The Forrest City times., 1888-05-12
"L0SS AND GAIN"
Talmage's Last Sunday Morning
 Discourse
Tho Great Divine Breaches from the Text What Shall it Profit Man, if He Shall Gain the Whole World, and
 Lose His Own Soul"


 Earthly Posssssions-About the Time He Feels Secure in His Title Death Steps in and Servs Writ of Ejectment and Pre- emptorily Orders Him Hence.
 BROOKLYN, May 6-The Rev T. De Witt Talmage, D. D., told the congregation at the Tabernacle to-day that malicious falsehood has gone through the country, saying that at a recent meeting of the officers of the Thirteenth Regiment at his house, he had set before them four kinds of wine. He said 'I will pay thousand dollars to any charitable institution If 1t can be proved that one drop of wine or any other intoxicating liquor was offered in my house that evening. The twenty five gentlemen present may be called upon for testimony. Any three respectable clergymcn or lawyers or detectives may be selected; they also to decide what charity shall have the money. I ask the newspapers all over the land, which have been misled by the falsehood, to correct it."
 The opening hymn of the service begins;
 'salyationi c. the Joyful sound,
 Tis pleasure to our ears"
 Dr. Tslmagc announced as the subject of the sermon 'Loss and Gain" and his text was: What shall 1t profit man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul" Mark will 36.
 I am accustomed, Sabbath by Sabbath to stand before an audience of bargaln-maker There may be men in all occupations sitting before me, yet the vast majority of them, am very well aware, are engaged from Mon day morning to Saturday night in the store. In many Of the families of my congreg alton, scross the breakfast. table and the tea table are discussed questions of loss and gain. You are every day asking yourself: What IS the value of thisi What Is the value Of thatp You would not think of giving something of greater value for that which is of lesser value. You would not think of selling that which costs ten dollars for five dollars If you had a property that was worth fifteen thousand dollars, you would not sell it for four thousand dollars. You are intelligent fin all matters of bargain making. Are you as wise in the things that pertain to the mat ters of the souli Christ adapted his inslruc- tons to the circumstances of those to whom He spoke. When He talked to the fishermen, He spoke of the Gospel net When He talked to the farmers, He said: "A sower went forth 10 sow.n When He talked to the shep- herds He told the parable of the lost sheep. And am not right when speaking this morn- Ing to an audience made up of bargain makers, that l address them in the words of
 
 II he shall gain tic whole world and lose bis own soul.
 propose, as far as possible. to estimate and compare the value of two properties
 First have to say that the world Is a very grand property. Its flowers are Gods thoughts in bloom It's rocks are Gods thoughts In stone. Its dew-drops are Gods thoughts in pearl. This world Is Gods child-a wayward child indeed it has wan dered of through the heavens. But about eighteen hundred and Lightweight years ago, one Christmas night, God sent out a sister world to call that wanderer back, and it hung over Bethlehem only long enough to get the promise Of the wanderers return, and now that lost world, with soft feet of light, comes treading back through the heavens. The hills, how beautiful they pillow up, the edge of the wave white with the foam of crocuses! How beautiful the rain. bow, the arched bridge on which heaven and earth come and talk to each other in tears, after the storm is oycrl How nimbe the feet Of the lamp-lighters that in few minutes set all the dome of the night ablaze with brackets of firel How bright the oar of the saffron cloud that rows across the deep sea of heaven! How beautiful the Spring, with bridal blossoms In her hairi I wonder who II is that beats time on a June morning for the bird orchestra. How gently the harebei tolls its fragrance on the airi There may be grander worlds, swarthier worlds. than this; but think that this is a most ex- qusit world-a mignonettc on the bosom of immensityi "Oh," you say take my sonl give me that world I am willing to take it In exchange. l am ready now for the bargain. It Is so beautiful world, so sweet world, so grand a worldp'
 But let us look more minutely into the value Of this world. You will not buy property unless you can get a good title to it. After you have looked at the property and found out that it suits you, you send an at- torney to the public office, and he examines the book of deeds, and the book of mortgag- es, and the book of judgments, and the book of liens, and he decides whether the title Is good before you will have anything to do with It. There might be splendid property, and in every way exactly suited to your want; but If you can not get good title, YOU will not take it Now, l am here this morning to say that it is impossible to get a good title to this world. If settle down upon 1t as perminent possession, l may be driven away from it. Ay, in five minutes after l give up my soul for the world l may have to part with the world; and what kind of title do YOU call thati There Is only one way in which l can hold an earthly possession, and that Is through the senses. All beautiful sights through the eye, but the eve may be plotted out; all captivating sounds through the ear, but my ear may be deafened; all luciousness of fruits and yiands through my taste, but my taste may be destroyed; all appreciation of culture and or art through my mind, but 1 may lose my mind. What a frall hold, then, l have upon any earthly possessionsl
 In course of law, if you want to get a man otf property you must serve upon him writ of ejectmeni, giving him certain time to vacate the premises; but when Death comes;to us and serves writ Of ejectment, he does not give us one second Of forewarning. He says; 'On of this place You have no right any longer in the possession" We might cry out; II gave you hundred thous- and dollars for that property, the plea would be of no avail. We might say; "We have warrantee deed for that property;n the plea would be of no avail We might say: s'We have lien on that siore-h -house:' that would do us no good. Death is blind, and he can not see seal, and can not read an indenturc So that, first and last, I want to tell you that when you propose that give up my soul for the world, you can not give me the first item of title.
 Having examined the title of a property, you would not be silly enough 10 buy large warehouse that could not possibly be insued. You would not have any thing to do with such property, Now, I ask you what assur- ance can you give me that this world Is not going to be burned up. Absolutely none. Geologists tell us that it is already on fire; That the heart of the world is one great living coal; that 1t is just like a ship on fire at sea, the flame not bursting out because the matches are kept down. And yet you propose to palm of on me, in return for my soul a world for which, in the first place, you give no title, and in the second place. for which you can give no insurance. ''Oh," you say, ''the water of the oceans will wash over all the land and put out the fire" Oh mo- There are infiam- mable elements in the water, hydrogen and oxygen. Call of the hydrogen, and then the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans would blaze like heaps of shayings. You want me to take this world, for which you can give no possible insurance.
 Astronomers have swept their telescopes through the sky, and have found out that there have been thirteen worlds, in the last two centuries that have dis ,ppeared. At first they looked just like other worlds. Then they got deeply red-they were on fire Then they got ashen. showing they were burned down. Then they disappeared, showing that even the ashes were scattered And 1T the geologist be right in his prophecy, then our world Is to go in the same way. And yet you want me to exchange my soul for it. An, no; it is a world that is burning now. Suppose you brought an insurance agent to look at your property for the purpose of giving you policy upon 1t and while he stood in front of the house Ee should say: That house is on fire now in the basement" you could not get any insurance upon it. Yet you talk about