The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1889-06-10
CHRIST, THE VILLAGE LAD
REV. DIR. TALMAGE's SERMON IN
BROOKLYN YESTERDAY.
An Inquiry Into the Life OF Christ as
Boy-The Apocryphal New Testament
"The Grandest, Holiest, Migntiest Boy
OF All the Ages"


course Of people filing all the available
places Joined in the opening doxology at
Brooklyn Tabernacle this morning The
pastor, the Rev. I. Dewitt Talmage, ID,
expounded the passage in John about the
unwritten works Of Christ which the
world itself could not have contained.
The subject Of DR.. Talmage's sermon was
"Chris, the Village Lad" He took for
his text Luke II. 40: "And the child grew,
and waxed strong in spirit, filed with wis
dom; and the grace OF God was upon
him." The preacher said:
About Christ as a village lad speak.
There is for the most part silence more
than eighteen centuries long about Christ
between infancy and manhood. What
kind of boy was he? Was he genuine
boy at all, or did there settle upon him
from the start all the intensties Of mar
tyrdom? We have on this subject only q
little guessng,a few surmises, and here and
there an unimportant perhaps" Con-
corning what bounded that boyhood on
both sides we have whole libraries OF
books and whole galleries of canvas and
sculpture. Before the infant Christ in
Mary's arms, or taking his first sleep in the
rough clubhouse, all the painters bow, and
we have Paul Veronese's "lloly Family"
and Perugino's Nativity" and Angel
leo da Fiesole's "lniant Christ and
Reubens's elaboration OF the Magi" and
Tintorets "Adoration OF the Magi" and
Chirlandojo's Alteration OF the Magi"
and Raphael's Madonna" and orcagna's
Madonna" and Murilo's madonna"
and Madonnas by all the schools OF paint
ing in all lights and shades, and with all
styles Of attractive feature aud impressive
surroundings, but pen aud pencil and
chisel have with few exceptions passed by
Christ the village lad. Yet by three con-
joined evidences think we can come TO
as accurate an idea OF what Christ was rs
boy as We can Of what Christ was as a
man.
First, We have the brief Bible account.
Then we have tho prolonged account Of
what Christ was at thirty years OF age.
Now you have only to miniiy that account
somewhat and YOU find what he was at
ten years OF age. Tempcamcnts never
change. A sanguine Temperament never
becomes n phlcgmatic tcml cramcnt A
nervous temperament never becomes
Emphatic temperament Religion changes
ones affections and ambitions, but IL Is
fla anna all fafuuarufunug uuftus, IA. "a A
icrcnt direction. A Christ had no frli-
gious change, lac was MS n lad what he was
ns man, only on not No large a scale
When all tradition aud all AT and all HE
tory represent him ~ "a blonde with
golden hair know lac was in boyhood a
blonde.
We have, besides, an uninspircd book
that was the iirt three or four centuries
after Christs appearance received by
many as inspired and which gives q pro-
longcd account of Christs boyhOod. Some
OF II may he true, most OF a may be tfuo,
none Of II may bc true. IL may bo partly
built on facts, or by the passage OF the
ages, some real facts may have been dis
toried. But bccapn, a book is no, diyincly
inspired We anbo,, therefore to conclude
that there apg.., rue things In IT, Pres
cots ''Cog xc H. Mexico was not IN
spircd, by W., olieye II although Il may
contain6 I'lis Macaulay's History
Of I'm. - not inspired, hut va be.
lieyI $500, a''os II may have been marred
wilhhy 5nS Tho 40 called apocry-
phal Ny-sIln which the boyhood Of
Christ IL dwelt upon 10 not believe 20
10 diyinely inspired and vet II may pre-
sent iacs worthy Of const liberation. 10.
cause Il represents the boyChrst as per.
forming mir ..-.s...s. hive oycrthrown
that vi. ~ipioyer was ubook. but what
RICH n's '""',, W,eIat Christ did not
per he was a Dug bf years Of age as
We y ihc day on In boyhood ne
ceriHnly lhe waist manhood. Then
while a lNg a red Goa iinlyhay had
the POWER tSneS was TO xhetber lilo
did or did no. vol, Mas. malyhen. having
reached manhood, Christ turned water
gnio wine, that was aid 10 be the bc.
Inning Of miracles. liul that may mean
that 1t was the beginning Of that series 81
manhood miracles. la n word, ! think
that the New Testament l. only small
transcript II what Jcgus did and said.
Indeed, the Bible declares positively that
II oil Christ did and said were written ttC
world would not contain the books "a
We arr al liberty 10 believe or reject those
parts Of the apocryphal gospel which say
that when the boy Christ with his mother
passed band Olthicycs lac told his mother
that two Of them, Dumachus and Titus b,
namc would be the two thieves who after
warl would expire on cruises beside him
Was that moro wonderful than some o
Christs manhood prophcc.cs7 Or tho un
inspired story that the boy Christ made
fountain spring from the roots " n syca
inOru tree 10 that his mother washed hi
Coat IN the slroam-wnH that more unbc
hcNahlo than the manhood miracle tia
changed common water into marrag,
hcvcagci Or the uninApiTud story tia
two sick children were recovered hy bath
lngin ihu water where Christ had washed
Wa that more wonderful than thc maii
hood miracle by which tho woman twely
ycam complete invalid should have beef
made straight 10y touching tho fringe q
ChrislH coat
In other words. while DO not bclcv
that any Of The ro-clllcd apocyphal Ne,
Testament u inspired. believe much q
II H. true; Just rs ! believe thounnu
books, none Of which arc divincly in
tprcd. Much Of Il wns Just like Christ
just a. certain ~ The man Christ WIS "a
most Of the time pcl,ing men out ,
trouble, ! think that ihc boy Chris, Wa
most Of the Time getting boys ont q
trouble. have declared 10 you this da
boys Christ And the world wants sue
one. He did not tit around mopin
over what was 10 be- or what was. Fror
the way In which natural objects uu
wroaihcd themselves into bis sermon
after he had become man, conclud