The Brookhaven leader., 1888-09-06
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
Small Events Sometimes Prolific Of
Great Results.
Helpful Influences In Every Day Life that
Rarely Receive Full Credit-Inci-
dents In Our Lives that Have
Shaped Our DestInies.

having been delivered elsewhere within
the past two years. 1t is a gosdsone, how
ever and will bear repeating. His text
was:
Through q window, in a basket was let
down by the wall.-II. Cor H., 81
Damascus is a city of white and glisten-
ing architecture, sometimes called "the
eye OF the East" sometimes called "a
pearl surrounded by emeralds," at one
time distinguished for swords Of the best
material called Damascus blades, and
upholstery OF richest fabric called
darnasks. A horsemau by the
name of Paul, riding toward this
city had been thrown from the sad
die. The horse had dropped under fash
from the sky, which at the same time was
30 bright it blinded the rider for many
days, and think so permanently injured
his eyesight that this defect Of vision be-
came the thorn in the flesh he afterward
speaks OF. He started for Damascus to
butcher Christians, but after that hard
fall from his horse he was a changed
man and preached Christ in Damascus
till the city was shaken to its founda-
ton.
The mayor gives authority for his ar
rest and the popular cry is: "Kill him!
high wall, and the gates are watched by
the police lest the Cilician preacher es-
cape. Many of the houses are built on
the wall, ana their balconies projected
clear over and lowered above the gardens
outside. 1t was customary to lower
baskets out of these balconies and pull
up fruit and flowers from the gardens.
To this day visitors at the mOnastry OF
Mount Sinai are lifted and let down in
baskets Detectives prowled around from
house to house looking for Paul. but his
friends hid him now in one place, now IN
another. He is no coward, as fifty incl
dents in his life demonstrate. But lie
feels his work Is not done yet, and SO he
svades assassination.
us that preacher here?" the foamin
mob shouts at one door.
' us that fanatic hereF' the police shcIt
at another house door. Sometimes on
the street iucognito he passes through
crowd of clenched fists, and sometimes
be secretes himself on tho house tops.
At last the inturiated pOpulace get on
sure track of him. They have positive
evidence that he IS in the house Of one Of
the Christians, the balcony Of whose
home reaches over the wall. Here he is!
Here he s." The vociferation and BIAS
phemy and bowling Of the pursuers are
at the front door. They break in. Fetch
out that Gospelizer and let US hang his
head on the city gate Where is he"
The emergency was terrible. Provi-
aeutially, there was good stout basket
In the house. Paul's friends tasten
rope to the basket Paul steps into II.
The basket is lifted to the edge of the
balcony on the wall, and then, while Paul
holds on to the rope with both hands, his
friends lower away, carefully and eau
Gously, slowly but surely, further down
and further down, until the basket strikes
the earth and the apostle steps out, and,
afoot and alone, starts on that famous
missionary tour, the story Of which has
aStonished earth and Heaven. Appro-
PIRATE entry in Paups diary of travels
Through a window, in q basket, was let
down by the wall.
Observe, first, on what slender tenure
great results hang The rope maker who
twisted that cord fastened to that lower.
ing basket never knew how much would
depend on the strength Of it. How if it
had been broken and the apostles life
had been dashed out? What would have
become OF the Christian Church? All
that magnificent missionary work in
Pamphilia, Cappadocia, Galatia Mace
donia would never have been accom-
plished. ALI his writings that make up
SO Indispensable and enchanting a part
of the New Testament would never have
been written. The story of resurrection
would never have been so gloriously told
as he told it. That example Of heroic and
triumphant endurance at Philippi, in the
Mediterranean euroclydon, under fagel-
lation, and at his beheading would not
have kindled the courage of ten thOusa and
martyrdoms. But that rope holding that
basket, how much depended on it'll So
again and again great results have hung
on what seemed slender circumstances.
Did ever ship Of many thousand tons
crossing the sea have such important
passengers as had once boat Of leaves,
from taffrail to stern only three or tour
feet, the vessel made waterproof by
coat of bitumen and floating on the Nile
with the infant Law giver Of the jews on
board? What if some crocodile should
crunch it? What if some of the cattle
wading in for drink should sink it?
Vessels Of war sometimes carry forty
guns looking through the port holes,
ready to open battle. But that tiny craft
on the Nile seems to be armed with all
the guns of thunder that bombarded
Sinai at the law -giving. On how fragile
craft sailed how much of historical i'm
pOrtance!
The parsonage at Epworth England, is
on fire in the night and the father rushed
through the hallway for the rescue Of his
children. Seven children are out and
safe on the ground, but one remains in
the consuming building That one wakes
aud, finding his bed on fire and the build
idg crumbling, comes to the window, and
two peasants make a ladder of their
bodies, one peasant standing on the
shoulder of the other, and down the hui
man ladder the boy descends-John Wes-
ley. If you would know how much de-
ponds on that ladder Of peasants ask the
millions of Methodists on both sides of
the sea. Ask their demonstrations all
around the world. Ask their hundreds of
thousands already assembled to join their
founder, who would have persisted but for
the living stairs of peas ants shoulders.
An English shipsto pped at Pitcairn ISL
and, and right in the midst of surround
ing cannibalism and squalor, the pas
sengers discovered Christian colony of
churches and schools and beautiful
homes, and highest style Of religion and
civilization. For fifty years no mission
airy and no Christian influence had land
ed there. Why this oasis of light amid q
desert of heathendom? Sixty years be.
fore ship had met disaster, and one OF
the sailors, unable to save any thing else,
went to his trunk and took out a Bible
which his mother had placed there and
The book was read on all sides until the
nd viniA 11ofS