New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1889-07-03
NIGH B "A r ON.
For Ages There Has Been Conflict
Between Worldly and Christian
Philosophy.

Dewitt Talmage, D. D., preached at the Tab
ernacle this evening on s'The Mightiest Wea-
pom Is the Gospel His text was / Samuel
XXI, s. There is none like that; give it me, Z
The preacher said
David fed from his pursuers. The world
runs very fast when it is chasing a man
The country is trying to catch David, and
to Stay him. David goes into the house of a
priest and asks him for a sword or spear
with which to defend himself Thepriest not
being accustomed to use deadly weapons,
tells David that he cannot supply him; but
suddenly the priest thinks of an old sword
that had been carefully wrapped up and laid
aWay-the very sword that Goliath formerly
used-and he takes down that sword, and
while he is unwrapping the sharp, glittering,
memorable blade it flashes upon David
mind that this was the very sword that was
used against himself when he was in the fight
with Goliath, and David can hardly keep his
hand off it until the priest has I'M
wound it. David stretches out
his hand toward that old sword
and says: ''There is none like that; give it
me-" In other words, Il want in my own
hand the sword that has been used against
me, and against the cause of God So it
was given him. Well, my friends, that is
not the first or the last sword once used by
giant and Philistine iniquity which is to
come into the possession of Jesus Christ and
Of his glorious church. I want, as well as
God may help me, to show you that many a
weapon which may be used against the
armies of God is yet to be captured and
used on our side, and l only initiate David
when stretch out my hand toward the
blade of the Philistine and cry, .There is
none like that give it me''
Iremark, first, that this is true in regard
to all scientific exploration. You know that
the first discoveries in astronomy and ge-
ology and chronology were used to battle
Christianity. Worldly philosophy came out
of it's observatory and said; ssNow, we will
prove by the very structure of earth and by
the movement OF the heavenly bodies that
the bible is a lie and that Christianity, as we
have it among men, is a positive imposi-
ton. Good men trembled. The telescope,
the Leyden jars, the electric batteries, all in
the hands Of the Philistines But one lay
Christianity, looking about for some weapon
with which to defend itself, happened to see
the very old sword that these atheistic
Philistines had been using against the
truth and cried out, "There is none like
that; give it me!'' And Copernicus
and Calico and Kepler and Isaac
Newton came forth and told the world that
in their ransacking of the earth and heaven
Nod n
the God whom we worship; and this old
bible began to shake itself from the koran,
and sLasLer, and zendavesta with which it
hsisal been covered up, and lay on the desk of
the scholar, and in the laboratory of the
chemist. and in the lap Of the Christian, I'M
harmed and unanswered, while the towers
Of the midnight heavens struck silvery
chime in its praise.
| Worldly philosophy said: Matter is eter-
nal. The world always was. God did not
make it, Christian philosophy pluEges it's
crowbar into rocks and finds that the world
was gradually made, and if gradually made,
there must have been some point at which
| the process started then, who started i'll?
and SO that objection was overcome, and. in
the first three words ofthe bible we find that
Moses stated magnificent truth when he
siad in the beginning" s5s# #S5s
Worldly philosophy said: Your bible is a
most inaccurate book all that story in the
old testament, again and again told, about
the army of the locusts-it is 1preposterous.
There is nothing in the coming of the locusts
like an army. An army walks, locusts fly.
An army goes in order and procession,
locusts without order. u Y Wait!' said Chris.
tian philosophy; and in 1868, IN the south
western part.of this country, Christian men
went out to examine the march the locust.
There are men right before me who must have
noticed in that very part OF 1.-THE country the
coming up of the locust like an army; and it
was found that all OF the newspapers unwit-
tingly spoke of them as an army. Why?
They seem to have q commander. They
march like Il host. They halt like a host.
No arrow ever went with straighter flight
than locusfs come-not even turning aside
for the wind. If the wind rises the locusts
drop and then rise again after it has gone
down, tsaking the same line of march. not
varying a foot The old bible right every
time when itspeaks of locusts coming like an
army; worldly philosophy wrong.
Worldly philosophy said; .sAll that story
is simply an absurdty'' time worldly
philosophy said: The light comes straight
Christian philosophy said wait a little
| WHILE 4 and it goes on and makes discoveries
and finds that the atmosphere curves and
/ bends the rays OF light around the earth,
right again; worldly philosophy wrong
again. '.Ah, says worldly philosophy, .all
that illusion in Job about the foundation of
the earth is simply an absurdity. Where
vast thou, says God, when set the founda-
/ tions of the earth? The earth has
Inc foundations. 2 Christian philosophy
comes and finds that the word as translated
safoundation'' may be better translated
tssockets" So now see how it will read if it
/ is translated right: "Where wastthou when
| / set the sockets of the earth?o Whereas the
sockets 1t is the hollow ofGod's handa
socket large enough for any worldto turn in.
1 Worldly philosophy said: What an abb
surd story about Joshua making the sun
and moon stand still. II the world had
stopped an instant the whole universe would
have been out of gear, ! "stop, said Christ
ian philosophy, mot quite SO quick, The
world has twomotioDs- on its own axis
and the other around the sun. 1t was not
necessary that both motions should be
stopped-only the one turning the world on
!, it's own axis. There was no reason why the
halting of the earth should have Jared and
disarranged the whole universe. Joshua
right and God right; infdelity wrong every
time l knew it would be wrong. j thank
God that the time has come when Christians
49,