The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1889-08-01
BELIEVE AND BE SAVED.
SUBJECT OF SERMON BY REV. DR..
TALMAGE SUNDAY, JULY ps.

The Noted brooklyn Divine breaches in
st. Paul, Mimi, Before An Immense and
Appreciative Congregation--Full Text Of
Memorable and Interesting Discourse.
ST.. PAUL, Mimi, July 2s.-The Rev.
T. De Witt Talmage, D. D., of Brook
lyn, n. Y, preached in this city today.
His subject was "The Earthquakes"
and he took for his text: Believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt
be saved" Acts xvi, 81. The sermon
was as follows:
Jails are dark, dull, damp, loath<
some places even now; but they were
worse in the apostolic times. imagine
today we are standing in the Philip
plan dungeon. Do you not feel the
chill? Do you not hear the groan of
those incarcerated ones who for ten
years have not seen the sunlight, and
the deep sigh of women who remem-
Der their fathers house and mourn
over their wasted estate2 Listen again.
1t is the cough OF O consumptive, or
the struggle of one in the nightmare
and hear a culprit, his chains rattling
hS IO1lO OfCI III JllS hItdItlS, anu
you say, God pity the prisoner" But
there is another sound In that prison.
It is a song of joy and gladness.
What place to sing inl The music
comes winding through the corridors
of the prison, and in all the dark
wards the whisper is heard Whats
that2 What's that2"
THE SONG OF PAUL AND sILAs.
) 1t is the song of Paul and Silas.
they cannot sleep. They have been
whipped, very badly whipped The
long gashes on their backs are bleed
ing yet. They lie fiat on the cold
ground, their feet fast in wooden sock
cts, and of course they cannot sleep.
But they can sing. Jailer, what are
you doing with these people2 Why
have they been put IN here3 Oh, they
have been trying to make the world
better. Is that all2 That is all A
pit for Joseph. A lions cave for Dan
lei. A blazing furnace for Shadrach.
Clubs for John Wesley. An anathe-
ma for Philip Melancthon. A dungeon
for Paul and Silas. But while we arc
standing in the gloom of the Philip
plan dungeon, and we hear the ming
ling voices of sob and groan and bias
phemy and hallelujah, suddenly an
earthquakel The iron bars of the
prison twist, the pillars crack
off, the solid masonry begins to heave
and all the doors swing open. The
jailer, feeling himself responsible for
these prisoners, and believing, in his
pagan ignorance, suicide to be honor
able-since Brutus killed himself, and
Cato killed himself, and Cassius killed
himself-puts his sword TO his own
heart, proposing with one strong keen
thrust to put an end to his excitement
and agitation. But Paul cries outs
"Stopl Stopl Do thyself no harm.
We are all here" Then / see the jailer
running through tho dust and amid
the ruin of that prison, and | see hiIa
throwing himself down at the feet of
these prisoners, crying out: "What
shall / dot What shall | do2" Did
Paul answer: "Get out of this place
before there Is another earthquake; !;
put handouts and hopples on these
other prisoners, lest they get away"
No word of that kind. His compact,
thrilling, tremendous answer, an
swer memorable all through earth
hifA iItbN SiAg was DtllONS Oih bllt
Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be
saved" Well, we have all read of
tho earthquake in Lisbon, in Lima, in
Aleppo and in Caracas, but we live
in latitude where severe volcanic
disturbances are rare. And yet we
have seen fifty earthquakes. Here is
a man who has been building up a
large fortune. His bid on the money
market was felt in all the cities. He
thinks he has got beyond all annoying
rivalries III trade, and he says to him
self, "Now | am free and safe from all
possible perturbation. But in 1887,
or in 1887, or In 1873 national panic
strikes the foundations of the com
mercial world, and crash goes all
that magnificent business establish
ment. Here is a man who has built
up very beautiful home His
daughters have just come from the
seminary with diplomas of gradua-
ton. His sons have started in life,
honest, temperate and pure. When
the evening lights are struck, there is
a happy and unbroken family circle
But there has been an accident down
at Long Branch. The young man
ventured too far out i'll the surf. The
telegraph hurled the terror up to the
city. An earthquake struck under the
foundations of that beautiful home
Tho piano closed the curtains dropped /;
the laughter hushcd. Crash 60 all
those domestic hopes and prospects
and expectations. So, my friends, we
have all felt the shaking down of some
great trouble, and there was a time
when we were as much excited as this
man Of the text, and we cried out as
he did, "What shall | do2 What shall
dop The same reply that the apos-
tic made to him is appropriate to us:
"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved"
There are some documents of so
little Importance that you do not care
to put any moro than your last name
under them, or even your initials
but there are some documents of so
great importance that you write out
your full name. So the Saviour in
some parts of the Bible is called
"Lord," and in other parts of the
Bible he is called Jesus" and in
other parts of the Bible he is called
"Christ;" but that there might be
no mistake about this passage, all
three names come together-"The
Lord Jesus Christ"
YOU CAN TRUST HIM.
Now, who is this being that you
want me to trust in and believe in2
Mem sometimes come to me with ere
dentisls and certificates of good char
scter, but cannot trust them. There
Is some dishonesty in their looks that
- 4 ~.
conhde in them. You cannot put your
hearts confidence in man until you
know what stuff he is made of, and am
unreasonable today when ] stop to
ask you who this is that you want me
10 trust ini No man would think o.
venturinG his life on vessel going
out 10 sea that had never been in
spected. No, you must have the Ger
tifcate hung amidships, telling how
many tons ii carries, and hov
long ago il was built, and VIII,
built il, and Gll about it. An'
YOU cannot expect me TO risl
the cargo Of my immortal interest
on board any craft till you tell IN
what it is made of, and where IT wa
made and what il is. When, then,
ask you who this is you want me {
trust in, you toll me he was very al
tractive person. Contemporary writ
sers describe his whole appearance q
being rcsplendent There was no nee
for Christ TO tell the children to com
to him. "SufIcr little children +
come unto me, was not spoken TO tn
children il was spoken to the disciples
The children came readily enougl
without any invitation. No sooner di
Jesus appear than.the little ones jump
ed from their mothers arms, am ava
lanche of beauty and love, into hi
lap. Christ did not ask John t