Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1893-08-04
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S sun
DAY SERMON.
"Sharpened Axes" preached at Mad
ison, Wis.,.

TEXT: "Hn,r. tIlere 'rds no srnih found
throughout al the land Of Israel" etc.-1
Samuel xiii 1874.
My loving and glad saiutation to this IN
counted host Chautauquans. Christian En-
deavOrs. gospel workers ana their Trends
from all parts o. Wisconsin and America.
saints and sinners Ny text is gloriOuSiy
appropriate What a CALLING subiuCetion
the Israelites were suffering The Philjstines
had carried of all the blacksmlths ami torn
down all the bGacks:niths shops and abolished
the bIacksmiths trade in the land OF Israel.
These Phiistines had a particular gruGge
against blacksmiths although l have always
admired them and have sometimes thought
/ ought to have been one myself. The Ph1l-
istines would not even allow these parties to
work their valuable mines OF brass and iron.
nor might they make any swords or spears.
There were only two swords left in all the
land. Yea these PhiIstines went on until
they had taken all the grindstOnes from the
land of Israel. so that il an lsraelltlSn farmer
wanted to sharpen his pillow or his AK he had
TO go over tC the garrison OF the PhllIstineS
TO get it done. There was only one srarpen-
ing instrument left in the land, and that was
a file The farmers and the mechanics hav-
ing nothing to whet up the coulter, and the
Goad. and the pickax save simple file, in
dustrv was hindered and work practically
disgraced.
The great idea of these Philistines was TO
keep the Israeiites disarmed. They might
get iron out ofthe hills to make swords Of
but they would not have any blacksmiths TO
weld this iron If they got the iron welded.
they would have no grindstones on which to
bring I he instruments of agriculture or the
military weapons up to an edge. on. you
poor. weaponiess Israelites. reduced 20 file.
how I pity you But these Ph1lstineS were
not forever to keep their heel on the neck Of
Gods children. jonathan. on his hands and
knees. climbs up great rock beyond which
were the Phil:stines. and his armor bearer
OF his hands and knees. climbs up the same
rock. and these two men. with their two
swords. heW to pieces the Philistines, the
Lord throwing a great terror upon them. So
1t was then; SO it Isl now. The two men o.
God on their knees mightier than Phiiistine
host on their feet.
I learn first from this subject how DANGER
Gus it is for the church Of God to all 0w its
weapons to stay i'll the hands of its enemies
These Israelites might again and again
have obtained supply Of swords and
weapons, as for instance, when they
took the spoiIs of the Ammonites, but
these 1sraelites seemed content to have
no swords no spears. no b!acksmiths
no grindstones. no active iron mines. until it
was too late for them TO make any resistance.
l see the farmers Juggling along with their
pickaxes and plows, and say. "Where are
you going with those things?' They say,
"Oh. we are going over to the garrison of
the Phiistines to get these things sharp
ened." [ say, You foolish men why don't
you sharpen them at hOme?' cob" they
say. the backsmiths' shops are all torn
down, and we have nothing left Is but
file -
SO it is in the church of Christ to-day. We
are too willing to give up our weapons to the
enemy The world boasts that it has COB
bled up the schools, and the colleges, and
the arts. and the sciences. and the literature,
and the printing press. Intidelity is making
mighty attempt to get all our weapons in
its hand and then to keep them. You know
it is making this boast all the time and after
a while, when the great battle between sin
and righteousness has opened, if We do not
look out we will be as badly off as these Is
raeliteS. without any swords to fight with
and without any sharpened instruments.
l call upon the superintendent Of literary
institutions to see to it that the men who go
into the classrOOms to stand beside the Ley
den jars. and the electric batteries. and the
microscopes or telescopes be children OF
God. not Philistines. The atheistic thinkers
Of this day are trying to get all the intel
lectual weapons of this century in their own
grasp. What we want is scientific Christians
to capture the science. and scholastic Chris
tians to capture the scholarship, and philoso-
phic Christians to capture the philosophy,
and lectdring Christians to take back the
lecturlng platform.
We want to send out against Schenkel
and Strauss and Renan Of the past men like
the late Theodore Chrstlieb of Bonn, and
against the infdel scientists a God Worship
ing Silliman and Hitchcock and Agassiz.
We want to capture all the philosophical
apparatus and swing around the telescopes
on the swivel until through them we can see
the morning star OF the Redeemer and with
meteorological hammer discover the ''Rock
of Ages and amid the fora OF the realms
find the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of
the Valley"
We want a clergy learned enough to dis
course of the human eye. showing it to be
microscope and telescope in one instrument.
with 800 wonderful contrivances and lids
closing SO. 900 or 20. 900 times a day. all its
muscles and nerves and bones showing the
infinite skill of an infinite God, and then
winding up with the perOration. He that
formed the eye. shall He not see?" And
then we want to discourse about the human
ear its wonderful integuments. membranes
and vibration. and its chain of small bones.
and its auditory nerves, closing with the
question. He that planted the ear, shall He
not hear?
And we want some one able to expound
the first chapter o. Genesis. bringing to it
the geology and the astronomy of the world,
until. as Job suggested the stones of the
field shall be in league with the truth. and
the stars in their courses shall fight against
Sisera." Oh. church of God. go out and re-
capture these weapons. Let men OF God go
out and take possession of the platform. Let
all the printing press Of this country speak
out for Christ. and the reporters, and the
typesetters. and the editors and publishers
swear allegiance to the Lord God of truth
All. my friend, that day must come. and If
the great body of Christian men have notthe
faith. or the courage, or the conservation to
10 it. then let some Jonathan on his busy
hands and on his praying knees climb up on
the rock OF hindrance. and in the name of
the Lord God Of Israel slash to pieces those
Hlerafy Phlilstlnes- II these men will
not he converted to God. then they must be