LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, — — ©fair--- ©atfljng|t If a— Shelf .. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THE IVORY PALACES OF THE KING. BY J. WILBUR CHAPMAN, D. D. Jfiny' Fleming H. Revell Company, CHICAGO: I NEW YORK: 14S and 150 Madison St. 30 Union Square, East. Publishers 0/ Evangelical Literature. *\\ 2- *•# Copyright 1893. By Fleming H. Revell Company 'i DEDICATION. —TO MY WIFE.— WHOSE LOVING SYMPATHY HAS MADE IT POS- SIBLE AND EASY TO LIVE WHAT THIS LITTLE BOOK CONTAINS, AND WHOSE PERFECT SELF-SACRIFICE MADE THE WAY EASY TO TRAVEL,THAT I MIGHT "DO THE WORK OF AN EVANGELIST" THIS BOOKIS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED. CONTENTS. I. THE PALACE HE LEFT. II. THE ONE HE BIDS US ENTER. III. THE ENLARGING BLESSING. IV. THE FULL REWARD. THE IVORY PALACES OF THE KING. L THE PALACE HE LEFT. When an Old Testament poet would give us a glimpse of the beauty of the character of Jesus Christ and press upon us some conception as to what his incarnation meant to Him by way of sacrifice and to us in the fullness of blessing, he writes these words: "All Thy garments smell of Myrrh and Aloes and Cassia, out of the Ivory Palaces." These words form only one touch of a master's hand in the al- most perfect delineation of a perfect 5 O THE IVORY PALACES. character; for the forty-fifth psalm is a picture of the Son of God, from the first verse almost to the last. It is so presented that it appeals to us in diff- erent ways. To the eye he is the most fair, to the ear most gracious, and his garments are so perfumed that even as he sweeps past us, by faith, there comes to us a better fragrance than any that has ever been born of the wings of the summer wind. It is the purpose of this little book, not only to present the 'Ivory Palaces' from which he came to be our Saviour but also to present the great Palace of a christian's life; at the door of which he stands to-day beckoning us on, saying, "I am come, that they might have life and that they might have it more abundant- ly." The very idea of a Palace is that of splendor. There have been magnifi- THE PALACE HE LEFT. 7 cent Palaces in this world like the Tuileries of the French, the Windsor castle of the English and the Alham- bra of the Spanish; but they are not for a moment, to be compared to the Palaces of Ivory from whence He came to redeem the world. The Old Testament poet then, could only have had this thought in mind: that the Palaces of Ivory were over- whelmingly beautiful, almost beyond the power of words to describe, and yet, God so loved the world, and His Son was so submissive to His will, that the scene in Bethlethem was enacted and the death on the cross was made real. The most touching thing about it all to me is this; that He came from such a place; to such a place; from the com- pany of the angels to this world where 8 THE IVORY PALACES. His own received Him not: where He was despised of men, a pilgrim without a home, a wanderer without a friend; and yet He knew all about it before. He came, and herein is seen His mar- velous love, for He was "the lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Holman Hunt had the idea in his mas- ter piece, "The Shadow of the Cross," in which he represents Jesus of Naza- reth as standing at the carpenter's bench where he is wearied with his work, and, as the day is dying, he lifts Himself from the constrained po- sition in which He has been laboring, and seeking to relax His muscles, He stretches forth his arms, and stands thus for a moment while the sunlight is coming in at one of the windows just at the proper angle to cast at his back the shadow of a cross. The THE PALACE HE LEFT. 9 artist caught this idea in his picture. The shadow of the cross was on him at Bethlehem, in Egypt, at Nazareth, in Gethsemane and at last deepened at Calvary. And yet in the shadows ever deepening he moved on to be- come our Redeemer. I am persuaded that if I could only make you feel all that he endured as he came out from the Ivory Palaces, to be your Saviour, you could not resist his power. Another thought about his coming may be suggestive. From other palaces of earth, there is a way that leads out to the greater highway. Along this the friends make their journeys to and from the mansion. Not infrequently they may be seen at quite a distance, then at a bend in the way, they are lost sight of, only to be seen a little nearer, until IO ' THE IVORY PALACES. at last their journey is completed and with their friends they are united. As I think of Him coming out of the Ivory j Palaces, such a highway springs to' my mind. It is the Old Testament: it is the grand avenue that leads up to the gospel dispensation. There are very many people who have turned away from the Old Testament, with its sacrifices and burnt offerings, but that man has not yet taken hold of the real sweetness of God's book who has found it only in the New Testament scriptures. The old couplet is true: "The new is in the old contained; The old is by the new explained. " The Old Testament becomes not only plain but convincing when you make it point to Christ. One of my friends took home a dissecting map to his little children seeking thus to instruct THE PALACE HE LEFT. II them in geography. They worked diligently to put it together but failed. One girl lost her patience and rose up from the floor where they were at work saying, she would try no more. Her foot touched one of the pieces of the map and turned it over and she saw on the other side a part of a man's hand. Turning over another piece she saw part of his face and then to her great surprise she found a part of the figure on every piece before her; then she said to her sister, "let us put the man together first. " this they did, and when the map was turned over behold every river, mountain and sea was in its proper place. This is the secret of Bible study. Put the man Christ Jesus together first. Isaac bound on the faggots thus becomes a representation of Christ, while Abra- 12 THE IVORY PALACES. ham points to God. Jacob's Ladder rising up from Bethel is a type of Jesus Christ. One side of the ladder is His human nature, the other side of the ladder is His divine nature; all the in- cidents in His life are the rounds of the ladder, and as we stand and look up, we hear His voice saying: "By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved." The smitten rock in the Old Testa- ment tells of Him who said on the great day of the feast, "if any man thirst let him come unto me and drink." The Brazen serpent is a type of him who said; "and I if I be lifted up from the earth will draw all men unto me." Down the long avenue he comes. Types and figures get plainer and plainer until Bethlehem's gates swing open and shepherds are aroused with the angel's song: "Unto you is born THE PALACE HE LEFT. 1 3 this day in the city of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord," and from His first infant step to the last one upon Calvary when, bearing His cross he fainted beneath its load, His whole life was a seeking after the lost. There is not only given to us however, a hint of the splendor from which He came; there is also a touch of a mas- ter's hand which adds great tender- ness to the fact of His coming. In the cathedral at Notre Dame there is an old chest which contains the robes worn on great occasions in the ages past. It is said that there is the robe worn by Pope Pius the VII., at the crowning of the first Napoleon, and the robe that was worn at the baptism of the Second Napoleon. A friend of mine said that as these garments were before him, there came a perfect rush 14 THE IVORY PALACES. of historical memories to his mind, and so it has seemed to me in order that the heart of the beholder might be made very tender and the picture of Jesus Christ Himself most impressive, the poet not only tells us of His com- ing incarnation but holds up before us the garments He wore. Passing through the hall of my own home one day, Ibeheld on the couch in one of the rooms an old garment I had not seen for years. It was made after the fashion of twenty-five years ago. If one should put it on to-day, it would be only to provoke mirth, but as my eyes rested upon it, there came to my mind one of the tenderest scenes in a person's life. It was the last dress I had seen my mother wear. I stood alone in that room for half an hour with my hand upon the garment; the THE PALACE HE LEFT. 1 5 very touch of it seeming to bring be- fore me, with ever increasing tender- ness, the face of one who had been for twenty-three years in heaven. The very sight of the garment made the tears flow like rain. I am sure the Old Testament poet himself must have wanted us to have some such concep- tion of Jesus Christ when he said there was myrrh in his garments. He must have had some reference to the very sweetness of His life, for myrrh is al- ways fragrant — the smallest piece of it will fill a room with perfume. It was the first thing they gave Him at His birth — almost the last thing they offered Him upon His cross. Did not His garments smell of myrrh, because of the sweetness of His influence? You cannot wear Him out. Put upon him all your burdens. Afflict l6 THE IVORY PALACES. Him with all your griefs and He is ever the same. If we could but tell the story of His sweetness and if we could but live His life, we could charm the drunkard from his cups, the prodigal from his wanderings, and the sinner from his sins. One of my friends owns, the two master pieces of Munkasky's "Christ before Pilate" and "Christ on Calvary.' 7 When the former picture was on ex- hibiton in the lower part of Canada, it is said a rough looking man came to the door of the tent and said to the attendant, "is Jesus Christ here?" When informed that the picture was there, he asked the price of admission. Throwing down a piece of silver, he passed in and stood in the presence of the masterpiece. He kept his hat on, sat down on the chair before the paint- THE PALACE HE LEFT. 17 ing and brushed off the catalogue. The one having the picture in charge had a desire to see how such a picture would move such a man. The man sat for a moment and then reverently re- moved his hat, stooped and picked up the catalogue, and, looking first at it and then at that marvelous face which seemed to throb with life; tears started from his eyes and rolled down his cheeks; he sat for an hour, then he left the tent and as he went out said: "I am a rough sailor from the lakes but I promised my mother before I went on this last cruise, that I would go and see Jesus Christ. I never believed in such things before, but a man who could paint a picture like that, must be- lieve in them, and there is something in the picture that makes me believe in them too." 1 8 THE IVORY PALACES. It is a marvelous thing that there is power in a canvass when touched by a master hand to save a soul. It is also marvelous that your life and mine maybe so transformed that peo- ple can see in us Jesus Christ; and when they behold in us His sweetness there is a power before which they must surrender. One of the best things therefore to represent Him in His sweetnesses myrrh. There is another touch given to the picture which adds both tender- ness and pathos. David detected aloes in His garments. Very frequently aloes mean bitterness. It was a bitter life for Christ. The nights on the moun- tain, on the sea, and in the desert, were nights of bitterness. His bosom was the resting place for John, and yet He had no place to lay His own THE PALACE HE LEFT. 1 9 head. He fed the five thousand, yet ofttimes He was an hungered and no man gave unto Him. Bitter be- trayal, bitter pain, bitter bereavement stung its way through his brain, his hands, his heart. There was one family that seemed to be very near him. They lived at Bethany, and one day as he visited them, behold Lazarus was dead. He knows what it is to miss one from the family circle. Lonely and afflicted, his eyes filled with tears which flowed down his cheeks, upon his breast, and then fell to the ground. Aloes in His very garments. Oh, ye who have done naught but reject Him, how would you feel in His presence — who to save you, left the Ivory Palaces to endure all this? There is still another touch to the 20 THE IVORY PALACES. picture, for Cassia is found in his gar- ments. Cassia grows in India, and has healing power, and what could it mean but that He is the great physi- cian? When He was on earth, moth- ers lifted their little children to Him that He might bless them, and fath- ers brought their suffering boys that He might set them free. Lepers ran crying after Him, that He might drive away their uncleanness. Blind men reached out to Him in their blindness that He might open their eyes. When I was in Hartford at one time with Mr. and Mrs. Stebbins we were asked to visit the Deaf and Dumb asylum, and speak and sing to the children who never had heard a hu- man voice. It was a very novel expe- rience, and yet as my friends sang, "Shall you? Shall I ?" and the interpre- THE PALACE HE LEFT. 21 ter told them the song, it so touched their hearts that tears flowed down their cheeks. But what moved me more than anything else, was one little boy who had been born deaf and dumb, and who at an early age had by sickness lost first his eye sight, then the sense of taste and the sense of smell; but as they introduced him to us, they also presented his teacher, a young, frail, beautiful girl, who, when the boy was brought to the in- stitution, said that she would give her life to bring him to the under- standing of some language. She taught him the language of touch, and I saw her fingers move rapidly in the palms of his hands, and the boy's sightless eyes flashed with intelligence as he hurried over the building to do her bidding. And I said to my- 22 THE IVORY PALACES. self that was what Christ did for me. I was blind and He opened my eyes; deaf, and He unstopped my ears and poured into my very soul the harmony of heaven; dumb, and He unsealed my lips and pressed upon them the language of the skies. The great physician is a great Saviour, and He will help you whatever your need may be. He came into the world becom- ing incarnate, dwelling in the flesh, a seeking, sorrowing, suffering Saviour, crying out with a tenderness which should touch every heart "By me, if any man enter, he shall be saved." And yet with all that Jesus Christ has done there is still something for every one of us to do before we may enter into the Ivory Palaces of a Christian experience. II. THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. The only way to enter this world is to be born into it, and the only way to enter this Palace of a Christian's life is to be born into it. Unto Nico- demus, the Master said, "ye must be born again," and we too must pass through the door by which he entered. To the disciples who stood around about him he said "except ye be con- verted and become as little children ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. " These are the words of Je- sus himself. There can be no author- ity beyond his. 23 24 THE IVORY PALACES. What hope is there for the moralist, when Jesus Himself has said: "Ex- cept ye be converted." What ground is there for the idea that God is so merciful that after a time all may be saved, when His only begotten Son has said: " Ye shall not enter the king- dom except ye be converted." He makes the subject all the more important when he says: "Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: It is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire." "And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee; it is bet- ter for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire."* THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. 25 Indeed, this question is so impor- tant, that it should be settled before anything else. WHAT IS CONVERSION? When a piece of land is sold it is said to have been converted from one owner to another. What then is con- version for us but the change of own- ers. From being Satan's, we become Christ's. Our affections, our desires, our longings go out to Him. The only difference between the two being that we submit to the spirit and ac- cept the offers of mercy from God. The word in its simplest interpreta- tion means: "Being turned about. " The traveler going in one direction, finds that he has made a mistake in the way, so he turns squarely about; in a sense he has been converted. The 26 THE IVORY PALACES. old soldier gave a good definition of his conversion, when he said that with him, it was "right about face." For this reason morality will not save us. I remember once meeting a blind man, who was a neighbor. He had the faculty of going to every part of the town without a guide, he carried a little cane in his hand, with which he would touch the trees and the fences as he passed. It was just the time that I knew he was supposed to be going to his dinner, so I stopped him, asking him where he was going: "To my home," he replied. But I said to him: "You are going in the wrong direction." He suffered me to take him by the hand and turn him about, and then walkng in just the same manner, but with his faceturned in the new way, I saw him as he entered his house. THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. 1J The trouble with our friends who are moralists is, that they are very cir- cumspect in their actions, genteel in their manners, kind in their disposi- tion, but they are going in the wrong direction ! Their faces are turned away from God. Perhaps they need not change their manner of living very much if they are converted, but the whole tendency of their living will be changed. To be converted is to know: ist. That you are a sinner, and that without Christ you are lost. 2nd. To believe that the Lord Jesus Christ can save you. 3d. To submit yourselves entirely to Him. Yet it is not to be forgotten, that while the power is the same, and the work is all of God, that no two 28 THE IVORY PALACES. persons need expect to have the same experience. We do not expect this in other things, why should we in the matter of our salvation? One person is of an impulsive, affectionate dispo- sition, and he gives his heart to God with a great demonstration of affec- tion. Another person is of a calm, considerate disposition. He comes very quietly into-the kingdom. Some men are saved from great sin. Conversion for them is a change as great as from darkness to light. Oth- ers are just the opposite, and for years they have stood so near the kingdom that all they needed was just a simple confession of Christ as a Saviour. Peter followed the Master with greatest demonstration. John and James were just the opposite — all three were dis- ciples. THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. 29 Saul was converted in the midst of the glare of the light of heaven; Nico- demus came in the night time, and quietly made up his mind to yield to the Master — both were saved. The blind men were healed in differ- ent ways. One had his eyes touched by the great physician; another had clay and spittle put upon them; an- other was simply told to see. One saw clearly, another at the first beheld men as trees walking. Would it not have been the greatest folly for them to have doubted their sight, simply because their experiences were not identical? One thing they could say together, that whereas they were blind, now they could see, and that was the all-important matter. It is well to ask how this work is all brought about. The ground and foun- 30 THE IVORY PALACES. dation of it is the finished work of Christ; His perfect sacrifice, His com- plete atonement. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and Thou shalt be saved." That is the only way. Yet the statement, "Except ye be con- verted," would seem to indicate that there was some person or influence outside of and beyond ourselves. And this is true. It is the Holy Spirit of God. It is His work to arouse us, to convict us of sin, to make us feel our lost condition and our need of Christ, when we are thus awakened, He pre- sents Christ to us, then it is for us to open the door of the heart, to submit our wills to Him, to forsake all and follow Him; in other words it is to say U I will." The word of God is very plain about the matter, that all we need to do is simply to believe. THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. 31 "For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." "For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. "He that believeth on Him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." John iii: 16-18. In the light of these words, how can we longer doubt? I have known of those who were saved without great conviction of sin, so that one need not be discouraged, if he is without this. In the 3rd of John, we read that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, and there is no evidence that he 32 THE IVORY PALACES. was a great sinner; his life had been very circumspect; he was one of the Rulers of the Jews; but there was a great need in his heart; it was not guilt of conscience, but the great void in his heart that led him to the Master. If you have either, come to Him, for He can take away every stain of sin, and He can also fill to overflowing every longing heart. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condem- nation; but is passed from death unto life." John v: 24. There is not a word about feeling, nor about getting better, nor under- standing the way, but just simply "be- lieving." May we know just when we were THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. 33 converted? I am very sure that some people have had this experience, but I am just as sure that there are others who have not; this is not discouraging, for I should be very sure that I had been born, even if I did not know my birth-day. I know a man who can tell you the day, the hour, almost the sec- ond, that he was converted. I was sitting by his side, one Friday even- ing, at 9:15 o'clock, in a certain part of the Lecture room of the church. He lifted his eyes to heaven as he said: "I will, "and all was settled. But my own experience was entirely different. I do not know the time when I was converted. I remember when I joined the church, but I had been a Christian long before. One of the greatest preachers in these modern times was kneeling at the beside of his dying 34 THE IVORY PALACES. father; he had been wayward; his father almost with his last breath said: "My son, I want you to accept Christ, and promise to meet me in heaven." And the boy as he knelt said: "Father, God helping me, I will," and he was converted there. But on the other hand, one of the best women I know had an experience exactly the opposite. It is not necessary that you should know the moment that you were saved, but you may be saved this moment if you will but say "I will," to the en- treaties of the spirit of God. MAY I KNOW IF I HAVE BEEN CONVERTED There is nothing of which we may be more assured. The key verse of the first epistle of John is found in the fifth chapter, it is the 13th verse: THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER. 35 "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God that ye may know that ye have eternal life." We are not to judge by our feelings for they may change as often as the waves of the sea. We are not always to judge by the fact that a great change has come over us. We are not to be sure because our experience has been the same as that of another. We may be sure only by resting on the Word of God. Read Romans x: 9: "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt be- lieve in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." Have you confessed Him? If not 36 THE IVORY PALACES. then do it now, and you may be sure of your salvation. Read John xx: 31: "These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name," Do you believe? If not then begin now, and you may carry this promise to the very throne of God, and claim from Him your salvation. My strongest reason for believing that I am saved, is not that I feel happy; nor that my life maybe better than in the days gone by, but rather, that He has said it. If, therefore, I doubt my salvation, I am doubting Him. WE MUST BECOME AS LITTLE CHILDREN. Like them in weakness. But for THE PALACE HE BIDS US ENTER 37 that very fact, God will place round about His everlasting arms, and we have nothing to do with the "holding out." He will keep us just as the earthly parents keep their little ones. Like them in willingness to be taught. It is not strange that I can- not understand before I am saved, for the things of God are spiritually dis- cerned, and it is not strange that I am able to understand so little now that I am a child of God, for I am only a little child; I need only to be patient; the time will come when I may put away "childish things." Like them in trustfulness. The lit- tle child does not understand very much that is going on about him; he needs only to trust, as he does. And that is all that is necessary in the Christian life. Just trust, day by day. 38 THE IVORY PALACES. There are two passages of scripture which make it apparent to me that the Christian life is a growth. The first is the entrance. "Verily I say unto you except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." The second is the close of the jour- ney. "Till we all come in the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man> unto the measure of the stature of the full- ness of Christ. ,, All the way between the two is the Christian life. If therefore, you will but take His hand, trust absolutely in Him, and cease entirely to rest upon self, you may this day step across the threshold into life, III. THE ENLARGING BLESSING. Many people have supposed that when once they had accepted the offers of mercy through Jesus Christ that that was the christian life. I once occupied this position myself, I now believe that it was but stepping over the threshold and that all the chambers of the king's palace from this point on await our exploration and enjoy- ment. There is an ever increasing, enlarging blessing which we may have by simply receiving it. This is not at all a question of regeneration. It is a question of the life more abundant ; 39 40 THE IVORY PALACES. of deep abiding peace and of power with God and men. It touches not so much the Father nor the Son ; it brings you face to face with the third person of the blessed Trinity, the Holy Ghost. There is no question which could be better put to us than the one Paul asked of the Corinthian church mem- bers, as he met them in Ephesus. "Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed." There may be life without the answer — there cer- tainly cannot be power. There is a woeful amount of ignorance concerning the Holy Ghost. We do not seem to be impressed with His personality. We not infrequently use an imper- sonal pronoun in our petitions and re- marks in referring to Him, when the fact is he shares with God the Father and the Son, the honor and power of THE ENLARGING BLESSING. 41 the Godhead. The successful chris- tian everywhere is the one who honors Him and makes room for His entrance and control over their entire being. What a change there would be in our christian living and in our chris- tian experience, did we but have a definite testimony concerning this one question. One of my friends in New York city, has given up a high social position and all selfish interests that she may work among the fallen women of the metropolis. She has opened the "Door of Hope" for every one who would apply for admission. One even- ing, leaving her home, she took a pink rose, saying she would give it to the vilest woman she would meet in her wanderings. In a Mulberry street dive, she found her subject; a young girl with face bruised and bleeding, eyes 42 THE IVORY PALACES. blood-shot, clad in rags and surrounded by a band of New York's worst char- acters; the vilest profanity was pro- ceeding out of her mouth. My friend pushed her way through the crowd and put the pink rose in her hand with the request that if she ever needed a friend she would call upon her. The girl received the gift with a sneer. My friend passed on about her work, but with a prayer that God might touch her heart. Some days afterwards she found her sitting in the entry of the "Door of Hope" looking even more wretched than when her eyes first be- held her. Her first thought was to send her away, thinking that she was too low to be saved. Her second thought was, what would the Master do if he were here in my stead; and then with a great rush of love because THE ENLARGING BLESSING. 43 she beheld a soul for whom Christ died, she stooped and took her sin stained face in her hands and kissed her twice. The touch of love broke the girl's heart. She fell upon her knees in the entry and then and there gave herself to God. She became transformed, almost transfigured. She went up and down the streets of New York City into the lowest haunts of sin, herself a missionary and evangelist to her fallen sisters. Wherever she went she car- ried the light of heaven. Whenever she spoke it was with the power of God. A few months later she lay in her coffin at the "Door of Hope." Hundreds flocked to look at the face which was like an angel's and went away to thank God that she had not lived in vain. With a record of only a short christian experience, my friend 44 THE IVORY PALACES. writes me that more than a hundred souls had been converted to Jesus Christ through her ministry. This change was all wrought because first of all she received the Son of God as her personal Saviour, and then that she threw open every door of her nature for the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. The change was great but not greater than would be witnessed in the life of any child of God who would make an unconditional surrender to the spirit of God bidding him at any cost, at any sacrifice, to come in and abide with him. It is very encouraging to know that we do not need to pray for the spirit of God as if he were afar off. In one sense the hymn is wrong where we say "come Holy Spirit heavenly dove" for he is here and is but THE ENLARGING BLESSING. 45 waiting to completely fill us. There is a beautiful figure in the Old Testa- ment which some one has used with great blessing. In the days of the flood Noah opened the window of the ark and the little dove flew forth and finding no place to rest the sole of its foot it came back again to the out- stretched hand. The second time he opened the window the dove flew forth and finding an olive branch bore it back to the hand of Noah. The third time he opened the window of the ark, the dove flew hither and thith- er and finding a resting place for the sole of its foot, it came back no more forever. The dove is always a figure representing the Holy Spirit. He came first in the Old Testament touch- ing Abraham and Moses and Isaiah and others, but does not seem to abide 46 THE IVORY PALACES. permanently; he came again when Jesus Christ was crucified and pluck- ing the olive branch from the cross, he made his way back to God saying, "peace hath been made in the death of the Son." He came the third time at Pentecost with a rushing sound as of a mighty wind filling all the place where the people sat, resting upon them with cloven tongues like as of fire never gone back since the day of Pen- tecost. He is here, waiting to fill us if we but fulfill the conditions. For many years in my christian ex- perience I was somewhat troubled by the fact that I could not tell just the day or the hour in which I was converted. It has ceased to trouble me now, and first, because I should know I were living in this world, even if I did not know my birthday. And secondly, THE ENLARGING BLESSING. 47 because there is something far better than knowing just the time you were converted and that is, a definite expe- rience concerning the receiving fully of the Holy Ghost. It is a very seri- ous question in my mind whether any one can have a full experience of power, until first of all, they have had definite experience concerning the re- ceiving of the Holy Ghost. Have you had this? There are some things which might be suggested which may make the way plainer for us all. There must be a deep longing for his coming, even as we longed for salvation through Jesus Christ. When we are satisfied with nothing else, when we long for noth- ing more, I believe He will come in and fill us and \he result will be power. Some times we find people longing 48 THE IVORY PALACES. for such an experience in order that they may have peace or blessedness. Not infrequently ministers cry out for Him that they may have more power in preaching. I am convinced that He will never fill us so long as these are the first thoughts. Bid Him come in that he may have power over your- self first, and you are on the way to enlarging blessings. Let Him come in that he may drive out everything contrary to the will of God and you will find yourself very shortly in a full possession of His power. There is another suggestion which must not be over-looked, namely, there must be a full surrender. He can never fill the heart that is only partially given up. Every door of the nature, every impluse of the will, every affection of the heart must be THE ENLARGING BLESSING. 49 surrendered to Him. Then we may expect Him. Rev. F. B. Meyer has made two helpful suggestions just here. If you cannot at once reach this position, then come before Him and say, "Lord I am willing to be made willing about everything," and "if you cannot give up everything for God then say 'I will let thee take everything. '" Then another suggestion is this, we must receive him by faith. The foundation for it is in Galatians iii: 14, "That you might receive the pro- mise of the spirit through faith." I am convinced that if one fulfills the conditions, he has a perfect right to stand before God claiming the promise of the Holy Spirit, with a faith which may be utterly devoid of emotion, just as one has the right to claim the free 5