The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1885-01-28
PULPIT UTTERANCES.
A Sermon at Brooklyn Tabernacle
by DR.. Talmage.
Reflections OF the Life, Present and to
Come, as Mirrored by the Laver
and Looking-Glas OF the
Gospel. vi 5b"

The subject of DIR. Talmage's sermon on
Sunday was: "The Looking Glass of the
Gospel" The text was Exodus >xxviii.,
8: "And he made the laver of brass, and
the foot of it of brass Of the looking
glasses of the women assembling"
We often hear, said DR.. Talmage, about
the Gospel in John and the Gospel In
Luke and the Gospel In Matthew, but
there Is just as surely Gospel OF Moses
and Gospel of Jeremiah and Gospel Oh
David. In other words, Christ is as GER
tainly to be found in the Old Testament rs
In the New. When the Israelites were
marching through the wilderness they
carried their church with them. They
called it the Tabernacle. 1t was pitched
tent; very costly, very beautiful. The
frame- work was made Of forty eight
boards Of acacia wood, set in sockets of
silver. The curtains Of the place were Of
purple and scarlet and blue and fine linen,
and were hung with most artistic loops
The candle-stick Of that tabernacle had
shaft and branch and bowl of solid gold,
and the figures Of cherubim that stood
there had wings of gold, and there were
lamps Of gold, and snuffers of gold; so
that skepticism has sometimes asked:
"Where did all that precious material
come fromS" 1t is not my place to furnish
the precious stones, 1t Is only to tell that
they were there.
Iwish now more especially to speak of
the laver that was built in the midst of
that ancient tabernacle. 1t was a great
basin from which the priests washed their
hands and feet The water came down
from tho basin in spouts and passed away
after cleansing. This laver or basin was
made out of the looking glasses Of the
women who had frequented the tabernacle,
and who had made these their contribu-
ton to the furniture. These looking
glasses, were made Of glass, but they were
brazen. The brass was of very superior
quality and polished until it reflected
easily the features of those who looked
into 1t. So that this laver Of looking glasses
spoken Of In my text did double work; 1t
not only furnished the waters in which the
priests washed themselves, but it also on
its shining polished surface pointed out the
spots of pollution on the face which needed
ablution. Now, my Christian friends, as
everything in that ancient tabernacle was
suggestive Of religious truth, and for the
most part positively symbolical Of truth,
/ shall take that laver Of looking glasses
spoken Of in the text as all-suggestive OF
the Gospel, which first shows us our sins
as In a mirror, and then washes them away
by divine ablution.
have TO say that this Is the only look
ing glass in which man can see himself
as he is. There are some mirrors that fat
ter the feature and maks you look better
than you are. Then theresre other mirrors
that distort your features and make you
look worse than you are. But want tC
tell YOU that the looking glass Of the Cos.
pei shows man just as he Is. When the
priest entered the ancient tabernacle one
glance at the FURNISHED side OF this lavei
showed them their need Of cleansing. 81
this Gospel shows the soul its need o.
Divine washing. GAN have sinned ant
one showing. "All we, like sheep, hav,
gone astray;" that is another showing
"From the crown of the head TO the soul o.
the foot there is no health in u.s." that Il
another showing. The world calls thesC
defects, imperfections or eccentricities, oi
erratic behavior, or ''wild OATS" Of
"high living;' but the Gospel calls thon
sin, transgression, filth, the aboniinabl,
thing that God hates. It was just one
glance at that mirror that made Paul CRY
cut: "Oh, wretched man that am, VIII,
shall deliver me from the body of thi
deathW and that made David cry out
''Purge me. with hyssop, and shall b,
clean" and made Martin Luther cry out
"oh, my sins, my sins!' am not talking
any Bible to tell us that bad habits ar,
wrong; that blasphemy and evil-spealdnl
are wrong. But l am talking of a sinfu
. nature, the source of ali bad thoughts a
well as all bad action. The Apostle Pau
calls their roll in the first chapter o.
Romans. They are regiment of deatl
encamping around every heart, holding I
in a tyranny from which nothing but tn,
grace OF God can deliver it.
nyou could catch glimpse Of your nat
ural heart before God, you would cry ou
in amazement and alarm. The very frs
thing this Gospel does Is 10 cut down you
pride and self-suiilciency. II man doe
not feel his lost and ruined condition be
fore God, he does not want any Gospel.
think the reason that there are 30 few con
versions In this day is because the ten
dency of the preaching is TO make men be
lieve that they are pretty good any how