Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1891-08-27
THE WORLD A LIAR,
# You Sell Yourself to 1t You
Will Learn Its De-
ceit.
II Offers Money and Pleasures But
Requires Of You Your
Soul.

Soul. .
TOPEKA, Kan, Especial DIR.
Talmage preached in this city. He
was warmly welcomed by the citizens
who came in large numbers to hear
the famous Brooklyn divine. The
subject OF the sermon was, "APoor In
yestment," and the text Isaiah lii,
"Yehavesold yourselvesfor nought;
and We shall be redeemed without
money"
The Lords people have gone head
long 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 sorry for these poor captives
that, without dollar OF compensa-
ton, he let them go home. So that,
literally, my text was fulfilled aye
have sold yourselve sfor nought;andy e
shall be redeemed without money"
There is enough Gospel in this text
for so sermons. There arepeople who
have, like the people OF the text, sold
out. You do not seem to belong eth
er to yourselves, or to God. The title
deeds have been passed over to "the
world, the flesh and the devil" but
the purchaser never paid up. "Yehave
sold
YOURSELVES FOR NOUGHT."
When man passes himself over to
the world he expects to get some AIDE
quate compensation. He has heard
the great things that the world does
for a man, and he believes it, He
wants two hundred and fifty thous-
and dollars. That will be horses and
houses, and q summer resort, and jol-
ly ompanionship. 10 get it he parts
with his physical health by overwork
He parts with his conscience. He
parts with much domestic enjoyment.
He parts with opportunities for liter
airy culture. He parts with his soul.
And so he makes over his entire ma
ture to the world. He does it in four
installments. He pays down the first
installment, and one-fourth Of his ma
ture is gone. He pays down the sec
ond installment, and one-half OF his
nature is gone. He pays down the
third installment, and three-quarters
OF his nature are gone; and aftermany
years have gone by he pays down the
fourth installment, and 10! his entire
nature is gone. Then he comes up to
the world and says: Woodworking,
I have delivered to you the goods. 1
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" ''Two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars?"
says the world,
''wHAT DO YOU MEAN?"
"Well," you say, 81. come to collect
the money you owe me, and I expect
tract" But says the world, II
have failed. l am bankrupt. l CAN
not possibly pay the debt. have
not for a long while expected to pay
It," Well" you then say, "give me
back the goods" ooh, no." says the
world, "they are all gone, I cannot
give them back to you" And there
you stand on the confines ofeternity,
your spiritual character gone, stagger
ing under the consideration that ''you
have sold yourself for nought."
I tell you the world is liar; it does
not keep it's promises. 1t is a cheat,
and it ieeces everything it can put it's
hands on. 1t is a bogus world. 1t is
a six-thousand-year-old swindle.
Even if it pays the two hundred and
fifty thousand dollars for which you
contracted, it pays them in bonds
that will not be worth anything in a
little while. Just as a man may pay
down ten thousand dollars in hard
cash and get for it worthless scrip-so
the world passes over to you the
S25O,OOO in that shape which will not
be worth q farthing to you thou
sandth part Of a second af'"i you are
dead. "Oh," you say, "il wi help to
bury me anyhow" Oh, my brother
you need not worry about that. The
world will bury you soon enough.
FROM SANITARY CONSIDERATIONS.
But have some good news to tell
you. l want to engage in a litigation
Tor the recovery OF that soul OF yours,
want to show that you have been
cheated out Of it. [ want to prove,
as will that you were crazy OH that
subject, and that the world, under
such circumstances, had no right to
take the title-deed from you; and if
you will join me ] shall get a decree
from the High Chancery Court OF
Heaven reinstating you into the pos
session of your. soul. "Oh," you say,
II am afraid of lawsuits; they are so
expensive, and cannot pay the cost"
Then have you forgotten the last half
ofmy text? ssYe havesold yourselves
for nought; and We shall be redeemed
without money
Money is good for a great many
things, but it can not do anything in
this matter Of the soul. You cannot
buy your way through. Dollars and
pounds sterling mean nothing at the
gate of mercy. If you could buy your
salvation, heaven would be a great
speculation, an extension OF Wall
street. Bad men would go up and buy
~ ,1, fft