for a time, trying to lead good lives, and so getting nearer to God and our Home, when some curiosity tempts us to do something which God has forbidden. Then if we etc ([rrabclIcnJ. 31 yield to the temptation we are driven, by a stotm of our 07un viaking^ far from Home and God, into the dark stormy sea of sin and shame. You know that Adam and Eve were close to God in their home in Paradise ; they had all that they needed ; they might eat of all fruits in the garden, except of one tree. That was forbidden. Curiosity tempted them to eat the forbidden fruit, and in consequence they were banished from home, and not only they, but all mankind, were shut out of Paradise. Then " remember Lot's wife." She had come safely out of Sodom, and curiosity tempted her to do what was forbidden, to look back upon the city of sin and pleasure. She looked back, and she perished. Then think of the Prodigal Son. He was safe at home, happy, prosperous, loved by his father. Curiosity tempted him t') see more of the world. He wanted to open the bag of the world's pleasures and sins, as the travellers longed to open the bag of the winds. There are many big boys and girls like him. They think it manly to go away from home before they can govern themselves. The boy says, " I want to be my own master." He thinks it a fine thing to get into the bad company of those who drink, and swear, and tell bad stories. He wants to find out all sorts of things which are 32 t3ar«ible ^crman^ iav Cbtltircu. not good for him to know. Like the fooHsh travellers he unties the bag, and out rush all the bad passions, and temptations, and evil communications, and carry him away. He finds out what drunkenness means, and what impurity means, and very likely he dis- covers what dishonesty and disgrace mean. And where is he driven to ? To the husks, and the swine, and the foul rags of sin, and the filthy food of a wicked world. And if the prodigal does not come home again penitent to his Father, he is lost utterly. Oh ! boys and girls, don't be curious to find out evil in the world, (jod will teach you everything which you need to know. Never be curious to look into bad books, or to talk about bad things, or to go to bad places. Remember what curiosity did for the travellers, and try to keep innocency, " for that shall bring you peace at the last." SERxAION VI. THE TRAVELLERS. (III.) Hebrews xiii. i/j. " Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come." Do you remember, my children, how the travellers \vere punished for their idle curiosity and disobedi- ence ? When they opened the bag which held the strong winds they were driven by them away from home. And very soon they fell among giants and cannibals, quite as fierce as their former enemies, the Cyclops. These giants destroyed all the travellers and their ships, except the vessel and crew of the king himself. So the lonely ship sailed away from that terrible shore, and the king and his companions c 34 i3araile ^tvman^ for Cbinrrcn. were very cast down and sad, and began to think that they should never see home again. By and by they came near land, but they were afraid to venture on shore lest they should find new enemies. It was necessary, however, to get fresh water, so the king agreed to stay on board his ship, whilst his officer landed with the crew. They found them- selves in a very beautiful country, and soon came in sight of a palace. There were pleasant gardens all round it, bright with flowers, and shaded by fruit trees. Instead of seeing dogs or horses near the palace, the travellers found lions, -and tigers, and bears, and other savage beasts, but they were as tarne and gentle as our cats at home. This wonderful place belonged to a famous witch, or sorceress, and she soon came and invited the travellers to feast with her. The officer refused to enter the palace, but the hungry sailors eagerly accepted the invitation. They ate greedily of the food set before them, but their gluttony was quickly punished, for the dishes were drugged with magic herbs, and no sooner had the sailors feasted on them, than they were turned into a herd of swine. When the officer saw the fate of his men, he hastened to tell the king of this new misfortune. When he had heard the news, the kinsr went on €'i)t CrabrUrr^. 35 shore to search for his companions, and as he came near to the palace of the witch a stranger met him, beautiful as an angel, and told him of the dangers of that enchanted spot. Then he gave the king a plant with a white flower, which would protect him against all the arts of the sorceress. After awhile, when the king had entered the palace, and tasted the magic feast, the witch tried to transform him into a beast, but the white flower made him safe, and the witch was conquered. She even consented, at the king's request, to restore his companions to their proper shape. And now, children, the king and his companions acted very foolishly. Instead of hurrying away from that dangerous place, they stayed for a long time in the palace of the sorceress, but the white flower, which the king carried, kept him safe. At last the travellers remembered their home, and their duty, and set sail once more, but there were many dangers yet before them. They sailed near some shores where they saw some beautiful women sitting upon the sands, singing, and beckoning to them. The song was so wonderful that all who heard it were drawn to the place at once. But those who sang were cruel creatures, called Sirens, who tempted travellers to destruction, and the shore was all 36 ^^arable xeimnnir fnr Cbtlflrcn. whitened with the bones of those who had listened to the song, and perished. The king had been warned of this danger, and he caused his com- panions to stop their ears with wax. so that they could not hear the fatal song. He ordered his crew to bind him to the mast, and on no account to let him loose. However, he had not stopped his ears, and when he heard the Siren's song, he wanted to go on shore, and begged the sailors to loose him, but fortunately they could not hear him, and so that danger was passed. By and by the travellers entered a narrow strait of sea where there was a monster on each side, one hidden under a great rock, the other in a deep whirlpool. And here the danger was, lest in avoiding one monster, they should be caught by the other. But after awhile they passed on, and came to a shore where some cattle were feeding. Now these cattle were sacred to the Sun-God, and the king had been specially warned not to injure them. The travellers were forced by the stormy weather to remain for some time on land, and one day, while the king slept, his companions killed and ate some of the oxen. Then very terrible things happened. The skins of the slain animals moved as if alive, and crawled after their slayers ; the meat, whilst roasting on the spits. Clje Crabfllcrsf. 37 seemed to groan and cry, and when the travellers put once more to sea fearful storms arose. The ship was struck by a thunderbolt, and all the crew was lost except the king. He was shipwrecked, and after passing through many more perils, which J cannot tell you about now, he came safe home at last. And now, my children, let us see what all this teaches us. After their idle curiosity and disobedi- ence the travellers fell among destroying giants. That means just this, that sin brhigs its ow7i punisJi- vifnt. '' Our pleasant vices are made the whips to scourge us " ; when we sin and suffer for it, we whip ourselves. These giants in the parable are the effects of sin. The drunkard is destroyed by the giant of bad health. The glutton is pursued by the giant of sickness and headache. And next we learn the lesson of the Enchanted Island. That beautiful, wicked witch is Sinful Pleasure^ or Lust; one of those things which in your Baptism you promise to renounce, to declare war against. When the travellers had tasted of the witch's food they were turned into beasts. Do you think that so very wonderful? I have often seen the same thing. I have seen a boy — once a bright- faced, honest, simple lad — getting into bad company. 38 Parable *crmDuiS far CttlUrrn. going with companions to the tavern, learning to become a drunkard. At first it all seemed to him as delightful as the witch's magic cup, but look at the boy presently. Instead of the bright-eyed, honest-faced lad, I see a heavy, down-looking fellow, with flushed, swollen face, and dim, watery eyes, which are ashamed to look at you straight- forwardly. Then I know that the boy has been turned into a beast. Or, I see a young giil who was once modest and pure, regular at Church and Sunday School. Now a change has come over her. She is scarcely ever at Church or School now. She has no smiling welcome for the Clergyman; she tries to avoid him. Instead of her Hymn Book she carries a penny book of foolish and immodest songs. Instead of her Bible and Prayer Book she has a false, and often wicked story in her hands. Instead of spending her evenings at home, she is running about at night, wearing more ribbons than she can pay for. And what is the cause of all this ? She has tasted the poisoned cup of sinful pleasure, and her nature is changed. Look at the boy who was once in the choir, singing God's praises ; now he sings filthy and foolish songs ; he was a guod boy once, he is changed into a beast now. O boys and girls, be warned, don't taste of any pleasure C:i)e CrafacUcriS. 39 which is sinful, it is simply poison. Do you know- how the king escaped from the power of the witch and her sorcery ? Because he had the white flower, which is Temperance. You remember what we are told in the Catechism, that we must keep our bodies in temperance, soberness and chastity. Next, remember the shore of the Sirens, who lured people to destruction with their song. We often sail past those shores. The Sirens are our Temptatiotis. Each temptation has its own special song. The world has one song, and the flesh another, and the devil another, and they are sung to many different tunes. Idleness sings a song to you, my children, about the pleasure of taking things easily, and never doing hard work. Dishonesty sings its song in a soft, low key, and says, " It's only a trifle, no one will know, take it." What must we do, children ? We must stop our ears. Do not stay to listen, or the temptation may be too strong for you, and you will fall. If you are tempted to look at a bad thing, turn away your eyes ; if you are tempted to listen to a bad thing, stop your ears. Now think of the two monsters in the narrow strait. I told you that in avoiding one, travellers were often caught by the other. Well, we all have to take care 40 paraBIc ^crmau^ far CljilHrcn. lest whilst we keep clear of one sin, we fall into another. One child avoids the sin of Sabbath- breaking, and goes to Church regularly, then he thinks — how much better I am than my neighbour's boy ; what a good boy I am. He has avoided the rock of Sabbath-breaking, but he has gone right into the whirlpool of Pride. You remember the Pharisee in the parable : he fasted, and gave alms, and kept the law, and yet he fell into the whirlpool when he condemned the poor Publican. Try to keep in the middle course^ children, and look out for the dangers on each side; if you avoid one kind of sin, be on your guard against another. And now, last of all, when the travellers disobeyed and killed the cattle of the Sun-God, as the Greeks called him. you remember what terrible things happened. We learn there that the sins of the wicked can't be killed, they dog their steps and cry out after them. If you have done wrong, and have not confessed your sin and repented, some horrible thing seems to be crawling after you, some terrible voice seems to be crying out after you. That is the memory of your sin. And now my parable is ended. I have tried to teach you that we are all travellers on a journey through this life, and that we are going home to Paradise, through many dangers, Z\)t CrabrllcriS. 41 and difficulties, and temptations. On this journey we must fight, and watch, and pray, and above all we must have Jesus as our Guide. He will give us strength to triumph over the temptations of the world, and the flesh, and the devil, and will enable us with pure hearts and minds to follow Him, the only God. SERMON VII. THREE WISHES. S. Luke xxii. 42. " Not My will, but Thine, be done.'' Now, my children, I daresay you often wish for things which you have not got. I think we are all of us very fond of wishing. A boy says, " I wish I were a man, and my own master, I would have no more lessons." A girl says, " I wish I had plenty of money, I would ride in a carriage with a pair of horses, and have a new dress every day." Another r says, " I wish I could go up to London, and see all the sights, the grand ships, and the fine houses and Churches." I have even heard a very little Cfjrcc USiilit^, 43 child say, " I wish I could fly." Now it is very natural to wish, but it is often very foolish, because we wish for what is not good for us. Suppose that an angel were come into this Church now, and were to ask each person present what he wished for. I wonder what sort of answers would be given. I think one person would wish for plenty of money, and another for good health, and another would say, "I wish to have my own way always," and another would wish for abundance of nice food. But do you think these are very good wishes ? Would the angel be very pleased with them ? No, the answer which the angel would like to hear would be, " I wish to be a good servant of Jesus Christ." No doubt you children have all wished sometimes to have plenty of money. If you have gone to the bank, and seen the clerks shovelling the sovereigns about as carelessly as if they were worth nothing, no doubt you have wished that you might have a few shovels full. And when you have read in the fairy tales about people having sacks full of gold, some of you have wished that you might have such sacks of treasure. Well, I am going to tell you a story of a man who wished to have a great deal of money, and you will see that such a wish is not always wise or good. 44 |9arablc ;3'crman^ far (JDtjillfreii. The story is told by the old Greeks, of whom I have already spoken. They tell us how there was a certain king, who had a palace to live in, and gardens and fields to cultivate, but who was discon- tented because some of his neighbours were richer than he. The king was always wishing for wealth. He thought that if he could have boundless riches he should be perfectly happy. But he made a great mistake, as you will see. Well, he went on wishing for more money, till one night a vision or dream came to him. He saw a stranger, who seemed not to belong to earth, and who told the king that he should have his wish, whatever it might be. Now I daresay, children, you wish that this could happen to you. You think how pleasant it would be to have anything you might wish for. Well, I don't, know, it depends whether our wish is a wise one. You will hear what the king's wish was, and what came of it. He thought to himself that the opportunity had come to him to get wealth, and to become the richest man in the world. Then he would never trouble himself again about his kingdom, or the affairs of state, for he should be perfectly rich, and therefore perfectly happy. So the king told the stranger of his dream what his wish was : it was Cfjrcc USiislitS. 45 that everything which he touched might be turned into gold. When the morning came, the king was very anxious to see if the vision was true or false. He hurried into the garden, where the roses were blooming, and filling the air with sweetness, and plucked one. No sooner had he touched it, than it became a mass of golden leaves without scent. Then the king was delighted, for he had got his wish. He broke off a bough from a tree, and it became in his hand a solid stick of gold. He touched the ears of corn, already looking golden in the sunshine, and they became heavy metal. He gathered the rosy apples, and they became apples of gold. Then the king thought to himself — " Now I am perfectly happy. There is nothing which money cannot do, and I can turn everything into money." The king began to feel hungry, and went into the room where his morning meal was prepared. But when he took a piece of bread in his hand, it became a lump of gold. He lifted a cup of water to his lips, and the water became solid gold. Then the king began to doubt whether his wish was so very good after all. He looked through the window, and saw his servants enjoying their food, whilst their master was like to be starved. Presently the king's little daughter came in, carrying a bunch of roses 46 Parable 5rrm0ni^ for Cl)inrrfn. for her father. As soon as he took them in his hands they became hard, scentless flowers of gold, and the child began to cry at the change in her favourite roses. The father took his child in his arms to comfort her, and she suddenly began to grow cold and hard, and instead of a living daughter, he clasped a golden image. And now the king saw how fatal his wish was. When night came, weary and famished, the king lay down on his soft bed, and in an instant it became a piece of hard, slippery gold. All night the poor king lay awake on his hard couch, and he would gladly have changed places with the poorest of his labourers who was sleeping soundly. So the king found out his mistake, and saw how foolish and wicked he had been, and he begged hard that the terrible power of turning things into gold might be taken away. His request was granted, and I think we can fancy how glad he must have been to be able to touch his food, and find that it was not gold, and to put real water to his lips, and to sleep on his soft bed, and to see his daughter restored to him. That king had learned that to be rich need not mean to be happy. He had learnt, what we ought to learn, that the secret of happiness is in doing our duty, .and leading a good life, and being contented. Ctrre W!^iil)ei, My children, learn to be contented with such things as God has given you. Then you will be able to turn all things into gold, only in a better way than the king did. The contented child will find his plain food as sweet as a grand dinner served on gold plate. The contented child will think his simple clothes as good as though made of cloth of gold. The child who loves Jesus has always riches, since ^' in the house of the righteous is much treasure." There was a very famous Roman once, who had gained many victories for the state. He might have lived in a grand house, and had riches and honour, but he chose to dwell in a simple cottage near Rome, and cultivate a little garden. One day messengers were sent from Rome to take him a present of gold. They found this great conqueror cooking his simple supper of vegetables. When they offered him the present of money, he refused it, saying, that a man who was contented with so simple a supper had no need of gold. Learn, then, my children, to be contented, and everything which you touch will be better than thousands of gold or silver. And now let us think of some one else who wished, and who had his wish granted. He, too, was a king. One night, when he was lying on his bed, God appeared to him in [a dream, and asked him to 48 Parable ^crm0nig for CtiHrren. choose whatever he might wish for. You remember who that was ? King Solomon. And you all re- member that he chose wisdom, that he might govern God's people rightly. That is a good wish for us, that we may be wise to learn X^od's will, and to do it, to see God's way, and to walk in it. And now think of yet One Other. We look on Him kneeling in a garden, in great agony and sorrow. Drops fall from His brow like drops of blood. You know of Whom we are thinking, — the Lord Jesus Christ. Now He had a right to wish, and to have His wish granted if ever any one had. Yet hear what He says, " Not as I will, but as Thou wilt." Now which do you think is the best example for us to follow ? That of the foolish king who wished that everything he touched might become gold ? Or that of King Solomon who wished for wisdom; or that of the King of kings, Jesus Christ, who wished to do the Will of His Father ? I think you will all feel that the best wish for us is this — " I wish to have no wishes left, Thy Will, O Lord, be done." SERMON VIII. THE STRONG MAN, (I.) Revelation xxi. 7, "He that overcometh shall inherit all things." There lived once among the Greeks a very famous hero, who was the strongest man in the world. It had been foretold that after going through many dangers, enduring many toils, and fighting many battles, he should be taken to Heaven, and dwell among the gods. The name of this hero was Hercules. He was quite a litde child when the first danger overtook him. He was lying on his little bed, when two great serpents came into the room. I think you would have been very frightened D Parable ^crmDUS for (fDIjiltfrcn. if you had seen these two terrible monsters, with their gleaming eyes, and long forked tongues, crawling up to your bed. But the child Hercules was not afraid. He seized one snake in each hand, and, so strong was he already, that he crushed them to death. When he had grown into a young man, Hercules was called upon to make a very important choice. One day he saw two women, one fair and modest, dressed neatly and simply, the other very showy and gay in her appearance, covered with ornaments and jewels. She who wore the showy dress spoke first, and told Hercules that he must choose between her and her companion. If, said she, you make me your choice, you will have a life of ease and pleasure, you will have no work to do, no troubles or cares to vex you, you need do nothing but eat, drink, and sleep, and others will work for you. You will have only to think of yourself, and need never trouble about other people. Well, Hercules thought this sounded very tempting and pleasant ; he should have his own way, there would be no one to interfere with him, there w^ould be no hard work, no rough fighting, no wounds, nothing but enjoyment. So he turned to the woman, and asked her name. She answered that by her friends she was called Pleasure^ others called her Si/i. Then said Hercules, " Tell me this one thing more. Pleasure cannot last for ever. I shall grow old and weak one day. I shall no longer be able to taste what I eat or what I drink. I shall be too deaf to hear the sound of singing, too feeble to join in the dance. What can you give me then ? " The woman confessed that she could give him nothing then. Now she could provide pleasure, but nothing hereafter. Then Hercules turned him to the other, who vras called Virtue, or Duty. She told him that if he chose her as his guide and companion, he must expect to work hard, for there would be difficulties to overcome, and battles to be fought, and victories to be gained. He would have to think of others, to help the weak and suffering, to endure hardness, and to pass through many fiery trials. " And vrhat hereafter ? " asked he. And Virtue told him that when his work was over, and his duty done, he should be taken from the earth to rest, from labour to peace, and that rest was only for those who did their duty. Then Hercules thought within himself — Which shall I choose ? Pleasure is very tempting ; it is very sweet to have one's own vray, and to lead a life of ease and comfort. But then what a price to pay for it ! To have nothing hereafter ; no home of rest 62 Parable ^rrmonS far Cljinfrcn. when I am old and worn out. If I choose Virtue or Duty I must hve a hfe of hardness, and warfare, and labour ; but it will be a noble life, a useful life, and when the work is over there comes rest. My choice is made. So he took Virtue by the hand, and asked her to be his guide, and to lead him to his work and to his labour unto the evening. Well, Hercules set forth to do his duty, and to help others. He did many wonderful things, about which I have not time to tell you now. Sometimes he delivered a country from wild beasts, at other times he set a king free from his enemies. After a time this strong hero came under the power of a very mighty and very cruel king, who was jealous of him, and wished him to lose his place in the Heavens. For a time Hercules was obliged to do whatever tasks this king set him, so he undertook twelve labours, some of which seemed quite im- possible. The king gave him these hard things to do, hoping that he might fail, and perish in trying. But the Powers, which the Greeks called gods, favoured him, and gave him precious gifts. Minerva, the goddess of Wisdom, gave him a coat of armour and a helmet. Mercury gave him a sword, another presented him with a shield, and in addition they armed him with a bow and arrow, and a club of brass. Thus armed Hercules began his labours, of which I am only going to mention a few. His first task was to kill a terrible lion, the terror of all the country round. When his roar was heard, men trembled, and women seized their children and fled shrieking. When the lion came down on the villages and farms, he would carry off cattle, and sometimes men, women and children, and no one dared to interfere with him. You can fanc}-, children, what a hard task it was that Hercules had to do. The king felt sure that he would fail. Well, Hercules went to meet the lion, and shot at him from a distance with his bow and arrow. But the darts were broken against the lion's thick hide, without doing him any hurt. Then the strong man drew near and attacked him with his club. But although he drove the lion back, he could not wound him. At last Hercules pursued him right into his den, and there stood the savage beast growling at him in the darkness. Then Hercules went close to him and seized him by the throat, and after a fierce fight he choked him to death. The king was so frightened at seeing Hercules return, wearing the lion's skin, that he would not suffer him to enter the city, and for a time set him no task. After awhile the king gave the strong man another very difficult labour to 54 Parable ^crmoniS for Cf)tltfrcn. perform. This was to kill a frightful monster called the Hydra, which had a hundred heads. Hercules did battle with this monster as boldly as he had done with the lion, but he found whenever he cut off one of its heads, two others grew in the place of it. At first he thought that he should never conquer the Hydra, but he discovered after a time that he must burn the wound which he had made, with fire, and then the heads would not grow. So after a very long and fierce struggle, the Hydra was destroyed. Another of the tasks which the king set Hercules to do was to clean the stables of Augeas, in which three thousand cattle had been kept for years, and which had never been cleansed. Many other wonderful things were done by the strong man, but I have not time to speak of them. Strong and brave as he was, Hercules once fell into great weakness and sin. He w^ent to live in the palace of a certain Queen, and here he forgot all about his duty and his courage, and became so weak and womanish that they dressed him in woman's clothes and set him to spin, whilst they mocked him. But he repented of his folly and weakness, and departed to other labours, till the time came for him to find rest. And now let us look at the lessons which this story teaches us. First of all, do yau remember anyone mentioned in the Bible who was very strong, and did many mighty works ? Yes, Samson, and you will see that the history of Samson and the story of Hercules are very much alike. Both killed a lion, both lost their strength by falling into the hands of a wicked woman. No doubt the Greeks got their story of Hercules from the Jewish history of Samson. When you were baptised, you were signed with the sign of the Cross. Why ? To show that here- after you must not be ashamed to confess the faith of Christ crucified. And more than that, to show that you must fight manfully under His banner of the Cross, and continue Christ's soldiers and servants unto your life's end. So you see that being a Christian means fighting. Hercules had to go through all sorts of dangers before he found rest ; and we must struggle, and fight, and overcome, before we can enter the rest which remains for the people of God. There is a text about that in the Book of Revelation — " He that overcometh shall inherit all things." Now Hercules, you know, was very strong. Are we strong ? are you little children very strong ? No, and yet we are strong enough to do what God requires of us. Jesus says, "My 66 |3aral)Ic ^ermonj^ far CtilUrcn. strength is sufficient for thee." We have "no power of ourselves to help ourselves," but God gives us that power. Can you tell how, or when ? In Holy Baptism the Holy Spirit comes to us and makes us begin to grow strong. In Confirmation the same Holy Spirit comes to a young boy or girl just growing up, and makes them strong. In the blessed Sacrament of Holy Communion we are made strong. When we ask for help earnestly in prayer we are made strong. You remember that the first trouble which came upon Hercules came when he was quite a little child. Two serpents came to attack him That teaches us that very little children can be tempted as well as grown people. Who is the serpent who attacks us ? That old serpent the devil. He tempts children to be disobedient, and obstinate, and passionate, and idle, to tell lies, and take things which do not belong to them. Hercules, you remember, seized the serpents and crushed them to death. Our lesson is that we must fight with temptation. God will help us to conquer sin, if we fight against it. You must try to be good children, and ask God to help you. You cannot be good without God, and God will not make you good unless you wish to be, and try to be. When a bad thought comes into Elbe strong ^aii. 57 your mind, or an angry word springs to your lips, think — there conies the serpent to hurt me. Then say a httle prayer, "Jesu, help Thy child, keep me from the tempter's power." Then try hard to get away from the bad thought, or to choke down the angry word. And do the same with all your temp- tations. If you see something belonging to another, and you are tempted to take it, then stop, and think — the serpent is coming, if I do this I shall be a thief! Then pray, "Lord, keep my hands from picking and stealing ; give me strength to meet temptation." But I must not say more to-day. We have learnt that we must fight with sin, and work out our ow^n salvation before we can enter Paradise. We have seen that God gives us all needful strength, and that, even as little children, we have a battle to fight, and that even little children who pray are strong enough to crush down Satan under their feet. SERMON IX. THE STRONG MAN. (II.) Revelation xxi. 7. " He that overcometh shall inherit all things." 'You will remember, children, that I was telling you lately about Hercules, and that I tried to show you some lessons springing from the strong man's story. You will remember too, that when Hercules was growing up into a young man, he had a choice to make. He had to decide whether he would make duty, or sinful pleasure his guide. You have the same choice to make, over and over again you are called upon to decide whether you will choose your own way, or the way of duty. C^e strong M^n- 59 When a soldier is encamped on the battle-field, he would ///('t' to sleep comfortably in his tent, but presently the bugle sounds, and his d/i/j> calls him to spring up, and grip his weapons, and fight. The sailor would prefer the comforts of home, and the safety of the land, but his duty takes him to sea, and he must not mind the storm, and the dark nights, and the tossing waves, he has his duty to do. You have all heard of Lord Nelson, the great sailor. Well, when he was going to fight a famous battle, he sent a message to every ship in the fleet. You know that ships at sea talk to each other by means of flags, which mean certain words. When the fleet saw the flags flying from the Admiral's ship, just before the battle, every one looked eagerly to see what the message was, and it was this, — " England expects that every man will this day do his duty." God expects that every one of His servants, men, women, and children, will do their duty. There are two kinds of duty which you have to do : your duty towards God, and your duty towards your neighbour, you can tell me what they are in the words in the Catechism. Now, remember that the devil will tempt you away from your duty. He will tell you that it is so hard to do right, that the path of duty is a difficult one 60 Parable ^ttman^ far Cftiltrrcii. to walk in. Don't listen to the tempter. You must make your choice. You must say to yourselves — which shall I do, 7c>/iaf I /ike, or w/ial J ought ? Then ask God to help you, and determine " by God's grace I will do my duty, even Jesus Christ pleased not Himself." Next, you remember that the strong man fell into the power of a very wicked king, who was jealous of him. Well, Satan the prince of darkness, is jealous of us. He was an angel in Heaven once, and he is jealous of us because Heaven has been promised to us hereafter. Just as the king in the story set Hercules to fight against the lion, and the hydra, and many other foes, Satan sends us all kinds of enemies, temptations, which we must conquer, or they will destroy us. The strong man was provided with armour and weapons, let us think about our armour. " Take unto you the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." And that armour is not what you have seen in pictures, and which soldiers used to wear in the old days. You know that a steel breast-plate would not keep out a bad thought, nor would a sword of steel strike down the tempter. Our enemies are Spiritual, so our armour must be Spiritual also. Can you remember, children, the names of the whole armour of God ? What must we have for a girdle ? Truth. Yes, and to guard our heart we must wear the breast- plate of righteousness ; and our feet must be shod with the Gospel, that means, we must stand firm on the Gospel promises. Then our head will need a defence, so we must have the helmet of salvation, and to cover and guard ourselves we should take the shield of Faith. And what is our sword? The sword of the Spirit, the help of God the Holy Ghost. When you pray earnestly, that sword is put into your hand. When you are confirmed that sv:ord is put into your hand. In former times, it was often the custom for an old warrior, who had gained many victories, to give his sword to his son, and bid him use it bravely as his father had done. So God, our Father, gives us the sword of the Spirit, and says to each of us, '• quit you like men, and fight." Hercules had to fight with a lion. Our enemy, the devil, as a roaring lion goeth about, seeking whom he may devour. He comes down on the sheep-fold — the Church, and he tries to seize the lambs — the children of the flock. When you find a child using bad words, laughing at religion, never praying, or reading his Bible, you know at once what it means. T/ie /ion has got hiin. He has carried that child off to his dark den of sin. When 62 ^aarailc ^crmau)S lax Cl)illfrcn. you see that you must try to help him, pray for him, talk to him, and try to get him to do better, that's the way to dehver him from the lion's den. My children, when you sin wilfully the lion has got hold of you. If you tell a lie, you are in the lion's den. If you are disobedient to parents or teachers, if you are in a passion, you are in the lion's den. If you were to go to a menagerie, or wild beast show, and if, by some accident, you got into the cage with the lion, would you not be terribly frightened ? Would it not be very dreadful to see his fierce glaring eyes, and cruel teeth, and to hear his deep roar of anger ? Yes, but it is far more awful to fall into the power of the devil. The lion can only hurt your body ; Satan can destroy your soul. Hercules fought with the lion, so must we fight with our lion. " Resist the devil and he will flee from thee." You remember how the strong man began his battle with the lion. He shot arrows at him from a distance, and they had no effect. Sometime we keep a long way off from our sins, and 7Uis/i. We say, "Oh, I icis/i I were better. I 7C'is/i I could conquer my temper, or I wish I did not make my mother so unhappy." Wishing won't help you, my children. You are like Hercules, shooting your arrows from a distance. You must get close to the lion, and struggle with it. You Cbc ^traixQ d^ilaii. 63 must get hold of your sin, and see how bad and ugly it is, and then you must fight with it, grapple with it, crying out to Jesus, '* I am weak, but Thou art mighty, hold me in Thy powerful hand, help rne iiow^ Next, the strong man had to fight with a monster, having a hundred heads. I wonder what that teaches us ? Surely, that Satan sends us temptations in a hundred different forms. Sin is a monster with hundred heads, very ugly heads too, and each has a sting in it. All the strong man's fighting could not destroy the monster, till he was helped by fire. That teaches us this lesson. That all our struggles with sin are useless, unless the Holy Spirit is with us to help. The Holy Spirit is often spoken of in the Bible as a Fire, and it is that fire which alone can destroy the power of sin, only we must do our part, and fight. I told you that one of the tasks which Hercules had to perform was to clean out the stables of Angeas. I think we have all such a task to do daily. We have to look into our lives, and see what bad thoughts and wishes are hiding there, and then, by God's help, we must try to get rid of them. Do you know that the Chinese have a very wise saying, " The best way to keep the city clean, is for every 6i parable J-crmoniS fnr Cftiltircn. one to sweep before his own door."' Remember that, children ; don't think about the faults of others, but about your own ; and sweep before your own door. Now think, what is my sin, my special temptation? Am I fighting against it as hard as I can ? Cannot I pray more often, and more earnestly? cannot I keep a more strict watch over my words ? Then think of the hydra— the hideous monster sin, with its hundred heads. The devil sends us temp- tations in many different forms. For one, there is bad company ; for another, there is a vile book ; for some there is a passionate, unruly temper; for others, there is pride, which teaches a child tc be sulky when he is reproved, and to mutter to himself, "I don't care." And there are hundreds of other temptations. Be prepared for them, they come from your enemy, the devil. Ask Jesus who was tempted to help you in temptation. Say to Him, "Lord, I am weak, I am only a little tempted child, help me to fight, and to triumph against the world, and the flesh, and the devil." SERMON X. THE BEAUTIFUL GARDEN. Romans v. 12. " By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin.'' Once upon a time, long ago, so the old Greeks tell us, there was a very beautiful garden. It must have been better than any which we have ever seen, for nothing in it grew old, or ever died ; the flowers were always blooming, and the fruit was ever ripe. There were no venomous reptiles nor insects in the garden, no black clouds to darken the sky, no storms, nor blight, nor frost. A number of children lived and played in this beautiful garden : at least, they seemed like children, for they never grew old. They were perfectly innocent and happy, and never E 6G iOara^blc ^crman^ for CbiUfreu. tired. They knew nothing about pain or trouble ; they had never heard of head-ache, or tooth-ache, or medicine, and they didn't know what tears and crying meant. Moreover, these children never quarrelled with each other ; you never saw them with red faces, and flashing eyes, and doubled fists. They never struck or pinched each other, or said cross, unkind words. No child was jealous of another, for everyone loved everyone else. You can see that this must have been a very long time ago, when the world was quite young. Well, among the children was a boy, who lived with his companion in a little cottage in the beautiful garden, all covered over with climbing flowers. The girl's name was Pandora, and the way in which she got her name was this : the Greeks fancied that all their gods had given her gifts; one had given her beauty, another cleverness, one sent the gift of singing, another of dancing ; so she was called Pandora, which means evejy gift. These children were perfectly happy, like the others in the beautiful garden. They had no cares or anxieties ; they were never doubtful about to-morrow, but when it came it was as happy as the day before. One day, however, when Pandora entered their cottage, she saw a mysterious-looking box in one corner. She ^Ift 23eauttful (Sartfrn. 67 asked how it had come there, and her companion told her that it had been brought by a stranger, and that the stranger had bidden him take great care of the box, and if he would be happy, and make others so, he must on no account open the lid. Soon a change came over Pandora, she was not so perfectly happy and gay as she had been. The mysterious box was always in her mind ; she was continually looking at it, and wondering what it held. Instead of wandering through the beautiful garden with her companion, gathering the flowers which never faded. Pandora stayed in the cottage, looking at the box. Sometimes she fancied she could hear w^hispering voices around her. What cou/d be in the box ? Siie asked the question over and over again. Then she thought there could be no harm in opening the Hd, and she talked to her brother about it; but he reminded her that they were forbidden to do so, if they would be happy them- selves, and make others so. Then he would ask Pandora to come and play with him as of old, but she seemed to care no longer for the garden and its pleasures, and sat in the cottage looking at the box. And so the cottage was not so happy and full of sunshine as before, when Pandora had been perfectly content. Every day, as she fixed her G8 laaratlc ^ermnii^ far CliiUJrrn. longing eyes on the box, she seemed to hear a whisper in her ear — " Open the hd a httle way, it can't do any harm." Now of course it was a very great temptation for Pandora. Would not you have wanted very much to open the lid ? It was very natural that Pandora should wish to know what was in the box, but she should have remembered the command and have kept away from the temptation. Instead of that she always had the box before her eyes, and sometimes she would try to lift it, but it was far too heavy, and fastened with strongly knotted cords. One day Pandora thought to herself that there could be no harm in unfastening the knotted cord, she need not touch the lid. She was alone in the cottage, her brother was playing with other children in the beautiful garden, and Pandora could hear through the open window the sounds of singing birds and merry voices. But her face was very anxious and troubled, as her fmgers were busy with the knots in the cord. Why did not she hasten away, and seek her brother, and join in his play ? No, the voice kept whispering in her ear — " It won't do any harm ! " Still she handled the knot, till suddenly it became unfastened. Then Pandora was frightened at what she had done. She tried etc 38cautifiil (Sarticii. 69 with trembling fingers to tie the cord again, but although it was easy to unfasten the knot, it was impossible for her to tie it again. She placed one hand on the lid of the box : the voice v\^as whispering very loudly now — " Lift it just a little, it won't matter ! " Whilst she hesitated, her brother entered the cottage, just in time to see Pandora raise the lid. Then a very wonderful thing happened. A black cloud, like smoke, rushed out of the box, nearly choking the children. This cloud seemed crowded with living creatures, all struggling together, and it soon filled the cottage, once so bright and clean, and made it black and dirty. The window of the cottage was open, and the cloud rolled out of it, and spread all over the beautiful garden, till the sunshine was quite hidden. Pandora was so frisjhtened that she shut down the lid of the box and stood crying. She had never cried before, had never known what tears meant. What had she done ? She did not know. People who do wrong, my children, never know how much harm they have caused. But what had Pandora done ? The mysterious box held all the troubles of the world ; all the diseases, and aches, and pains, and sorrows, and cares ; all the bad tempers and angry passions, and Pandora had let them out. 70 parable ^tvman^ for €\^il\Jrcn. ■ Now the beautiful garden was changed. Dark clouds and thick fogs hid the sunshine, and the flowers drooped and withered. The fruit was blighted, and the children were no longer the happy, gay creatures they had been. They began to grow old ; they no longer cared for innocent play, for they had all sorts of troubles to bear. One had a head-ache, another was tired, this one found fault with his food, that one ate of it too greedily. Instead of the happy songs and laughter which used to be heard in the garden, angry voices and quarrelling disturbed the once peaceful scene. The leaves fell from the trees, and withered. The children became old and feeble, and died, and were no more seen. What had been the beautiful garden became almost like a desert. Pandora and her brother were very sad and miserable, but that would not undo the mischief. Presently Pandora, thinking that nothing now remained in the box, raised the lid again, and immediately a bright star seemed to rise out of the chest, and shine above them. Whilst the children gazed on the star, and felt comforted, a voice told them that it was called IloJ^e, and then when all the troubles were let loose among men, Hope remained to them. C!)e Beautiful ©arlien. 71 So Pandora and her brother went forth from the once happy cottage, ruined by disobedience ; and instead of playing in the beautiful garden, they went far away into a strange country, where they had to work hard every day. They felt, too, that they were daily growing older, and they often felt pain, and shed many tears. But then they looked up, and saw the Star of Hope shining, and so they took courage. They had been promised that Hope should lead them on, till at last they should find the beautiful garden again, fair as ever, with no fading flower, no sorrow, nor crying. Now, my children, let us turn from the parable, and learn its lessons. The beautiful garden reminds us of Paradise, when all the world was young, and fresh, and fair ; when God looked on all that He had made, " and behold, it was very good " ; vv'hen there were no troubles, nor sorrows, because there was no sin. When we hear of Pandora having all the gifts of the gods, we think of Eve, fresh from the hands of God, and dwelling in the beautiful garden of Eden. There came a whisper of temptation to Pandora to be disobedient ; so, too, the tempter spoke to Eve, and said, " Ye shall not surely die." I told you how Pandora kept looking at the box, and at last opened the lid. So Eve began by ^3ara6le Sermons? far C^tHrrcn. looking at the forbidden fruit, and wishing for it, and ended by tasting it. My children, when a temptation comes to you look away from it ; if you are tempted to look, you will be tempted to wish, and wishing will be followed by doing what is wrong. What were the sins of Pandora ? Curiosity and disobedience. Yes, and these were the very sins of Eve. Well, after Pandora had been disobedient, and had opened the box, all the world was filled with sorrow, and sins, and sicknesses. People had to work in pain and trouble ; they began to grow old, and die. Not only were Pandora and her brother punished, but everyone suffered for her sin. Can you remember a text which tells us how sin and death came into the world ? " By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned." You rememember that after Pandora had sinned the people in the beautiful garden were all changed, they began to quarrel with each other. That reminds us that after Adam and Eve fell Cain hated his brother Abel, and slew him. My children, as long as you keep innocency, and try to do the will of Jesus, and keep close to Him, you are, as it were, living in Paradise. Innocency is like that beautiful garden of Eden. But when €f)e 23eautiful