The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1886-05-27
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Lessons Presented By the Re-
currence Of Easter Tide.
The Brightness of Earthly Flowers as Pre-
figuring the Glories Of the Last Great
Resurrection-The Duties OF
Immortality.


figuring the GIories of the Last Great
Resurrection-The Duties Of
Immortality.
Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage delivered his
Easter.Tide sermon at the Brooklyn Taber.
nacle from the following text: FAD
Now is Christ risen from the dead. and be-
come the first fruits of them that slept.-I
Cor, Nv, 20.
He spoke as follows:
On this glorious Easter morning, amid
the music and the flowers, give you
Christian salutation. This morning Rus
sian meeting Russian on the streets of
st. Petersburg halls him with the saluta-
ton:
And is answered by his friend In saluta-
ton.
"He is risen indeed"
In some parts Of England and Ireland
to this very day there is the superstition
that on Easter morning the sun dances in
the Heavens; and well may we forgive
such a superstition which illustrates the
fact that the natural world seems to SYM
pathize with the spiritual. s.e
EASTER VOICES.
Hail Easter morning. Flowers! Flowersl
All of them voice, all of them q tongue,
all of them full of speech to-day. I bend
over one of the lilies and hear them say:
Consider the lilies of the field, how they
grow; they toll not, neither do they spin, yet
Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed as
one OF these. snsf3 HeH
I bend over a rose and it seems to whis-
per: ~
am the rose Of Sharon.
And then stand and listen. From all
sides there comes the chorus Of flowers,
saying: s 80
If God 30 clothe the grass of the field,
which to-day is, and tomorrow is cast into
the oven, shall he not much more clothe you,
Oh ye Of little faith?
Flowers Flowers! Braid them into the
brides hair. Flowers Flowers! Strew
them over the graves of the day, sweet
prophecy of the resurrection. Flowers!
Flowers! Twist them into garland for
my Lord Jesns on Easter morning. "Glory
be 10 the Father and to the Son and to the
Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is
now and ever shall be" s
Why, II rainbow this morning had
fallen and struck the galleries and struck
the platform, the scene could not have
been more radiant. Obi how bright and
how beautiful the flowers, and how much
they make me think of Christ and his re-
ligion. that brightens every thing it
touches, brightens our life, brightens our
character, brightens society, brightens the
church, brightens every thing. You who
go with gloomy countenance pretending
you are better than I am because Of your
lugubriousness, you can not cheat me.
You old hypocrite! know you. Pretty
case you are for man that processes to be
more than conqueror. 1t is not religion
that makes you gloomy; it is the lack of
it. There is just as much religion in a
wedding as in burial, just as much reli-
gion In smile as in tear. Those gloomy
Christians we sometimes sec are the people
t. whom / like to lend money, for I never
see them againi The women came to the
Saviour's tomb. and they dropped spices all
around the tomb, and those spices were the
seed that began to grow, and from them
came all the flowers Of this Easter morn.
: The two angels robed in white took hold
of the stone at the Saviour's tomb and they
hurled it with such force down the hill
that it crushed in the door of the world, g
sepulcher, and the stark and the dead
must come forth.
/ care not how labyrinthine the mauso-
leum, or how costly the sarcophagus, or
however beautifully parterred the family
grounds, we want them all broken up by
the Lord Of the resurrection. They must
come out. Father and mother-they must
come out. Husband and wife-they must
come out. Brother and sister-they must
come out. Our darling children-they
must come out. The eyes that we close
with such trembling fingers must OPEN
again in the radiance Of that morn, The
arms we folded in dust must join ours in
an embrace Of reunion. The voice that
was hushed in our dwelling must be re-
turned. 0, how long some Of you seem to
be waiting-waiting for the resurrection
waitingl And for these broken hearts to.
day make q soft, cool bandage ont of
Easter flowers. ass s.s s-a~
Six years ago, the night before Easter, I
received an Easter card on which there
was q representation of that exquisite
flower, the trumpet creeper, and under il
the words: @
rise.
There was especial reason why at that
time should have that card sent me. and
present the same consolation to-day to
all in this house; and who has escaped?
Ny friends, this morning I find in the
risen Christ prophecy OF our own resur-
rection, my text setting forth the idea that
as Christ has risen so his people will rise.
He the first sheaf Of the resurrection har.
vest; he 1.-THE first fruits of them Mat
slept" Before get through this morn
ing, win walk through an the cemeteries
OF the dead, through all the country grave
yards where your loved ones are buried,
and win pluck of these flowers and I
will drop sweet promise of the Gospel-a
rose OF hope, lily of joy on every tomb
the child's tomb, the husbands tomb, the
wife's tomb, the fathers grave, the moth
er's, grave; and while we celebrate the
resurrection Of Christ we will at the same
time celebrate the resurrection of all the
good.
Christ the first fruits OF them that slept.