The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1892-07-21
"a. JOYFUL GALA DAY
DIR. Talmagc in a Sermon in London
Gives a Graphic Picture ofa
Holiday in Heaven.
The Greeting Accorded the Return Of
Conquering Heroes a Type Of
the Greeting IN Heaven.

spending O. very busy season
in England. Not only in the Lon
don churches, but in thu provinces,
enormous crowds have gathered to
hear the eloquent American preacher
The great Shoreditch Tabernacle in
the East OF London, where Rev w
Cuff breaches, was thronged almost to
suHocation, and the large Congrega-
tional Church in the Hackney District
could not hold half the people who
tried to get into it, though it was on
"a Monday evening that DR.. Talmage
preached there Outside London,
the eagerness to hear him has been
quite as intense. In Liverpool, Man
chester, Nottingham, Crewe and Han
ley. no church could be found large
enough to accommodate the audiences,
and DR. Talmage preached nthe halls
in which the great political conven-
tions are held, and the capacity of
these was tested to the utmost Since
his arrival he has preached
seven times each week. The SER
mon selected for publication
this week is from text: Rev vii, 9-1O,
after this l beheld, and, 10, great
multitude which no man could
number, OF all nations, and kindreds,
and people, and tongues, stood before
the throne, and before the Lamb,
clothed with white robes, and palms
in their hands, and cried with q loud
voice, saying, Salvation to our God
which sitteth upon the throne, and
unto the Lamb"
This account in my text gives a
picture OF heaven as it is on holiday.
Now, if a man came to New York for
the first time on the day that Kossuth
arrived from Hungary. and he saw
in the streets, and he heard the guns
booming, he would have been very
foolish to suppose that that was the
ordinary appearance OF the city.
While heaven is always grand and al
ways beautiful, think my text speaks
OF a gala day in heaven.
1t is a time OF great celebration
perhaps Of the birth Or the resurrec-
ton o. Jesus: perhaps OF the downfall
OF some despotism; perhaps because
OF the rushing in OF the millennium I
know not what, but it does seem to
me in reading this passage as ii it were
a holiday in heaven. 49,.
| have seen curious estimate by
an ingenious man who calculates how
long the world was going to last, and
how many people there are in each
generation, and then sums up the
whole matter and says hethinks there
will be twenty seven triliions OF souls
in glory. I have no faith in his esti-
mate. | simply take the plain an
nOuncement OF the text-it is "a great
multitude, which no man can num-
ber" *.
Alter speaking Of the various scenes
which he imagined would greet the
hosts Of heaven, Mr.. Talmage said:
My subject advances. and tells you
OF the symbols they carry. Ii my text
had represented the good in heaven as
carrying cypress branches, that would
have meant sorrow. II my text had
represented the good in heaven as
carrying ni.ht-shade, that would
have meant sin. But it is a. palm
branch they carry, and that is vic
tory When the people came home
from war in olden times, the CONQUER
or rode at the head OF his troops, and
there were triumphal arches, and the
people would come out with branches
OF the palm tree and wave them
all along the host. What a significant
type this OF the greeting and Of the
joy Of the redeemed in heaven! On
earth they were condemned, and were
put out Of polite circles. They had
infamous hands strike them on both
cheeks. Internal spite spat in their
faces Their backs ached with sor-
row. as--.~
Their brow reeled with unaIleviated
toll. How weary. they were Some.
times they broke the heart OF the
midnight in the midst of all their
anguish, crying out, 10 Cod" But
bark now to the shout OF the delivered
captives; as they lift their arms from
the shackles and they cry out. 'sFreeI
Free! They look back upon all the
trials through which they have passed
the battles they have fought, the
burdens they carried, the misrepre
sentations they suffered, and because
they are delivered from all these, they
stand before God waving their palms
They come to the feet OF Christ, and
they look up into His face, and they
remember His sorrows, and they re
member His pain, and they remember
His groans, and they say: 'Why,
was saved by that Christ. He par
doned my sins, He soothed my sor
rows and standing there they shall
be exultant, waving their palms.
That hand once held the nipple
ment OF toll or welded the sword O
war; but now it plucks down branche:
from the tree OF life as they stand be
fore the throne waving their palms
Once he was q pilgrim on earth; hi
crunched the hard crusts-he walked
the weary way; but it is all gone now
the sin gone, the weariness gone, til,
sickness gone, the sorrow gone, az
Christ stands up before the great AZ
ray Of the saved and recolnts Hi.
victories, it will be like the rockin.
and tossing Of q forest in Il tempest
as all the redeemed rise ND, host be
yond host, rank beyond rank, way
ing their palms.
NV subject m q las ano+ how q 1.,oroa