St. Landry democrat., 1886-11-27
THE THREE CROSSES.
Sermon by Rev. T. Dewitt Tai
mage, D. D.
"The Orchard on the Hill"-The Poison
Gus Fruit, and the Bitter AIoes-
Glorious Triumph of the
Middle Cross.

opening EXERCISES at the tabernacle this
morning DR.. Talmage announced as his
text Luke 1888: And when they were
come to the place, which is called Calvary,
there they crucifcd Him, and the malefac-
tors, one on the right hand and the other on
the left" He then said:
just outside of Jerusalem is swell Of
ground toward which crowd is ascending,
for it is the day of execution. What a
mighty assemblage! Some for curiosity to
hear what the malefactors will say, and to
see how they will act. The three persons
to be executed are already there.
Some of the spectators are vile OF
lip and bloated of cheek; some look up
with revenge, hardly able to keep their
hands off the sufferers; some tear their
own hair in frenzy of grief; some stand
In silent horror; some break out into un-
controllable weeping; some slap their
hands in delight that the offenders are to
be punished at last. Tie soldiers with
drawn swords drive back the mob which
presses on SO hard. There is fear that the
proceedings may be interrupted. let the
Roman legion, now stationed at Jerusalem,
on horseback dash along the line and force
back ts.a surging multitude "Back with
you"' Ia the cry. Have you never seen a
man dis beforc:'
Three crosses in row. An upright piece
and TIVE transverse pieccs-one on the top
on which the hands are nailed, and one at
the middle, on which the victim sat. Three
trees Just planted-yet bearing fruit-the
one at the right bearing poison, and tho
one at the left bitter alocs; the one in tho
middle apples of love. Norway pine and
tropical orange and Lebanon cedar would
not make so strange a grove as this Or
chard Of Calvary. Stand and give look at
the three crosses: Just look at the one on the
right; its victim dies soothing More ire
mendous than his physical anguish is his
scorn and hatred of Him on the middle
cross This one on the right turns half
around on the spikes to hiss at the one in
the middle If the scoffer could get one
hand loose. and He were within reach,
he would smite the middle sufferer
ia the face. He hates Him with perfect
hatred. l think he wishes he were down on
the ground, that he might spear him. He
envies the mechanics who, with their nails,
have nailed Him fast. Amid the settling
darkness and louder than the crash of the
rocks hear him jeer out these words: SAh,
all, you poor wretch, I knew you were an
imposter. You pretended you were God,
and yet you Jet these legions master your
1t was in seine such hate that Voltaire, in
his death ho:-", because he thought he saw
Christ III his bedroom, got up on his elbow
and cried out: Crush that wretchln What
had the middle cross done to rouse up this
right hand cross! Nothing. o, the enmity
of the natural heart against Christ The
world likes a sentimental Christ, or a
philanthropic Christ, but a Christ who
comes to snatch men away from their sins
away with Him.
On this right hand cross to-day see
typified the unbelief Of the world. Men
say: "Back with Him from the heart; I
will not let Him take my slps. If He will
die, let Him die for Himself, not for me-"
There has always been war between this
right hand cross and the middle cross, and
wherever there is an unbelieving heart,
thus the fight goes on. 0, if, when that
dying malefactor persisted, the faithless-
ness of men had persisted, then that tree
which yields poison would have budded and
blossomed with life for all the world. Look
up into that disturbed countenance of the
sufferer and see what CHASTITY thing it is
to reject Christ. Behold in that awful
face, in that pitiful look, in that Hn-
blessed death hour, the stings of the
sinners departure. What a plunge into
darkness! Standing high upon the cross
at thetop of the hill, so that all the world
may look at him, he says: Here go out of
a miserable life into a wretched eternity"
One, two, three. Listen to the crash of the
fall, all We ages. So Hobbies, dying after
he had seventy years in which to prepare
for eternity, said: 'sWere master Of the
world, / would give it all to live one day
longer.'' Sir Francis Newport, lowering
over the brink, cried out: wretch that /
am, whittier shall fly from this death!
What will become of me? Oh, that were
to lie upon the fire that never is quenched
one thousand years to purchase the favor
IF Gel and be reconciled to Him again. Oh,
eternity! Oh, eternity! Who can discover
,he abyss of eternitvs Who can paraphrase
lpon these words: "Forever and forever?"
That right hand cross-thousands have
IS physical pain compared to remorse, at
The last, that life has been wasted, and
,aly Eeeting moment stands between the
soul and its everlasting overthrowa Oh,
Iod let me die anywhere rather than at
,he foot of that right-hand cross. Let not
,ne drop of that blood fall upon my cheek.
Rend not my ear with that cry I see it
now as never before-the loathsomeness
md horror of my unbelief. That dying
nalefactor was not so much to blame
Is L. Christianity was not established,
Ind perhaps not until that day had
hat man heard the Christ. But
after Christ has stoodalmost nineteen cent
tries, working the wonders of His grace,
you reject Him. That right hand cross
with its long beam overshadows the earth.
It is planted in the heart of the race. When
will the time come when the spirit of God
Ihall, with its axe, hew down that right
land cross, until it shall fall at the foot of
hat middle cross, and unbelief, the railing
nalefactor of the world, shall perish from
Ill our heartsa Away from me, thou spirit
# unbelief! I hate thee. With this sword |
If God / thrust thee back and thrust thee !
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