Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1893-07-14
REV. DR.. TALMAGE.
The Eminent Brooklyn DiviD9'S Sun
day Sermon,
Subject: Arrogance and Humility"

TEXT "God be n1ercifu unto Sae, a sinnerr
Luke xviii, 10.
No mountain ever had more brilliant
coronet than Mount Moriah The glories OIL
the ancient temple blazed there The noun.
tain top was not originally large enough to
hold the temple, and so wall 600 feet high
was erected, and tho mountain was built cut
into that wall.
1t was at that point that satan met Christ
and tried to persuade Him to cast Himself
down the 900 feet. The nine gates of the
temple flashed the light of silver and gold
and Corinthian brass, which Corinthan brass
was mere precious stones melted and
mixed and crysIallized. The temple itself
was not SO very large a structure, but the
courts and the adiuncts of the architecture
made it half q mile in circumference.
We stand and look upon that wondrous
structure What's the matter? What
strange appearance in the temple? Is 1t fire?
Why, It seems as if it were mantle all kim
died into flame. What's tho matter? Why,
its the hour Of morning sacrifice, and the
smoke on the altar rises and bursts out of
the crevices and out ofthe door and wreathes
the mountain top with folds of smoke
through which glitter precious stones
gathered and FURNISHED by royal mu-
nifcence.
I see two men mounting the steps Of the
|
very unlike no sympathy between them
the one the pharisee, proud arrogant, pom.
pous; he goes up the steps Of tho building /;
he seems by his manner to say "Clear the
track Never before came up these steps
such goodness and conservation.
Beside him was the publican, bowed down,
seemingly, with load on his heart. They
reach the Enclosure for worship in the midst
Of the temple, The pbarisee goes close up
to the gate Of the holy Of holes. He feels he
is worthyto stand there. He says practically /
II am SO holy want to go into the holy of
holes. Oh Lord, am very good man! I
am a remarkably good man. Why, two days
In the week eat absolutely nothing. I am
60 good. I'm very generous in my conduct
! toward the poor. l have no sympathy with
the common rabble; especially have none
with this poor, miserable, commonplace
wretched publican, who happened to come
up the stairs beside me-"
The publican went clear to the other side
OF the Enclosure, as far away from the gate
of the holy of holes as he could get, for he
felt unworthy 10 stand near the sacred place.
And the Bible says he stood afar off. Stand
Ing on the opposite side of this Enclosure,
he bows his head, and az orientials when
they have any trouble beat their breasts, so
he begins to pound his breast as he cries,
"God be merciful to me, sinner -
Oh, was there ever greater contrast? The
incense that waited that morning from the
priest S censor was not 80 sweet as the pub
leans prayer floating INFO the opening
heavens while the prayer of the pharisee
died on his contemptuous lips and rolled
down into his arrogant heart. Worshiping
there, they join each other and go side by
side down tho steps, the pharisee cross,
wretched, acrid saturnine-the publican
with his face shining with the very joys OF
heaven, for ~ tell you that this mafAtwent
down to his house justified rather than the
other"
Now, 1 put this publicans prayer under
analysis, and l discovered in the first place
that he was persuaded of his sinfulness. He
was an honest man he was a taxgathefer
he was an officer of tho government The
publicans were taxgatherers, and Cicero
says they were the adornment OF the State.
OF course they were somewhat unpopular,
because people then did not like to pay their
taxes any better than people now like to pay
their taxes, and there We're many who dis
liked them.
Still suppose this publican, this tax gath
crer, was an honorable man. He had an
office of trust there were many hard things
said about him, and yet, standing there in
that enclosure of the temple amid the
demonstrations ofGod's holiness and power,
''God be merciful to me, q sinnerW BY what
process shall prove that am sinner? By
what process shall prove that you are as sin
ner? Shall ask you to weigh your motives,
to scan your actions to estimate your be-
havior? l will do nothing of the kind. l
will draw my argument rather from the plan
OF the work that God has achieved for your
salvation.
You go down in storm to the beach, and
I. -.
and launch the lifcboat and then shoot the
rockets to show that help is coming out iIto
the breakers, and you Immediately cry, "A
shipwreck p And when see the Lord Jesus
Christ putting aside robe and crown and
launch out on the tossing sea OF human SUI.
feriIg and satanic hate, going out into the
laundering surge Of death, l cry, "a ship.
wreck p
l know that our souls ara dreadfuly lost
by the work that God has done TO save them.
Are you sinner. Suppose you bad COM
mercial agent in Charleston or San Franz
cisco, or Chicago, and you were paying him
promptly his salary. and you found out after
awhile that Notwithstanding lie had drawn
the salary he had given nIne-tCnths of all the
time TO some other commercial establish
ment. Why, your indignation would know
no bounds. And yet that is just the way we
have treated the Lord.
nc sent us OUT INTO tne WOrlQ 10 serve
Him. He has taken good care of U.s. Ue
mas clothed us, He has sheltered us, and He
has surrounded us with 10, 900 benefactions,
and yet many OF us have given nine-tenths OF
our lives to the service OF the world, the flesh
and the devil. Why, my friend, the Bible is
full of confessions. and l do not find anybody
is pardoned until he has confessed.
What did David say? II will confess my
transgressions unto the Lord" What did
Isaiah say? "Woe is me, because l am
man of unclean lips" What did Ezra say?
"Our iniquities are increased over our head,
and our trespass is grown up into heaven
And among the millions before thS throne of
God tonight not one got there until he con-
fessed. The coast Of eternal sorrow is strewn
with the wreck of those who. not taking the
warning, drove with the cargo of immortal
hope into the white tangled foam of he
breakers.
Repent the voice celestia: cries
Nor longer dare delay
The wretch that scorns the mandate dies
And meets the fiery day.
But analyze the publican's prayer step
further, and 1 find that he expected no relief
except through Gods mercy. Why did not