The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-06-29
ASTRAY, BUT RECOVERED
REV. TALMAaE FIRM IN TaE PATHS
OF ORTHODOXY.

1
The First Half of HIS Text an Indict-
ment--The Last Half a Promise Of
Causes Which Lead People Astray-
BROOKLYN, N. Y, June 2S.--Dr. Tall
IMAGES sermon to-day Is Of so decidedly
evangelical a character as TO prove cons
clusively that while 30 many eminent
preachers Of the day are drifting away from
the olc-fashioned gospel he remains firm In
the paths of orthodoxy. His subject is
"Astray, but Recovered and his text,
Isaiah ILL.,, 6: "AlI we like sheep have gone
astray; and the Lord hath laid on
him the iniquity OF us ALL"
Within ninety years at the longest all who
hear or read this sermon Will be in eternity.
During the next fifty years you will nearly
| all be gone. The next ten years will cut
| wide swnth among the people. The year
1891 viii to some be the fnality. Such con-
| sideyations make this occasion absorbing
and momentous. The first half of my text
is an indictment: ''All we like sheep have
gone astray.n Some one says, "Can you
not drop the first wordi that Is too general;
that sweeps too great a circle" Some man
rises In the audience and he looks over on
the opposite side OF the house. and he says:
There is blasphemer. and l understand
how he has gone astray. And there
| in another part Of the house is de-
| frauder. and he has gone astray. And there
Is an impure person and he has gone
astraY." SIT down, my brother and look
| at home. My text takes us all In. It starts
behind the pulpit, sweeps the circuit Of the
room and comes back 10 the point where II
started, When II says: "All we. Ike sheep,
have gone astray." | can very easily un-
| nv In I nth "a
hands after he had found the Bible and cried
out. ''Ol my sins, my sins, J" and why the
publican. according to the custom to this
day In the east, when they have any great
grief, began to beat himself and cry as he
sfnote upon his breast: "God be merciful
70 me g sinner"
! was, like many Of you, brought uo in
the country, and know some Of tho habits
OF sheep, and how they get astray and what
my text means when IL says, "All we like
sheep have gone astray." Sheep get astray
Ia two ways: either by trying to get into
other pasture, or from being scared by the
dogs. In the former way some of us got
astray. We thought the religion of Jesus
Christ short commons We thought there
was better pasturage somewhere else. We
though ii we could only lie down on the
banks OF distant streams, or under great
oaks on the other side OF some hill, we might
be better fed. We wanted other pasturage
than that which God through Jesus
Christ gave our soul, and we
and we we're lost. We wanted bread
and we found garbage. The further we
wandered, instead Of finding rich pasturage,
we found blasted heath and sharper rocks
and more stinging nettles. No pasture.
How was it in the worldly groups when you
lost your childl Did they come around
and console you very muchi Did not the
plain Christian man who came into your
house aud sat up with your darling child,
give you more comfort than all worldly
associationss Did all the convivial songs
you ever heard comfort you in that day OF
bereavement so much as the song they sang
to you, perhaps the very song that was
sung by your little child the last Sabbath
afternoon OF her ifel
There is happy land, far. far away,
Where saints immortal reign, bright. bright as
day.
Did your business associates in that day
OF darkness and trouble give you any es-
pecial condolence9 Business exasperated
you business wore you out, business left
yos limp as a rag, business made you mad.
You got dollars, but you got no peace.
God have mercy on the man who has noth-'
ing but business TO comfort him. The
world afforded you no luxuriant pasturags.
A famous English actor stood on the stage
impersonating, and thunders Of applause
1
thought 1t was the proudest moment OF hif
life; but there was man asleep just 10
front Of him, and the fact that that man
was Indifferent and somnolent spoiled
all the occasion for him. aud be
cried, ''Wake up, wake up" Bosone litti
annoyance In life has been more pervading
to your mind than all the brilliant congrat-
ulations and successes. Poor pasturage foE
your soul you found in this world. The
world has cheated you, the world has beliee
you, the world has misinterpreted you, thd
world has perseouted you. IL never COM
forted you. OF this world is good rack
from which horse may pick his hay; it ID
good trough from which the swine may
crunch their mess; but IL gives but little
food to soul blood-bought and immortal
What il soul2 Il is a hope bign as tho
throne Of God. What Is a man7 You say
sit Is only man, 1t is only q
man gone overheard in business
life. What Is manl The battle ground
of three worlds, with his hands taking hold
Of destinies of light or darkness. A mani
No line can measure him. No limit can
bound him. Tho archangel before the throne
cannot outlive him. The stars shall die, buu
he will watch their extinguishment. The
world will burn, but he viii gazs on the cons
fiagration. Endless ages viii march on, he
masterpiece Of God Almighty. Yet you say,
at is only a man. Can nature like tho4
be fed on husks OF the wilderness'
Substantial comfort win not grow
On natures barren soil;
Ali We can boast till Christ we know
Is vanity aud toll.
Some of you got astray by looking for
better pasturage; otbsrs by being scared OF
the dogs. The hound gets over into the
pasture field. The poor things hy ia every
direction. In a few moments they are torn
OF the hedges and they are plashed Of the
ditch, and the lost sheep never gets home
unless the farmer goes after IL. There is
nothing so thoroughly lost as e lost sheep.
II may have been In 1857, during the fnan.
cial panic or during the financial stress in
the fall Of 1873 when you got asTay. You
almost became an atheist. You said:
where ia God, that honest men 60 down
and thieves prosperln You we're dogged Of
creditors, you we're dogged Of the banks,
you we're dogged of worldly
disaster, and some Of you went into
misanthropy, and some of you took to
strong drink, and others of you fed out of
Christian ASSOCIATION, aud you got astray.
o, man that was the last time when you
ought to have forsaken God. Standing
amid the laundering Of your earthly fort
unes, how could you get along without a
God to comfort you. and God TO deliver
you, and God to help you, aud a God to
save ycul You tell me you have been
through enough business trouble almost
tn kiii Won know il I cannot nm.