The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-05-29
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S Sun.
DAY SERMON.
Subject: "a Poisoned Dinner"

TEXT: $50 they poured out for the n,e,
+ to eat. And 1t came to pass as they arere
eating Of the pottoge, that they cried out,
death in the pot And they could not cal
ttereof"-II Kings iv.. 40
Elisha had gone down to lecture to the stu
dents in the theological seminary at Gilgal.
he found the students very hungry, as stu
| dents are apt to be. It is very seldom the
world makes large provisions for those who
give themselves to intellectual toll. In order
| that these students may be prepared to hear
what Elisha says he first feeds their hunger.
He knew very well it is useless to talk, to
preach, to lecture with hungry men.
So Elisha, recognizing this common sense
principle which every Christian ought to re-
cognlze, sends servants out to get food for
these hungry students. They pick up some
good, healthful herbs, but they happen to
pick up also some coloquintida, bitter poi
sonous,' deathful herb. They bring althese
herbs, they put them into the boiling pot,
they stir them up, and then portion
OF this food is brought to the STU
dents and their professors. Seated at
the table, one of the hungry students begins
Immediately to eat, and he happens to get
hold of some of the coloquintida. he knew
it by tho taste. He cries out: "Poison,
poison! o thou man of God, thereis death in
the pot /" CONSERVATION is thrown over the
whole group. What fortunate thing it was
that this student so early found the colo
quintida in the mixture at the table You
win by reference find this story is precisely as
have mentioned it.
We'll, in our day there are great caldrons
OF sin and death. Coloquintida of mighty
temptation IS pressed into it. Some dip it
out and taste and reject it and live. Others
dip it out, taste it, keep on and die. And it
is the business Of every minister Of religion,
and every man who wishes we'll to the
human race, and who wants to keep the
world back from its follies and its sufferings,
to cry out: Beware! poison, poison! Look
out for this caldron! Stand back! Bewarem
Sin has done an awful work in our world.
It has gone out through all the ages, it has
mixed up a great caidron of trouble and
suffering and pain, and the whole race is
poisoned-poisoned in body, poisoned in
mind, poisoned in soul. But blessed be God
that the Gospel Of Jesus Christ is the
antidote, and where there was sin there shall
be pardon, and where there was suffering
there shall be comfort, and where there was
death there shall be life.
Some time ago, you will remember, per-
suaded you Of the importance Of being chari-
table in judgment of others. At the same
time said to you briefly what this morning
] Iwish to say with great emphasis, that while
we sympathize with the sinner we must de-
nounce the sin, that while we pity the unfor-
ltunate We must be vehement against trans
gression. Sin is jagged thing that needs to
be roughly handled You have no right to
garland it with fine phrases or lustrous
rhetoric. You cannot catch buffalo with
silken lasso.
/ A group of enligrants settle in wild region.
The next day wild beast comes down from
the mountain and carries off one of the chill
dren. The next day a wild beast comes down
from the mountain and carries off another
child. Forthwith all the neighbors band to-
gether, and they go out with torch in one
hand and gun in the other to hunt these mon
sters down, to find their hiding place, to
light up and ransack the caverns, and
to destroy the invaders of their houses.
So we want now not merely to talk about the
sins and follies of the world, we want to 60
behind them, back Of them. Down into the
cavernS where they hide we need to 60 with
the torch of Gods Word iH one hand and the
sword Of Gods eternal Spirit in the other to
hunt out and slay these iniquities in their
hiding places Or, to come back to the fig
ure suggested by my text, we want to find
which the iniquities of society ore dipped
out.
I. In the first place, remark: that un-
happy and undisciplined homes are the
ca1drons of great iniquity.
Parents harsh and cruel on the one hand,
or on the other hand loose in. their govern
ment, wickedly loose in their government,
are raising up generation Of vlpers. A
home where scolding and fretfulness are
dominant is blood relation to the gallows and
the penitentiary! Petulance is serpent
that crawls up into the family nursery
sometimes and crushes everything. Why,
there are parents who even make religion
disgusting to their children. They scold
them for not loving Christ. They have an
exasperating way of doing their duty. Tho
house is full of the war whoop of contention,
and from such place husband and sons go
out to die.
Oh, is there Hagar leading away Ishmael
into the desert to be smitten Of the thirst and
parched of the sand? In the solemn birth hour
a voice fell to thee from the throne of God,
saying: "Take this child and nurse it for me,
and I will give thee thy wages" At even
home, do they hear the children isping the
name of Jesus? 0 traveller for eternity, your
little ones gathered under your robes, are you
leading them on the right road, or are you
taking them out on the dangerous wind
ing bride path, off which their in
experienced feet may slip and up which
comes the bowling of the wolf and the
avalanche? Blessed is the family altar at
which the children kneel. Blessed is the
cradle in which the Christian rnot,,..r roc.iS
the Christian child. Blessed is the song tho
little ones sing at nightfall when sleep is
closing the eyes and loosening the hand from
the toy on the pillow. Blessed is that mother
whose every heart-throb is prayer for her
children's welfare.
The world grows old, and the stars will
cease to illuminate It, and the waters to re-
fresh it, and the mountains to guard it, and the
heavens to Qverspan it, and its long story of
sin and shame and glory and triumph will
in the early home roll on and roll up through
all leternity-bloomin in all the joy, wavingin
all the triumph, exulting in all the song, or
shrinking back into all the darkness. Faith
er, mother, which way are you leading your
children?
A house took fire and the owner was very
careful to get all his furniture out. He got
all his books out, and he got all his
pictures out, and he got all his valuable
papers out, but he forgot to ask, until it was
too late: Are my children safe% Oh,
when the earth shall melt with fervent heat,
and the mountains shall blaze, and the seas
shall blaze, and the earth shall blaze, will
your children be safe? VIII your children
be safeo Unhappy and undisciplined homes
are the source Of much of the wretchedness
and sin of the world.
know there are exceptions to it sometimes.
From bright and beautiful Christian home
q husband or son will go out to die. Oh,
how long you had that boy in your prayers
he does not know how many sleep!ess nights
you have spent over him. 8e does not un-
derstand how many tears you have shed for
his waywardness. Oh, it is hard. after you
have toiled for O child, and given him every
advantage and every kindness, to have him
pay you back in inTatitude AS
one Sabbath morning q father came
a. eoet &c +ho ,,,,lr,it storr,ad ont of il