The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1892-09-16
CHRISTIAN WARFARE.
DR.. Talmage Discourses on a Fruit
full Theme.
The Lions That Confront the just In
Their Pathway Through Life -The
Sword of the Spirit the Weapon
with Which to Conquer.


LEGATION this week is entitled: "Celes-
stial Synpathizers, the text being
taken from L Corinthians, XIV. SO: Il
have fought with beasts at Ephesus.
Hebrews xii 1: Seeing we also are
compassed about with so great a cloud
of witnesses"
Crossing the Alps by the Mont Cents
pass, or through the Mont Cents tunnel,
you are in few hours set down at Yer
\ ona, Italy, and in d few minutes begin
examining one of the grandest ruins in
the world-the Ampitheater. The
whole building sweeps around you in n
circle. You stand in the arena where
tle combat was once fought or the race
run, and on all sides the seats rise, tier
above tier, until you count forty ele-
vations, or galleries, as l shall see fit to
call them, in which sat the senators,
the kings, and the p, 1000 excited spec
tators At the sides of the arena and
under the galleries are the cages in
which the lions and tigers are kept
without food until, frenzied with hun
ger and thirst, they are let out upon
some poor victim. who, with his sword
and alone, is condemned to meet them.
think that Paul himself once stood in
such place. and that it was not only
figuratively, but literally, that he had
fought with beasts at Ephesus."
The gala day has come. From all the
world the people are pouring into
Verona. Men, women and children,
orators and senators, great men and
,7c IL
until the first gallery is full, and the
second, the third, the fourth, the fifth
all the way up to the twentieth, all the
way up to the thirtieth, all the way up
TO the fortjeth. Every place is filled.
Immensely of audience sweeping the
great circle. Silence! The time for the
contest has come. A Roman official
leads forth the victim into the arena
Let him get his sword, with firm grip.
into his right hand. The $4,000 sit
breathlesSly watching. | hear the door
at the side of the arena creak open.
Out plungos the half starved lion, his
tongue athirst for blood, and, with a
roar that brings all the galleries to their
feet, he rushes against the sword OF the
combatant. Do you know how
strong a stroke man will
strike when his life depends upon the
first thrust of his blade? The wild
beast. lame and bleeding, sinks back
toward the side of the arena; then. raj
lying his wasting strength, he comes
up with tiercer eye and more terrible
rear than ever, only to be driven bac;1
with fatal wound. while the combat
ant comes in with stroke after stroke,
until the monster Is dead at his feet,
and the %. 600 people clap their hands
and utter u shout that makes the city
tremble.
Sometimes the audience came to see
a race; sometimes TO see gladiators fight
each other, until the people, compass
sjonate for the fallen, turned their
thumbs down as an appeal that the
vanquished be spared; and sometimes
the combat was with wild beasts.
To one of the Roman amphitheatrical
audiences of 100, Geo people Paul refers
when he says: ''We are comprised
about with so great crowd Of wit
ncsses" The direct reference in the
last passage is made to a race; but else
where, having discussed that, l take
now Paurs favorite idea of the Christian
life - a combat.
The fact IS that every Christian man
has lion to fight. Yours is a bad tenn
per. The gates OF the arena have been
opened. ana this tiger has come out to
destroy Your s0ul. 1t has iacerated YOU
with many wound. You have been
thrown by It time and again, but in the
strength of God you have arisen to drive
it back. I verify believe You will con-
quer. think that the temptation is
getting weaker and weaker. You have
given i so many wounds that the pros
pact is that it viii die, and you shall
be the victor, through Christ Courage,
brotherl Do not let the sands of the
arena drink the blood of your soul!
Your lion IS tho passion for strong
drink. You may have contended against
it twenty years; but 1t is strong of body
and thirsty of tongue. You have tried
to fight it back with broken bottle or
empty wine flask. Nay! that is not the
weapon. With one horrible roar he
will seize thee by the throat and rend
thee limb from limb Take this weap-
on, sharp and keen-reach up and get
it from Gods armory: the sword of the
Spirit. With that thou mayest drive
him back and conquer!
But, why specify, when every man
and woman has a lion 10 fight. If there
be one here who has no besctting sin
let him speak ont, for him have 1
offended If you have not fought the
lion it Is because You have let the lion
eat you up. This very moment the con-
test goes on. The Trajan celebration,
where IL. 0J} gladiators fought, and H.
O30 Wild beasts We're slain, was not so
terrific q struggle as that which at this
moment goes on in many a soul. The
combat was for life of the body, this is
for the life of the soul That was with
wild beasts from the jungle. this is with
the roaring lion # hell.
Men think, when they contend against
an evil habit. that they have To tight it
all alone. No! They stand in the cen
ter OF an immense sympathy. Paul had
been recitlng the names OF Abel, Euoch,
Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Joseph,
Gideon and Barak, and then says: Be
ing comprised about with SO great a
cloud of witnesses"
Before get through l will show you
that you fight in an arena, around
which circle, in galleries above each
other. all the kindling eyes and all the
sympathetic hearts of the age; and at
every victory gained there comes down
the Numbering applause OF a great null
titude that no man can number. BE
ing compassed about with so great a
cloud OF witnesses"
On the first elevation of the ancient