New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-12-31
SERMONS WORTH READING.
XII.
BARNLIKE BIRTHPLACEs CONSIDERED.
CHRISTMAS SERMON BY THE REV. DIR. I. DE
WITT TALMAGE-woRDs OF ENCoUR-


WITT TALMAGE-WORDs OF ENCOUR
AGEMENT AND COUNSEL.
| Tho Brooklyn Tabernacle filed usual yester
day. At the morning services at the Christmas cele
bration special music, vocal and instrumental was
given and Dr Talmagc preached Christmas sermon
His subject was, Barnllke Brthpaces,' the text
being: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddllne
clothes, lying in manager And suddenly there was
with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host
Luke IT, H. -. The sermon was In substance as
follows:
AZ midnight from one OF the galleries Of the sky a
chant broke. To an ordinary observer there was no
man and wlfe-tlavcllcrs, Joseph and Mary by name
had lodged in clubhouse Of an unimDoriant village
he supreme hour OF solcmniy hal passed. and upon
the paind forehead and cheek Of Mary God had set
the dignity he grandeur the tenderness inc over
Bui such scenes Rad often occurred In Bethlehem.
baton OF light marshalled over the hills winged
orchestra. II there had been such brilliant and
misby recognition a. an advent n the H9nse OF
E or at a. asn' or IN the h o mSss Of 81 %c
would not so much have wondered but a barn seems
foo poor centre for such delicate and archangelc
circumference The stage seems too small for so
gcat an act the music too grand for such unappreca
live auditors, the window Of the stable too rude tc be
sefenadcd by other worlds.
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE POORLY STARTED.
No. SIR No, madam II IS my Joy this morning
to tell you what born that night in the village
barn and | want to make my discourse accumu-
lalve and clmactoric, | begin in the first place, by
telling you that that night in the Bethlehem mangcr
was born o. encouragement for all the poorly started
IIo had only two frlcndsthey His parents. No satin
lined cradl' no delicate attentions, but straw and
the cattle and the coarse joke AMI banter Of the
camcldrvcrs. No wonder the medieval painters
represent the knceng before the infant Jesus
for there were no men there at that Time 10 Woshp
From the depths OF what poverty lie rose unl to-day
He IS hoHOTcd in all Chrstcndom, ana slts on inc
hat rforfy Of 10
dolivorcIs had banllke brthpacesl Luther, the
emancipator of religion, born among tho mines
a humble HON, a. Standardization. Columbus.
the dlscovcrer of world born in poverty at Genoa
auVc and admins iratNC OF virtue born IN humble
home al Wcslmoirlsnl hitto and irldeAuX' Who's Whose
Keys unlocked new apartments in the Holy Script
ules which lad never been entered. born In wan
worlds deliyercrs nine ont out Of ten Of The worlds
law The messiah, Of medicine the mcsslahs Of pow
eTy. the mcssiahs Of grand beneY Oencc-weie born
in want
A CHRISTMAS GOODWILL TO MEN.
Again. have 10 tell you hat in that village barn
that night born good viii to men, whether you
call 1t kindness, or forbearance, or forgiveness or
geniality, affection, love II was no sport OF
high heaven TO send its favortc to that humiliation
II was sacrifice for a rcbclllous world After the
calamity in Paradise only did the OK begin TO gore
and the adder sling, and the elephant to smite with
his tusk and the lion to put to ai use tooth and paw,
but under The very tree from which the forbidden fruit
vas pluched were hatchcd and reyeng" and |
malice and envy and Jealousy, and the whole brood of
Again, 1 remark that born that Christmas night IN
rhc village barn sympathetic union WIN othcr |
worlds. The only sccrticism have ever had about |
hrstiany was ASTRONOMICAL sccDtcism which said |
Why should God Oui Of the heavens and amid the |
JupeIs and Saturs OF the universe have chosen our
little BIT of world for the achievements of His only
Dcgotton Son when nc might have had vaser scale
and vaster worlds - But my scepIlcsm IS all gone
/
Now all the worlds are sisters, and that when one
Wceps they all weep, and when sings they all sing
From ihai supernatural grouping In the cloudbanss
over Bethlehem. and from The special trains that ran
Town The scene, find that our world IS beautifully
md gi0nously and magnhcrDtly surrounded. The
netcors are VIII Us for one If them ran To point
Town 20 NE blnhpl,cc The heavens are with Us.
lecausc at the thought Of our redemption they roll
iozannas out OF the midnight SKY. Oh, yes do not
,now but our world NAV be better surrounded than
&c have sometimes IMAGINED. and when a child Is
'orn, angels fetch II, AMI when !, a. angels take H.
gels uphold him. and when heart breaks angels
oohe it. Angels IN tho hospital 10 take Of the
lick Angels in The cemetery TO watch dead.
Angels IN chufch ready tc NY hcavenward with the
angels under the world Angels all around the
CHRIST THE OFFENDERS HOPE.
Again I remark. that that night, born in that
age barn, was the offenders hope. some ser
nonizers may say I ought 10 have projected this
bought at the beginning Of the sermon. oh, no.
wanted you TO rise toward it, | wanted You to
xamine the comedians and the jaspcrs and the
mcralds and the cry stalls before showed you the
.ohinoor-thc crown jewel of the ages.
Oh that jewel had very poor setting. The cub
the bear born amid the grand old pillars of the
crest the whcp Of the lion takes It's hIst step from
he jungle OF luxuriant leaf and Wild flower, the hid
cite and pillarod with salagmitc Christ was born
, bare barn Yet tha' nativity was the offend RS
Ords None but the snlcs' may enter here con.
oTor,' you say, that shuts all out No. Christ
fI4a rYprl1 In 1tf. md IIa pfastl
trough another door lie came through the door
the mangcr, and He departed through the door OF
way our sin that second after arc dead there
III be no more sin about US than about the eternal
know that IS putting it strongly, but that IS
hat understand by full rcmis ion All erased all
erGriing and oycrarchng and irradiang and I'M !
aradlslng possibility foi you. and for ne and for
% You wonder We bring flowers to-day 10 celebrate
ich an event 80 you wonder that We tafr organ
'eliato IT. DO You wonder that Raphael. and ;
ubens, and Titan, and Giotio and Ghirandajo, and
i the old Italian and German painters gave the
iehcst STROKES Of the pencil to sketch the Madonna
Oh now see wha, the mangcr was. Not so high
G gded and icwclcd and embroidered cradle Of the
cnys Of England or the Loulscs Of France. or the
hem CRIB fed not 50 much the oxen OF the stan As
Q white horses Of the AI0calyptic vision. Now / p
TO an imperial robe for conpueIor Now / find
AT the star Of that Christmas night was only the
fmOnd sandal Of Him who hath the moon under y
IS feet Now come to understand that the music +
Tat night not a complete song. but only The +
ringing Of The instTImcH,s FIR "a Srrat chorus Of y
70 worlds. tie bass 10 be carried bv earthly nations I
we'd. and the soprano by Kingdoms OF glory
] going IN. ! going to take all my family ~
III me. ! going to take all my church with | \
T. am going 20 take all my friends and ncighbors N
Ia me- have much faith III manger and cross q
icol sure of H. am going 10 coax YOU In. am l.
ing 10 push you in BY holy siratagem / am going ,
surprise YOU I'm. Yea. with all the concentrated
erey Of my naure-physical, mental. spiritual and
% % "a / | \
Il 30 we'll want To spend eternity with you.
some of your children have already gone Some 7
ne ago ] buried one OF them, and though people y
ssing along the street and seeing white Grape on
dOorbell may have said IT Is only a child vet l.
zen the brOken- hearted father came to solicit my y
~ Ice he said " Come around and comfort us. for Il
ough she was only 1ftcen months old we loved \
so much" All II does not take long for a child To
its arms around the parents whole nature N
A CuRIsrMAs AlnRNING In HEAVEN 81