News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1891-07-16
THE TABERNACLE PULPIT.
A SERMON IN KENTUCKY.
DR.. TALMAGE CALLS THE WITNESSES
TO THE POWER OF CHRIST.

Not Logic. Not Metaphysics, Not Anti
quarian Research, but Faith Can Make
Us whoIe-The Gospel in India, China,
Tahiti and Madagascar.
HIGH BRIDGE, KY, July ia vast
concourse of people assembled this
morning on the historic camp ground
at High Bridge, KY, to hear DIR. Tai
mage preach. They came from all the
surrounding cities, towns and neighbor-
hood. A large contingent from Louis
vile and another from Cincinnati were
present Many of the visitors have re-
manned here since yesterday afternoon,
when DR.. Talmage preached in the
same place. The text of his sermon
this morning was from Acts iii, Is, ''We
are witnesses.
Standing amid the hills and groves of
Kentucky and before this great multi
tude that no man can number, most of
whom never saw before and never will
see again in this world, choose a very
practical theme. In the days of George
Stephenson, the perfector of the lomo-
motive engine, the scientists proved
conclusively that a railroad train could
never be driven by steam power sue
cessfully without peril; but the rushing
express trains from Liverpool to Edin-
burgh and from Edinburgh to London
have made all the nation witnesses of
the splendid achievement.
Machinists and navigators proved
conclusively that a steamer could never
cross the Atlantic ocean, but no sooner
had they successfully proved the i'm
possibility of such an undertaking than
the work was done, and the passengers
on the Cunard, and the Inman, and
the National, and the White Star lines
are witnesses There went up a guffaw
of wise laughter at Professor Morse's
proposition to make the lightning of
heaven his GRAND boy, and it was
proved conclusively that the thing
could never be done, but now all the
news of the wide world put in your
hands every morning and night has
made all nations witnesses
WITNESSES OF THE RESURRECTION.
So in the time of Christ it was proved
conclusively that it was impossible for
him to rise from the dead 1t was
shown logically that when a man was
dead, he was dead, and the heart, and
the liver, and the lungs having ceased
to perform their Offices, the limbs would
be rigid beyond all power of friction or
arousal They showed it to be an alb
soIute absurdity that the dead Christ
should ever get up alive; but no sooner
had they proved this than the dead
Christ arose, and the disciples beheld
him, heard his voice and talked with
him, and they took the witness stand
to prove that to be true which the wise
acres of the day had proved to be i'm
possible; the record of the experiment
and of the testimony is in the text,
Him hath God raised from the dead,
whereof we are witnesses.
Now, let me play the skeptic for
moment. There is no God" says the
skeptic, ''for l have never seen him
with my physical eyesight. Your BIZ
BILE is a pack of contradictions. There
never was a miracle. Lazarus was not
raised from the dead, and the water
was never turned into wine. Your re-
hgion is an imposition on the creduity
of the ages" There is an aged man
moving in that pew as though he would
like to respond. Here are hundreds of
people with faces a little flushed at
these announcements, and all through
this throng there is a suppressed feeling
which would like to speak out in be-
half of the truth of our glorious Chris
tianity, as in the days of the text, cry
ing out, I'VE are Witnesses
The fact is, that if this world is ever
brought to God it will not be through
argument, but through testimony. You
might cover the whole earth with apol-
ogies for Christianity, and learned
treatises in defense of religion; you
would not convert q soul. Lectures on
the harmony between science and re-
ligion are beautiful mental discipline,
but have never saved a soul and never
will save soul. Put a man of the world
and a man of the church against each
other, and the man of the world viii,
in all probability, get the triumph.
There are a thousand things in our re-
igion that seem Illogical to the world
and always will seem illogical.
TRIUMPHS OF THE GOSPEL.
Our weapon in this conflict is faith,
not logic; faith, not metaphysics; faith,
not profundity; faith, not scholastic
exploration. But then, in order to have
faith, we must have testimony, and if
five hundred men, or one thousand
men, or five hundred thousand men, or
five million men get up and tell me
that they have felt the religion of Jesus
Christ Joy, a comfort, help, an in
spiration, am bound as q fair minded
man to accept their testimony. | want
Just now to put before you, three propo
sifions, the truth of which | think this
audience will attest with overwhelming
unanimity The first proposition is
We are witnesses that the religion O
Christ is able to convert a soul. TIT
Gospel may have had a hard time t.
conquer us, we may have fought i
back, but we were vanquished. Yot
say conversion is only an imaginary
thing. We know better. 1--WE are
witnesses" There never was SO grea
a change in our heart and life ON an.
subject as on this.
People laughed at the missionaries il
Madagascar because they preached tel
years without one convert, but Their
are many thousands of converts in Mad
agascar today. People laughed at DR.
Judson, the Baptist missionary, be
cause he kept on preaching in Burmal
five years without single convert, Blu
there are many thousands of Baptists
in Burmah today People laughed at
Dr. Morton in China for preaching
there seven years without single con-
version, but there are many thousands
Of Christians in China today. People
laughed at the missionaries for preach.
ing at Tahiti for fifteen years without q
single conversion, and at the nissiona
ries for preaching in Bengal seventeen
years without a single conversion, YET
in all those lands there are mGltitudes
of Christians today.
But why go SO far to find evidences
of the Gospels power to save a soul
eve are witnesses" We were so proud
that no man could have humbled us
we were so hard that no earthly power
could have melted us. Angels of God
were all around about us; they could
not overcome us. But one day, per
haps at Methodist anxious seat, or al
Presbyterian catechetical lecture, Oh
at burial, or ON horseback, a power
seized us, apd made us get down, and