The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1890-09-11
WITNESSES FOR GOD.
Sermon by Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage
at Beatrice, Neb.
The Testimony of Millions Throughout
the World More Potent for the Spread
of the Gospel Than All the Logic
of Christian Preachers.

The following discourse was delivered
by Rev. r. Dewitt Talmage at Beat
rice, Neb, to an immense throng which
gathered in the open air to listen to the
noted preacher. He took for his text:
We are witnesses-Acts ill.,, Is.
In the days of George Stephenson,
the perfector of the locomotive engine,
the scientists proved conclusively that
a railway train could never be driven
by steam power successfully and with
out peril; but the rushing express
trains from Liverpool to Edinburgh,
and from Edinburgh to London, have
made all the nations witnesses of the
splendid achievement. Machinists and
nayigators proved conclusively that a
steamer could never cross the Atlantic
Ocean; but no sooner had they success
fully proved the impossibility of such
an undertaking than the work was
done, and the passengers on the Cunard,
and the Inman, and the National, and
the White Star lines are witnesses.
There went up a gutfaw of wise
laughter at Prof. Morse's proposition to
make the lightning of heaven
his errand- boy, and it was proved
conclusively that the thing could never
be done; but now all the news of the
wide world, by Associated Press, put in
your hands every morning and night,
has made all nations witnesses. So in
the time of Christ it was proved con-
clusively that it was impossible for Him
- 10 CHI
logically that when man was dead, he
was dead, and the heart, and the liver,
and the lungs having ceased to per-
torn their offices, the limbs would be
rigid beyond all power of friction or
arousal. They showed it to be ar abb
solute absurdity that the dead Christ
should ever get up alive; but no sooner
had they proved this than the dead
Christ arose, and the disciples beheld
Him, heard His voice, and talked with
Him, and they took the witness stand
to prove that to be true which the wise
acres of the day had proved to be i'm
possible; the record of the experience
and of the testimony is in the text:
Him hath God raised from the dead,
whereof we are witnesses"
Now, let me play the skeptic for a
moment. There is no God," says the
skeptic, ''for l have never seen Him
with my physical eyesight Your Bible
is a pack of contradictions. There
never was miracle. Lazarus was not
raised from the dead, and the water
was never turned into wine. Your re-
ligion is an imposition on the credulity
of the ages" There is an aged man
moving over yonder as though he would
like to respond. Here are hundreds OF
people with faces a little flushed at
these announcements, and all through
this assembly there is suppressed
feeling which would like to speak out
in behalf of the truth of our glorious
Christianity, as in the days of the text,
crying out: 1--WE are Witnesses
The fact is, that if this world is ever
brought to God, it will not be through
argument, but through testimony. You
might cover the whole earth with
apologies for Christianity and learned
treatises in defense of religion-you
would not convert soul. Lectures on
the harmony between science and re-
ligion are beautiful mental discipline,
but never saved soul, and never will
save soul. Put man of the world
aud man of the church against each
other, and the man of the world will in
all probability get the triumph. There
are thousand things in our religion
that seem illogical to the world
and always will seem illogical Our
weapon in this conflict is faith, not
logic; faith, not metaphysics; faith, not
profundity; faith, not scholastic explo-
ration. But then, in order to have faith
we must have testimony, and if five
hundred men, or one thousand men, OF
five hundred thousand men. get up ant
tell me that they have felt the religion
of Jesus Christ a joy, comfort help
an aspiration, am bound as fair-mind
ed man to accept their testimony.
want just now to put before you three
propositions, the truth of which thinl
this audience will attest with over
whelming unanimity.
The first proposition is: We are wit
nesses that the religion of Christ i.
able to convert a soul. The Gospe
may have had hard time to conque
us, we may have fought it back, but W.
were vanquished. You say CONVEX
sion is only an imaginary thing. W.
know better. ''We are witnesses.
There never was so great change il
our heart and life on any other subiec
as on this. People laughed at the mis-
sionaries in Madagascar because the
preached ten years without on
convert; but there are thirty
three thousand converts in MAZDA
gascar to-day. People laughe
at DR.. Adoniram Judson, the Baptis
missionary, because he kept on preach
ing in Burmah five years without
single convert; but there are 1000
Baptists in Burmah to-day. Peopl
laughed at Dr. Morrison, in China, 70
preaching there seven years without
single conversion; but there are 25,
600 Christians in China to-day Peopl
laughed at the missionaries for preach
ing at Tahiti fifteen years without
single conversion, and at the mission
aries for preaching in Bengal seventies
years without single conversion
vet in all those lands thara ara rn,,I+;