Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-07-12
SOL0M0N'S SWEET SONGS.
kEV. TALMAGE'S SECOND MID
SUMMER SERMON.


ject of His Discourse-SOme of the Fa-
mous Gardens of HtstOry-The Passion
Plant of the Cross-SOme of the HUI
man Plants ia the Garden OF Every
lay Life.
t'THE HANProNs," July 1l-Continuing
mis- series OF rural sermons, entitled
s-Voices of Gardens and Fields the
Rev. =. Dewitt Talmage, ID. D., to-day
preached from the Song OF Solomon
Nj: ~ am come into my garden" lie
Bald:
The Bible j. a great poem. We have IN It
kaulte~s rhythm aud bold imagery An J
startling autluhesis ann rapturous iYrIc auu
sweet pastoral, and instructive naIFdllNe,
AMI dcVul oual psalm: thoughts cNpre@7t i
IN style more -olemu than that OF MOuiEom
trc N Re bold than that Of Milton, more Ter
tIblc Than that oil Dante, more natural than
that of Wordsworth. more lmp3-sl"hep thah
that Of Pollok. more tender than that oil Gov
per. more weir1 than that OF Spenser. rms
great tocm brings all the gems 81 me eartu
fnt its cDronet, ana II Wcavts the names o.
Judgment into It's gar ands, and pouT' eterna al
harmunies in its rhy thin. Eyeryth this
book touches II MAKES beautiful, from inc
plain stones of the summer thrcshing uoor I"
ihe daughters OF Major tilung the trough Tor
the camels. and the h-h pools OF liehhDon Gp
h. the P5aimlst praIsIng God with diapas on OF
storm aud whirlwnd, ana job leading forth
Orion. ArCturus and the Pleladcs.
NJ, text leads us into scene 81 summer re
doIence. The world has had great many
beautiful gardens. Charlcma- ne added 10
Gie glory If nis reign by decreelnS mat thcJ
De established all through the realm, decd
mg even the names Of the HOWcr~ 10 De
planted there. Henry w.. a Montpelier, cs-
.abIIshed d dens oil bewitchlng peauty and
klNmi moe. gathering into them Alpine, fy-
t-Be,n and French plants. one or the swee.
b. spots on earth v a. the garden oi Shen-
b ne the poet. HIS writings have made but
ktIle impression on the world; but his garden,
u be lie .sOWcr, VIII be immortal. To the
latura advantage OF that place was brought
Ghe perfection OF art. ArbOr, and terrace,
md slope, aut r Istlc temple, and reservoir,
and urn and fountain here had there crown
ing. oak and yew and hazel put forth their
rlcbest Foliage. There was no NE more dt1-
gent, no soul more ingenious than that OF
Shenstone, and all thai diligence and gen u
be brought to the adjournment OF tnat one
treasured spot. He gave three hundred
pounds for il; he sold it for seventeen thou
Sand. And y ct am TO tell you to-day OF u
richer garden than any have mentioned.
1t is the garden spoken of in my text, the
aarden Of the church, which belongs 10 Christ,
bor nv text says so. He bought II, lie planted
II, lie owns lt, and He shall have 1t. Walter
Scott IN his outlay at Abbotsiord, ruined ms
hJrrune: and now, in the crimson flowers Of
those gardens, you can almost tnlnk or I'm
agine that YOU see the blood OF that old man'o
broken heart. The payment OF the last luO,-
DOC sacrificed him. But nave to tell you that
l. nrlHts lilt anu AuIlhk = USdlA were blt ouL-
lay Of this beautiful garden OF the church, of
which my text speaks. on. how many signs,
and tears. and pangs, and agOnles! Tell me,
We women who saw Him hang. Tell me, We
eXecutioners who Lifted Him and let Him
down. Tell me. thou sun that did-'t hide; &c
rocks that fell Christ loved the church
and gave Himself for it," II the garden of
the church belongs to Christ, certainly he has
"a right to walk IN 1t. Come. then, o blessed
Jesus, to-day! Walk up and down these
aisles, and pluck what thou wilt OF sweetness
Tor myself.
The church. in my text. is appropr atcly
compared TO garden, because It Is place of
choice bowers, Of select fruits and OF thorough
irrigation.
That would be a strange garden in which
there were no flowers. II nowhere else they
The homelItst taste Will dictate something. If
il be the old fashioned holl hook, or dahlia or
dafOdil, but If there be larger means, then
you viii find the Mexican cactus, ana OlaZlng
az alea, and clustering oieauder. We'll. now,
Christ comes to His garden ard He plants
Ihere some of the brightest spirits that ever
lowered upon the wOr q! some Of them are
vIoiets. uncontplcuOus, but sweet as heaven.
You have To search and hud them. You do
not see them cry often, perhaps, but you find
where they have been by the Frightened face
of the invalid, and tue sprig o. geranlum
on the stand, and the new window
curtains keeping out the glow
OF the Twilight. They are.
perhaps, more ike The ranunculus, creeping
life, giving kiss for sting, and many "a man
who has had IN HE way some great black rock
of trouble has found that they have covered
IL all over with 1oWery iessamlne running IN
and out amid the creyices. These flowers IN
Christ's garden are not like the sunhower
gaudy in the light; but wherever darkness
hoyers over a soul that needs to he comfort Ell,
there they stand, night blooming crreuses
But in Christ's gard n there are plants that
may be better compared TO the Mexican
cactus-thorns without, loveln IS within;
men with sharp points OF charac-
ter They wound almost every one
10 handle. Men pronounce them nothing
but thorns, but Christ loves them notwlth-
standing all their sharpnesses. Many a man
has had very hard ground 10 cultivate, and II
has only been through severe trial he mas
raised even the smallest scrap OF grace. A
very harsh minister WAS talking TO very
llacid elder, and the placid elder saIL TO the
harsh minister: "DOctor, | do wish you
would control your temper" "Ah.n SAID the
minister to the elder; Il control more temper
IN i've minutes than YOU do il five years" IL
is harder for some men to do righD Than Tor
other men 20 do right. The grace that would
elevate you TO the seventh heaven might not
Keep your brother from knocking a man
down. bad friend who came
10 me and SAID: II dare not
JOIN the church l SAID, why"
''Oh." he said. II have such violent temper.
Yesterday morning was crossing very early
AT the Jersey City Terry, and sa" mllkman
u =
can, aud | said TO him: L think That viii do, 3
ana he iBsulted me.and ! kDOckCt HIM down.
DO you think ought to ION the churcht'
Nevertheless that very same man. who was so
harsh III his behavior, loved Christ and could
not speak of sacred things without tears OF
emotion and affection. Thorns without,
sweetness witnin-the best specimen Of MeNi-
can cactus / ever saw.
There are others planted in Chrlets garden
who are always ra liant, always Impressive
more like the roses Of deep hue that we occa-
siunally mud called "glanls of battle;" the
Martin Luthers, St Pauls, Chrysostom
Wicslffs, Latlmers aud samuel Rutherfords.
cOnfagratiOn. When they sweat, they
sweat great drops of blood. When they
pray. thefr PRAYER lakes ire. When they
Dreach, II is "a PeutcCOst. When they fight, II
Is IA Tnermopyla. When they die. 1t Is mar
tyrdom. You find great many roses in the
gardens but only a lew "giauts of battle"
Men say: "Nhy don't you have more Of
you have in the world more IIumOoldts and
Wellingtons.' God gives 10 some, ten talents;
10 another, one.
In lhis garden OF The church which Christ
b Z planted also ind the snowdrops, bcautl-
tul but cold looking, seemingly another phase
Of winter. | mean those Christians who are
precise In their tastes, uuimpa-slOned. pure as
tears. they never get excited, they never say
anything rashy. they never DO ANYTHING pre-
eipitately. Their pulses never Nutter. their
nerves never twltch, their ind guat ION never
bOis over. They live longer thau most peo.
pie, but their life Is in "A minor hey. They
never run up TO "C'' above the sta.n In their
music Of life they have no staCcato passages.
Christ planted them in the church. and they
must be Of some service or they would not be
there: sDOWdFop-. always snOwdrOps.