The Russellville Democrat., 1890-07-17
WITNESSES FOR GOD.
Sermon by Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage
 at Beatrice, Neb.
The Testimony of Millions Throughout the World More Potent for the Spread cg tho Gospel Than All the Logic
 of Christian Preachers,


 cg the Gospel Than All the Logic
 of Christian Preachers,
 1'be following discourse was delivered by Rev. T, Dewitt Talmage at Beat rice, Neh, to an immense throng which gathered in the open air to listen to tho noted preacher. He took for his text
 We are witnesses-Acts iti., 15.
 In the days of George Stephenson, the perfeetor Of the locomotive engine, the scientists proved conclusiyely that 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 Maohinists and 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 tho cunard, and the lnman, and the National, and the White Star lines are witnesses. There went up guffaw of wise laughter at Prof. Morse's proposition tc 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 1t was impossible for Him to rise from the dead. It was shown logically that when man was dead, he was dead, and the heart, and tho liver, and the lungs having ceaseed to per. form their offices, the limbs would be rigid beyond all power of friction oi arousal. They showed it to be ar ab- 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 I 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 wonder as though he would like to respond. Here are hundreds of people with faces 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: We are witnessesP'
 The fact IS, that if thls world is ever brought to God, it will not be through 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 a soul, and never will save soul. Put man of the world and man of the church against each other, and the man of the world will in all probability get the triumph. There are a 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 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, or five hundred thousand men, get up and tell me that they have felt the religion of Jesus Christ joy, a comfort, help, an aspiration, am bound as fair-mind- ed man to accept their testimony. want just now to put before you three the truth of which think this audience will attest with over unanimity.
 The first proposition is: We are wit nesses that the religion of Christ is able to convert soul. The Gospel may have had hard time to conquer us, we may have fought it back, but we were vanquished. You say conVer- sion is only an imaginary thing. We t..a There never was so great a change in our heart and life on any other subject as on this. People laughed at the mis- sionaries in Madagascar because they preached ten years without one convert; but there are thirty three thousand converts in Mada- gascar to-day. People laughed at Dr. Adoniram Judson, the Baptist because he kept on preach ing in Burmah five years without a single convert; but there arc 10000 Baptists in Burmah to-day People laughed at Dr. Morrison, in China, for preaching there seven years without a single conversion; but there are 25,- 900 Christians in China to-day. People iduHuSu db thc ullaSlOudIleS ipE pISdpu- ing at Tahiti fifteen years without a single conversion, and at the mission aries for preaching in Bengal seventeen years without a single conversion; yet in all those lands there are multi tudes of Christians to-day.
 But why go so far to find evidence of the Gospels power to save soul? "We are witnesses" We were so proud that no man could have humbled us; we were so hard that no earthly power could have melted us; angels of God were all around about us, they could not over come us; but one day. perhaps at a anxious seat, or at a Presby- terian catechetical lecture, or at a burial, or on horseback, power seized us, and made us got town, and made us tremble, and made us kneel, and made us cry for mercy, and we tried to wrench ourselves away from the grasp, but we could not It flung us fat, and when we arose we were as much changed as Gourgis, the heathen, who went into prayer-meet- ing with a dagger and a gun to disturb n. IA Al