Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1891-04-25
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
eHE RELIGION OF CHRIST CLEARER.
MORE BEAUTIFUL, MORE PERFECT.
MORE SYMMETRICAL, MORE PER
Feet IN GEOMETRICAL PRoPoR-
TIONs THAN CRYSTALS.
Christianity Incompatible.

ity OF the christian religion. His text
was: 1.-THE crystal can not equal it."
Job, xviii, I.
Many OF the precious stones OF the
bible have come to prompt recognition.
But for the present take up the less
valuable crystal. Job, in my text, COM
pares saving wisdom with speciman
OF topaz. An infdel chemist or miner
alogist would pronounce the latter worth
more than the former, but Job makes an
intelligent comparison, looks at relig-
ion and then looks at the crystal and
pronounces the former Us OF far superior
value to the latter, eXclalming in the
words of my text. 'the crystal can not
equal it."
Now, it is not part OF my sermonic
design to depreciate the crystal, wheth-
er it be found in Cornish mine or Hartz
mountain or Mammoth cave, or tinkling
among the pendants of the chandeliers
OF a palace. The crystal is the star OF
the mountain; it IS the queen OF the
cave; the eardrop OF the hills: 1t finds
its heaven in the diamond. Among all
the pages OF natural history there is no
page more interesting to me than the
page crystallographic But want to
show you that Job was right when TAX
ing religion in one hand and the crystal
in the other, he declared that the for
mer is OF far more value and beauty
than the latter, recommending 1t to all
the people and to all the ages, declar-
ing: Crystal cannot equal it," In the
first place | remark that religion is SUI
perior to the crystal in exactness. That
shapeless mass OF chrystal against
which you accidentally dashed your foot
is laid out with more eyactness than
any earthly city. There are six styles
of capitalization and all OF them di-
vinely ordained
Religion is superior to the crystal in
transparency. We know not when or
by whom glass was first discovered.
Beads OF it have been found in the tomb
brought up from the ruins of Hercula-
neum. There were female adornments
made out of it 5000 years ago-those
adornments found now attached to the
mummies OF Egypt. A great many
commentators believe that my text
means glass. What would we do with
out the crystal? The crystal in the win
dow to keep out the storm and let in the
day-the crystal over the watch defend
ing its delicate machinery, yet allow
ing us to see the hour-the crystal of
e pc telescope by which the astronomer
Glfings distant worlds SO near he can in
beet them. o, the triumphs OF the
y.ystals in the celebrated windows OF
2ouen and Salisbury! But there is
,<.othing so transparent in Il crystal Us in
our holy religion. 1t is Il transparent
religion. You put it to your eye AMI
you see man-his sin. his SOUL his des.
tiny. You look at God and you SEE
something OF the grandeur OF His char
acter 1t il Il transparent religion. In
fidels tell us il is Opaque. Doyou know
why they tell us it is opaque? 1t is be.
cause they are blind. The natural man
receiveth not the things of God because
they are spiritually discerned. There
is no trouble with the crystal; the trou-
BILE is with the eyes which try to look
through il. We pray for vision, Lord
that our eyes might be opened. When
the eye salve cures our blindness then
we find that religion is transparent.
1t is a transparent bible. All the
mountains OF the bible come out: Sinai,
the mountain OF the law; Pisgah, the
mountain OF prospect; Olivet, the noun
tain OF instruction; Calvary. the noun
tain OF sacrifice. All the rivers OF the
bible come out: Hidekel, or the river
OF paradisaical beauty; Jordon, or the
river Of holy chrism; Cherith, or the
river of prophetic supply; Nile, or the
river OF palaces, and the pure river of
life from under the throne, clear as
crystal. While reading this bible after
our eyes have been touched by grace,
we find it all transparent, and the earth
rocks, now with crucitixion agony and
now with judgement terror aud Christ
appears in some OF His 256 titles, as far
as | can count them-the bread, the
rock, the captain, the commander, the
conqueror, the star, and on and beyond
any capicty of mine to rehearse them.
Transparent religion!
The providence that seemed dark be-
fore becomes pellucid. Now you find
God is not trying to put you do Yn. Now
you understand why you lost that child
and why you lost your property; it was
to prepare you for eternal treasures.
And why sickness came, it being the |
precursor Of immortal juvenescence.
And now you understand why they lied |
about you and tried to drive you bither
and thither. 1t was to put you in the
glorious company Of such men as Igna-
titus, who, when he went out to be de-
stroyed by the lions, said: II am the
wheat, and the teeth Of the wild beasts
must grind me before / can become
pure bread for JESUS Christ" or the
company of such men as Polycarp, who
when standing in the midst Of the am
phitheater waiting for the lions tocome
out OF their cave and destroy him, and
the people in the galleries jeering and
shouting 1.-THE lions for Polycarp;" re-
piled: Let them come on" and then
STOPPING down toward the cave where
the wild beasts were roaring to get out.