Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1891-07-23
'THE VACANT CHAIR"
DR.. TALMAGE breaches IN
LAKESIDE, OHIO.
Multltudcs Gather to Hear His
Thrilling Sermon Taken from the
cause Thy Seat Will be Empty.

LAKESIDE, o., July 10th. For many
years people have gathered in multi
tudes at this season of the year for a
great outdoor Assembly. The grounds
are short sail from Sandusky. The
place is beautiful beyond description.
DIR. Talmage preached this morning in
this delightful place to a vast multitude.
His subject was the Vacant Chair"
and his text, / Samuel 90, IS: Thou
shalt be missed, because thy seat will
be empty"
Set on the table the cutlery and the
chased silver-ware of the palace, for
King Saul will give state dinner to.
day. A distinguished place is kept at
the table for his son-in-law, ccle-
brated warrior, David by name. The
guests, jeweled and plumcd, come in
and take their places. When people
are invited to a kings banquet, they
are very apt to go. But before the
covers are lifted from the feast, Saul
looks around and finds vacant seat at
the table. He says within himself, per
haps audibly, "What does this mean?
Where is my son-in-law? Where is
David, the great WARRIOR | invited
him. expected him. What, vacant
Chair at the Kings banquet2" The
fact was that David, the warrior,
had been seated for the last
time at his father IN law s
table. The day before Jonathan had
coaxcd David To go and occupy that
pis"" at the table, saying to David in
the words of my text, Thou shalt he
missed, because thy seat will be
empty" The prediction was fulfilled.
David was missed. HIS seat was empty.
That one vacant chair spoke louder
than all the occupied chairs at the ban
quet.
But your fathers chair was Il sacred
place. The children used to climb up
on the rungs of it for a good night
kiss, and the longer he stayed
the better you liked it. But
that chair has been vacant
now for some time. The furniture
dealer would not give you fifty cents
for it, but it is throne of influence in
your domestic circle saw in the
French palace, and in tn, throne room,
the chair that Napoleon used to o.
cupy. 1t was beautiful chair, but
the most significant part of it was
the letter IN embroidered into the
back of the chair in purple and
gold And your fathers old chair sits
in the throne room of your heart, and
vour affections have embroidered into
the back of that chair in purple and
gold the letter "F." Have all the pray
erS of that old chair been answered?
Have all the counSels of that old chair
bc,n prdcti Ell? Speak out. Old arm
chair. History tells us of an old man
whose three sons were victors
in the Olympic games, and when
they came back, these three
sons, with their garlandS, put
them On the fathers brow, and the old
min was SO rejoiced at the victories of
his three children that he fell dead in
their arms. And are you, oh man,
going to bring Il wreath of JOY and
Christian usefulness and put it on your
fathers brow, or the vacant chair, or
on the memory of the one departed!
Scoak ont, old armchair. With refer,
ence to your father, the words of my
text have been fulfilled: Thou shalt
be missed, because thy seat will be
empty"
go a little further on in your house
and find the mothers chair. 1t il
very apt to be a rocking chair. She
had so many cares and troubles tc
| soothe that it must have rockers.
remember it we'll. 1t was an old chair
and the rockers were almost worn out
for | was the youngest, and the chair
| had rocked the whole family. 1t mad,
creaSing noise as 1T moved
but there was music in the sound
! That old chair has stopped rocking TO
good many years. 1t may be set NJ
! in tire loft or the garnet, but it holds ;
| uueenly power yet. When at midnigh
! you went into that grog-shop to get tn,
Intoxicating draught, did you not hea
voice that said: My son, why go il
there?" And louder than the boiSto'
Gus encore of the place of sinful amusc
ment, voice laying, MY son, wha
! do you do here?" And when y,
went into the house of aban
| donment, voice saying, "What woulr
! your mother do if she knew You wcr,
here?" And you were provoked will
yourself, and you charged yoursel
! with superstition and fanaticism anC
your head got hot with your owl
thoughts, and you went home and you
went to bed, and no sooner had yOt
touched the bed than q voice said
"What a prayerless pillow? Man
what is the matter? This: You are
too near your mothers rocking-chair
"Oh, pshaw,' you say. There
nothing in that; I'm five hundred mile
off from where | was born; I'm thre
thousand miles off from the churcl
whose bell was the first music ese
heard" / cannot help that; you ar
too near your mother rocking-chair
'Oh," you say, there can't be any
thing in that; that chair has been va
cant great while" | cannot he'll
that: it is all the mightier for that; it j
omnipotent, that vacant mot ler'
chair. 1t whispers; it speaks
1T weeps; it carols; it prays; j
thunders. A young man went off, ant
broke his mothers heart, and while h
was away from home his mother died
and the telegraph brought the son, ant
he came into the room where she la,
and looked upon her face, and he cric'
out: sob, mother! mother! what you
life could not do your death shall
effect. This moment give my hear
to God" And he kept his promise
Another victory for vacant chair
With reference to your mother, thu
words of nv text were fulfilled; Thor
shalt be missed, because they seat viii
be empty
go on little further, and | com,
to the invalid's chair. What! How
long have you been sick? 80! | hav,
been sick ten, twenty, thirty years" Il
it possible? What a story of endur
ance. There are in many of the fami
lies of my congregation these invalid
chairs. The occupants of them thinl
they are doing no good in the world
but that invalid's chair is the mighty
| pulpit from which they have
been preaching all these
| years, trust in God. The
first time preached here at Lakeside
Ohio, amid the throngs present, ther,
was nothing that so much impressed
me as the spectacle of just one face
the face of an invalid who was wheeled
in on her chair. / said to her after.
wards: Madam, how long have you
been prostrated?" for she was lying
| fat in the chair. "O!" she replied: II
have been this way fl teen yelrs."
said; "Do GU suffer very much?' 80,
| yes" she said: II suffer very
much; suffer all the time; part of the
| time | was blind. | always suffer.
well" | said: lean you keep your
courage up?" so yes" she said; II am
] 4 4 = 4 E