The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-11-19
APARABLE OF THE BIBLE
HTALMAGB TELLS THE STORY OF
THE MAN WITH THE TALENTS.

IAE M IN WITH III n L u ADENAS.
Becoming a Christian Merely Going
/ Out to Service-Differen Qualifica
I tions Given to Different People
l. Gods Grace Intended to be Accumu-
|! lative-Inferiority of Gifts No Excuse
I for Incidence.
i BROOKLYN, Nov. 1s.--At the Tabernacle
sthis morning the acclaim of the worshipers
was very great as they Joined in the open
| ing Doxology. Prof. Browne rendered ex-
| quisitely the organ solo, Sonata in minor,
| Rheinberger The pastor, the Rev. T. De-
Witt Talmage, ID, took for his text;
Unto one he gave five talents, to another
| two, and to another one; to every man ac-
| cording to his several ability" Matt XIV,
k15. He said:
Many of the parallels of Jesus Christ were
| more graphic in the times in which he lived
than they are now, because circumstances have
so much changed. In olden times when a man
wanted TO wreak grudge upon his neghbor,
after the farmer had scattered the seed wheat
| over the field and was expecting the harvest,
his avenger would go across the same field with
a sack full of the seed of darnel grass scatter
ing that seed all over the field, and, of course,
| 1t would sprout up and spoil the whole crop;
and it was to that Christ referred in the parable
when he spoke Of the tares being sown among
| the wheat In this land our farms are fenced
| off, and the wolves have been driven TO the
stand the meaning of the par
able in regard TO the shepherd and the
| lost sheep. But the parable from which speak
to-day is founded on something we all under
stand. 1t is built on money, and that means
| the same in Jerusalem as in New York. 1t
| means the same to the serf as to the car, and
| to the Chinese coolie as to the emperor
| Whether it is made out of bone or brass, or
iron or copper, or gold or silver, It speaks all
| languages without stammer. The parable of
| the text runs In this wise: The owner of a
large estate was about to leave home and he
had some money that he wished properly in
vested, and so he called together his servants,
| and said:
II am going away now and wish you would
| take this money and put it to the very best
| possible use, aud when / come back return to
ISne the Interest," To one man he gave 81, 400,
kto others he gave lesser sums of money; to the
| least he gave 81 $50 He left home and was
| gone for years, and then returned. On his ar
| rival be was anxious to know about his worldly
| affairs, and he called his servants together to
| report to him. LET me know, said he, what
| you have been doing with my property since
have been gone" The man who had received the
50, 400 came up and said Il invested that money.
| ] got good interest for il. have in other ways
rightly employed it, and here are S1s,800. You
| see have doubled what you gave me" That's
| very good" said the owner of the estate;
that's grandly done. admire your
faithfulness aud industry, shall reward
you. Well done, well done" Other servants
| came up with smaller accumulations After a
while see man dragging himself along, with
his head hanging / know from the way he
kcomes in that he is lazy fellow. He comes
Eup to the owner Of the estate and says: Here
fare those $3.50" What" says the owner Of
the property, haven't you mate it accumulate
kanythingf Nothing, nothing why, what
Ihave you been about all these years?" ''Oh, I
Twas afraid thatif Invested It might somehow
| lose IL. There are your 81, $50" Many man
| started out with only crown in his pocket and
achieved q fortune; but this fellow OF my text
| with $3.50. has gained not one farthing
Instead of confessing his Incidence
he goes to work to berate his
master, for Incidence is most always impudent
| and impertinent. OF course he loses his place
/ and is discharged from the service The owner
twho went out into far country is Jesus Christ
going from earth to heaven. The servants
| spoken of in the text are members of the
| church. The talents our different qualifca-
tions Of usefulness given in different proper
| tionS to different people. The coming back OF
/ the owner is the Lord Jesus returning at the
judgment to make final settlement. The rails
Ting of some OF these men to be rulers over five
or two cities, is the eXaltation of the righteous
| at the last day, while the casting out OF the
3dler is the expulsion of all those who have mis-
| improved their privileges.
| Learn first from this subject that becoming
| a christian is merely going out to service. If you
| have any romantic idea about becoming chris
| tian, want now to scatter the romance. If you
| enter into the kingdom of God, it will be going
| into plain, practical, honest, continuous per
| sistent christian work. know there are great
many people who have fantastic and romantic
| notions about this christian life, but he who
serves God with all the energies Of body, mind
| and soul is a worthy servant, and he who does
| not is an unworthy servant, When the war
| trumpet sounds, all the Lords soldiers must
kmarch, however deep The snow may be, or how
fever fearful the odds against them. Under our
government we may have colonels, and cap
tains, and generals in time Of peace, but In the
| church of God there is no peace until the last
great victory shall have been achieved But
4 have to fell IL is voluntary Spryca panula
| are not brought into 10 as slaves were dragged
| from Africa. A young man goes TO an artisan
and says: Sir | want TO learn your trade. l
Fby this indenture yield myself TO your care and
service for the next four, or five or seven years
| ! want you to be my master aad want to be
Lyour servant" just so, if we come into the
t1iingdom of God at all, we must come saying to
kChrist: BE thou my master. take thy service
FLOR time and for eternity. choose It," II is a
Evoluntary service. There is no drudgery in IT,
In our worldly callings sometimes our nerves
| get worn out, and our head aches, and our
physical faculties break down. but In this sery-
Flee of the Lord Jesus the harder a man works
the better he likes IL, and man in this audience
| who has been for forty years serving God en-
| joys the employment better than when he first
| entered IL. The grandest honor that can ever
be bestowed upon you is to have Christ say to
you on the last day: We'll done, good and
| faithful servant
| Learn also from this parable that different
| qualifications are given 10 different people. The
| teacher lifts blackboard, and be draws n dia
| gram, in order that by that diagram he may
| impress the mind of the pupil with the truth
| that he has been uttering. And all the truths
| of this Bible are drawn out in the natural world
| as in great diagram. Here is an acre OF
ground that has ten talents. Under little
| culture 1t yields twenty bushels OF wheat 10 the
| acre. Here is another piece of ground that has
| only one talent. You may plow IL, and harrow
il, and culture II, year after year. but II Yields
| a mere pittance. so here Is a man with ten
| talents in the way OF getting good and doing
| good. He soon. under christian culture Yields
| great harvests OF faith and good work. Here
| is another man who seems to have
| only one talent, aud you may put
| upon him the greatest spiritual culture.
| but he yields but little of the fruits OF
| righteousness. You are to understand that there
| are different qualifications for different indi.
| viduals. There is great deal OF ruinous com
| parison when man says: "Oh, IL only had
that mans faith, or that mans money, or that
| Better take the faculty that God has given you
| and employ t In the right way. The rabbis
| used TO say that before the stone and timber
were brought to Jerusalem for the temple
| every stone and piece OF timber was marked so
that before they started for Jerusalem, the
architects knew in what place that particular
| piece OF timber or stone should 1t. And so
| have to tell you we are all marked for some one
| place In the great temple of the Lord, and do
| not let us complain saying: II would like to be
| the foundation stone or the cap stone" Let us
| 20 into the very place where God intends Us TO
| be. and DO satisfied with the position. Your
talent may be In personal appearance,
| your talent may be In large worldly
estate, your talent may be In high social position,
your talent may be In swift pen or eloquent