The intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1887-1891, 1889-05-18
SINS AWFUL WORK.
Rev. DR.. Talmage Warns the Peo-
pie Against Moral Poisons.
The Caldrons of Sin and Death-Home
Influences For Good or Bad-Indolenco
the Caldron of Iniquity-Advice
to Young Men.

~ ~ pObtdSG, budb lutJ CTleu OUT
ana said, ., thou man of God, there il
death in the pot And they could not eat
thereof"
Elisha had gone down to lecture to the
students in the theological seminary at
Hllgal. he found the students very
hungry, as studentssare apt to be. 1t is
very seldom the world makes large pro-
vision for those who give themselves to
intellectual toll. In order that these stu
dents may be prepared to hear what
Elisha says, he first feeds their hunger.
He knows very well tits useless to talk, TO
preach, to lecture to hungry men.
80 Elisha, recognizing this common
sense principle, which every Christian
ought to recognize, sends servants out to
get food for these hungry students. They
pick up some good healthful herbs, but
they happen to pick up also some colo
quintida, a bitter, poisonous, beautiful
herb. They bring all these herbs, they
put them into the boiling pot, they stir
them up and then a portion of this food is
brought to the students and their pro-
fessors. Seated at the table, one of the
hungry students begins Immediately to
eat and he happens to get hold Of some of
the coloquintida. He knew it by the
taste. He cried out: poison, poisonl o
thou man of God, there is death in the
pot" CONSERVATION Is thrown over the
whole group. What a fortunate thing it
was that this student so early found the
coloquintida in the mixture at the tablet
You will by reference find this story Is
precisely as l nave mentioned it.
Well, in our day there are great caldrons
OF sin and death. Coloquintida OF mighty
temptation is pressed into'it. Some dip 1t
out and taste, and reject 1t and live. 9th
ers dip 1T out. taste 1t, keep on and die.
And tits the business of every minister of
religion and every man who wishes well
to the human race, and who wants to keep
the world back from its follies and its suf-
ferings, to cry out: beware! poison,
poison Look out for this caldron! Stand
backi Bewarep"
Sin has done an awful work in our
world. 1t has gone out through all the
ages, 1t has mixed up q great caldron of
trouble and suffering and pain, and the
whole race Is poisoned-poisoned in body,
poisoned In mind, poisoned in soul. But
blessed be God that the gospel of Jesus
Christ Is the antidote, and where there
was sin there shall be pardon, and where
there was suffering there shall be COM
fort, land where there was death there
shall be life.
Some time ago, you will remember, /
persuaded you of the Importance of being
CunfibdD'o N JuuStnenU Oh OIneTS. Az inc
same time l said to you briefly what this
morning l wish to say with great empha-
sis, that while we sympathize with the
sinner We must denounce the sin, that
while we pity the unfortunate we must be
vehement against transgression. Sin is a
Jagged thing that needs to be roughly
handled. You have no right to garland it
with fine phrases or lustrous rhetoric. |
You can not catch a buffalo with Q silken
lasso.
A group of emigrants settle in a wild
region. The next day a wild beast comes
down from the mountain and carries off
one Of the children. The next day a wild
beast comes down from the mountain and
carries off another child. Forthwith all
the neighbors band together, and they go
out with torch in one hand and gun in the
other to hunt those monsters down, to find
their hiding place. to light up and ransack
the caverns and destroy the invaders of
their houses. So we want now no
merely to talk about the sins and
follies of the world, we want to go
behind them, bach of them. Down
into the caverns where they hide we need
to go with the torch of Gods word in one |
hand and the sword of Gods eternal spirit
in the other to hunt out and slay these in
EQUITIES in their hiding places. Or. to come
back to the figure suggested by my text,
we wan to find what are the caldrons of
sin and death from which the iniquities of
society are dipped out
First-In the first place, 1 remark, that
unhappy and undisciplined homes are the
caldrons OF great iniquity. Parents harsh
and cruel on the one hand, or on the other
hand loose i'll their government, wickedly
loosen their government, are raising up a
generation of vipers. A home where scold-
ing and fretfulness is dominant blood re-
lation to the gallows and the penitentiaryi
Petulance is a serpent that crawls up into
the family nursery and destroys every
thing. Why, there are parents who even
make religion disgusting to their children.
They scold them for not loving Christ.
They have an exasperating way of DOING
their duty. The house is fult-of the war
whoop of contention, and from such a
place husband aud sons go out to die.
Oh Is there a Hager leading away
ishmael into the desert to be smitten of
the thirst and parched of the sandl In
the S9lemn birth hour n voice fell to thee
l$rom the throne of God, saying: Take
this child and nurse it for me and l will
give thee thy wages" AT even time,
when the angels of God hover over that
home, do they hear the children lisping
the name of Jesusi OF travellers for
eternity, your little ones gathered under
your robes, are you leading them on the
right road, or, are you taking them out on
the dangerous winding bride path, off
of which their inexperienced feet may
slip and up which comes the bowling OF
the wolf and the sound Of loosened ledge
and tumbling avalanche? Blessed Is the
family altar at which the children kneel.
Blessed is the cradle in which the Chris
tian mother rocks the Christian child. |
Blessed is the song the little one sings at
nightfall when sleep is closing the eyes
and loosening the hand from the toy on
the pillow. Blessed is that mother whose
every heart throb Is q prayer for her chill
dren's welfare.
The world grows old, and the stars
will cease to illuminate it, and the waters
to refresh il, and The mountains to guard
1t, and the heavens TO overspan it, and its
long story of sin and shame and it's glory
OF triumph will soon turn TO ashes, but in
1uences hat started in this early home
roll on and roll up through all eternity
bloomipgi In all the joy, waving in all the
triumph, exnlting in all the song, or
sRE4ehking back into all the darkness.
Father. mother, which way are you lead
ing your children?
A house took Dire and the owner was
very careful to get ali the furniture out.
He got all his books out, and he got all his
pictures out, and he got all his valuable
papers out, but he forgot to ask until it
was too late: sAre my children safe?" o,
when the earth shall melt with FER
vent heat. and the mountains shall blaze,
and the seas shall blaze, and the earth
shall blaze, will your children be safe?
Will your children bs safe? Unhappy and
nndisciplined homes are the source Of
much Of the wretchedness and sin of the
world.
know there are exceptions to it some-
From a bright and beautiful
home a husband or u son will go
out to die. o how long you had that boy
In your prayersi He does not know how
many sleepless nights you lave spent
over him. He does not understand how
many tears you have shed for his way
wardness. Or, it is hard after you have
toiled for a child and given him every adj
vantage and every kindness to AVE him
pay You back in ingratitudei As one Sab
bath morning a father came to the foot OF
The pulpit as | stepped out of it and said:
my son, my son, my son 20 There Is
q young man proud of his mother,
would strike TO the dust any man who
would insult her, who at thism moment him
,ef, by his evil dong and his bad habits,
10 sharpening a dagger to plunge through
hat mothers heart. A telegram brought
him from afar. He went bloated and
Scared into the room and he stood by the I
ifeless form of his mother. I