The Penn's Grove record., 1892-08-26
REV. DR.. IALNAGg's SERMON.
me Brookiyn Dfvinss SUNDAY
Sermon.
sabject. ssrhe ProdIeal Son.

There is nothing like hunger to take the
energy out OF a man. A hungry man can
toll neither with pen nor hand nor foot
There has been an army defeated not so
much for lack OF ammunition as for lack of
bread. It was that fact that took the Hire
out OF this young man OF the text. Storm
and exposure will wear out any m ans 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 looking very
much like the long bear of our time. Il Is
called the carpb. Once in awhile the people
reduced to destitution would eat these ca
rabs, but generally the csrabs. the beans
spoken Of here in the text were thrown only
to the swine and they orunchef them with
great avidity. I But this young man Of my
text could not get even them without steal
ing them. SO INT day amid the swine
troughs he Segins to soliloquize. He says,
"These are nc clothes for q rich mans son to
wear; this is no kind of business for a Jew
to Re engaged in--feeding swine; I'll go
home: IN go home. l will arise and go to my
father"
know there are q great many people who
try to throw a fascination, q romance, a
halo about sin; but notw outstanding all that
Lord Byron and George Sand have said In
regard to it, 1t Is a mean, low, contemplate
bus ness, n putting food and fodder into
the troeghs of a herd OF ~iniquities that root
and waiiow in The soul of man is very poor
business Tor men and women intended to be
sons and daughters Of the Lord Almighty.
And when this young man resolved to go
home it was a very wise thing for him to do,
and the only question Is whether we will fol.
low him.
Satan promises large wages II we will
serve him. but he clothes his victims with
and he pincies them with hunger, and
when they start out to do better he sets
after them all the bloodhounds OF hell.
Satan m to us to-day, and h, promises
all ~luxnries, all emoluments II wa will only
serve him. Liar, down with thee to the
pitt THE wages Of sin is DEATH oh, the
young man of the text was wise whsn he
uttered the resolution, II will arise and go
to my father"
In the time OF Queen Mary Of England a
prosecutor came to a Christian woman who
had hidden In her house, for the Lords sake.
one OF Christs servants, and the prosecutor
said, .sWhere Is that hereticYp The Chris.
tian woman said, ''Y gu spen that trunk and
you will see the heretic." The persecutor
opened the trunk, and on the top Of the
linen of the trunk he saw a glass. He said,
There rs no hereto here" "Ahf' she said,
you look In the glass and you will see the
heretic?' As ! take up the mirror of Gods
word to-day, | would that instead of seeing
the prodigai OF the text we might see our
Sc. ves-our want, our wandering, our sin,
our lost condition-so that we might be as
wise as this young man was and say, II will
arise and go TO my father"
III resolution Of this text was formed in
disgust at his present circumstances. II this
yonng man had been by his EMPLOYER set to
enituring flowers, or training vines aver an
arbor,, or keeping account OF the pork mar
ket. or oversee ng other laborers he would
not have thought OF going home. Ii he had
had his pockets full OF money, II he had been
able to say ~ a v a thousand dollars now
OF my own, what's the use of my going back
to my fathers houses Do you think / am
going back TO apologize to the old manf
Why, he would put me on the limits; be
would notbave going on around the old place
such conduct as l AVE been engaged in. !
won't go home. There is no reason why I
should 10 home. l have plenty OF money.
plenty OF pleasant surroundings. Why should
l go homef" Ahli it was his pauperisn: II
was his Jeggary. Hs had to go home.
Some man m and says TO me: ..Why
do you talk about the ruined state OF the hui
man soni? Why don't you speak about the
progress OF the Nineteenth century, and talk
OF something more exhiiaratiny m 1t Is for
this reason IA man never wants the GOSPEL
until be realizes he is in a famine struck
state. Suppose l should come to you in
your home and you are in good robust health,
and 1 should begin TO talk about medicines
and about how much better this medicine Is
than that, n some other medicine thar
some other medicine, and talk about THU
physician and that physician. After awhile
you would get tired, and you would says, 81
uon't want to hear about medicines. Why
do you talk to me OF physiciansf / never
q V a doctor"
suppo,s / come into your house and find
xAr, sa1aral1 ufnl ard E1-x --l.-.-
that will cure you, and l kno v the physician
VINO is skiiful enough to meet your case,
You say: oBring on all that medicine; bring
on that physician. am terribly slcx anc
l want help" II l came to you and you fee
you are ali right in boly and all right il
mind and all right in soul you AVE need oil
nothing; but supposing l have persuaded
you that the ieprosy Of sin is upon you, the
worst Of all sickness, oh. then you say
s'Bring me that balm OF the Gospel; bring
me that divine medicament; bring me Jesui
Christ"
But says soma one in the audience, Show
do you prove that we are ina ruined con-
dition by sinY' Well, | can prove it In two
ways, and you may have your choice.
e can P PFoy' or 1. either S1 tb by The sssts stsssnsn :
God. Which shall it bes You all say. aLs
US have the statement Of God.1 Well, Il
saws in one place, "The heart IL deceitful
above all things and desperately wicked. '
He says in another place, "What is maj
that he should be clean? and he which i
born Of a woman, that he should be righte
odsr He says in another place, There is
none that doeth good; no, not one.p II,
says in another place, As by one man sin
entered into the world, and death by sin
and so death passed upon all man, for thai
all lave sinnsd.n
well" you say. u am willing t.
acknowledge that. but why should I tax,
the particular rescue that you ~proposer
This Is the reason, Except a man be bort
again he cannot see the Kingdom OF God
This il the reason, There is one name giyer
under heaven among men whereby they
may be saved.p Then there are a thousand
voices here ready to say, "Weli, | am ready
to accept this help OF the Gospel; l woulc
hke to have this divine cure, now shall l gt
to work. Let me say that a mere within,
an undefiued longing mounts to nothing
You must ave a stout, tremendous resolu.
ton like this young man OF the text wher
he said, Il will arise and go to my father
'OhP' says some man, how do I know MI
father wants me? How do / know, IL Ies
back, 1 would be receivedY' 'sOhP' say.
some man, you don't know where I hav,
been; you don't know how far 1 have wan
dered; you wouldn't talk that way to me il
you knew all the iniquities I havs commit
49, = Atet1i 8ttADLE bAc Ruktl1
OF Godg 1t 10 news. it is newsi Christ has
found the lost
No. angels eau their Joy contain,
Bat kin died with new DIRE.
Tia sinner lost 10 found, they sing,
and strike the sounding Tyre.
remark still further that this resolutio,
Of the text was founded in a feeling o
inconsistencies. do not know how long thi
young man, how many months, how man,
years, he had been away from his father
house; but there Is something about tn,
reading of my text that makes me think h
was homesick. some OF you know wha
hat feeling is. Far away from home some
times surrounded by everything bright and
pleasant plenty of friends-you have said
II would give the world to be home to
night" Well. this young man was home
sick for his fathers house. have no doub
when be thought Of his fathers house he said
"Now perhaps father may not be livin9.s
We read nothing In this story-this par
able founded on every day hfe--we reat
nothing about the mother. 1t says NOTHING
about going home to her. l think she wa
dead l think she had died OF q broker
heart at his ~wanderings, or perhaps he hat
gone into dissipation from the fact he coul,
not remember . loving and sympathetic
mother. A man never gets over having los
bis mother. Nothing said about her here
but he Is homssick Tor his fathers house
He thought be would inst Ike 70 70 and