The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-09-12
THE TABERNACLE SERMONS.
Rev. DR.. Talmage breaches in Brooklyn,
with the Vacant Chair as Text.
He Hopes that When We Are Through with
This World, and All Our Chairs Are Empty,
We May Be in Heaven, WOrShiping God.

On Sunday, Sept. 5, Rev. DR.. Talmage
preached in the Brooklyn Tabernacle His text
was 1 Samuel, Xxx, IS: Thou shalt be missed,
because thy seat will be empty" Following is
the sermon:
Set on the table the cutlery and chased silver
ware of the palace. for King Saul will give
state dinner to-day. A distinguished place is
Kept at the table for hisson-in-law, q celebrated
warrior David by name. The guests, jeweled
and plumed. come in and take their places.
When people are invited to a kings banquet,
they are very apt to go. But before the covers
are lifted from the feast. Saul looks around
and finds vacant seat at the table. He
says within himself, or, perhaps, audibly:
"What does this mean9 Where is my
son-in-law2 Where is David, the great
warriorl I invited him. I expected him.
What2 vacant chair at q kings banquet"
The fact was that David the warrior had been
seated for the last time at his father-in-laws
table The day before Jonathan had coaxed Da-
vld to go and occupy that place at the table say
ing to David in the words of my text: '"Thou
shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty"
The prediction was fulfilled. David was missed
His seat was empty. That one vacant chair
spoke louder than all the occupied chairs at the
banquet. In almost every house the articles of
furniture take living personality That picture
"a stranger would not see anything remarkable
either in It's design or execution, but 1t is more
to you than all the picures Of the Louvre and
the Luxembourg.
First point out to you the fathers vacant
chair. Old men always like to sit in the same
place and In the same chair. They somehow
feel more at home, and sometimes when you are
in their place and they come into the room you
jump up suddenly and say: Here, father
here's your chair" The probability is it is an
mchair. for he is not so strong as he once was,
and he needs little upholding. His hair Is q
little frosty, his gums little depressed, for in
his early days there was not much dentistry.
Perhaps a cane chair and oldfashioned
suggested some improvement father does not
want any of your nonsense Grandfather never
had much admiration for new-fangled notions
/ sat at the table of one of my pensioners In
former congregation; an aged man was at the
table and his son was presiding, and the father
somewhat abruptly addressed the son and said:
''My son, don't now try to show off because the
minister is here!" Your father never liked any
new customs manners; he preferred the old
way of doing things, and he never looked
so happy as when with his eyes closed
he sat in the chair in the corner. From
wrinkled brow to the tip of the slippers, what
placidity! The wave of the past years of his life
broke at the foot of that chair. Perhaps, some
times, he was little impatient. and sometimes
told the same story twice. but over that old chair
how many blessed memories hover! hope you
did crowd that old chair, and that
it did not get very much in the way.
very much In the way, especially
If he has been so unwise as to make
over all his property to his children with the
understanding that they are to take care of him.
mans chair to the door, and then crowd 1t clear
into the street, and then crowd it into the poor
house. and keep on crowding it until the old man
fell out of it into his grave.
But your fathers chair was a sacred place
The children used to climb up on the rungs Of it
a
the better you liked it. But that chair has been
vacant now for some time. The furniture dealer
would not give you fifty cents for it, but it is
throne of influence in your domestic circle
Second-I go a little further on in your house
and | find the mothers chair. It is very ant to
be rocking chair. She had so many cares and
troubles to soothe that it must have rockers.
remember it we'll 1t was an old chair, and the
rockers were almost worn out, for I was the
youngest, and the chair had rocked the whole
family. It made a creakng noise az 1t moved,
but there was music in the sound. II was just
high enough to allow US children to put our
heads into her lap. That was the bank where
we deposited all our hurts and worries Oh.
what a chair that was! It was different
from the fathers chair; it was entirely different.
You ask me how? l cannot tell; we all felt it was
different. Perhaps there was about this chair
more gentleness, more tenderness. more grief
when we had done wrong. When we were way
ward father scoGed, but mother cried It was
very wakeful chair In the sick days of
children other chairs would not keep awake;
that chair always kept awake, kept easily
awake. That chair knew all the old lula
bies and all those wordless songs which
mothers sing to their sick children-songs in
which all pity and compassion and sympathetic
influences are combined. That old chair has
stopped rocking for good many years 1t may
be set I'D in the loft or in the garrett but it holds
queenly power yet. When at midnight you
went into that grog- shop to get the Intoxicating
draught did you not hear voice that said:
EkNH A. A.
the boisterous encore of the place of amusement
a voice saying: MY son. what do you here2"
And when you went into the house of sin voice
saying: what would your mother do if she
knew you were here2"
And you were provoked with yourself and
you charged yourself with superstition and
fanatacism, and your head got hot with your
own thoughts, and you went homo and you
. went to bed, and no sooner had you touched the
bed than a voice said: "Whatl a prayerless pill
low! Man, what is the matter9" This: You
are too near your mothers rocking-chair.
"Oh, pshaw!" you say "theres nothing in
that I'm five hundred miles off from where l
was born. I'm three thousand miles off from
l ever heard" 1 cannot help that;
you are too near your mothers rocking chair
"Oh," you say, there can't be anything in that;
that chair has been vacant great while" I
cannot help that; it is all the mightier for that;
it is omnipotent, that vacant mothers chair
It whispers; it speaks it weeps it carols:
it mourns; it prays; it warns; it thunders
young man went off and broke his moth
er's heart, and while he was away from
home his mother died, and the telegraph
brought the son, and he came into the room
where she lay aud looked upon her face. and he
cried out: "Oh, mother, mother! what your
life could not do your death shall effect. This
moment give my heart to God" And he kept
his promise. Another victory for the vacant
chair With reference to your mother the
words of my text were fulfilled: Thou shalt be
missed, because thy seat will be empty"
God pity the young man who has brought dis
grace on his fathers name. God pity the young
man who has broken his mothers heart. Better
if he had never been born; better if, in the first
hour of his life instead of being laid against the