The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1891-07-30
A Sermon in wisconsin.
THE AWFUL NECESSITY
FOR CHRISTIAN EARN
ESTNESS JUST NOW.
Dr.. ..Talmage illustrates the OPP
portunities of the Hour 10y the
Example of Estes In Saw
Ing Her People.
THE GREAT NEED OF AG-
GRESSIXE FAITH.

MADISON, July 28.-Dr. Talinaae
preached this morning at a Chauta.u-
qua assembly on the banks OF Monona
lake, near this city. II Is great gath
ering OF people from all parts OF the
northwest. His text was Esther IL, a.
who knoweth whether thou art
come to the kingdom for such time
as this2'
Esther the Beautiful was the wife of
Ahasuerus the Abominable. The time
had come for her to present petition to
her infamous husband In behalf of the
lsraelitish nation, to which she had
once belonged. She was afraid to un-
dertake the work, lest she should lose
her own life, but her uncle, Mordecai
who had brought her up, encouraged
ber with the suggestion that probably
she had been raised up of God for that
peculiar mission. Who knoweth
whether thou art come to the kingdom
for such time as thisT'
Esther had her God-appointed work !;
you and have ours. 1t Is my business
to tell you what style of people we
ought to be in order that we may meet
the demand of the age in which God
has cast our lot. If you have come ex-
pecting to hear distractions discussed
or dry technicalities of religion glori-
fed, you have come to the wrong
place; but II you really would like to
know what this ago has right to ex-
pect Of you as Christian men and wom-
en-, then am ready in the Lords name
to look you in the face.
When two armies have rushed into
| battle the officers of either army do not
want philosophical discussion about
the chemical properties of human blood
or the nature of gunpowder They
want some one to man the batteries
| and swab out the guns And now,
when all the forces of light and dark
! ness of heaven and hell, have plunged
| into the fight, it is no time to give our
selves TO tho dc{1uitious ana formulas
and technicalities and conventionalities
| OF religion. What we want is practical,
| earnest, concentrated, enthusiastic and
triumphant help. What we need in
the east you in Wisconsin need
TOO MANY half AND HALF CHRISTIANS.
In the first place, in order to meet the
special demand of this age, you need to
be an unmistakably aggressive Chris
tan. Of half and half Christians we
do not want any more. The church of
Jesus Christ will be better without ten
thousand of them. They are the chief
obstacle to the church's Advancement
am speaking of another kind of Chris
! tian. All the appliances for your be-
| coming an earnest Christian are at your
hand, and there Is q straight path for
you into the broad daylight of Gods
forgiveness. You may have come here
today the bondsmen Of the world, and
yet before you go out of these doors
you may become the princes of the
Lord God Almighty. You know what
excitement there is in this country
when a foreign prince comes to our
| shores. Whyi Because 1t is expected
that some day be viii sit upon a throne.
| But what is all that honor compared
with the honor to which God calls you
to be sons and daughters of the Lord
Almighty; yea, to be queens and kings
unto God! They shall reign with him
| forever and forever"
But, my friends, you need to be ag-
gressive Christians, and not like those
| persons who spend their lives in hug
ging their Christian graces and wonder
| ing why they do not make any prog
ress. How much robustness of health
| would man have if he hid himself In
a dark closet' A great deal of piety
| of the day is too exclusive. 1t hides
itself It needs more fresh air, more
outdoor exercise There are many
| Christians who are giving their entire
life to self examination. They are feel
ing their pulses to see what is the con-
dition of their spiritual health How
long would man have robust physical
health if he kept all the days and weeks
and months and years of his life feel
ing his pulse instead of going out into
active, earnest, everyday work'
was once amid the wonderful, be
witching cactus growtbs of North Caro-
| lima. 1 never was more bewildered
with the beauty of flowers, and YET
when l would take up one of these
cactuses and pull the leaves apart the
beauty was all gone You could hardly
tell that it ever had been flower And
there are Il great many Christian people
In this day Just pulling apart theil
| Christian experiences to see what there
is in them, and there Is nothing attract
i've left. This style of self examination
is damage instead of an advantage
to their Christian character I remem
Der when was boy used to have a
small piece In the garden that called
my own, and planted corn there, and
every few days I would pull it up te
see how fast 1t was growing. Now
there are a great many Christian people
In this day whose self examination
merely amounts to the pulling up o.
that which they only yesterday or ths
day before planted
THERE Is NO GOOD WITHOUT ACTION
Oh, my friends, if you want to have .
stalwart Christian character, plant il
right out of doors In the great feld o
Christian usefulness, and though storms
may come upon it and though the ho
sun Of trial may consume it, it vii
thrive until 1t becomes great tree, IL
| which the fowls Of heaven may havs
their habitation. | have no patienct
| with these flowerpot Christians. The,
keep themselves under shelter, and al