Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1890-07-25
SERMON BY DIR. TALMAGE
1.-THE WIDE OPEN DOOR" THE TITLE
OF AN EXCELLENT ClSCOURsE.
Memorable Words of Revelation, "And
Behold Door Was Opened in
Heaven" the Text Every ono
MAY Enter tho Kingdom.

open door, ana hlg text Is found III hcN
iv, /! "And, behold door was opened in
heaven"
John had been the pastor Of a church in
Ephesus. lie had been driven from his
position in that city by an indignant pop
ulace The preaching Of pure and
earnest gospel had made an excitement
dangerous to every form Of iuiquity, This
will often be tho result Of pointed preach
ing. Men will finch undor the sword
strokes of truth. You ought not 10 bee
surprised that the blind man makes az
cutlery of pain when the surgeon remove
the cataract from Lis eye. 1t is good
Agn when You soc men uneasy in The
church pew. and exhibiting impatieuce al
Bome plain uttcrancc Of truth which smIte7
n pet sin that they are hugging to thcir
hearts After the patient has been 50 low
that for weeks he said nothing and noticed
nothing, il = thought to be n good sign
when he begins to he u little cross. And
30 | notice that spiritual invalids orc in q
fair way for recovery when they become
somewhat irnscible and choleric under the
treatment of the truth. But John lad so
nightly inculp&ted public iniquity chat
he had been banished from bis church and
sent to Patmos, a desolata island, only a
mile in breadth. against whose rocky
coasts the sea rose and mingled it's voice
with the prayers and hymnings Of the
heroic exile.
TWO EXILEs CONrEASTED.
You cannot but contrast the copdition OF
this banished apostle with that Of another
famous exile. Look at the apostle on Pat
mos and the great Frenchman on St He
Iona Both were suffering among desola
ton and barrenness because of ofenaye
committed. Both had passed through
lives eventful and thrilling Both had
been honored and despised. Both were
imperial natures Both mad been turned
Oft to die Yet mark the infinite differ
ence-one had fought for the perishabIc
crown Of worldly authority, the other for
one eternaiiy lustrous The one had
marked his path with the hlcachcd skull,
Of his followers, the othcs had introduced
peace and good will among men. The one
had lived chiefly for self ACKNOWLEDGMENT
md the other for the glory Of Christ. The
Successes of the one We're achieved amid
the breaking Of thousands OF hearts and
tho acute heaven renGins cry of orphan
age aud widovhood, while he triumphs Of
the other made Joy in heaven among the
ungels Of God
The heart Of one exile was filed with re
rorse and despair, while the other was
lighted up with Thanksgiving and mex
tin2uishahle hope. Over @t. Helena gath
cred the blackuess of darkness, clouds
lighted up by no sunrising, but rent and
ri@nged and heaying with tho Hghtninqs
of wrathful God, and the spray flung
over the rocks seemed to hiss with the con-
domination, The way of the unsodly shall
perish" But over Patmos the heavens
were opened, and the stormy sea beneath
YVES forgotten in the roll and CLEAN of
waters from under the throne like crystal:
ana the barrenuess Of the ground under
the apostle was forgotten Us above him he
saw the trees of life all bending under the
rich glow of heavenly fruitage, while the
hosree blast of contending elements around
his suffering body was drowned in the
trumpetirc of trumpets and The harping
IF harDs, the victorious cry OF Iuul,itudes
Ike the voice of many waters and the ho-
s4nna Of hosts in number like the stars.
DULL SPOT FOR GLORIOUS VISION.
What a duh spot upon which to stand
end have such a glorious vision. Had
Iatmos been some tropical island, arbored
with the luSuIiRpce Of perpetual summer,
ind drowey with breath Of cinnamon and
russia, and tesselaGed with long alsles of
yeranium and cactus, we would not have
been gaYpri&ed at the splendoT Of the vision.
BUS tho last place you would 20 to if You
wanted to find beautiful visions would be
She island of Patmos. Yet il is around
such gloomy spots that God makes the
most wonderful revelation II was look
Ing through the awful shadows Of prison
that john Bunyan saw the gate Of the
celestial city. God there divided the light
from the darkness In that gloomy abode
on scraps of old pepper picked up about his
room, the great dream was written.
Ii was while John Calvin was a refugee
from bloody persecution, and was hid in a
house at Angoulome, that he conceived the
idea of writing his immortal Institutes. y
Jacob had many 4 time seen the sun break,
ing through The mists, aud hindling them
Into shafts and pillars of fiery splendo1
that might well have been ladder tor the
angels to tread on but the famous ladder
which lie saw scared through a gloomy
night over the wilderness The night OF
trial and desolation ia the scene Of the
Erandest heavenly revelations. From the
barren, surf beaten rock Of Patmos J0hr
looked up and saw that door was opened
In heaven.
Again, the announcement of such ar
opened entrance suggests the truth that
God is looking down upon the earth an(
Observant of all occurrences. ~ we woulC
gain a wide prospect we climb up into
tower or mountain. The higher up we ar,
the broader the landscape we behold. Ee
Dur most comprehensive view is limited Il
only few leagues-here Il river and ther
II lake and yonder mountain peak. Blu
what must be the glory of the earth In TIN
eye of him who from the door Of HEAVIER
beholds at one glance all mountains an,
lakes and prairies and oceans, lands be
lpangied with tropical gorgeousness an,
Arctic regions white with everlasting
SHOWS, Lebanon majestic with ceders anc
American wlds solemn with unbrokel
forests Of pine, African deserts Of glisten
ing sand and wildornesses of water un
broken by ships keel, cont'Sents coveret
with harvestS of wheat and rice and maize
the glory of every zone, the whole world o
mountains and seas and forests and island
taken in in a single glance Of their grea
Creator.
NOTHING ESCAPES GODS VISION.
As We take our stand upon some hig
point single objects dwinole into such ir
Significance that we cease to see them j
the minutise and we behold ouly the gran
points Of the scenery. Bat not so wit
God. Although standing far UP in tn
very tower OF heaven nothing by reaaon G