The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1889-03-06
THE PRODIGAL'S RETURN.
Sermon by the Rev. T. Dewitt
Talmage, D. D.
He Rejoiees at the Reception Of 2so Now
Members Of His Flock, and Preaches
About the Return of the Prod
igal SOMA Day OF Jubilee.

Members Of His Flock, and Preaches
About the Return of the Prod
igal SOMA Day OF Jubilee.
A jubilee sermon was preached recently
By Rev. DR.. Talmage, the occasion being ar
especial communion reception Of 240 new
members, making the present communIcant
membership Of the Brooklyn Tabernacle
s,40S. DR.. Talmage took his text from the
fifteenth chapter of Luke, twenty-third
verse: Bring hither the fatted calf and
kill it" The eloquent preacher spoke as
follows:
JOY! JOY! Joy! We banquet to-day over
this accession Of q multitude OF souls. IT all
ages Of the world it has been customary to
celebrate joyful events by festivity-the
signing of treaties, the proclamation OF
peace, the Christmas. the marriage. How
ever much on other days Of the years our
table may have stiuted supply, on Thanks
giving Day there must be something bount-
eous And all the comfortable homes of
Christendom have at some time celebrated
joyful events By banquet and fes.ivity.
Something has happened in the old home.
stead greater than any thing that has ever
happened before. A favorite son, whom the
world supposed would become vagabond
and outlaw forever, has got tired Of sight
seeing and has returned to his fathers
house The world said he never would come
back The old man always said his son
would come back He had been looking for
him day after day and year after year. He
knew be would come back. Now, having
returned to his fathers house, the father
proclaims celebration.
There is calf in the paddock that has
been kept up and fed to utmost capacity so
as to be ready for some occasion OF joY-that
mights come along. An there never will
be grander day on the old homestead than
this day. Let the butchers do their WORK,
and the housekeepers bring in to the table
the smoking meal. The musicians will take
their places, and, the gay groups vii! move
up and down the floor. All the friends and
neighbors are gathered in and extra supply
is sent out to the table Of the servants. The
father presides at the table and says grace,
and thanks God that tis-long absent boy is
home again. OH how they missed him;
how glad they are to have him back! One
brother indeed stands pouting at the back
nothing; this bad boy should have been
chastened instead Of greeted; veal Is too
good for him!' But the father says: Moth
ing is too good, nothing is good enough"
There sits theyoung man, glad at the hearty
reception, out shadow of sorrow fitting
across his brow at the remembrance OF the
trouble be had seen. All ready now. Let
tie covers lift. Music. He was dead and
he is alive again! He was lost and he Is
found! BY such bold imagery does the
Bible set forth the merrymaking when
soul comes home to God.
First Of all there is the new converts
10y It is no tame thing to become Chris
tian The most tremendous moment in
mans life is when he surrenders himself to
God. The grandest time in the fathers
homestead is when the boy comes back.
Among the great throng who in the parlors
OF this church professed Christ one night
was 8 young man who next morning rang
at my door bell and said, ''Sir, 1 can not
contain myself with the Joy l feel; / came
here to express it. have found moreSoS
in five minutes in serving God than IN all
the years Of my prodigality, and l came to
say sou
You have seen, perhaps, man running
for his physical liberty and the officers OF
the law after him, and you saw him escape,
or afterward you heard the judge had par
doned him, and how great was the glee OF
that rescued man; but it is very tame
thing, that, compared with the running for
ones everlasting life-the terrors Of the
law after him, but Christ coming in tc par
don and bless and rescue and save. You re-
member John Bunyan in his great story tells
how the Pilgrim put his fingers in his ears
and ran, crying: Life, life; eternal life!"
A Door car-driver in this city. some years
ago, sitter having had struggle to support
his family, suddenly was informed that .
large inheritance was his, and there WsS
Joy amounting TO bewildermentt; but that is
q small thing compared with the experience
Of one when he has put in his hands the title
deed to the joys, the raptures, the splendors
Of Heaven, and he can truly say: Its man
sions are mine, its temples are mine, its
songs are mine, its God IS minen'
Q, it is no tame thing to become Chris
sian. II is merry making. Is Is the kill
ing Of the fatted calf It is Jubilee. You
know the Bible never compares lit funer-
al, but always compares it to something
bright. It is more apt to be compared to
banquet than anything else. It's compared
in the Bible to the water, bright, flashing
water; to the morning roseate, hreworked,
,nountsin- -transfgured morning. wish /
could to-day take all the Bible expressions
about pardon and peace, and life, and COM
fort, and hope, and Heaven, and twist them
into one garland, and put it on The browof
the humblest child Of God in this assem-
hlage, and cry: Wear it, wear it now,
wesr It forever, son of God, daughter OF the
Lord God Almighty" o, the Joy Of the
new convert! o, the gladness Of the
Christian service.
You have seen. sometimes a man in re-
lIgious assembly get up and give his expert
ence. Well, Paul gave his experience. He
arose in the presence Of two churches, the
church on earth and the church in Heaven,
and he said: .'Now this is my experience:
'Sorrowful, yet always rejoicine-poor, yet
making many rich-having nothing, yet pos
sessiue all things" II the people in this
house this morning knew the toys OF the
Christian religion, they would c.l pass over
into the kingdom Of God the next moment.
When Daniel Sandeman was dying Of cholera
his attendant said: "Have you much pain"
no." he replied, ''since found the Lord
have never had any pain except SIM" Then
they said to him: would you like to send
message to your friends?" "Yes, would ;
tell them that only last night the love OF
Jesus came rushing into my soul like the
surges of the sea, and I had to cry out:
Stop, Lord, it is enough; stop, Lord,
enoughnn o, the joys Of this Christian re-
igion.