The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1886-04-08
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
Ninth Discourse Of the Series on
"The Marriage Ring"
The Domestic Circle-Home Life as Test
Of Character, q Refuge, Political
Safeguard, q School and as Type
of Heaven on Earth.

OF Heaven on EARN.
Below we give Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage's
ninth discourse of "The Marriage ring"
series: delivered at Brooklyn Tabernacle.
The subject, sThe Domestic Circle" was
Illustrated from the following text:
60 home to'thy friends. and tell them how
great things the Lord hath done for thee
Mark, v: 10. EZ Ef "a Y.TTseg q
There are great many people longing
for some grand sphere in which to serve
God. They admire Luther at the Diet OF
Worms, and only wish that they had some
such great opportunity in which to display
their Christian prowess. They admire
Paul making Felix atremble, and they only
wish that they had some such grand occa-
sion in which to preach righteousness, TEN.
perance and Judgment to come; all they.
want is only an opportunity to, exhibit
their Christian heroism. Now the apostle
comes to us and he practically says: Il
will show you place where you can ex-
hibit all that is grand, and beautiful, and
glorious in Christian character, and that is
the domestic circle"
If one is not faithful in an Insignificant
sphere he will not be faithful in a resound-
ing sphere. If Peter win not help the
cripple at the gate of the temple
he will never be able to preach three
thousand souls into the kingdom at the PEN
tecost. If Paul viii not take pains to in
struct in the way of salvation the jailer of
the Philipian dungeon, he will never make
Felix tremble. He who is not faithful in a
skirmish would not be faithful in an
Armageddon. The fact is we are all
placed in just the position in which we
can most grandly serve God; and we
ought not to be chiefly thoughtful about
some sphere of usefulness which we may
after awhile gain, but the all-absorbing
question with you and with me ought to
be: ..'Lordwhat wilt Thou have, me now
and here to do?"
There is one word in my text around
which the most of our thoughts viii this
morning revolve. That word is "home."
Ask ten different men the meaning of that
word, and they win give you ten different
definitions. To one it means love at the
hearth; it means plenty at the table, in
dustry at the workstand, intelligence at
the books, devotion at the altar. To him it
means greeting at the door and smile
at the chair. Peace lowering like wings.
Joy aclapping it's hands with laughter.
Life tranquil lake. Pillowed on the rip
Piles sleep the shadows.
Ask another man what home is, and he
will tell you it is want looking out of q
cheerless ire- CRATE, kneading hunger in
an empty bread tray, the damp air shiv-
ering with curses. No Bible on the shelf
Children, robbers and murderers in en-
bryo, obscene songs their lullaby. Every
face picture of ruin. Want in the back
ground and sin staring from the front.
No Sabbath wave rolling. over that door
sill. Vestibule of the pit Shadow of i'm
fernal walls. Furnace FOR forging ever
lasting chains. Faggots for an intending
funeral pile. Awfulword! It is spelled
with curses, it reeks with ruin, it chokes
with woe, it sweats with the death agony
of despair. ~ r IS
The word "homen in the one case means
every thing bright. The word "home" in
the other case means every thing terrific.
I shall speak to you this morning of
home as q test of character, home as a
refuge, home as q political safeguard,
home as school, and home as type of
Heaven.
And, in the first place, remark that
home is powerful test Of character. The
disposition in public may be in gay cos
tune, while in private it is in deshabille.
As play actors may appear in one way on
the stage and may appear in another way
may be very different from public
character. Private character is Of
ten public character turned wrong
side out. A man may receive you into his
psrlor as though he were distillation of
smiles, and yet his heart may be swamp
of nettlesss There are business men who
all day long are mild and courteous and
genial and good-natured, in commercial
life, daraming back their irritability and
their petulance and their discomfort, but
at nightfall the dam breaks and scolding
pours forth in floods and freshets.
Reputation is only the shadow of char.
acter, and very small house sometimes
will cast very long shadow. The lips
may SEEM to drop with niyrTh and cassia,
and the disposition to be as bright and
warm as sunbeams, and yet they may be
only a magnificent show window to q
WTcUCucu SIOCh VI So0uS. there Is many
man who is affable in public life and amid
commercial spheres, who, in a cowardly
way, takes his anger and his petulance
home and drops them on the domestic
circle. gss8 +.
The reason men do not display their bad
temper in public is because they do moi
want to be knocked down. There are mer
who hide their petulancy and their ir.
ritability for the same reason that they
do not let their notes 60 to pro
test-it does not pay. Or for the
same reason that. they do not wan
man in their stock company to sell hi.
stock at less than the right price, lest il
depreciate the value. As sometimes tn,
wind rises, SO after suhshiny day there
may be tempestuous night. There are
people who in public. act the philanthro.
pist, who at home act the Nero, with respect
to their slippers and their gown.
Now, that man who is affable in public
and who is irritable in private, Is making
fraudulent overissue Of stock, and he i.
as bad as bank that might have 500, OOt
or $500,000 Of bills in circulation with ne
specie in its vaults. Let US learn to show
piety at home. II we have it not there
We have it not anywhere. If we have MOI