The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1892-02-26
in OSKALOOSA, IOWA.
DR.. TALMAGE breaches BEFORE AN
ENORMOUS AUDIENCE.


a Sermon Preached from the Seventh
Verse of the Fiftee,.th Chapter of the
Gospel According to st. Luke.
OsKALoosA, Feb 81 Rev. DR.. Tai,
mage preached here today to an
enormous audience. He expects to
be absent from home about ten days,
during which period he speaks in as
many cities. The subject of his ser
mon was Heavenly Congratula-
tons. His evident intention was to
make worlds that seem a great way
off from each other appear very
near His text was taken from Luke
XIV, 7, Likewise joy shall be in
heaven over one sinner that re
penteth, more than over ninety and
nine just persons who need no re-
pentance.
A lost sheep! Nothing can be more
thoroughly lost. l look through the
window of a shepherds house at
night. The candles are lighted. The
shepherd has just placed his staff
against the mantel He has taken
off his coat, shaken out of it the dust
and hung it up. see by the candle
light that there are neighbors who
have come in.
The shepherd, tagged out with the
long tramp, sits down on bench,
and the wife and children and the
neighbors say to him, Come, now,
tell us how you found the poor
thing" We'll" he says, this morn
ing / went out to the yard to look at
the flock. No sooner had | looked
over the fence than / saw something
wrong. The fact was that they did
not count right. Ninety-fve, ninety
six, ninety -seven, ninety eight, nine
ty-nine-only ninety nine. Melon
aid, you know we had a hundred.
And / wondered which one was gone,
and l began again, and | counted
ninety five, ninety-six, ninety-seven,
ninety-eight, ninety nine. Well, /
whistled up the dogs, and l started on
the fields and across the bridges, and
! tracked the moors, and leaped the
gullies, but no bleating of the poor
thing did ! hear. | said to myself,
The lamb must have fallen into a
ditch, or pack of wolves from the
mountains must have torn it to
pieces and sucked it's life out. But
could not give it up. You see it was
a pet lamb 1t was that one with
the black spot on the right shoulder
that used to come and lick my hand
as crossed the field and somehow /
could not give it up So l went on
and on and on until after awhile
heard the dogs bark, and l said,
Whats thatp Then l fastened to
the top of the hill and looked down,
and there | saw the poor lamb. 1t
had fallen into the ditch, and
as | came where it was and bent
over the ditch and stopped down
to lift the poor thing out, wish
you could have seen the loving and
and tender way it looked
at me- | lifted it out and it was all
covered with the slush and the mud.
1t was an awful thing to do but |
lifted it out and it was so lame and
80 weak it could not walk alone, so l |
threw it over my shoulders, and / !
started homeward and the condi-
ton of that lamb you may judge of
from the coat which | have Just
hung up. But l tramped on and on
until it is safe in the yard, poor
thing Thank God, thank Godr' |
Then the shepherds wife spread the
table and brought out the best fare
that the cabin could afford, and they
sat up very late that night, and they
talked, and they laughed, and they
sang, and they ate, and they drank,
and they danced and told over and
over and over again the story of the
lost sheep that was found.
JOY OVER A REPENTANT SINNER.
With such tenderness and rusticity
of illustration does Christ represent
the souls going off and the souls
coming back, when he says, Like
wise there is joy in heaven among
the angels of God over one sinner
atrepenteth, more than over ninety
and nine just persons that need no
To repent is to feel
that you are bad, and to be sorry
about it and to turn over a new leaf,
and to pray for forgiveness and help.
Just as soon as a man does that they
near right away of it in heaven.
There are no gossips in glory
going around to chatter and laugh
when a man fails; but there are many
'ouls in glory who are glad to run
about and tell it when a man is saved.
The news goes very quick from gate
% gate, and from north wall to south
wall, and from east wall to west wall,
md in three minutes every citizen
If heaven has heard of it, for there
s Joy in heaven among the angels of
Tod over one sinner that repenteth."
can very easily understand how
here should be joy in heavy over a
oentecost with three thousand souls
l.. / ,