The Russellville Democrat. [volume] (Russellville, Ark.) 1875-1898, 1888-03-15
TALaAGFS SERMON.
4 Discourse on Songs and the Time
and Place to Sing Them.
The Heavenly Choir and Everlasting
sonE-Jesus and His Love Per-
petual Themc-s'Not Unto Us,
hut Unto Thy Namer'

my beloved--IIsaiah, 8, l.
DR.. Talmage said;
The most fascinating theme for heart
properly attuned is the Saviour. There Is
somethin 10 the morning light to sug-
gest Him, and something in the evening
shadow to speak His praise. The flower
brea thes Him, the star shines Him, the
cascade proclaims Him, all the voices OF
Rature chant Him. Whatever 10 grand,
bright and beautiful, II You Will only
listen to IL, will speak His praise. Wnen
/ come In the summer time and pluck
flower | think of Him who is ''the rose OF
Sharon and the lily Of the valley" When
see In the fields a lamb | say;
Behold the Lamb OF lGod, that tsketn away
the sin OF the world.
When, in very hot weather, come
under a projecting cliff say;
Rock of ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself In thee
On er the old fashioned pulpit there was
a sounding board. The voice OF the min
lister rose TO the sounding board, and then
was struck back again upon the ears OF
the people. And so the ten thousand
voices of earth, rising up, find the heavens
q sound ing. board which strikes back to
the ear of ali the nations the praises OF
Christ The heavens tell His story, and
the earth shows His handiwork. The
Bible thrills with one great story OF re-
demption. Upon a blasted and faded
paradise IL poured the light OF glorious
restoration. 1t looked upon Abraham
from the ram caught in the thicket. 1t
spoke in the bl eating of the herds driven
down 10 Jerusalm for sacrifice. 1t put
infinite pathos into the speech of uncouth
fishermen. 1t lifted Paul into the seventh
Heaven, and broke upon the ear OF st.
John with the brRzen trumpets and the
doxology of the elders, and the rushing
wings of the seraphim.
Instead Of waiting until you get sick
and worn out before you speak the praise
of Christ, while your heart Is happiest,
and your step is lightest, and your fort
unes smile, and your pathway blossoms,
and the over-arching heavens drop upon
you their benedictions, speak the praises
of Jesus.
The old Greek orators, when they saw
their audiences inattentive and slumber :
ing had one word with which they would
rouse them up to the greatest enthusiasm.
In the midst Of their grafton they would
stop and cry out "Marathonp and the
peoples enthusiasm won Id be unbounded.
NV hearers, though you may not have
been borne down with sin, and though
trouble and trials and temptation may
have come upon you, and you feel hardly
like looking up, mathinks there Is one
grand, royal, imperial word that ought
to rouse your soul to infinite rejoicing,
and that word is 'JesusW
Taking the suggestion of the text, l
shall speak to you of Christ, our song.
remark, in the first place, that Christ
ought to be the cradle song. What our
mothers sang to us when they put us to
sleep is sin siug yet. We may have for
gotten the words, but they went into the
fiber of our soul, and will forever be a
part OF ii. 1t is not much what you
formally teach your children as what you
sing to them. A hymn has wings and
can fly erywhither. One hundred and
fifty years after you are dead. and sold
Mortality" has worn out his chisel In re-
cutting your name on the tombstone,
your great. grandchildren will be singing
the song which this afternoon you sing to
your little ones gathered about your knee.
There ia a place in Switzerland where il
you distinctly utter your voice there come
back ten or fifteen distinct echoes, and
every Christian song sung by mother in
the ear of her child shall have ten thou
sand echoes coming back from all the
gates of Heaven. Oh, il mothers only knew
the power of this sacred spell, how much
oftener the little ones would be gathered,
and all our homes would chime with the
songs of Jesusi
We want some couuteracting influence
upon our chill dren. The very moment
your child steps into the street he steps
into the path of temptation. There are
foul-mouthed children who would like to
besoil your little ones. IL will not do to
keep your little boys and girls in the
and oh har IA thaU
must have fresh air and recreation. God
save your children from the scathing,
blasting, damnIng influence of the
streetsl / know of no counteracting in
huence but the power of Christian cult
ure and example. Hold before your lit
tie ones the pure life of Jesus; let that
name be the word that shall exercise evil
from their hearts. Give TO your instruc-
ton all the fascination Of music, morning,
noon and night; let it be Jesus, the era
die song. This Is important il your chill
dren grow up, but perhaps they may not.
Their pathway may be short Jesus may
be wanting that child. Then there will
be q soundless step in the dwelling,
and the youthful pulse will begin to
autter, and little hands will be
lifted for help. You can not help.
And great agony will pinch at
your nehTL, ana tue CFaulS Will DC eiuptyg
and the world will be empty. and your
soul will be empty. No little feet stand
ing on the stairs. No toys scattered on
the carpet. No quick following from room
to room. No strange and wondering
questions. No upturned face, with laug h.
ing blue eyes, come for kiss; but only
grave, and a wreath of white blossoms
on the top OF II, and bitter desolation, and
a signing at nightfali with no one to put
TO bed and wet pillow, and n gra We,
and a wreath OF white blossoms on the
top OF il The Heavenly Shepherd will
take that lamb safely anyhow, whether
you have been faithful or unfaithfu |; but
would IL not have been pleasanter il you
could have heard from those lips the
praises OF Christi / never read any thing
more beautiful than this about a child's
departure. The account said: " She folded
her hands, kissed her mother good-by e,
sang her hymn, med her face 60 the
wall, said her little prayer, and then
died"
oh, IL could gather up in one para
graph the last words Of the little ones
who have gone out from these Christian
circles, and eoud picture the calm looks,
and the folded hands, and sweet depart
ure, methinks il would be grand and
beautiful "a one OF Heavens great doxol-
ogiesl
Inext speak OF Christ as the old mans
song Quick music loses its charm for
the aged ear. The schoolgirl asks for q
schottisch or "a glee; but her grandmother
asks for "Balerma" or the Portuguese
Hymn" Fifty years Of trouble have
famed the spirit, and the keys OF the
music-board must have a solemn tread
Though the voice may be tremul GUS, SC
that grandfather will not trust IL In
church. still he has the psalm-book open
before him, and he sings in his soul Ht
huns his grandchild asleep with the same
tune he sang forty years ago In the old
meeting. house. Some day the choir sings
tune so old that the young people dc
not know IL; but IL starts the tears down
the cheek OF the aged man, for 1t reminds