The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1890-12-31
THE WATERS OF MER0M.
SUBJECT OF SUNDAYS SERMON BY
REV. 7. DE WITT TAlMAGE.

SUBJECT OF SUNDAYS SERMON BY
REV. T. DE WITT TALMAeE.
he Tells of Cities That Were Taken by
Joshua Under Gods Guidance When
the Children of Israel Entered the Holy
Land.
BROOKLYN, Dec, 2l.-Dr. Talmage
preached the following sermon this
morning in the Academy of Music in
this city, and again in the evening at
The Christian Herald service in New
York. His text was Josh. XII, 8 And
when all these kings were met togeth-
er they came and pitched together at
the waters of Merom to 6ght against
Israel
We are encamped tonight in Pales-
tine by the waters Of Nerom. After a
long march we have found our tents
pitched, our fires kindled, and though
far away from civilization variety of
food that would not compromise first
class American hotel, for the most OF
our caravan starts an hour and half
earlier in the morning. We detaln
only two mules, carrying so much OF
our baggage as We might accidentally
need and tent for the MONDAY lunch
con. The malaria> around this Lake
Merom are so poisonous that at any
other season Of the year encampmenu
here is perifous. but this winter night
the air is tonic and healthIul. In this
To,,rhf hyc laSt
great battle. The nations had banded
themselves together to crush this
Joshua, but along the banks of these
waters Joshua left their carcasSes.
Indeed tits time that we more min
utely examine this Joshua OF whom
we have in these diScourses caught
only a momentary glimpse, although
he crossed and recrossed Palestine, and
next to Jesus is the most stirring and
mighty character whose foot ever
touched the Holy Land.
JOSHUA READY TO TAKE MOSES PLACE.
Moses was dead. A beautiful tradi-
tion says the Lord kissed him, and in
that act drew forth the soul Of the dy-
ing lawgiver. He had been buried,
only one Person at tie funeral, the
same One who kissed him. But God
never takes a man away from any
place of usefulness but he has some
one ready. The Lord does not go look
ing around amid great variety of can
didstes to find some one especially lit
ted for the vacant position. He makes
q man tor that place. Moses has pass
ed of the stage, and Joshua, the hero,
puts his foot on the platform of history
so solidly that all the ages echo with
the tread. He was magnificent
fighter, but he always fought on the
right side, and he never fought unless
God told him to fight. He got his mil.
itary equipment from God, who gave
him. the promise at the start, There
shall not any man be able to stand Oa-
fore thee all the days of thy life" God
fulfilled this promise, although Josh
ua'S first battle was with the spring
freshet, and the next with stone wall.
and the next leading on regiment of
whipped towards, and the next battle
against darkness, wheeling the sun
and the &een into his battalion, and
the last against s5b ssbe kiR-s 81 tsSsSSs
death-fve great victories.
For the most part %when the general
OF an army starts out in a conflict he
would like tS have small battle in
oldsr that he may get his courage up
and rally his troops and get them drill
ed for greater conflicts; but this first
undertaking of Joshua was greater
than the levellng Of Fort Pulaski, or
the laundering down of Gibraltar, Or
the overthrow of the Bastile. It was
the crossing of the Jordan ut the time
of the spring freshet. rhe SHOWS OF
Mount Lebanon had just been melting,
and they poured down into the valley.
and the whole valley was a raging tor
rent. So the CanaanlteS stand o. one
bank, and they look across and see
Joshua and the lsraelites, and they
laugh and say, AHA! aha! they cannot
disturb us in time-until the freShets
fall: it is impossible for them to reach
u.s." But after while they look across
the water and they see a movement IN
the army of Joshua They say: whats
the matter now? Why, there must be
panic among these troops, and they
are going to fly, or perhaps they are
going to try to march across the river
Jordan. Joshua is lunatic." But
Joshua, the chiefain, looks at his army
and cries, Forward, march," and they
start for the bank of the Jordan.
THE PARTING OF JORDAN.
One mile ahead go two priests carry
ing glittering box four feet long and
two feet wide. It IS the ark of the
covenant. And they come down, and
no sooner do they just touch the rim
of the water with their feet than by
an Almighty fat Jordan parts. The
army OF Joshua marches right on with
out getting their feet wet over the bot
tom of the river, path of chalk and
broken shells and pebbles, until they
get to the other bank. Then they lay
hold of the oleanders and tamarlsks
and willows and pull themselves up a
bank thirty or forty feet high, and
having gained the other bank, they
clap their shields and their cymbals
and sing the praises of the God of
Joshua. But no sooner have they
reached the bank than the waters be-
gin to dash nd roar, and with terrl-
dc rush they break loose from their
strange anchorage. Out yonder they
have stopped, thirty miles of distance
they halted. On this side the waters
roll off towards the SAIL sea-
But as the land of the Lo-d God is
taken away from the thus upllfted
waters waters perhaps uplifted half a
mile-as the Almighty hand is taken
away those waters rush down, and
some of the unbelieving Israelites say:
ssA3as, alas, what misfortune! Why
could not those waters have staid part
ed? Because perhaps we may want to
90 back. O Lord, we are engaged in a
risky business. These Canaanites may
eat rs up. How if we want to 60 back?
Would it not have been more COM
piete miracle it the Lord had parted
the waters to let US come through and
kept them parted to let US go back if
we are defeated?' My friends, God
makes no provision for Christians
retreat. He clears the path all the way
to Canaan. TO go back is to die. The
came catakeenerS that swing back the