Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1890-02-15
THE HOUSE ON THE WALL.
REV. DIR. TALMtGE's SUNDAY
SERMON.
nc Again breaches In the BrookiyA
Academy Of Music.

REV. Dh.
SERMON.
nc Again breaches In the BrookIyn
Academy of Music.
TEXT: "And the young men that aeere
spies ,cent IN, and brought out Rahdb. and
her father, and her mother. and her breth-
rem aud all that she had. Joshua vi, %.
An enthusiastic welcome was given to
DR.. Talmage in the Brooklyn Academy of
Music, when he preached his first sermon
after his return from the Holy Land Every
seat was occupied, and all standing room,
even the space on tho stage behind the
preacher, was filled The two opening hymns
were 'Biest Be the Tie That Binds and
Land Ahead" Before he began preach
ing, DIR. Talmage told his people
he was glad to reach home, and speaking of
his church which was burned he expressed his
great pleasure that the new walls were al
ready rising. The subject of the sermon was
''The House on the Wall.n The preacher
said
When, only few weeks ago / visited
Jericho, said Can it be possible that this
dilapidated place is Jericho that Mark
antony gave as wedding present to Cleo.
patray Where are the groves of palm
trees? Where are Herod's palaces that once
stood hereg Where is the great theatre from
the stage of which Saome told the people
that Herod was deads Where is the
Zaecheus sat when Jesus passed this place.
Where is the wreck of the walls that fell at
the blowing of the rams horns2 But the fact
that all these have disappeared did not hinder
me from seeing in imagination the smash of
everything on the fated day, save one house
on the wall. That scene centuries ago comes
back to me as though it were yesterday.
There is very sick and sad house in the
city of Jericho. What is the matter? Is it
poverty? No. Worse than that. Is it
leprosy? No. Worse than that. Is it death?
No. Worse than that. A daughter has for
saken her home. By what Internal plot she
was induced to leave know not: but they
look in vain for her return. Sometimes they
hear footstep very much like hers, and they
start up and say "She comesw but only to
sink back again into disappointment. That
is the first scene in this drama of the Bible.
In house on the wall of the city is that
daughter. That is her home now. Two spies
have come from the invading army to look
around through Jericho and see how best it
may be taken Yonder is the lost child in
that dwelling on the wall of the city
First, Rahab-for that was the name of the
lest child-first, Rahab sacretes the two spies
and gets their pursuers off the track; but
after awhile she says to them: 81 will mako
bargain with you. | will save your life if
You will save my life, and the life of my
father and my mother and my brothers and
my sisters when the victorious army comes
upon the city" Oh, she had not forgotten
her home yet you see. The waRderer never
forgets home.
No sooner have the men united the scarlet
cord from their bodies than they look up and
they say you had better get all your
friends in this house-your father, your
mother. your brothers and your sisters; you
had bette: get them i'll this house. And,
then, after you have them here take this
red cord which you have put around our
bodies and tie it across the window; and
when our victorious army comes up, and
sees that scarlet thread in the window, they
will spare this house and all who
are in it, Shall it be SOP cried the
sizes AYE ave" said Rahab from the WIN
dow, lit shall be so" That is the second
scene in this Bible drama. There is knock
at the door of the old man. He looks up, and
says: Come in," and lol there is Rahab,
the lost child; but she has no time to talk.
They gather in excitement around her and
she says to them: ''Get ready quickly, and
20 with ME to my house. The army is COM
ing The trumpet Make haste! Fly!
The enemym That is the third scene in this
Bible drama
The hosts of Israel are all around about
the doomed city of Jericho. Crash! goes the
great metropolis, hears on heaps The air
suffocating with the dist, and horrible with
the screams of dying city. All the houses
fat down. All the people dead. All no, no.
( On a crag of the wall-the only piece of the
wall left standing there is house which we
must enter. There is family there that
have been spared Who are they? Let us go
and see. Rahab, her father her mother, htY
brothers, her sisters, all safe, and the only
house left standing IN all the city What
/ saved them Can you tell me why? o, it was
The scarlet line in the window. That is the
fourth scene in this Bible drama
My friends, there are foes coming upon rs
Il tran TO-
throw our immortal interests. They Will
trample us down and crush us out forever
unless there be some skilful mode OF rescue
open
In the first place, carrying out the idea of
my text, we must stretch this scarlet cord
across the window of our rescue. There
comes time when man is surrounded.
What is that in the front door of his soul9 1t
is the threatenings of the future What is
that i'll the back door of his soul? 1t is tie
sins of the past. He cannot get out of either
Of those doorways. If he attempts it he viii
be cut to pieces. What shall he do? Escape
through the window of Gods mercy Tint
sunshine has been pouring in for many a day.
Gods inviting mercy. Gods par,lonin :
'nercy. Gods all conquering mercy. Gods
everlasting mercy.
1t is easy 10 get into sin, young man. Il
Is not so easy to get out of it. young man
gees To the marble counter of hotel lIu
1
pose, because it smashes the man that takes
H. There is no intoxication in it. As the
young man receives it he does not seem TO
be at all excited. 1t does not give any slossi-
ness to the eye. He walks home in beauti-
full apparel, and all his prospects
are brilliant. That drink is not going
to destroy him, but it is the first step on a
bad road. Years have passed on, and ] see
that young man after he has gone the Whole
length of dissipation. 1t is midnight, and be
rs IN hotel-perhaps the very one where he
took the first drink A delirium is uoon
him. He rises from the bed and comes to
the window, and it is easily lifted; 50
he lifts it. Then he pushes back
the blinds and puts his foot on the
window sill. Then he gives one spring,
and the Waterman finds his disiguretl body
unacceptable, on the pavement O, if lie
had only waited little-if he had come
down on the scarlet ladder that Jesus holds
from the wall for him. and for YOU, and for
me; but no, he made one jump, and was
gone
Still further: We must take this red cord
of the taxi and stretch it across the window
of our households When the Israelitish
army came up against Jericho they said:
What is that in the Window Some one
said: THAT is a scarlet line "Oh," said
some one else, that must be the house that
was to be spared. Don't touch it." That
iliic was thtNh anu ehOuSD, anu
conspicuous enough to save Rahab her
father, her mother, her brothers and
her sisters-the entire family Have our
households as COOL protection? Have your
children been consecrdted TO Christ? Have
you been washed in the blood OF the atone
ment? In what room do you have family
prayers? Show me where it is you are &C
customed to kneel. The sky is black with
the coming deluge. Is your family inside or
outside of the ark? 1t is a sad thing for
man to reject Christ; but to lie down in the
night of sin, across the path to heaven SO
that his family come up and trip over
him-that is terrific. 1t is a sad
thing for mother to reject Christ;
but to gather her family around her,
and then take them by the hand and lead
! them out into paths of worldliness away
from God and Heaven. Alas! alas! you
owe to your children, oh, father, oh, mother
more than food, moro than clothing
more than shelter-you owe them the exam
pie of a praycrful, consecrated, pronounced,
/ out-aud- out Christian life. You cannot
afford to keep it away from them.
Now, as stand here you do not see any
hands outstretched toward me- and yet there
are hands on my brow aud hands ON both my
shoulders They are hands of parental bene-
0 dIptlOu II jS anita GOOD m