The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1891-01-15
TO NON-CHURCHGOERS.
DR.. TAlMAGE breaches TO THE
SHEEP WITHOUT THE FOLD"

An tho Christians Do Not belong to
Congregations, but There Are Many
Reasons why All Persons Should Be
Christians--A Word to Unbelievers.
BROOKLYN, Jan. 1.-THE following
powerful sermon, addressed to nom
churchgoers, was delivered by DR.. Tai
mage this morning in the Academy of
Music, this city, and again in the even.
ing at the New York Academy of Music,
where services are still being held I'M
der the auspices of The Christian Her
aid At the latter service the new
choir of two hundred voices most eff
fectively led the musical exercises,
DR.. Talmage's text was John X, 49,:
"Other sheep have which are not of
this fold"
There is no monopoly in religion.
The grace of God is not nice little
property fenced off all for ourselves 1t
is not kings park, at which we look
through barred gateway, wishing we
might go in and pluck the flowers and
look at the deer and the statuary. It's
afather's orchard, and there are bars to
let down and gates to swing open.
In my boyhood days, next to the
country schoolhouse where went,
there was an apple orchard of great
luxuriance, owned by a very lame man
who did not gather the apples, and
they went to waste by scores of bushels.
Sometimes the lads of the school, in
the sinfulness of nature inherited
from our first parents, who fell through
the same temptation, would climb over
the fence and take some of these ap-
pies, and notwithstanding the fact that
there was surplus, and all going to
waste, the owner of that orchard, reck-
less of making his lameness worse,
would take after these lads and shout,
Boys, drop those apples or I'll set the
dog on you'll"
Now there are Christians who have
severe guard over the Church of God.
They have rough and unsympathetic
way of treating outsiders 1t is a great
orchard into which God would like to
have all the people come and take
the richest and the ripest fruit, and the
more they take the better he likes it.
But there are those who stand with a
hard and severe nature guarding the
Church of God, and all the time afraid
that some will get these apples when
they really ought not to have them
Have you any idea that because you
were baptized at eight months of age,
and because you have all your life been
surrounded by hallowed influences, you
have right to one whole side of the
Lords table, spreading yourself out SO
nobody else can sit there' You will
have to haul in your elbA -, for there
will come a great multhoee to sit at
the table and on both sides of you
You are not going to have this monop-
oily of religion "Other sheep have
which are not OF this fold"
Mcdonald. the ScotcMnan, has on
the Scotch hills great flock Of sheep
Mcdonald has four or five Thousand
head of sheep Some are browsing in
the heather, some are on the hills, some
are in the valleys, few are in the
yard. One day Cameron comes over
to Mcdonald and says: Mcdonald
you have thirty sheep have been
counting them "Oh, mol" says Nc
Donald II have four or five thou
sand" "Ahw says Cameron, you
,,,tetnl-nr I ,nc 100
them There are thirty" why" says
Mcdonald, do you suppose that is all
the sheep have1 have sheep on the
distant hills and in the valleys, ranging
and roaming everywhere Other sheep
have | Which are not of this fold
So Christ comes Here is group of
Christians. and there is group of
Christians here is Methodist fold,
here is Il Presbyterian fold, here is a
Baptist fold, here is a Lutheran fold,
and we make our annual statistics, and
we think we can tell you just how
many Christians there are in the world,
how many there are in the church,
how many in all these denominations.
We aggregate them, and we think we
are giving an intelligent and an ac-
curate account; but Christ comes and
he says You have not counted them
right There are those whom you have
never SEEM those of whom you have
never heard. have my children in
all parts of the earth, on all the islands
of the sea, on all the continents, in all
the mountains and in all the valleys.
Do you think that these few sheep you
have counted are all the sheep havei
There is great multitude that no man
can number Other sheep have ]
which are not of this fold"
Christ in my text talks of the con
version of the Gentiles as confidently
as though they had already been con
verted. He sets forth the idea that
his people will come from all parts Of
the earth. from all ages, from al
circumstances, from all conditions
Other sheep have which are not o.
this field.
In the first place | remark the
Heavenly Shepherd will find many O
his sheep among those who are al
present non-churchgoers. There are
different kinds Of churches. Some
times you will find a church made uI
only of Christians Everything seem
finished The church reminds you o
those skeleton plants from which b.
chemical preparation all the greennes
and the verdure have been taken, anC
they are cold and white and delicat'
and beautiful and finished. All that i
wanted is glass case put over them
The minister on the Sabbath has onl.
to take an ostrich feather and brusl
off the dust that has accumulated il
the last six days of business, and theI
they are as cold and beautiful and del