The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-07-14
MEETINGS IN HEAVEN.
TALMAGE BREACHES ON A MUCH
MOOTED QUESTION.

WAsEcA. MINI, July 13.-Dr. TaImage,
who lectured here yesterday, preached to
an enormous outdoor gathering to-day. His
subject was, Meeting our friends in
heaven" The eminent clergyman took for
his text ii. Samuel xii, 90. "I shall go to
him." His sermon was as follows:
There is very sick child in the abode Of
David the king. Disease, which stalks up
the dark lane of the poor and puts its
smothering hand on the lip and nostril CT
the wan and wasted, also mounts the palace
stairs, and bending over the pillow blows
into the face of young prince the frosts of
pain and death. Tears are wine to the
king of terrors. Alasl for David the king.
He can neither sleep nor eat, and lies pros
trate on his face, weeping and wailing until
the palace rings with the outcry of woe.
What are courtly attendants, or victori-
| Gus armies, or conquered provinces, under
| such ciroumstancess What to any parent
is all splendid surrounding when his child is
sickf Seven days have passed on. Then in
that great house two eyelids are gently
closed, two little hands folded, two little
feet quiet, one heart still The servants
come to bear tho tidings to the king, but
they cannot make up their minds to tell him.
and they stand at the door whispering about
the matter, and David hears them, and he /
| looks up and says to them, sis the child (.
deadp "Yes, he is dead" David
rouses himself up, washes himself.
puts on new apparel, and sits down to-
food. What power hushel that tenn
pesti What strength was it that lifted up
that king whom grief had dethronedl Oh,
IL was the thought that he would come
| again into the possession of that darling
child. No grave-digger's spade could hide
him. The wintry blasts Of death could not
put out the bright light. There would be a
forge somewhere that with silver hammer
would weld the broken links In a city
where the hoofs of the pale horse never
strike the pavement he would clasp his lost
treasure. be wipes away the tears from
his eyes, and he clears the choking grief
from his throat, and exclaims, II shall go
to him."
Was David right or wrongl II we part
on earth, will we meet again in the next
world! well" says some one, ''that
seems to be an impossibility. Heaven is so
large a place we never could find our
kindred there" Going into some city,
without having appointed time and place
for meeting, you might wander around for
weeks and for months, and perhaps for
| years, and never see each other ;and heaven
is yaster than all earthly cities together,
and how are you going to find your de-
parted friend in that country9 1t is so vast
| realm. John went up on one mountain
of inspiration, and he looked off upon
the multitude. and he said. Thou
sands OF thousands. Then he came upon q
| greater altitude Of Inspiration and looked
off upon 1t again. and he said, Ten thou
sand times ten thousand And then he
came on higher mount of inspiration, and
looked off again, and he said, "A hundredl
and forty and four thousand and thousands
OF thousands" And he came on a still
greater hight of inspiration, and he looked
off again and exclaimed, ga great multi
tude that no man can number" Now |
ask. how are you going to find your friends
Ill such throng as that9 Is not this idea
we have been entertaining after all falsityf
Is this doctrine of future recognition Of
| friends in heaven guess, myth, whim,
or is 1t a granite foundation upon which
the soul pierced Of all ages may build a
glorious hope! Intense question: Every
heart in this audience throbs right into it.
There is in every soul here the tomb of at
least one dead.
Tremendous question: 1t makes the lip
quiver, and the cheek flush, and the entire
nature thrill: Shall we know each other
theres l get letters almost every month
asking me to discuss this subject. get O.
letter in bold scholarly hand, on gilt
edged paper, asking me to discuss this
question, and | say, "Ahl that is a curious
man, and he wants q curious question
solved" But / get another letter. 1t is
written with a trembling hand, and on
what seems to be torn-out leaf Of book,
and here and there is the mark of a tear;
and say, 30, that is broken heart and it
wants to be comforted."
The object Of this sermon is 10 take this
theory out OF the region of surmise and
speculation into the region of positive GER
tainty. People say: 1T would be very
pleasant If that doctrine were true. hope
hn trr1a rhavs 10 Il, I
1t were true" But I believe that I can
bring an accumulation of argument to bear
upon this matter which will pI owe the doc
trine OF future recognition as plainly as
that there is any heaven at all, and that the
kiss of reunion at the celestial gate will be
as certain as the dying kiss at the door Of
the sepulcher.
Now. when you are going to build ship
you must get the right kind of timber.
You lay the keel and make the framework
Of the very best materials, the keelson,
stanchions, plank-shear, counter. timber
knee, transoms, all of solid oak You may
build a ship of lighter material, but when
the cyclone comes on, it will go down. Now
we may have great many beautiful the
cries about the future world, built out OF
our own fancy, and they may do very well
as long as we have smooth sailing In the
world; but when the storms of sorrow
come upon us. and the harrica ne of death,
Wo Will 10 SWdLlptu-W0 Will De IOuuQeT6Q.
We want theory built out of the solid oak
of Gods eternal word
The doctrine of future recognition is not
so often positively stated in the word of
God as implied, and you know, my friends,
that that is, after all, the strongest mode of
affirmation. Your friend travelsin foreign
lands. He comes home. He does not begin
by arguing with you to prove that there
are such places as London and Stockholm
and Paris and Dresden and Berlin, but his
conversation implies it. And SO this Bible
does not SO positively state this theory as,
all up and down its chapters, take it for
granted. What does my text imply9 II
shall go to him." What consolation
would it be to David TO go TO his
child if he would not know him? Would
David have been allowed TO record this
anticipation for the inspection of all ages
if it were a groundless anticipation We
read in the first book of the Bible Abraham
died and was gathered to his people Jacob
died and was gathered to his people. Moses
died and was gathered to his people, What
peoplei Why, their friends, their comrades
their old companions. OF course it means
that 1t cannot mean anything else. So in
the very beginning of the Bible four times
that is taken for granted. The whole New
Testament is an arbor over which this doc
trine creeps like luxuriant vine full OF the
purple clusters Of consolation. James, John
and Peter followed Christ into the mountain