The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1889-06-12
CHRIsTs BoYHOoD.
Dr. Talmase breaches on Christ
as Village Lad"
Roaming the Hills and Climbing the
Trces Around Notwithstanding In
His Fathers Carpenter Shop, and
Teaching tho Doctors In
the Temple.

The subject Of DR.. Talmages recent SER
mon was "Christ the Village Lad.n He took
for his text Luke Ii 40: "And the child
grew End waxed strong in spirit, filed with
wisdom and the grace of God was upon
Z him. Following is thesermon:
n About Christ as village lad / speak.
There is for the most part silence more
than eighteen centuries long about Christ
between infancy and manhood. What kind
Of q boy was hel Was he genuine boy at
all or did there settle upon him from the
start all the intensities Of martyrdom} We
have on this subject only a little guessing,
Q few surmises, and here and there an un.
important perhaps" Concerning what
bounded that boyhood on both sides we have
whole libraries Of books and whole galleries
Of canvass and sculpture. Before the in
fant Christ in Mary's arms, or taking his
hrst sleep in the rough outhouse, all the
painters bow, and we have Paul Veronese's
"Holy Family" and Perugino's Nativity
pnd Angelica da Fiesole's "Infant Christi
and Rubens' elaboration Of the Magi" and
Tntorets elaboration Of the Magi" and
Chirlandojo's elaboration Of the Magin and
Raphaels madonna" and Orcagna's "Ma-
donna'' and Murillos Madonna" and Ma
honnas by all the schools Of painting In all
lights and shades and with all styles Of at
tractive feature and impressive surround
ings, but pen and pencil and chisel have,
with few exceptions, passed by Christ the
village lad. Yet by three conioined evil
dences think VIC can come to as accurate
IN idea Of what Christ was as boy as we
can Of what Christ was as man.
First, we have the brief Bible account
Then we have the prolonged account Of
what Christ was at thirty years of age. Now
you have only to minify that account some
what and you find what he was at ten years
Of age. Temperaments never change. A
sanguile temperament never becomes
phlegmatic temperament. A nervous tenn
permanent never becomes o lymphatic tenn
permanent. Religion changes ones affec-
tions and ambitions, but IL is the same old
temperament acting in different direction.
As Christ had the religious change, He was
as lad what He was as man, only on not
30 large a scale. When all tradition, and all
art and all history represent Him as a
blonde with golden hair know He was in
boyhood blonde.
We have, beside, an Ininspired book that
was for the first three or four centuries
after Christ's appearance received by many
as inspired, and which gives prolonged
accountof Christ's boyhood. Some Of II,
may be true, most Of Il may be true, none
of II may be true. II may be partly built on
facts, or by the passage of the ages, some
real facts may have been distorted. But
because book is not divinely inspired we
are not therefore to conclude that there are
not true things In II. Prescott's Conquest
of Mexico was not inspired, but we believe
II although II may contain mistakes.
Macaulay's "Historyeof England" was not
Inspired, but we believe II although IL may
have been marred with many errors. The so
called apocryphal gospel in which tho boy
hood Of Christ is dwelt upon do not be-
llieve 10 be divinely inspired, and yet IL may
present facts worthy Of consideration. Be-
cause II represents the boy Christ as per-
forming miracles some have overthrown
that whole apocfyphal book But what
right have you TO say that Christ did not
perform miracles at ten years OF age as well
as at thirtyi Hewas in boyhood as certain
iy divine as In manhood Thenrwhile a lad
he must have had the power 70 work mira
cles, whether he did or did not work them
When, having reached manhood, Christ
turned water into wine that was said to be
the beginning Of miracles. But that may
mean that II was the beginningUf that series
OF manhood miracles. In aword, think
that the New Testament rs only q small
transcript OF what Jesus did and
said. Indeed, the Bible declares posi-
lively that II all Christ did and said
were written, the world would not con-
tain the books. SO we are at liberty TO be-
lieve or reject those parts Of the apocryphal
gospel whichgays that when the boy Christ
with His mother passed band OF thieves
he told Hismother that twotf them, Du-
maohus and Titus by nsmeSwould be the
two thieves vino afterwards would expire
ON the cross beside Him. Was that more
wonderful than some Of .Christ's manhood
prophesiesl Or the uninspired story that
Che boy Christ made fountain spring from
the roots Of a sycamore tree so that His
mother washed his coat In the Ssream-was
that more unbelievable than the manhood
miracle that changed common water into O
marriage beveragel Or the undnspired story
that two sick children were recovered by
bathing 10 ttse water where Christ had
washedi Was that more wonderful than
the manhood miracle by which the woman
twelve years complete invalid should have
been made straight by touching the fringe
Of Christ's coati
In other words, while ] do not believe
that any Of the so-called apocryphal New
Testament Is Inspired, believe much OF II
Is true; iustas believe thousand books,
none Of which are divinely inspired. Much
Of II was Just lii,e Christ. Just as certain
as the man Christ was the most OF the time
getting men out OF trouble think that tho
boy Christ was the most OF the time getting
boys out Of trouble. have declared TO you
this day boys Christ And the world
wants such aone. He did not sit around
pmoping over what was TO be or what was.
From the way In which natural objects un-
wreathed themselves into his sermons after
he had become man concluded there was
not rock or abill or a cavern or tree for
miles around that he was not familiar with
IN childhood. He had cautiously felt
his way down into the Caves and
had with 1.-the and agile limb gained poise
on many high tree top. His boyhood was
passed among grand scenery as most all
the great natures have passed early life
among tho mountains. They may live now
on the fats, but they passed the receptive
days OF ladhood among the hills. Among
the mountains Of New Hampshire or the
mountains OF Virginia or the mountains Of
Kentucky or the mountains OF Switzerland
or ltaly or Austria or Scotland or noun
tains as high and ragged as they, many Of
the worlds thrilling Biographies began.
Our Lords boyhood was passed In neigh
borhood twelve hundred feet above
the level Of the sea, and surrounded
-. H.. II.