Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1892-08-11
CHRIST ABOVE ALL.
DR.. Talmage Demonstrates That
Christ Ranks Above All
Others
Lessons Drawn From the History Of
Nations to Illustrate Some
Sound Truths.

LoNDoN,-(special Cable. THE SER
mon selected by DR.: Talraage for this
week is entitled "Fre-eminent," the
text being, John 3: 81, "He that
cometh from above is above all"
The most conspicuous character OF
history steps out upon the platform.
The finger which, diamonded with
light, pointed down 10 him from the
Bethlehem sky, was only IL ratification
of the finger of prophecy, the finger OF
genealogy, the finger OF chronology,
the finger OF events-all FIVE fingers
pointing in the one direction. Christ
is the overlapping figure OF all time.
He is the vox humane in all music,
the most graceful line III oil sculpture,
the most exquisite mingling OF lights
and shades in all painting, the acme
of all climaxes, the dome OF all cathe-
dralled grandeur, and the peroration
OF all splendid language.
The Greek alphabet is made up OF
"a letters, and when Christ compared
himself to the first letter and the last
letter, the alpha and the omega, he
appropriated to himself all the
splendors that you can spell out
either with these two letters and all
letters between them. II am the
Alpha and tine Omega, the beginning
and the end, the first and the last"
Or, if you prefer the words OF the
text, "above ALL"
1t means, after you have piled up
all Alphine and Himalayan attitudes,
the glory of Christ would have to
spread its wings,and descenda thous-
and leagues to touch those SUBMITS.
Pelion, q high mountain OF Thessaly,
Ossa, q high mountain, and Olympus,
@ high mountain; but mythology tells
us when the giants wared against the
gods they piled up those three
mountains, and from the top OF them
proposed
TO SCALE THE HEAVENS;
but the height was not great enough,
and there was a complete failure. And
alter all the giants-lsaiah ana Paul,
prophetic and apostolic giants;
cherubim and seraphim and arch
angel, celestial giants-have failed to
climb to the top OF Christ's glory,
they might all we'll unite in the words
of the text and say, HE that cometh
from above is above ALL"
know that there is n great deal
said in our day against words, as
though they were nothing. They may
be misused, but they have animperial
power.
When we come to set forth the love
Of Christ we are going to take the
tenderest phraseology wherever we
find it and if it has never been used in
that direction before, all the more we
shall use it.
Brighter than the light, fresher than.
the fountains. deeper than the seas,
are all these gospel themes. Song has
no melody, flowers have no sweetness,
sunset sky has no color compared
with these glorious themes.
The royal robe OF Demetrius was so
costly, so beautiful, that after he had
put it off no one ever dared put it on;
but this robe OF Christ, cher than
that, the poorest and the wanest and
the worst may wear.
Christ is above all in dying alevia.
tons. l have not any sympathy
with the morbidity abroad about our
demise. The emperor OF Constants.
nople arranged that on the day of his
coronation the stone mason should
come and consult him about his
| tombstone that after a while he would
need. And there are men who are
monomaniacal on the subject of de.
parture from this life by death, and
the more they think OF it the less they
are prepared to 60. This is an I'M
manliness not worthy OF you, not
worthy OF me.
his day, while dying, ordered the tunic
he had on him to be carried after his
death on spear at the head of his
army, and then the SO !icr eyer and
anon, should stop and say, Behold,
all that is left OF Saladin, the emperor
and conqueror! OF all he states he
conquered. OF ali the wealth he accu.
mulated, nothing did he retain but
this shroud." I have no sympathy
with such behavior or such
ABsUBD DEMONSTRATION,
or with much that we hear uttered in
regard 10 departure from this life to
the next. There is a common-sensi-
cal idea on this subject that you and
I need to consider-that there are
only two styles of departure.
A thousand feet underground, by
light of torch toiling in a miners shaft,
a ledge of rock may fall upon us, and
We may die a miners death. Far out
at sea, falling from the slippery rat
lines and broken on the halyards, we
may die sailors death. On mission
OF mercy in hospital, amid broken
bones and reeking leprosies and rag
ing fevers, we may die a philanthro-
pist's death On the fed OF battle,
serving God and our country, slugs
through the heart, the gun carriage
may roll over us, and we may die
patriots death. But, after all, there
are only two styles of departure the
death ofsthe righteous and the death
of tho uicba1-and xra q II yvopt ~ 1;a