The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1889-08-22
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Weekly Discourse Of the Great
Brooklyn Preacher
Subject; "OutWitted by the
World" preached at Liv-
ingstOn, Montana.I

TEXT; '1ne children OF this tportu are IN
their generation piser than the children Of
Hght."-St Luke xvi, 8,
That is another way of saying that Chris
tians are not SO skillful In the mnnipulation al
spiritual affairs as worldlings are skillful In
the management Of temporalities. l see ali
around me people who are alert, earnest, con,
centrated and skillful in mopetary matters
who, in the affairs of the soul, are laggards'
The great want of this world is more com.
mon sense In matters Of religion. II ope-haif
OF the skill and forcefulness employed in
financial aiiairs were employed in disseminate
ING the truths Of Christ, and irving TO mako
the world better, within ten Years the LAST
Juggernaut would fall, the last throne of on.
preston upset, tho last iniquity tumble, and
the anthem that was chanted over Bethlehem
on Christmas night would DO echoed and re-.
echood from all nations and kindred and
people,, GLORY to God in the highest, and
on earth peace good will to men,"
some years ago, on train going toward
tne southwest, as the porter of the sleeping
car was making up the berths at tho evening"
tide, saw q man kneel down TO nrnv
worldly people in the car looked on, as much
as to say; What does this meanr' sup
pose the most of the people In the car thought
mat man was either insane or that he was a
fanatic; but he disturbed no one when he
knelt, and he disturbed no one when he arose.
In after conversation with him / found out
tnat he was a member of church in my own
Guy, That he was a seafearing man, and
mat he was on his way to New Or
thought then, as think now, that ten such
mep-men with such courage for God as tlf I
man had-would bring the whole city TO
CHRIST; n thousand such men would bring this
whole land to God; ten thousand such men.
IN short time, would bring the whole earth
INTO the kingdom of Jesus. That he was sue
cessful III worldly affairs, found out. That
ne was skillfnl in spiritual affairs Won are
Wen persuaded. IL men had the COURAGE, the
pluck, the alertness, the acumen, tho in,,ne-
ny, the common sense in matters of the soul
that they havein earthly matters, this would
De very different kind of world to live in.
III tne lirst place we want more common
sense in the building and conduct of churches
The idea OF the adGptiveness is ALWAYS nara
mount in any other kind of structure RI
bankers meet together and they resolve upon
putting up bepk, the bank is especially
adapted to banking purposes; if manu-
featuring company put up building, it is To
De adapted to manufacturing purposes; but
adaptiveness is not always tho question in
the rearing of churches III many of our
churches we want more light, more
room, more ventilation, more comfort Vast
sums OF money are expended on ecclesiastical
structures, and men sit down in them, and
you ask man how he likes the church; he
says: u like it very well, but can't hear. ="
AS though a shawl factory were good for
everything but making shawls. Tho voice
OF the preacher dashes against the pillars.
Men sit down under tho shadows of the
Gothic arches and shiver, and feel they must
pc getting religion, or something else, they
teel so uncomfortable.
y my friends, we wont more common sense.
In the rearing of churches. There is no ex-
cuse for lack of light when the heavens are
Iui OF 1t, no excuse for lack of fresh air
when the world swims in it. 1t ought to be
an expression not only of our spiritual hap
piness, but OF our physical comfort, when we
Lord God of Hosts! A day in Thy courts is
better than thousand
Again remark: We want more common
sense III the obtaining of religious hope. All
men understand that in order to succeed in
worldly directions they must concentrates
They think on that one subject until their
mind takes fire with the velocity of their own
thoughts. All their acumen all their strategy
all their wisdom, all their common sense, thew
put IN that one direction and they succeed.
But how seldom il is true in the matter of
seeking after God. While no man expects to
accomplish anything for this world without
concentration and enthusiasm, how many
there are expecting after awhile to get into
the kingdom of God without the use of
any such means A miller in Califor-
ma, many years ago, held up a sparkle
OF gold until it bewitched nations.
Tens OF thousands of people left their
homes. They took their blankets and their
plckaxes and their pistols and went to the
wilds Of California. Cities sprang up sud.
denly on the Pacific coast. Merchants nut
aside their elegant apparel and put on tho
miners garb. All the land was full of the
talk about gold. Gold in the eyes gold in
the ears, gold in the wake of ships, gold In
the streets-gold, gold, gold. Word comes
TO us that the mountain of Gods love is full Of
bright treasure; that men have been dig
ging there, and have brought up gold, and
amethyst, and carbuncle, and jasper, and
sardonyx, and chrysoprasus, and all the pre-
cious stones out of which the walls of heaven
We're buiided. Word comes of man who,
ngglng in that mine for one hour, has
Drought up treasures worth more than
al the stars that keep vigil over our
sick and dying world. Is it a bogus
company that is formed? Is it undo
Teioped territory oh no, the story is true.
There are thousands of people in this audionce
VINO would be willing to rise and testify that
70.
In their possession. Notwithstanding all this,
what is the circumstance? Ono would sup.
pose that the announcement would send peo-
pie in great excitement up and down onr
streets. That at midnight men would
knock at your door, asking how
they. may get those treasures. In
stead of that, many Of us put our hands be-
hind our back and walk up and down in front
OF the mine of eternal riches and say: 'sWell,
/ N % r will ho 10 I
am to be damed, i will be damned, and there
is,nothing to do about it," Why, my broth
er, do you not do that way in business mat
tiers? Why do you not tomorrow 30 to your
store and sit down and fold your arms
and say: "If these goods are to be sold.
tneywill bo sold, and if they are not to DO
sold, they will not be sold; there is nothing
for me to do about it." No, you dispatch
your agents. you print your advertisements,
you adorn your show windows you push
those goods, you use the instrumentality.
Oh that men were as wise in the matter Of
the soul as they are wise in the matter of
dollars and cents! This doctrine of
Gods sovereignty, how it is misquotcd
and spoken of as though it were an
iron chain which bound us hand and
foot for time and for eternity, when,
so far from that, in every fiber of your
body, in every faculty of your mind, in
EVERY pdSSioil VI your SOUL, YOU GrG n
free man and it is no more matter of free
choice whether you will tomorrow 10
abroad or stay at home than il is this
matter of free choice whether
you will accept Christ or reject Him.
In all the army of banners there is not ono
Men are not to be dragoonel into
heaven. Among all the tens of thousands or
the Lords soldiery there is not one man but
will tell you: 81 chose Christ. Iwantcd Him;
l desired to be in Ills service; I aln not q con-
script am volunteer" Oh, that men had
the same common sense in the matters of re-
hgion that they have in the matters OF tho
world-the same concentration, the saIno
push, the same enthusiasm! In the
one case secular enthusiasm; in
the other, consecrnted enthusiasm.
Again remark: We want more common
sense in the building up and enlarging of our
Christian character. There are men here
who have for forty years been running the
Christian race, and they have not run quar-
ter Of a milel
No business man would be willing to have
us Investments unaccumulative. II you in
vest dollar you expect that dollar to come
homo bringing another dollar on its back
w hat would you think of man who should
invest ten thousand dollars in a monetary
institution, then go off for five years
make no inquiry in regard to
he investment, then come back, step
up to The cashier of the institution
md say: Have you kept those ten thousand
dollars safely that 1 lodged with your but
lskinp M uueStion al,oft iptpraSt mr. about