The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1886-07-22
TALMA6E'S SERMON.
Second Discourse of the Series on
voices of Gardens and Fields"
The Church Militant as the Garden of
Christ-Its Iabors, Fruits and Flowers
Heroic Laborers-The Voice
of the Gardener.

Rev. 7. Dewitt Talmage delivered the
second OF his series of discourses on
''Voices Of Gardens and Fields" at "The
Hamptons," taking for his text:
am come into my gsrden.-solomon's
Song, vi.
He said: The Bible is great poem. We
have in its faultless rhythm, and hold inn
agery, and startling antithesis, and rap
furious lyric and sweet pastoral, and in.
structive narrative. and devotional PISA I'm,
though expressed in style more solemn
than that Of Montgomery, more bold than
that Of Milton, mere terrible than that Of
Dante, more natural than that of Words
worth. more impassionei than that of
Pollok, more tender than that of Cowper,
more weird than that Of Spenser. This
great poem brings all the gems of the
earth into its coronet, and IL weaves the
flames Of judgment into its garlands, and
ppuTs eternal harmOnies in its rhythm.
Every thing this book touches it makes
beautiful. from the plain stones of the
summer threshing floor TO the daughters
OF Major filling the trough for the camels,
and the fish pools of Heshbon up to the
Psalmist prasing God with diapason of
storm and whirlwind, and job leading
forth Orion. Arcturus and Pleiades.
NV text leads US into a scene of summer
redolence. The world has had a great
many beautiful gardens. Charlemagne
added to the glory Of his reign by decree
ing that they be established all through
the realm-decidiug even the names of the
flowers to lie planted there. Henry ", at
Monrpeler, established gardens of be-
witehing beauty and luxuriance, gather
Ing into them Alpine, Tyrenean and
French plants One Of the sweetest spots
on earth was the garden of Shenstone, the
poet His writings have made but little
impre- sion on the world, but his garden,
"The Leasows-.' will be immortal To
The ma ural advantage Of this place was
brought the perfection of art. Arbor, and
terrace, and slope, and rustic temple, and
reservoir, and urn and fountain here had
their browning. Oak and yew and hazel
put forth their richest foliage. There was
no life more diligent, no soul more in
genious than that of Shenstone. and all
thai dill ence and genius he brought to
the adornHent Of that one treasured spot.
He gave : 500 for it; he sold it for $4,000.
And yet ] am TO tell you today of a richer
garden than | have mentioned.
II j. the garden spoken of In my text,
the garden Of the church, which belongs
to Christ, for my text says so. he bought
it, ne planted it. he owns it, and he shall
have it. Walter Scott, in his outlay at
Abbotsford, ruined his fortune: and now,
in the crimson flowers of those gardens,
you can almost think or ina CINE that you
see the blood o. that old mans broken
heart. The payment Of the last 500, 900
sacrificed him. But | have to tell you
that Christ's life aud Chris.'s death were
TIN outlay of this beautiful garden of the
church, If which my text speaks Oh,
now many signs, and tears, and pangs,
an agon es! Tell me, ye women who
saw him hang! Tell me, ye executioners
win Ii led IN and .et him down! Tell
M. thou sun that didst hide; We rocks
that fell, Christ loved the church and
gave himself for it, If the garden Of the
church belongs to Christ, certainly he has
right 10 walk in it. Come, then, o
blessed Jesus, to-day; walk up and down
these ajsles, and pluck what Thou wilt of
sv eetne,s for Thy self
The church, in my text, is appropriately
compared 10 a garden, because tits place
of choice flowers of select fruits, and of
thorough irrigation.
That would be strange garden in which
there were no flowers. If nowhere else,
they would be along the borders or at the
gateway. The homeliest taste will dictate
sometime. if it be the old fas hioned holly
hook or dahlia, or daffodil: but if there be
larger means, then you will find the Next
can cactus, and blazing azalea, and clus-
tering oleander. Well, now Christ comes
t. his garden, and he plants there some of
the brightest spirits that ever lowered
upon the world. Some Of them are violets,
uncOnspicuOus. but sweet as heaven. You
have to search and find them. You do not
SEE them very often, perhaps, but you find
where they have been by the frightened
face of the invalid, and the sprig of ger
snium on the stand, and the new window
curtains keeping out the glow of the sun
light. They are, perhaps, more like the
ranunculus, creeping sweetly along amid
the thOrns and briaTs Of life, giving kiss
for sting; and many a man who has had
in his way some great black rock of
trouble, has found that they have covered
il all over with the fowery jessamine run
min, in and out amid the crevices. These
flowers in Christ's garden are not like sun
flowers, gaudy in light, but wherever
darkness hOvers over a soul that needs to
be conforted there they stand night
blooming cereuses. But in Christ's gard en-
there plants that may be bet
ter compared to the Mexican
cactus-thorns without, loveliness within;
men with sharp points Of character. They
wound almost every one that touches
them. They are hard to handle. Men
pronounce them nothing but thorns, but
Christ loves them Notwithstanding all
their sharpne->es. Many man has had
very hard ground to cultivate, and it
has only teen through severe trial he has
raised even the smallest scrape of grace.
A very marsh minister was talking to
very placid elder, and the placid elder said
to the harsh minister:
doctor, do wish you would control
your temperp
All said the minister to the elder, al
control more temper in five minutes than
you do in five years"
1t is harder for some men to do right
than for other men to do right. The grace
that would elevate you to the seventh
heaven might not keep your brother from
knocking a man down. had a friend who
came to me and said:
81 dare not join the Church."
said: "WhyF"
"Ok, /" he said, 81 have such a violent
temper. Yesterday morning was cross
ing very early at the Jersey City ferry
and | saw a milkman pour large amount
of water into the milk can, and said to
MIN: Il think that will do and he insulted
me, and / knocked him down. Do YOU