New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-01-07
Sermon by The Rev. MyrOn W. Reed.
Pastor of the First Congregations
Church, corner of Prytania ana Saiii-
ope streets. delivered sunday morning.
December III, 1871.


ope streets. delivered Sunday morning,
December III, 1871.
"But the sinner being a hundred years old, shall
be accursed.-l.aiah Ky, part Of Verse ~.
Earth is school where the son OF
man is sent that he may accomplish hln-
self Days are to speak, and the years
are to teach wisdom. There are no dumb
DAYS: even the darkest, dullest day, be-
ginning in fog and ending in drizzle, IS
competent to teach a fine lesson OF pa
tieuce. The most uneventful year has a
voice: in the long stretches IN when
nothing happens the lecture goes Oh 10
some purpose.
The regular term is seventy years, ana
Isaiah says that the man who has used
that up and not got his lesson, and then
being kept thirty years after school, IS
still a sinner. is accused. Ills stupidity
is too dense DAYS and years can do no
more for him. When child he wrote III
his copy book, The way OF the trans
oressor is hard" and then life taught the
fruth of it 10 him. lie saw it with his
eyes. he fell Il in his heart. 1t has been
renpated to him over and over, and stu
there he goes, o battered old pilgrim III
his bundredth wear, limping along IN the
fintv road Of the wicked. The accused
folly of sin is leading him rs with a rope.
Folly III children is excused, the hitie
beginners are not through with their e1-
perimentS.
The Young sinner gives the grace Of IN
exnerience TO whatever he does. The
mower of sin is not seen in him, he is
tokino his master on trial; every specta-
for homes that he will be dissatisfied soon
and leave lis service The nature OF sin
is not revaled in youth; it is known By It's
fruits, and these have not had time to
r;nen. Meantime the blossom IS rather
nrettv. If YOU meet the prodlgal any
where on his way down to the tar coun-
trv his appearance will deceive you; he
does not look yet like the evil that Is III
him. 1t has not vet had time to make
him look wretched as he is wicked; he Is
riotous but not sick.
He has not pawned anything as yet,
and his appetite is good. It Is not pos
sibIe to look at him swinging along IN
the downward path and despair OF him.
The world is all before him where to
choose: he seems Just now to have chosen
badly. but we look to see him turn back.
We have great confidence in the lesson OF
life. We tell the baby the nature OF fire;
what it will 90 to his fingers, but we
know he will go on to burn them, and
then we believe he will keep out Of the
blaze. Until the days have spoken and
the years taught wisdom, we have hope
for everybody. II the sermon fails, why
then let life preach.
We saw to a man, ''love not the world
and then turn him over to year Of fail
IRE and fire, sickness and death, and when
the wear is done, We call him up and ash
him if the world seems as solid as it Ustc
to seem: or we say, God is good, an(
then dismiss the man to twelve months o
blessing. Health attends him; honor an(
power fall on him. II q world Of Wan
and sorrow, he is kept above them. IL,
sails the sea N the ship Good Fortune
and comes crandly into port, and We cal
that man up and question him, is Coz
GOOD. even to tie wicked and untLa.k
ful?" Suppose lie says, Il don't remem
Der: wait tin look in the Bible and see.
What economy IS there il allowing tina
man to live any longer:
So. nv friends, this earth is trli,
lace. where God is seeing if he can teacl
ms anvtbinp-make anything of Us; whcth
er We will do to be raised Last year b
cave a man a fathers house, soft clothing
banqueting, mirth. At the end OF IL
wear he was disobedient and filled witt
self-conceit. This year God LET him hay
his own way. and to-day heis hungry, an
raooed ana wretched-sick and sa,
+bronoh and through. Now, God l
watchirc to see if he likes his OWL way
and thinks OF going on III It:
Moses is q teacher, and Aaron Is
teacher. but what they say IS SAID yer,
much palmer By events. They can no
lead the children Of Israel out OF Egyp
byan Grafton. The slaves must be drlVel
into freedom by the pain of Their SefVl
tude The way Of the Hebrew was mad
SO fearfully hard that he would take an,
other way, the way Of the sea and tL
way of the wilderness. But then, if lee
by God and fed by His hand they would
not learn the lesson of dependence upol
Him; if they could look at the pillar 0
cloud all day and at the pillar of fire al
night, and not learn who was their guide
if they could see the mamma fall from
heaven and still stupidity wonder whenc
it came, denying the sight of their eyes
and if from the path of freedom the.
lonred to turn back, very well; let tn
school be dismissed. If they can no
learn ANYTHING from life, let the tcacle
be withdrawn and the pupils buried.
So the clods Of the wilderness covered
the clods that came out of Egypt-it wa
.searth to earth" and anew the expert
ment began with their children. The,
were proved to see if they were worth say
ing. God marched them about in til
desert until they knew who was thci
leader, and had learned to obey, an
when tie slave had become soldier an
the mob had become an army, then the
crossed over They held life, as the settle
holds land, by virtue Of their improve
ments.
What Spenser calls the Survival Of tn
fttest' is a fact OF observation. If
man or city or nation will not forget any
thing and will not learn anything, the
are trodden down and left behind i
those who will.
The penalties for being and not becon
inc. for living and not growing, for ii
privilege Of the school and not learnin!
are set forth in the Bible and seen vivid
in the world The rich man is SATISFIED
says to his soul, Take thine ease" an
the next day he is in hell. The man thu
hides his own talent in the earth is CO!
into outer darkness. The barren fig trt
is cursed. The Spaniard and the Tur
and the American Indian seem to be sic
with the same disease that carried off thf
fig tree The nineteenth century is Of Il
use to them-that decides that they sha
not have another.
I would like TO make this sermon pTat
teal, and so I row ask, if life is fl
Growth and for traininr of what * Ctr1yy7