The Brookhaven leader., 1891-08-20
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Brooklyn Preacher Talks on
Poor Investments"
The Souls of Men Mortgaged to Iniquityi
and the Only Means of Redemption
and Release the Blood Of
jesus Christ.

Of "A Poor Investment" at Topeka,
Kas., taking for his text:
Yehave sold yourselves for naught; and ye
thall be redeemed without money.--Isaiah
lH.,3.
The Lords people had gone headlong
into sin, and as a punishment they had
been carried captive to Babylon. They
found that iniquity did not pay. Cyrus
seized Babylon, and felt so sorry for
these poor captives that, without a dol
lar of compensation, he let them go
home. So, that literally, my text was
fulfilled: EYE have sold yourselves for
nought; and We shall be redeemed with
out money"
There is enough Gospel in this text
for fifty sermons. There are persons
here who have, like the people of the
text sold out You do not seem to be-
long either to yourselves or to 1.-THE
world, the flesh, and the devil" but the
purchaser never paid up. "Ye have
sold yourselves for nought."
When man passed himself over to
the world he expects to get some ade-
quate compensation. lie has heard
the great things that the world does
for man, and he believes it. lie
wants two hundred and fifty thousand
dollars. That will be horses and
houses, and summer resort, and jolly
companionship. TO get it he parts with
his physical health by overwork He
parts with much domestic enjoyment.
lie parts with opportunities for literary
culture. lie parts with his soul. And
so he makes over his entire nature to
the world. He does it in four INSTALL
ments. He pays down the first INSTALL
inent, and one-fourth of his nature is
gone. He pays down the second in
stallment, and one-half of his nature
is gone He pays down the third, and
three-quarters of his nature
are gone; and after many years
have gone by he pays down
the fourth installment, and 10! his en-
tire nature is gone. Then he comes up
to the world and says: Good morning
! have delivered to you the goods. l
have passed over to you my body, my
mind, and my soul, and l have come
now to collect the two hundred and
fifty thousand dollars" 1.-TWO hun
bred and fifty thousand dollars?" says
the world. What do you mean?"
"Well," you say, IL como to collect the
money you owe me, and l expect you to
fulfill your part of the contract. :"
"But," says the world. 81 have failed.
/ am bankrupt. / can not possibly pay
that debt. have not for long while
expected to pay it." Well" you then
say, give me back the goods" ''Oh,
no." says the world, "they are all gone.
/ can not rive them back to you" And
there you stand on the confines of eter-
nifty, your spiritual character gone,
staggering under the consideration that
you have sold yourself for nought.''
tell you the world is a liar; it does
not keep its promises. 1t is cheat,
and it fceces everything it can put it's
hands on. 1t is bogus world. 1t is
six thousand-year-old swindle. Even
if it pays the two hundred and fifty
thousand dollars for which you con-
tracted, it pays them in bonds that will
not be worth anything in little while.
Just as man may pay down ten thou
sand dollars in hard cash and get for it
worthless scrip, SO the world passes
over to you the two hundred and fifty
thousand dollars in that shape which
will not be worth farthing to you a
thousandth part of second after you are
dead "Oh," you say, 1T will help to
bury me, anyhow" Oh, my brother,
you need not worry about that. The
world will bury you soon enough from
sanitary considerations.
Post-mortem emoluments are of no
use to you. The treasures of this world
will not pass current in the future
world, and if all the wealth of the
bank of England were put in the pocket
of your shroud, and you in the midst of
the Jordan of death were asked to pay
three cents for your ferriage, you could
not do it. There comes moment in
your existence beyond which all earth
ly values fall, and many a man has
Weakened up in such time to find that
he has sold out for eternity, and has
nothing to show for it. 1 should as
soon think of going to Chatham street
to buy silk ocket-handkerchiefs with
no cotton in them, as to go to this world
expecting to find any permanent hap
piness. 1t has deceived and deluded
every man who has ever put his trust
in it.
History tells us of one who resolved
that he would have all his senses graft
fed at one and the same time, and he
expended thousands of dollars on each
sense. He entered a room. and there
were the first musicians OF the land
pleasing his ear, and there were fine
pictures fascinating his eye, and there
were costly aromatics RECALLING his nos
tril, and there were the richest meats,
and wines, and CONNECTIONS, pleasing
the appetite, and there was a soft couch
of sinful indulgence on which he re-
clined; and the man declared afterward
that he would give ten times what he
had given if he could have one week of
such enjoyment, even though he lost
his soul by it! All! that was the rub!
He did lose his soul by it! Cyrus the
Conqueror thought for little while
that he was making fine thing out of
this world, and yet before he came to
his grave he wrote out this pitiful cpl
taph for his monument: II am Cyrus.
1 occupied the Persian empire. / was
king over Asia. Begrudge me not this
monument" But the world in after
years plowed up his sepulcher.
The world clapped its hands and
stamped its feet in honor of Charles
Lamb; but what does he say? II walk
up and down, thinking am happy, but
feeling am not" Call the roll, and be