The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1888-11-30
INCIDENCE REBUKED.
DR.. Talmage Discourses on the
Parable Of the Talents.
The Lesson to be Learned From the Par
able-UsiEg Ones Talents Rightly
The Great Settlement Day-Re-
wards For the Good.

d
he lived than they are now, because cir
cumstances have SO much changed. In
olden times when q man wanted to wreak
a grudge against his neighbor, after the
former had scattered the seed wheat over
the field and was expecting the harvest,
his avenger would 60 across the same
field with sack full of the seed of darnel
grass, scattering that seed all over the
field, and of course it 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 in the wheat
In this land our farms are fenced off, and
the wolves have been driven to the
mountains, and we can not fully UNDER
stand the meaning of the parable in regard
to the shepherd and the lost sheep. But
the parable from which speak to-day is
founded upon some thing 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 Gar, 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 a
stammer,
The parable of the text runs in this wise:
leave home and he had some money that
he wished properly invested, and so he
called together his servants and said: 81
am going away now ami 1 wish you to take
this money and put it to the very best pos
sible use, and when 1 come back return me
the interest" To one man he gave S9, 400,
to others he gave lesser sums of money;
to the least he gave 81 $50. He left HON,
and was gone for years and then returned.
On his arrival he was anxious to know
abou this worldly affairs, and he called his
servants together to report to him.
LET me know" he said, what you have
been doing with my property since have
en- gone. The man who had received the
80 400 came up and said. Il invested that
money. got good interest for it. have
in other ways rightly employed it, and
here are $4,000 You see l have doubled
what you gave me-" That's very good"
said the owner Of the estate; 'that's
grandly done. 1 admire your faithfulness
and industry. shall reward you. Well
done-well DONE" Others servants came
up with smaller aecumulations. After a
while see a man dragging himself along,
with his head hanging. l know from the
way he comes in that he is lazy fellow.
He comes up to the owner of the estate
and says: "Here are those s., 80O."
"What!" SAYS the owner of the property,
'haven't you made it accumulate any
thing?" 'Nothing--nothing" "Why,
what have you been about all these
years." 80, I was afraid that if in
vested it, I might somehow lose it. There
is your 81 $780,"
Many a man started out with only a
crown in his pocket and achieved for
tune. but this fellow Of my text, with
81 $50 has gained not one farthing. In
stead of confessing his Incidence he goes
to work to berate his master, for Incidence
is most always impudent and Impairment.
OF course, he loses his place and is dis
charged from the service. The owner who
went 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 are our different
qualifications of usefulness given in diff
ferent proportions to different people.
The coming back of the owner is the Lord
Jesus returning at the judgment to make
final settlement The raising 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
idler is the expulsion of all those who
have not improved their privileges.
Learn first from this subject that becom-
ing Christian Is merely going out to SER
vice. Ii you have any romantic idea
about becoming a Christian, want now
to scatter the romance. If you enter into
the kingdom Of g I'd. it will be going into
plain. practical, honest, continuous, per-
sistent Christian work. / know there are
q great many people who have fantastic
and romantic notions about this Christian
life, but he who serves God with ali the
energies of body, mind and soul, is a wor-
thy servant, and he who does not is en- un-
worthy servant. When the war trumpet
sounds, all the Lords soldiers must
march, however deep the snow may be, or
however fearful the odds against them.
Under our government we may have col
onels and captains 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 have to tell you it is a voluntary
service. People are not brought into it as
slaves were dragged from Africa. A
young man goes to an artisan and says:
''Sir, l want to learn your trade. I by
this indenture yield myself to your care
and service for the next four, or five. or
seven years want you to be my master
and | want to be your servant" Just so,
if we come into the kingdom of God at all
we must come. saying to Christ: "Be
thou my master. l take Thy service for
time and eternity. l choose it," 1t is
voluntary 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 service of the Lord
Jesus the harder a man works the better
he likes it, and man in this audience
who has been for forty years serving God
enjoys the employment better than when
he first entered it. The grandest honor
that can be bestowed upon you is to have
Christ say to you on the last day: "Weli
done, good and faithful servant"
Learn also from this parable that differ
emit qualifications are given to different
people. The teacher lifts blackboard and
he draws a diagram in order that by that
diagram he may impress the mind of the
pupil with the truth that he has been ut
tering. 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 a
little culture it yields twenty bushels of
wheat to the acre. Here is another piece
of ground that has only one talent. You
may plow it, and harrow it, and culture it,
year after year, but it yields a mere pit
lance. So here is 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, and you may put upon
him the greatest spiritual culture, but he
yields but little of the fruits of righteous
ness You are to understand that there