The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1891-06-26
THE HOMESICK SOUL
bR. TALMAee BREACHES TO YOUNG
MEN ON THE PRODlGAL SON.


AFFECTING Instances OF People Who
wero Almost Saved.
BROOKLYN, June 21.-Dr. Talmage's
sermon this morning was an appeal to
young men. Numbers of these come
to the Tabernacle services, many of
them from country homes, where they
received Christian training, which, in
the temptations Of city life, has been
cast of. Dr. Talmage called his ser
mon 1.-The Homesick Soul" and his
text was from the Prodigal Son, Luke
xv, Is, II will arise and go to my
father"
There is nothing like hunger to take
the energy out of a man. A hungry
man can toll neither with pen nor hand
nor foot There has been many an
army defeated not so much for lack of
ammunition as for lack Of bread. 1t
was that fact that took the fire out of
this young man of the text Storm
and exposure will wear out any mans
life in time, but hunger makes quick
work. The most awful cry ever heard
on earth is the cry for bread. A trav
eler tells us that in Asia Minor there
are'trees which bear fruit looking very
much like the long bean of our time
It is called the carab,
Once in while the people, reduced
to restitution, would eat these carabs
but generally the carabs, the beans
spoken of here in the text, were thrown
only to the swine, and they crunched
them with great avidity. But this
young man of my text could not even
get them without stealing them. So
one day amid the swine troughs he be
gins to soliloquize He says, These
wear; this is no kind of business for a
Jew to be engaged in-feeding swine;
I'll go home, I'll go home; will arise
and go to my father"
know there are great many people
who try to throw fascination, a 70
nance, halo about sin; but notwith
standing all that Lord Byron and
George Sand have said in regard to it,
it is mean, low, contemplate bust
ness, and putting food and fodder into
the troughs of a herd of iniquities that
root and wallow in the soul of man is
very poor business for men and women
intended to be sons and daughters of
the Lord Almighty. And when this
young man resolved to go home it was
very wise thing for him to do, and
the only question is whether we will
| follow him.
Satan promises large wages if we will
serve him, but he clothes his victims
with rags, and he pinches them with
hunger, and when they start out to do
better he sets after them all the blood
hounds of perdition. Satan comes to
us today and he promises all luxuries,
all emolumcnts if we will only serve
him. Liar, down with thee to the pit!
THE wages of sin is death" Obi the
young man of the text was wise when
he uttered the resolution, II will arise
and go to my father"
NO REFORM WITHOUT SORROW.
In the time of Mary the Prosecutor,
a prosecutor came to Christian wom-
an who had hidden in her house for
the Lords sake one of Christ's servants,
and the prosecutor said, Where is that
hereticl' The Christian woman said,
You open that trunk and you will see
the hereto" The prosecutor opened
the trunk, and on the top of the linen
of the trunk he saw glass. He said,
There is no hereto here" ''Ah," she
said, "you look in the glass and you
will see the heretic!' AS take up the
mirror of Gods word today would that
instead of seeing the prodigal son of
the text we might see ourselves-our
want, our wandering, our sin, our lost
condition, so that we might be as wise
as this young man was and say, ~
will arise and 60 to my father
The resolution of this text was formed
in disgust at his present circumstances
If this young man had been by his en-
pIoyer set to culturing flowers, or train
ing vines over an arbor OF keeping &C
count of the pork market, or oversee
ing other laborers, he would not have
thought of going home. If he had had
his pockets full of money, if he had
been able to say: II have a thousand
dollars now of my own; what's the use
of my going back to my fathers house2
Do you think am going back to apol
ogize to the old man9 Why he would
put me on the limits; he would not
have going on around the old place
such conduct as have been engaged
in; won't go home; there is no pea-
son why should go home; | have
plenty of money, plenty of pleasant
surroundings why should go homer
ALL it was his pauperism, it was his
beggary. He had to go home.
Some man comes and says to me
why do you talk about the ruined
state of the human soul2 Why don't
you speak about the progress of the
Nineteenth century, and talk of some
thing more exhilaratingp 1t is for this
reason; A man never wants the Gospel
until he realizes he is in famine struck
state. Suppose | should come to you
in your home and you are in good,
sound, robust health, and / should be
gin to talk about medicines, and about
now much better this medicine is than
that, and some other medicine than
;-omo other medicine, and talk about
Y!.is physician and that physician. After
while you would get tired and you
would say II don't want to hear about
medicines. Why do you talk to me of
physiciansl | never have doctor
But suppose | come into your house
and | find you severely sick, and ]
know the medicines that will cure you,
and / know the physician who is skill
full enough to meet your case You
say; Bring on that medicine, bring
on that physician am terribly sick
and | want help" If l came to you