The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1892-06-09
THREE TABERNACLES.
Rev. DR.. Talmage's Story of Trials
and T'riumphs,
Told In an Anniversary Discourse Deliv-
cred in Celebration of His Twenty
Three Years of Completed
Labor In Brooklyn.

The flowing discourse was delivered
by Rev. t. Dewitt Talmage on the
twenty-third anniversary of his settle
ment in Brooklyn, in which he presented
some historic facts. His text was:
Let Us make three tabernacles.-Luke tx, 80.
Our Arab ponies were almost dead
with fatigue as in December, 1889, we
rode near the foot of Mount Hermon in
the Holy Land, the mountain called by
one "a motintoin of ice:n by another "a
glittering breastplate OF ice;" by an
other s'the Mont Blanc of Palestine. :"
Its top has an almost unearthly bril-
lance. But what must it have been in
the time to which my text refers.
Peter and James and John were on that
mountain top, with Jesus. when, sud-
denly, Christ's face took on the glow of
the noon-day sun, and Moses and Elijah,
who had been dead for centuries, came
out from the heavenly world and talked
with our Saviour What an overwhelm-
ing three! Moses, representing the
law, Elijah, representing the prophets,
and Christ, representing all worlds.
lmpetuouS Peter was SO wrought upon
by the presence of this wondrous three,
that without waiting for time to con-
slider how preposterous was the
proposition, he cried out: ''Let
us make three tabernacles: one
for thee, one for Moses and one for Eli
!ah." Where would they get the mate
rial for building one tabernacle, much
less material enough to build two taber-
Dacles, and still less, how would thew
get the material for building three?
Where would they get the hammers?
Where the gold? Where the silver?
Where the curtains? Where the costly
adornments? Hermon is barren peak,
and to build one tabernacle in such a
place would have been an undertaking
beyond human achievements; and Peter
was propounding the impossible when
he cried out in enthusiasts: LET us
build three tabernacles." And yet that
is what this congregation has been
called to do and has DONE The first
Brooklyn tabernacle was dedicated in
1870 and destroyed by fire in in 1872
The second Brooklyn tabernacle was
dedicated in 1874 and destroyed by fire
in 1889. The third Brooklyn tabernacle
was dedicated in April, 1891, and in that
we are worshiping to-day. What
sounded absurd for Peter to PROPOSE
when he said on Mount Hermon, in the
words of my text: LET us build three
tabernacles," we have not only done.
but, in the mysterious providence of
God, were compelled to do
DIR. Talmage then spoke of what he
termed the unjust criticism of those who
did not know the facts in regard to the
struggles of his church and what it's
members had contributed in money to
the cause of God. He also stated that
during the past two years he had not
accepted any salary from the church.
and, In addition to giving his services
gratuitously, had let the church have
six thousand dollnrs for BUILDING mr..
poses. Continuing, he said:
have preached here twenty-three
years, and expect, if my life and health
are continued, to preach here twenty
three years longer, although we will all
do well to remember that our breath is
In our nostrils, and any hour we may be
called to give an account of our stew
ardship. All we ask for the future is
that you do your best, contributing all
you can to, the support of our institu-
TONS Our best days are yet to come:
our greatest revivals of religion. and
our mlghtlest outpourings of the Holv
Ghost. We have got through Red sea
and stand to-day on the other bank
clapping the symbols of victory.
Yes, twenty-three years have passed
since came to live in Brooklyn, and
they have been to me eventful years. II
was FRUSTRATED church to which
came, q church SO fat down If conld
drop no further. Through controver-
sizes which it would be useless to re-
hearse, it was well-nigh extinct. and
Tor long while it had been without q
pastor. But nineteen members could
be mustered to sign a call for nv com
ing. AS committee was putting that
call before me, in an upper room in nv
house in Philadelphia, there were two
other committees on similar errands
from other churches in other rooms
whom my wife was entertaining and
keeping apart from unhappy collision.
The auditorium of the Brooklyn church
to which came defed all the
laws OF acoustics; the church had
steeple that was the de-
rlslon of the town, and high box pul-
pit which shut in the preacher ne
though he were dangerous to be let
loose, or it acted as barricade that
was unnecessary to keep back the peo-
pie, for they were SO few that a minis
ter of ordinary muscle could have kept
back all who were there My first Sab
bath in Brooklyn was a sad dav. for I
did not realize how far the church was
down until then, and on the evening of
that day my own brother, through |
whose pocket l entered the ministry. |
died, and the tidings of his decease |
reached me at six o'clock i'll the evening.
as l was to preach at half-past seven. |
But from that day, the blessing of God |
was on us, and in three months we be-
gan the enlargement of the building.
Before the close of that year, we re-
solved to construct the first taber-
nacle. 1t was to be a temporary
structure, and, therefore, we called
1t a tabernacle, instead of a temple.
Nv hat ShnY1 Ia ho &bo e+,la -