Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-12-27
BETHLEHEM'S HOLY BABE.
REV. TALMAGE breaches ON
THE CHRISTMAS JUBIEEE.

Lessons from the Story Not Yet Hack
neyed by Oft Repeatal-The signih'
canoe of the Star Acting as "a Guide
The Visit of the Wise Men of the East
The Month of the Nativity.
BROOKLYN, Dec. 26.-The Rev. t. De
Witt Talmage, D. D., preached in the
Brooklyn Tabernacle this evening on the
subject "The Christmas Jubilee" A
special programme of music was render
ed by the artists of the church, and the
congregational singing was inspiriting
The opening hymn begins:
'Joy to the world! the Lord is come,
Let earth receive her king"
DIR, Talmage's text was st. Matthew
a.. 9: "Wben they had heard the king
they departed; and, 10, the star, which
thew saw in the East. went before them,
till it came and stood over where the
Young child was" The preacher said:
At this season all Christendom cele-
brates the birth of Christ. Step down
out of your comfortable surroundings
into the chill December night of Bethle-
hem. Two plain people are hOteled In a
village barn after walk OF eighty miles,
TOO long a trudge for one in poor health.
No lords of state awaiting in antecham-
Der, as when other kings are born. No
messengers mounted at the doorway
ready to herald the advent from city to
city. No medical skill in attendance.
Nc satin-lined cradle to receive the In
fantile guest. But monarch born in the
hosiery called the house of Chimham, the
night with diamonded finger pointing
down to the place, the door of heaven set
wide open to look out; from orchestral
batons of light, dripping the oratorios OF
the Messiah; on lowest doorstep OF
heaven the MINISTRIES discoursing of glory
and good will.
Soon after the white bearded astrolo-
gists kneel, and from leathern pouch
chink the shekels. and from open sacks
eXhaie the frankincense and rustic out
the bundles of myrrh. The loosened star;
the escaped doxology Of celestIals; the
chill December night af1ush with May
morn: our world a lost star, and another
star rushing down the sky that night to
beckon the wanderer home again, shall
vet make all nations keep Christmas.
Are there no new lessons from the
story not yet hackneyed by oft repeatal
Oh, vesl Now in the first place, 1t was a
sidereal appearance that led the way.
sLo, the star which they saw in the East
went before Them" Why not a black
cloud in the shape of hand or finger
pointing down to the sacred birthplace
A cloud means trouble, and the world bad
had trouble enough. Why not q shaft of
lightning quivering and flashing and
striking down to. the sacred birthplace?
Lightning means destruction, shatter-
ing and consuming power, and the woI Id
wanted no more destruction.
But it was a star, and that means joy,
that means hope, that means good CHI er,
that means ascendancy. A start That
means creative power, for did not the
morning stars sing together when the
portfolio of tibet worlds was opened? A
star! That means defense, for did not the
stars fight in their course against Sisera,
and for the Lords people? A star! That
means brilliant continuance, for are not
the righteous to shine as the stars for
ever and ever? A start That means the
opening of eternal joy. The day star in
the heart. The morning star of tie Re-
deemer.
The unusual appearance that night
may have been strange conjunction of
worlds. AS the transit of Venus was
foretold many years ago by Astronomers,
and astronomers can tell what Will be the
conjunction OF worlds thousand years
from now. so they can calculate back
wards, and even infidel astronomers have
been compelled TO testify thai about the
year one there was very unusual ap-
pearance in the heavens. The Chinese
record, of course entirely independent Of
the Word OF God, gives as a matter of
history that about the year one there
was a strange and unacc0untable
appearance in the heavens. But it may
have been meteor such as you and
have seen flash in the horizon. Only a
few years ago | saw in the western sky a
star shoot and fall with such orilliancy
and precision that if / had been on hill
as high as that OF Bethlehem on which
the shepherds stood, / could have
marked within short distance tie
place of ahgbting. The University OF
Iowa and the British Museum have speci-
mems OF meteOric stones picked up in the
fields, fragments flung off from other
worlds, leaving fiery trail on the sky.
So that it is not TO me at all improbable,
the stellar or the meteoric appearance on
that night of which we speak. | only
care to know that it was bright, that it
was silvery, that 1t flashed and swayed,
and swung and halted with JOY celestial,
as though Christ, in haste to save our
wor ID, bad rushed down without His cor.
onet. and the angels of God had hurled il
after him. Not black cloud of threat,
but bright star OF hope is our glorious
Christianity. One glimpse of that stel.
lar appearance kindled up the soul OF the
sick and the dying college student until
the words flashed from mis- pale fingers,
and the star seemed to pour its light from
his white lips as kirke White wrote these
immortal words:
When marshaed on the nightly PLAIN,
The glittering hosts besu the sky.
One star alone of all the train
Can fix the sinners wandering eye.
Hark! bark! to God the chorus breaks,
From every host. from every gem,
But one alone the Saviour speaks,
IL is the star Of Bethlehem.
Once on the raging seas 1 rode,
The storm was loud, the night was dark,
And rudely blew the wind
That tossed my laundering bark;
Deep horror then my vitals froze,
Dea hstruck, ceased the tide TO stem;
When suddenly a star arose,
1t was the Star of Bethlehem.
Notice also in this scene, that other
worlds seemed to honor our Lord anC
Master. Bright star OF the night. whee
on in thine orbit! mo-" said the star, s.
must come nearer, and | must tend, anC
must watch and see what you do witt
my Jesus" Another world that nigh
joined our world in worship. That sta
maze bow Of obesance. / sometimei
hear people talk OF Cbris's dominion al
though IL We're to be merely the few
thousand miles of the worlds circum
1ererce; but believe the millions anC
the billions and the quadrilions OF worlds
are inhabited-ii not by such creature,
as we are, still such creatures as Goo
designed to make, and that all thes,
worlds are part OF Chrisps dominion
Isaac Newton, and kepler, and Hersche
only went on Columbus voyage to find
these continents OF our kings domain.
IL 4