The west Tennessee star. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1888, 1888-06-15
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Story of the Cross-An Eu-
charistal Sermon.
Only Those who Bear Their Cross IN
This Life Fitted to Wear the Ina
mortal Crown in That to Come
business and Religion

after me, can not be my disciplo.-Luke, xiv.
".
The cross was a gibbet on which Grim
inals were put to death. 1t was some
times made in the shape of the letter T,
sometimes in the shape of the letter X,
some times in the shape of the letter Ia
simple upright; sometimes two cross
pieces against the perpendicular bar, so
that upon the lower cross-piece the Grim
inal partially sat. But whatever the style
OF cross, it was always disgraceful and
always agonizing.
When Darius conquered Babylon he
put two hundred captives to death on the
cross. When Alexander conquered Tyre
he put two thousand captives to death on
the cross. So it was just an ordinary
mode Of punishment But in all the for
est Of crosses, on the hills and in the VAL
Ieys of the earth, there is one cross
that attracts more attention than any 9TH
er. 1t is not higher than tho others, it is
not made out of different wood, there is
nothing peculiar in the notch at which the
two pieces are joined, and as to the scene,
they witnessed crucihxlons every few
weeks, so that 1 see a reckless man walk
ing about the hill and kicking carelessly
aside a skull, and wondering who the
villain was that had so fiat and mis-
shapen a head; and here is another skull,
and there on tho hillside is another skull.
Indeed, the Bible says il was "a place Of
skulls" But about the victim on one of
these crosses all ages are crying: "Who
is Heg Was He man? Was He GodP
Was He man and GodY0
Through the darkness OF that gloomy
day, 1 come close up enough TO the cross
to sec who IL is. It is Jesus. How did He
come thereY Had He come up on the top
of the hill TO look off upon the beautiful
landscape, or i'll and exhausted. People
sometimes wonder why Christ expired SO
quickly on the cross, in six or seven hours,
while other victims have been on the cross
for forty eight hours before life was ex-
tinct. viii tell you the reason. He was ex-
hausted when He came there. He bad
been scourged We are Mortified at the
cruelties Of the whipping post, but those
cruelties we're mercy as compared with
the scourging Of Jesus Christ.
saw at Antwerp a picture made .
Rubens-Rubens' picture of the scourg-
ing of Jesus Christ. 1t was the most over
mastering picture l ever looked ut, OF
ever expect to see. AS the long-frockeG
official opened the door that hid the pict-
ure, there He was-ChTist, with back bent
and barred. The hagellatOr stood with the
upper teeth clenched over the lower lip
as though to give violence to the blows
There were the black and blue ridges
denied even the relief OF bleeding. There
WIS lub nesn duueIlLR 10 INC WHIPS a.
they were lifted. There were the marks
where the knots in the whips gouged GU
the flesh. There stood the perse cutor
with his foot on she calf of the leg of the
Saviour, balancing himself. Oh! the furi
GUS and hellish look on those faces, grin.
ming vengeance against the Son of God
The picture seized me, it overwhelmed
me; it seemed as if it would kill me. IdC
not think / could have looked at it tiv,
minutes and have lived.
But that, my friends, was before Chris
had started for Calvary. That was tn,
only whipping. Are you ready for you
journey to the CROSSE
The carpenters have split the timber
into two pieces. They are heavy and the!
arc long pieces, for one of them must bt
fastened deep down in the earth lest TIM
struggling of the victim upset the struct
ure. They put this timber upon TIN
shoulder of Christ very gradually, first
10 see whether He can stand it, and ate
they find He can stand It they put tn,
whole weight upon Him. Forward, now
to Calvary. The hooting and the yellin.
mob follow on. Under tho weight of tn
cross, Christ being weary and sick, Ii
stumbles and falls, and they jerk at Hi
robe, indignant that He should have stun
Dled and fallen, and they cry: "Get W
get upW Christ, putting one hand on tn
ground and the other on the cross, rises
looking into the face of Mary, His mother
for sympathy; but they tell her to stanu
back, il is no place for "a woman-"Stan
back and stop this crying"
Christ moves on with His burden upo
His shoulders, and there is a boy tina
passes along with Him, a boy holding
mallet and few nails. l wonder wha
they are for. Christ moves on until tn
burden is great He staggers and fall
Hat into the dust and faiuts dead away
and ruffian puts his foot on Him an
shakes Him as he would dead dog, whit
another rutfian looks down at Him, won
dering whether he Has tainted away, c
whether He is only pretending to faiu
away, and with jeer and contempt indie
scribable says: Tainted, have You
Tainted! Get up, get onW
Now, they have arrived at the foot u Il
hill. of with His clothes. Shall Thu
loathsome mob look upon the unrobe
body of Christi Yes. The commandin
officers say; "Unfasten the girdle, take O
the coat, strip Him." The work is dom
But bring back the coat, for here are IL
gamblers tot sing up coin on the groun,
saying;
''Who shall have the coat2" One rufia
says:
Il have it, have it-it is minel" Z
rolls il up and puts it under his arm, c
he examines 10 10 see what fabric it
made of. Then they put the cross upo
the ground and they stretch Christ upo
il, and four or five men hold Him dow
while they drive the spikes home, at ever
thump groan, groanl Alasl Ala.
the hour passes on and the time come
when they must cruelty Him.
Christ has only one garment left now,
Cap-a cap of thoruS. No danger that
will fall off, for the sharp edges hay
puuctured the temples, and it is sure al
fast One ruffian takes hold of one end
the short beam of the cross, and anOth,
ruffian takes hold of the other end of q
short beam OF the cross, and another ru
fan puts his arms around the waist
Christ, and ano Their rufian takes hold
the end of the long beam of the cross, an
altogether they move on until they con
to the hole digged In the earth, and wit
awful plunge it jars down with it's burde
of woe. IL is not the picture OF a Chris
IL is not the statue OF Christ, as you som,
times see it in a cathedral; but it is II
body Of a bleeding, living dying Christ
They sometimes say He had i've wound
but they have counted wrong. Tw
wounds for the hands, two wounds for Ii
feet, one wound for the side, they sa
FIVE wounds. No, they have missed Il
worst and they have missed the mos
Did you ever see the bramble out
which that crown Of thorns was made2
saw one on brooklyn Terry boat, III q
hands Of a gentleman who had just r,
turned from Palestine, a bramble just Ill
that out of which the crown of thorns WI
made. OF how cruel and how stubboI
were the thorns. And when that cap
thorns was put upon Christ, and il WI
pressed down upon Him, not FIVE wound
but ten, twenty, thirty-I can not cou
them.
There were three or four absences tn
made that scene worse. First, there w
the absence of water. The climate w
hot, the fever, the Inflammation, Il
nervous prostrauOns, the gaugrene h,
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