The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1878-12-18
THE PATH TO HEAVEN.
The Rev. Talmage's Advice to Those
Who Would Get on the
Right Road.
The Pious Primrose Frauds Who Would
Drive Back the Fallen.

Before the sermon Mr.. Talmage made the
announcement that: ITO show the moral
condition and prospects of this country /
will, in a Sabbath or two, begin a series of
sermons on the personal explorations shall
make in Boston, the city of brains: Wash
ington, the city of political power; Pnila-
delphia, the city of beautiful quiet; Chicago,
the city of miraculous growth; New York,
the city of commercial supremacy; Brook
lyn, the city of homes"
The following is the tenth of the series on
''The Night Side of City Life" delivered
Sunday:
sUBJEcT-"HELP FOR THOSE WHOM 1 HAVE
FOUND ON THE WRONG TRACK"
Proverbs xiii. S5: "when shall awakes 1
will seek IL yet again."
With an insight into human nature which
no other man ever had, Solomon here
sketches the operations of one who, having
turned aside from the right patk, would
nevertheless like to return. With desire
after something better, he exclaims:
when shall Iawake?" But, seized upon by
violence of uneradicated appetite and urged
down hill by his passions, he gives up his
hope and says: 81 will seek it yet again"
The libraries of the country are filled with a
valuable Christian literature, specially ad
dressed to young men. They are full of
warnings against sin; but how 10 get back
again after having strayed is field as yet
untouched. May God help me to-day to ad /.
dress such. There are those, doubt not in
this presence with every passion OF their
agonized souls ready to near such a discus.
sion. They compare themselves with what
they were 10 years ago. aud cry out for deliv.
erance from the bondage in which they have
been incarcersted. If there is in this audi
ence a young man who has an idea that be is
outside the sphere of all Christian sympathy,
and that he is too far gone in sin to be
preached to- then / come out and take him
by the hand and say, my brother look up;
there is a grand and triumphant hope for you
yet" The church on earth will spread a
| banquet at your return, and the hierarehies
| OF heaven will fall into line of hammered pro-
cession at the news of your redemption.
The first obstacle to be named in the way
| of return is what / shall call the force of
| moral gra7itation. Just as there is a law
| which brings down to the earth every thing
| you throw in the air, so there is tendency
| of man downward. Gravitatlon acts univer-
| sally. 1t is great deal easier to do wrong
| than to do right, to go down than 10 go up.
After man has gone astray, II he would
retsrn he must contend against the force Of
habit. There are those who say il is easy for
| them 10 break bad habit Don't believe
| them. Let man in the habit of using to-
! bacco, as the most of you do, try to stop it
on recommendation of your physician. and
you wander around not fit for any thing
You can hardly add up column of figures.
| You can hardly sleep OF nights. You get
| iretful and scolding, where once you were
| amiable and obligiDg. You almost fear you
| are going to fail in business, and, changt d
| from the composure and self.control for
which you were celebrated. you have be
come perfect fidget. What is the matter
| with society and with business, and what
| great woe has been rolled across the earth,
| and what portentous sign has shaken ter
ror in the heavens2 Why, you have been
| trying to stop smoking. You say, Here,
| there is no use, the doctor is mistaken about
my case," and some day all things have re.
/ turned TO their former equilibrium; business
matters are righted, the world has become an
attractive place to live in; your children no.
tice the difference, and hail the return of their
| father s genial disposition. Why the change?
| What enchantmeRt has sprung whole
| worlds of JOY and harmony upon the heav-
| ems? Oh, you have only gone back to smok-
| ing. Habit is a taskmaster that chastens us
| not while we obey 1t, but let us once resist,
| and We find that we are TO be lashed with
scorpion whips. Let young man who mas
been doing wrong for five or ten years at
\ tempt to quit evil indulgence, and it seems
as il all the forces of darkness were allied
| against him. He walks the floor sleepless,
/ and In the midnight gets down on his knees,
crying: "God help mep' He bites his lips
| and grinds his teeth, and clenches his fists in
the effort to keep his purpose. He dare mol
look at the bottles In the window of a wine
store. 1t is the long, bitter, exhausting,
agonizing. hand.to hand fight with in.
flamed, tantalzing, merciless habit. At the
| very moment he thinks he is clear a number
| of the old inclinations leap upon him, like q
pack of hungry hounds. In Paris there is q
sculptured representation of Bacohus, the
god of reyelry, riding panther at full leap.
He may know who speeds ON ruinous ways
l hat l,x.r fAaa NJ n ncfi nd ran hrol
steed, but q monster, wild, bloodthirsty and
going at dead gallop. Many man who
said: when shall L awake?" said five min.
utes after: well, / will try it once more
| When one wishes to refrom from evil prac.
tices, society repulses him. A youog man
resolved, Now, God helping me, will dc
better; / will swing of from evil associa
tions; will culture the acquaintance of q
different kind of people," He comes to the
church door. He has been notoriously
wicked. The church official greets him. say
ing, lis 1t possible, are you here" instead OF
saying, How do you do, sir; glad to see you
come along with me and 1 will give you 9
first rate seat, right up by the pulpit" When
the prodigsl of the Scripture came back TO
his father did the old man cay to the ser
want "Get a dinner out in the kitchen foi
this ragged fellow?r No. He prepared q
feast, and called In robe and ring Our
young man attempting to reform goes tc
prayer meeting. Some brother with more
zeal than common sense says, We'll, / am
glad that you are going to reform and become
Christian. The dying thief got psrdoned
and SO may you" Tho young man is In
suited, and stands on mis- dignity, and has all
his good intentions chilled, and goes home
oisgusted, never to come again. But still be
sides up some day on the str, ct to a respectable
and influential man that he used To kaow,
thinks he would like to walk down the street
with him and pick up little encourage
ment. But no; the influential man has an
errand down the other street, for he thinks
I il weuld not be considered respectable walk
In such company.
Sirs, If you know any thing about this you
know that IL man wishes to return to right
| paths after sinful course. he runs against
repulsions innumerable, just for the reason
that Christian people don't understand the
matter. We say man lives three or foul
blocks off from church. There are people in
New York and Brooklyn who live thousand
miles from church. In other words, there
are vast obstacles between them and all re
ligious influence. But we must keep oui