Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1892-09-09
LIES GREAT ARENA.
MANKIND FIGHTING OFF HUN
CRY BEASTS.
DIR. Talmage Draws Conclusions-Cor
1882; II Have Fought with beasts
at Ephesus''-PIcture OF N Scene In
the Great Roman Colosseum.

hear DR.. Talmage preach continue. Probably
the greatest demonstration during the past
month was that at tse Town hail. Birmingham
when he delivered three addresses the same
evening TO audiences aggregating $1,000 per-
sons. At Sheffield, Derby, Leicester. Exeter
and Bristol, also, phenomenal audiences as
sembed, the most cordial welcome being
everywhere accorded him. The sermon selected
for publication this week is entitled: Celestial
Sympathi ers" the text being taken from
Cor l5:32: II have fought with beasts at
Ephesus," and Hebrews l2:i: Seeing we also
are comprised about with so great cloud OF
+ Witnesses"
Crossing the Alps ny the Mont Gents
pass, or through the Mont Cents tun'
mel, you are in few hours set down at
Verona, Italy, and in a few minutes
begin examining one of the grandest
ruins of the world-the Amphitheater.
The whole building sweeps around
you in circle. You stand in the
arena where the combat was onoe
fought or the race run, and on all sides
the seats rise, tier above tier, until you
count forty elevations, or galleries, as
shall see fit to call them, in which sat
the Senators, the Kings, and the 25,-
900 excited spectators. 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 hunger and thirst, they are let
out upon some poor victim, who, with
his sword and alone, is condemned to
meet them. i think that Paul himself
once stood in such place, and that it
was not only fguratively, 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
small, thousands upon thousands come,
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 forteth. Every place is
filled. immensely of audience sweep
/ ing 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 twenty-five thousand sit
breathlessly watching. l hear the
door at the side of the arena creall
open. Out plunges the half-starved
/ lion, his tongue athiist for blood, and,
with roar that brings all the galleries
to their feet, he rushes against the,
sword of the combatant Do you know
how strong 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, rallying
his wasting strength, he comes up with
fercer eye and more terrible roar than
ever, only to be driven back with a
fatal wound, while the combatant
comes in with stroke after stroke, un-
til the monster is dead at his feet and
the twenty-five thousand people clap
their hands and utter 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
sionate for the fallen, turned their
thumbs down rs an appeal that the
vanquished be spared; and sometimes
the combat was with wild beasts.
To one of the Roman ampitheatrical
audiences of one hundred thousand
people Paul refers when he says: 1--WE
are comprised about with so great a
crowd of witnesses" The direct refer
ence in the last passage is made to a
race, but elsewhere, having discussed
that, take now Paul's favorite idea of
the Christian life as n combat.
The fact is that every Christian man
has lion to fight. Yours is bad
temper. The gates of the arena have
been opened, and this tiger has come
out to destroy your soul. 1t has LAGER
ated you with many wound. You
have been thrown by ittime and again,
but in the strength of God you have
arisen to drive it back. l verify be-
live you will conquer. think that the
temptation is getting weaker and
weaker. You have given it so many
wounds that the prospect is that it will
die, and you shall be victor, through
Christ. Courage, brother! Do not let
the sands of the arena drink the blood
of your soul
Your lion is the passion for strong
drink. You may have contended
against it twenty years; but it 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 weapon, sharp and keen-reach
up and get it from Gods armory: the
Sword of the Spirit. With that thou
mayest drive him back and conquerl
But why specify, when every man
and woman has a lion to fight. If
there be one here who has no besetting
sin, let him speak out; for him have
offended. If you have not fought the lion
it is because you have let the lion eat
you up. This very moment the contest
goes on. The Trajan celebration,
where 10000 gladiators fought and H.
600 wild beasts were slain, was not so
a. A. ~