Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1890-05-05
SAVED AS BY FIRE.
THE NARROW ESCAPES" OF TaE CHRISTIANS
LIFE.
Dr.. Talmage's Eloqaea! Tabernacle Sermon Yesier-
day-The Temptations and Dangers Which
Besst Men-The Only Safety
and Refuge.
Special Telegram 10 The Register

the Academy of Music, and prayer had
been offered. Dr. Tamage preached on
Marrow Escapes" taking as his text
job 10; 20. Il am escaped with the
skin OF my teeth" Following is the
sermon i'm full:
job had il hard. What with boils
and bereavements and bankruptcy, and
a fool of wife, he wished he was dead:
and do not blame him. His flesh was
gone, and his bones were dry. His teeth
wasted away until nothing but the en-
amcl seemed left. lie cries out. Il am
escaped with the skin of my teeth.
There has been some difference of
opinion about this passage. ST. jerome
and SchultenS, and Doctors Good and
Pools and Barnes, have all tried their
forceps ON Jobs teeth. You deny my
Interpretation. and say, What did job
/ know about the enamel of the tccth?'
He knew everything about it. Dental
surgery is almost as old as the earth.
The mummieS OF Egypt, thousands of
years old. are found to-day with gold
filling I'm their teeth. Ovid and Horace
and solomon and Moses wrote about
these important factors of the bony.
To other provoking complaints, job, l
/ think, has added an eNasperating tooth
ache. and putting his hand against the
mhamed face. ne says. II am escaped
with the skin of my teeth.
4 very narrow escape. you say, for
Jobs body and soul; but there are thou
sands of men who make just Us narrow
escape for their soul. There was time
when the partition between them and
ruin was no thicker than Il tooth'S en-
amcl; but Is job finally escaped. 50 have
they. Thank God, thank God.
Paul expresses the same idea by Il
| different figure when he says that some
people are ''Narcd as bJ fire. \ vessel
al sea is IN flames. You 90 to the stern
| of the vessel The boats have showed of.
/ The flames advance; You can endure the
| heat no longer on your face. You slide
down on the side of the vessel and hold
/ ou with your fingers until the forkcd
/ tongue of the fire begins 10 lick the
back of your hand and you feel that You
must fall when one of the lifeboatS
comes back. and the passengers say
| they think they have room for one
ImOre. The boats swings under YOU
YOU drop in-you are saved. So some
imcn are pursued 10y temptation until
/ they are partially consumed, but, after
Iall. get oT-"Sdutd as by IRE But !
/ like the figure of job little better than
/ that of Paul. because the pulpit has not
worn 10 out; and | want 10 show you. If
| God will help. that some men make mar
row escapes for their souls. and are
saved as
''wIrH THE SKIN OF THEIR TEETH.
It's as easy foP some people to look
to the Cross as for You to look to this
pulpit. Mild, gentle. tractablc, loving.
Won expect them 20 become Christians.
| You go over To the store and say.
"Grandon Joined the church yesterday.
| Your business comrades say. That Is
| lust what might have been expected;
he always was of that turn of mind.
In youth. this person whom ! describe
was always good. He never broke
/ things. lie never laughed when it was
/ improper To laugh. At seven. he could
sit am hour in church. perfectly quiet
looking neither 20 the right hand nor to
/ the left. but straight into the eyes of
| the minister. as though hc understood
/ the whole discussion about the eternal
DEGREES. He never upset things nor
lost them. lie hoated into the kingdom
of God So gradually that il is uncertain
| lust when the matter was decided
/ Here is another one. who started ln
/ life with an uncomfortable spirit. lie
| kept the nursery i'm an uproar. His
mother found him walking on the edge
/ of the houSe-roOf 70 see If lac could bal
/ Iance himself, There was no horse that
| he dared not ridc-nO tree that he could
mot clisnb. His boyhood was a long
series of prcdicamentS; his manhood
was reckless: his mid-lifc very way
/ ward. But now he is converted. and
vou 20 over To the store and say: ARK
wright ioiued the church yesterday.
/ Your friends say, it is not possible. You
must be Joking" You say: NO; | tell
Won the truth. He joined the church.
/ Then they reply. There is hope for
/ any of us if old Arkwright.haS become Il
/ |Christiau. H. other words. We will ad-
init that il is more difficult for some
/ men 10 accept the Gospel than for 9TH
/ crS.
may bee preaching to some who have
/ cut loose from churches and Bibles ana
/ SUNDAYS. aud who have come In here
with mo- intention of becoming Chris
tiaus themselves. but just TO see what Is
going on; and yet you may ind yourself
escaping. before You leave this house,
AS with the skin of your teeth. do
/ NOT expect to waste this hour. have
seen boats 90 of from Cape May or Long
| Branch. and drop their nets, and after
awhile come ashore. pulling IN thelr
nets. without having caught single
fish. IL was not a good day. or they
| had not the right kind Of net. But
we eypect no such excursion to-day.
The water is full Of fish, the wind Is IN
|tbe right direction, the Gospel net Is
strong Oh. thou who didSt help Simon
and Andrew to fish, show MS to-day how
/ IN east the net ON the right side OF the
ship.
SOME OF YoU, IN COMING TO Gop'
will have to run against Sceptical no
tions In is useless for people To say
sborp and cutting things to those VINO
refect the Christian religion. ! cannot
sav such things by what process oil
termination or trial or betrayal YOU nave
come To your present state, know not
/ There are two gates To your nature the
gate of the head and the gate oil 'he
heart. The gate Of your head Is Locked
with bolts and bars that an arch-angel
could not break, but the gate oil your
heart swings easily on its hinges IL !
assaulted your body with weapons you
would meet me with weapons. ana IL
would be- Sword-StrOke for Sword-stroke'
and wound for wound. and blood Tor
blood: but if | come and knock at the
door of your house. you open IT, ana
give me the best in your parlor II
| should come at YOU now with an argu-
ment. Won would answer me with an
argument: if with sarcasm, you would
answer me with sarcasm: blow for blow,
stroke for stroke; but when | come aad
knock at the door of your heart YOU
open IL and say. Come in, my brother
and tell me all you know about CHRIST
and heaven"
Listen TO two or three questions; Are
Won aS happy as you used to be when you
believed i'm the truth OF the Christian re-
ligion9 Would YOU like TO have your
children travel on i'm the road in which
Won are now travelling? You had rel
ative who profeSSed to be 4 Christian
and was thoroughly consistent, living
and diving I'm the faith OF the Gospel
/ Would YOU not like TO live the same quiet
afsHI