Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1891-09-18
A TYPE OF DIVINE LOVE
KINDNESS OF THE BARBARIANs
TO PAUL.
Dr. Talmage Draws n Variety of Lessons
from the Record in Acts-They Were
Barbarians Only In That They Could
Not Speak Greek.
"kintinaSx."

"kindness.''
DIR. Talmage's sermon was on "Kind
ness" from the text, Acts xviii, g, s'rh,
barbarous people showed us no ittl,
kindness"
My text puts us on the Island of Malta
another name for Mclfta. This island
which has always been an impor,an
commercial center, belonging at differen
times TIC Ph9nicia, to Greece, to Rome
to Arabia, to Spain, to France, now De
longs to England. The area of TIL,
island is about 100 square miles. 1t is
in the Mediterranean Sea, and of sucl
clarity of atmosphere that Mount Ftna
100 miles away, can be distinctly seen
The island is gloriously memorable be
cause the Knights of Malta for a long
while ruled there, but most famous be
cause of the apostolic shipwrcck.
The bestormcd vessel on which Pau
sailed had ''laid to" on the starboard
tack. and the wind was blowing east
northeast aid the vessel drifting prob
ably mile and half an hour ere she
struck at what is now called st. Paul's
Bay. Practical sailors have taken up
the Bible account and decided beyond
controversy the place of the shipwrcck.
But the island which has SO rough a
coast is for the most part garden.
Richest fruits and q profusion of honey
characterized it in Paurs time as we'll as
now. The finest oranges figs and olives
grow there. When Paul and his com
rades crawlcd up on the beach, saturated
with the salt water and hungry from
long abstinence from food and chilled to
the bone, the islanders, though called
barbarians because they could not speak
Greek, opened their doors to the ship
wrecked unfortunates.
Everything had gone to the bottom of
the deep, and the bare-footed, bare
headed apostle and ships crew were in
a condition to appreciate hospitality.
About twenty-five such men few sea-
sons ago found in the life station near
Easthampton, Long Island. They had
got ashore in the night from the sea,
and not a hat nor shoe had they left.
They found out, as Paul and his fellow
voyagers, found out, that the sea is the
toughest of all robbers. My text finds
the ships crew ashore on Malta, and
around hot fire drying themselves, and
with the pest provision the islanders can
offer them.
And they go into government quarters
for three days to recuperate, Publius,
the ruler, inviting them, although he
had severe sickness in the house at that
timc-his father down with dysentery
and typhoid fever. Yea, for three
months they staid on the island, watch
ing for ship and putting the hospitality
of the islanders to severe test. But
they endured the test satisfactorily, and
~ irr oil Sc
and eternity to read and hear in regard
to the inhabitants of Malta, "The bar
barous people showed us no little kind
ness.''
Kindness! What great word that is.
1t would take reed as long as that
which the apocalyptic angel used to
measure Heaven to tell the length, the
breadth, the height of that muniticcnt
word. 1t is favorite Bible word, and
it is early launched in the book of
Genesis, caught up in the book of
Joshua, embraced in the book of Ruth,
sworn by in the book of Samuel,
crowned in the book of Psalms, and en-
throned in many places in the New
Testament. Kindness! A word no more
gentle than mighty. l expect it will
wrestle me down before get through
with it. 1t is strong enough to throw an
archangel. But it will be we'll for us to
stand around it and warm ourselves by
its glow as Paul and his fellow voyagers
stood around the fire on the Island of
Malta, where the Maltese made them
selves immortal in my text by the way
they treated these victims of the sea.
"The barbarous people showed us no
little kindness"
Kindness! All definitions of that null
tipotent word break down half way.
You say it is clemency, benignity, gen.
erosity; it is made up of good wishes, it
is an expression of benefccnce, it is a
contribution to the happiness of others.
Some one else says: "Why, I can give
you q difnition of kindness 1t is sun
shine of the soul; it is affection peren-
NAL, it is GROWING grace, it is the
combination of all graces; it is COM
passion; it is the perfection of gentle
manliness and woUanliness.' Are you
all through? You have made a dead
failure in your definition. 1t cannot be
de fined. But we all know what it is,
for we all felt it's power Some of you
may have felt it as Paul felt it, on some
coast of rock as the ship went to pieces,
but more of US have again and again in
some awful stress of life had either from
earth or Heaven hands stretched out,
which ''showcd us no little kindness
There is kindness of disposition,
kindness of word, kindness of act. and
there is Jesus Christ the impersonation
of all of them. Kindness! You cannot
affect it, you cannot play it as a part,
you cannot enact it, you cannot drama.
tie it, BY the grace Of God, you must
have it inside you, an everlasting sum.
mer, or rather combination of June
and October, the genialitY of one and the
tonic of the other 1t cannot dwell with
arrogance or spite or revenge or malcvo.
lence. At its first appearance in the
soul all these Amalekites and Gergi.
shites and Hittites and Jebustes must
quit, and quit forever
Kindness wishes everybo well-every
man we'll, every woman well, every child
well, every bird we'll, every horse well,
every dog we'll, every cat we'll. Give
this spirit full swing and you would have
no more need of societies for prevention
of cruelty to animals, no more need OF
protective sewing woman's associations,
and 1t would dull every sword until il
would not cut skin deep, and unwheel
every battery till it could not roll, and
make gunpowder of no more use in the
world except for rock blasting or pyro.
technic celebration.