The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1891-07-02
THE HUNGRY SOUL.
DR.. Talmage Tells the Old But Very
New Story Of the Prodi-
gal,
Who Said in His Distress, Il Will
Arise and Go to MY
Father"

sermon ''The Home-Sick Soul" and
his text was from the parable OF the
prodigal son, Luke XIV, 18: 81 will
arise and go to my father
There is nothing like hunger to take
the energy Of a man. A hungry man
can toll neither with pen or hand nor
foot. There has been many an army
defeated, not so much from lack OF
ammunition as for lack of bread. It
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
traveller tells us that in Asia Minor
there are trees which bear fruit look
ing very much like the long bean OF
our time. 1t is called the carab. Once
in a while the people reduced to des-
titution 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 avidlty. But this young
man OF my text could not even get
them without stealing them. So one.
day amid the swine troughs he begins
to soliloquize. He says: "These are
no clothes for a rich mans son to
wear; this is no kind OF business for
a Jew to be engaged IMPEDING swine;
I'll 60 home, I'll go home, l will arise
and go to my father"
The resolution OF this text was
49,. FoIMED IN DISGUST ~. ~. 81.
at his present circumstances. If this
young man had been by his employer
set to culturing flowers, or training
vines over an arbor, or 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 thou
sand dollars now of my own; what's
the use of my going back to my
fathers house? do you think I am
going back. to apologize to the old
man? 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; I won't 60
nome; there is no reason why / should
60 home; [ have plenty OF money;
[ have plenty of pleasant surroundings,
why should [ 60 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 soul? why don't.
you speak about the progress of the
nineteenth century, and talk of some
thing more exhilarating?" It is for
this reason; a man never wants the
gospel until he realizes he is in a fam
lne-struck state. Suppose I should
come to you in your home and
you are in good, sound, robust health,
and | should begin to talk about
medicines, and about how much bet
ter this medicine is than that, and
some other medicine, and talk about
this physician and that physician.
Af1er awhile you would get tired, and
you would say: ri don't want to hear
about medicines Why do you talk
to me of physicians? I never
have DOCTOR" But suppose
l come into your house and I
lind you severely sick, and I
know the medicines that will cure
you, and I know the physician who
IS skillful enough to meet your case.
You say: "bring on that medicine,
bring on that physician. I am terri
ply sick and l want help" II | came
to you and you feel you are all right
in body and all right in mind, and all
right in soul, you have need of moth
ing; but suppose 1 have persuaded
you that the leprosy Of sin is upon
you, the worst of all sickness. o.
then you say: "bring me that balm of
the Gospel, bring me that divine med
icament, bring me Jesus Christi"
| remark still further that this reso-
luton OF the text was founded in
A FEELING OF HOMEsIcKNEss.
| don't know how long this young
man, how many months, how MANY
years, he had been away from his
fathers house; but there is something
In the reading of my text that makes
me think he was homesick. Some OF
you know what that feeling is. Far
away from home sometimes, surround.
ed by everything bright and pleasant
OF friends-you have said:
~ would give the world to be home
tonight" Well, this young man was
homesick for his fathers house. |
have no doubt when he thought Of
his fathers house he said: Nov,
perhaps, father may not be living, !
We read nothing in this story-we
read nothing about the mother. It
says nothing about going home to her.
| think she was dead. 1 think she
had died Of broken heart at his
wanderings. A man never GETS over
having lost his mother. Nothing said
about her here But he is homesick
for his fathers house. He thought he
would just like to 60 and walk around
the old place. He thought he would
just like to go and see il things were
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