The Opelousas courier., 1890-04-05
TALMAGE'S TRIP.
THE RROoAlYN DIVINE's SUNDAY
SERMON.

Text: "a name which is above every
nofne."--Philippians H., g..
On my way from the Holy Land, and
while | wait for the steamer to resume her
voyage to America, I preach to you from
this text, which was one of Pauls rapturous
and enthusiastic descriptions of the name of
Jesus. By common proverb WI have come
TO believe that there is nothing in a name,
and SO parents sometimes present their chill
dren for baptism regardless of the title given
them, and not thinking that that particular
utie will be either a hindrance or C help.
Strange mistake. You have no right to give
to your child a name that is lacking either in
euphony or IN moral meaning. 1t is a sin
for you to call your child Jehoiakim or Tig-
lath-fheser. Because you yourself may have
an exasperat1ng name is no reason why you
should give it to those who come after you.
But how often we have seen some name,
TILED with jargon, rafting down from gen.
Grafton to generation, simply because some
one a long while ago happened to be afflicted
with it. Institutions and enterprises have
sometimes without sufficient elaboration
taken their nomenclature. Mighty destinies
have been decided by the significance Of a
name. There are mel who all their life long
toll and tussle to get over the influence Of
some unfortunate name. While we may,
through right behavior and Christian de-
| meanor, outlive the fact that we were bap-
tized by the name Of a despot, or an infidel,
or a cheat, how much better it would have
been if we all could have started life without
| any such ~incumbrance. When l find the
apostle, in my text and in other parts of his
writing, breaking out in Inscriptions of adj
miration in regard to the name of Jesus, I
want to inquire what are some Of the char
acteristics of that appellation. And o that
the Saviour Himself, while I speak, might
fill me with His own presence, for we never
can tell to others that which we have not
ourselves felt,
First, this name of Jesus is an easy name.
Sometimes we are introduced to people
whose name is so long and unpronounceable
that we have sharply to listen, and to hear
the name given to us two or three times, be-
fore we venture to speak it. But within the
first two years the little child clasps its
hands, and looks up, and says 'Jesus." Can
to-day, there is one household where the little
one speak of father" and "mother," and
'brother," and ~''sister," and not of ''the
name which is above every name" Some
times we forget tho titles of our very best
friends, and we have to pause and think be-
fore we can recall the name. But can you
imagine any freak of intellect in which o
could forget the Saviour's designation? That
word Jesus seems to fit the tongue in
every dialect. When t~herI5oice in old age
gets feeble and tremulous, and indistinct,
| still this regal word has potent u~tterance:
Jesus, I love Thy charming name,
'Tis music to my ear;
Fain would l sound it out so loud
That heaven and earth might hear.
Still further, I remark it is a beautiful
| name. You nave noticed that it is impossi-
/, Bile to associate a name from the person who
has aee name. So there are names to me
that age repulsive-I do not want to hear
them at all-while these very names are at
t~ractive to you. Why the difference? 1t is
because I happen to know persons by those
names who are cross, and sour, and snappish,
and queer, while the persons you used to
know by those names were pleasant and at
| t~ractive. AS we cannot associate a name
from the person who holds the name, that
consideration makes Christ's name SO un-
speakably beautiful. No sooner is it pro-
nounced in your presence than you think
gotha, and you see the loving face, and hear
the tender voice, and feel the gentle touch.
| You see Jesus, the one who, though BAN
quoting with heavenly hierarchs, came
down to breakfast on the fish that rough
men had just hauled out Of Genessaret;
Jesus, the one who, though the clouds are
the dust of His feet, walked footsore IN to
the road to Emmaus. just as soon as that
name is pronounced in your presence you
think of how the shining one gave back the
centurion's daughter, and how He helped the
blind man to the sunlight, and how He made
the cripple's crutcheS useless, and how de
looked down into the babes laughing eyes,
and as the little one struggled to go to Him,
flung out His arms around it and impre ssed q
loving kiss on it's brow, and said: "Of such
! rtthe kingdom of heaven" Beautiful name
! tJesus! Tt stands for love, for patience, fol-
kindness, for forbearance, for self-sacrifice
for magnanimity. 1t is aromatic with al
odors and accordant with oil harnonles
SometimesI see that name, n the letters
seem to be made out of tears, and then agar
they look like cleaning crowns. Sometime!
they seem to me as though twisted out Of
the straw on which He lay, and then q:
though built out of the thrones on which Hi
people shall reign. Sometimes I sound thai
word Jesus and hear coming through
the two syllables the sjghof Gethsemane anc
the groan of Calvary; and again | SOUND it
and it is all a-ripple with gladness and a-rins
with hosanna. Take all the glories of bool
bindery and put them around the pag,
where that name is printed. On christina.
md.aing wreathe it on the wall.
Let it drip from harp's string and thunder
out in organs diapason. Sound it often
shine it, and every flower shall seem K
breathe it, and mountain and sea, and day
and night, and earth and heaven acclaim il
full chant: blessed be His glorious name for
ever, The name that is above every name
Jesus, the name high over all.
, In heaven and earth and sky. .-E.s..E
To the repenting soul, to the exhausted in
valid, to the Sunday-school girl, to the n
white o~ctogenarian, it is beautiful The Ole
man comes in from a long walk, and trem
blingly opens the doors, and hangs his hat OF
the old nail, and sets his cane in the usua
corner, and lies down on a couch, and says tx
his children and grandchildren: "My dears
I am going to leave you" They say
"Why, where are you going, grandfather?
81 am going to Jesus" And SO the old mar
faints BTay into heaven. The llttlf
saI4 ~ comes nosrn N from an pay sa ana 'n asHsm nna
I am SO sich I ann SO sick" Ane
you put haE and the fever is worst
and worse, Until in some midnight SIN
looks up into your face and says: "Mamma
kiss me good-by, / am going away from
you" And you say: "My dear, where ar
you going tor" And she says: Il am goinl
to Jesus" And the red cheek which yo'
thought was the mark of the fever, only turn
out to be the carnation bloom of heaven! Oh
YES, it is q sweet name spoken by the lips o
Childhood, spoken by the old man.
Still further: it is a mighty name. Rotns
child is a potent name in the commercla
world, Cuvfer in the scientific world. Irvinl
a powerful name in the literary world, Wash
ington an influential name in the politica
world, Wellingtona mighty name in the mill
tary world; but tell me any name in all ths
Earth so potent to awe. and lift and thrill
and rouse, and agitate, and bless, as this
name of Jesus. That one word endorsed Saul
and flung Newton IN his face on ships deck
and to-day holds 4O0, 900, 900 of the race witt
omnipotent spell. That name In Englan,
to-day means more than Victoria; in Ger
many, means more than Emperor William
in France, means more than Garnet; in Italy