Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1892-09-05
TALMAGE IN EUROPE.
EXTRAORDINARY CROWDS GATHER
TO HEAR THE AMERICAN DIVINE.

LONDON, Sept. 4.-The great outpour
ings to hear DIR. Talmage preach con-
finue. Probably the greatest demon
stration during the past month was that
at the town hall, Birmingham, where
he delivered three addresses the same
evening to audiences aggregating 80, 900
persons. At Sheffield. Derby, Leicester,
Exeter and Bristol also phenomenal au-
dienceS assembled, the most cordial well
come being everywhere accorded him.
Qhe sermon selected for publication this
week is entitled Celestial Svmpathiz-
ers,~ the text being taken from CORN
thians XIV, 80, Il have fought with beasts
lat Ephesus." and Hebrews xii, L, ''See
ing we also are comprised about with
SO great cloud of witnesses.
Crossing the Alps by the Mount Gents
pass or through the Mount Gents tun-
mel, you are in u few hours set down ;;t
Verona. Italy, and in few minutes be-
gin examining one of the grandest ruins
of the world-the amphitheGtcr. The
whole building sweeps around you IN q
circle. You stand in the arena where
the combat was once fought or the rae
run. and on all sides the seats rise, tiei'
above tier, until you count forty eleva-
tions or galleries, as | shall see fit to
call them, in which sat the senator's,
the kings and the twenty-five thousand
excited spectators.
AT the sides of the arena and under
the galleries are the cages in which tie
lions and tigers are kept without food
until frenZied with hunger and thirst,
they are let out upon some victim who,
with his sword and alone, is condemned
to meet them. | think that Paul him
self once stood in such Il place, and that
it was not only fguratively but literal
ly that he had fought with beasts at
lEphesus."
The gala day has come From all the
world the people are pouring into We
roma. Men, women and children ora
tors 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. ell the way
up to the thirtieth, all the way up to
the fortieth. Every place is filled
immensely of audience sweeping the
great circle. Silence1 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.
hear the door at the side of the arena
creak open. Out plunges the half starved
hon, his tongue athirst 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 u stroke ii
man will strike when his life de2ertls
upon the first thrust of his blade? The
wild beast, lame and bleeding, sinks
back toward the side of the arena; then,
Gallying his wasted strength, he comes
up with fiercer eye and more terrible
roar than ever, only to be driven back
with Il fatal wound, while the combat
ant comes in with stroke after stroke,
until the monster is dead at his feet. and
the twenty-five thousand people clap
their hands and utter a shoutthat makes
the city tremble.
THERE ARE LIONS in TIE WAY.
Sometimes the audience came to see q
race: sometimes to see gl&diatoTs fight
each other. until the people, compass i0n-
ate for the fallen, turned their th;;.,.:,b5
down as an appeal that the vanqui she'd
De spared, anu SOL1eIlulSS NlG COMBAT
was with wild beasts.
To one of the Roman amphitheatrical
audiences of one hundred thousand peo-
pie Paul refers when he says, 1--WE are
comprised about with SO great crowd
of witnesses. The direct reference in
the last passage is made to race, but
elsewhere having discussed that ] take
now Pauls favorite idea of the Christian
life as combat
The fact is that every Christian man
has lion to fight. Yours is a bad teri.
per. The gates of the arena have beef
Opened and this tiger has come out to
destroy your soul. It has lacerated you
with many wound. You have bee.
thrown by it time and again: but in the
strength of God you have arisen to drive
it back. verify believe you will con-
quer. | think that the temptation is get
ting weaker and weaker. You have
given it so many wounds that the pros
spect is that it will die and you shall he
victor, through Christ. Courage, BROTH
err 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 commended against
it twenty years, but it is streng of body
and thirsty of tongue. You have tried
to fight it back with broken bottle or
empty wine fesk. Nayl that is not the
weapon. With one horrible roar he will
seize thee by the throat and 1end thee
limb from limb. Take this weapon
sharp and keen-reach up and get il
from Gods armory-the sword of the
Spirit. With that thou mayest drive
him back and conquer!
! But why specify, when every man and
woman has lion &c fight. If there -
one here who has no besetting sin, Let
him speak out; for him have | offended
If you have not fought the lion, it is be.
raIrsa Won have Let the lion eat vO11 nm