The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1892-04-14

Chough amore cOnsecrated, benevo-
lent, and splendid convocation of
men and women were never gathered
together tx
OUTSIDE OF HEAVEN. y"a.
! have never before responded to
these ln!ustices, and probably will
never refer to them again, but wish
the people Of this country and other
countries to know that what thew
read concerning the selfshness and in
dolence and lack OF benevolence and
lack OF missionary spirit on the part
or this church, is, from top to bottom
and from stem to stern, falsehood.
dastardly falsehood, diabolical false.
hood. What is. said against myself
has no effect, except, like that of a.
coarse Turkish towel, the rubbing
down by which improves circulation
and produces good health. But this
continuous misrepresentation of nv
beloved church, in the name of Al.
might God, I denounce, while appeal
to the fair-minded men and women to
see that justice is done this people,
who, within few years, have gone
through a. struggle that no other
church iii any land Or any age has
been called to endure, and 1 pray God
shat no other church may ever be
called to endure, viz:-the building of
three tabernacles.
After our last disaster and for two
years, gave all my salary to the
church building fund, and L received
$4,000 less than nothing; in other
words, in addition to SERVING this
church gratuitously for two years, I
let it have $4,000 for building purpo-
ses. Why is it that people could not
do us justice and say that all our
financial struggle as church came
from doing what Peter, in my text,
absolutely proposed to do, but which,
in the inscrutable providence of God,
we were compelled to do-build three
tabernacles.
Now, [ feel better that this is off nv
mind. The rest of my sermon
will be spun out of hosan-
mans: announce to you this
day, that we are at least, as a church,
IN smooth waters. Arrangements
have been made by which our finan-
clal difficulties are now fully and sat-
lsfactorily adjusted. Our income will
exceed our out-go, and BROOKLYN Tab
ernacle will be yours and belong to
your children after you, and ANYTHING
you see contrary to this YOU NAV put
down to the confirmed habit Which
some people have got OF misrepresent-
ing this church and they cannot STOP
When | came to Brooklyn, I came to
a small church and a bigindebtedness.
We now have this, the
LARGEST PROTESTANT CHURCH IN AMER
and financially as congregation we
are worth, over and above our in
debtedness considerably more than
$15O,OOO.
I have preached here % years, and
| expect. if my life and health are con-
tlnued, to preach here 23 years long
er, although we will all do well to re-
member that our breath is in our nos
trils, and any hour we may be called
to give an account of our stewardship.
All we ask for the future is that you
do your best, contributing all you can
to the support of our institutions
Our best days are yet to come, our
greatest revivals OF religion, and our
mightiest outpouriug of the Holy
Ghost. We have got through the Red
sea and stand today on the other
bank clapping the cymbals of victory.
Yes, 23 years have passed since I
came to live IN Brooklyn, and they
have been to me eventful years. 1t
was Frustrated church to which I
came, a church SO flat down it could
drop no further. Through controver-
sizes, which it would be useless to re-
hearse, it was well-nigh extinct, and
for long while it had been without a
pastor.
BUT 10 MEMBERS
could be mustered to sign a call for
my coming. AS a committee was put
ting that call before me in an upper
room in my house in Philadelphia,
there were two other committees on
similar errands from other churches
in other rooms, whom my wife was en-
PERTAINING and keeping apart from un-
happy collision. The auditorium of
the Brooklyn church to which I came
deied all the laws Of acoustics, the
church had a steeple that was the de-
rlslon OF the town, and q high box pull
pit which shut in the preacher as
though he was dangerous to be let
loose, or it acted as a barricade that
was unnecessary to keep back the
people, for they were so few that a
minister of ordinary muscle could have
kept back all who were there. My
first Sabbath in Brooklyn Was a sad
day, for did not realize how far the
church was down until then, and on
the evening of that day my own
brother, through whose pocket I en-
tered the ministry, died, and the It'd
ings OF his decease reached me at 6
o'clock in the evening and I was to
preach at 7:3O. But from that day
the blessing of God was on us and in
three months we began the enlarge
ment Of the building.
DR.. Talmage gave history of the
building Of the tabernacle, and
graphically described the flames that
destroyed the first and second tab
ernacles.s Then he continued:
mention it as a matter OF gratitude
to God that these % years I have
missed but one Sabbath through phys
ical indisposition, and but three in
the SO years OF my ministry. Aud,
now, having reached nv 23d mile