Morning journal and courier., 1889-03-23
GREAT RELIGIOUS INTEREST

At TaImadge's Tabernacle-Over Two
 Hundred Added to the Church in One
 Day.
 Mrs. Wm. Gay, formerly resident of this city, but now resident of Brooklyn, N. Y.. and member of Rev. Dr. Talmadge's church, writes to friend here that the great religious interest which commenced in Dr. Talmadge's church year or more ago still continues and at a recent communion over two hundred united with the church in confession. The membership is now about (, 1000, and although the new addition built on the church edi6ce not long ago will accommodate several hun dred, so great is the interest in the doctors preaching that the mammoth auditorium is crowded to overfowing every Sunday and at the weekly evening meetings as well. The singing is congregational and is led by an organ which is one of the most powerful in the city and is accompanied by cornet. Everybody is invited to sing and ss the null titude of voices are heard sounding forth in one mighty volume in "praising God from whom all blessings fowl the effect is truly inspiring.
 The sermons preached by Dr. Talmadge are almost entirely of practical nature, probing deeply into the vices and immoralities of the present time, wildly describing how often the mantle of religion is worn to cover the scars produced by the vices and iniquities of our present generations.
 The following is a synopsis of Dr. Tal- madee's sermon preached at the Tabernacle Sunday morning, the 10th inst. The subject was "The Moonlight Ride'' and the text Ne hemiah ii, 15, s'Then I went up in the night by the brook and viewed the wall and turned back and entered by the gate of the valley, and so returned" To introduce the lesson he drew from this he told the story of Nehe- miah coming from the court of Artaxerxes to rebuild Jerusalem and riding through the ruins of the city by moonlight. From this he drew the conclusion that before recon struction there must be an exploration of ruins.
 "The reason that 50 many people in this day apparently converted do not stay con- verted," he said, 'sis because they did not first explore the ruins of their own heart. The reason that there are so many professed Christians who in this day lie and forge and steal and go to the penitentiary is because they first do not learn the ruin of their own heart They have not found out that the heart is deceitful above all things, and des- perately wicked They had an idea that they were almost right, and they built religion as sort of extension, as an ornamental cupola. There was superstructure of religion built on a substratum of unrepented sins. The trouble was good deal of modern theology
  dation, it builds on the debris of an unregen. erated nature.. They attempt to rebuild Jerusalem before, in the midnight of convic- tion, they have seen the ghastliness of the ruin. They have such poor foundation for their religion that the first northeast storm of temptation blows them down.
 ''I have no faith in a mans conversion if he is not converted in the old fashioned way John Bunyan's way, John Wesley's way, John Calvin's way, Paups way, Christ's way, Gods way. A dentist once said to me, Does that hurtP Said I, Of course it hurts. It is in your business as in my profession. We have to hurt before we can help.' You will never understand redemption until you understand ruin. A man tells me that some one is a member of the church. It makes no impression on my mind at all. simply want to know whether he was converted in the old fashioned way, or whether he was converted in the new fashioned way. If he was converted in the old fashioned way he will stand. If he was converted in the new fahsioned way he will not stand"
 Nehemiah's persistence in rebuilding Jeru- salem in the face of great obstacles seemed to Dr. Talmage picture of "busy and tri- umphant sadness" and from that he drew the lesson of not giving up.
 His closing remarks were as follows: "Do not give up. One like unto the Son of God comes to you to-day, saying, 'Go and sin no more,' while he cries out to your assailants, Let him that IS without sin cast the first stone at her. Oh? there is no reason why one in this house, by reason of any trouble or sin, should give up. Are you foreigner and in a strange landa Nehemiah was an exile. Are you pennilesss Nehemiah was poor. Are you homsicka Nehemiah was homesick. Are you broken-hearteda Nehe- miah was broken hearted. But just see him in the text, riding along the sac- alleged grave of his father, and by the drag on well, and through the fish gate, and by the kings pool, in and out, the moonlight falling on the broken masonry, which throws a long shadow, at which the horse shies, and at the same time that moonlight kindling up the features of this man till you see not only the mark of sad reminiscence, but the cour- age, the hope, the enthusiasm of man who knows that Jerusalem will be rebuilt. I pick you up to-day out of your sins and out of your sorrow, and put you against the warm heart of Christ. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlast- ing arms 'n