The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1893-04-27
!. DR.. 1AlMAGE'S SERMON
THE s4rH Anniversary OF
. r.,srnsole Pastorste. He Speaks Of
|vhst Has Made the Church Sue
,essfui and Tells OF a Ministers
Trials and Triumphs.

A,~ and ftrsnfu sfnts. ana upon tHS Seuts
u,r four and ttcenty etders.'-kevelation
4.
r,h,s text chooss chiefly for the numerals
rnentions- four and twenty. That
- ,hs number of elders sentef around the
rone OF God, but that IL the number OF
rs seated around NV Brooklyn ministry.
"A avery pulpit is n throne OF blessing or
s,in, a throne OF good or evil. And to-
: In This my twenty-fourth anniversary
E,ron % wears come aud sit around me,
a thew speak out in "Reminiscences OF
dness and tears Twenty.four years ago
rriyed in this city to shepherd such a flock
Knight come, and that day carried in on
arms the infant son who in two weeks
bm 10 day will help ordain TO the gospel
nistry. houing that he will be preaching
br alter my poor work is done.
&ye have received into our membership
pr 5000 souls, hut they. ] think, are only n
ali norton OF the multituies who, COM
from all parts OF the earth, have In our
,ss Of God been blessed and saved.
Though we have as church raised Ell, ,l0),-
for religious purposes, yet we are in the
snge position of not knowing whether
two or three months we shall have any
krirch at all, and with audiences of 6O0o or
b. people crowded into this room and the
joining rooms we are confronted with
3 question whether shall go on with my
&prlI here or go TO some other field. What
awful necessity that we should have
nrn obliged to build three immense
Aurches, two OF them destroyed by fire.
"A misapprehension is abroad that the
nancal exigency OF this church is past.
krough journalistic aud nersonal friends n
eathins spell has BEEN NJ Jr1ed us, but be.
e us vet are financial obligations which
@bst promptly be met, or speedily this house
Nod will go into worldly uses and become
[9henter or n concert hall. The $4,000
X ped cannot cancel n floating debt of
n, 600 Through the kindness Of those 20
F. Nom we are indebted $50, 100 would set us
ever free. am glad to say that the case
hot hopeless. We are daily in receipt OF
bching evidences OF practical sympathy
m ali classes OF the community and from
sections OF the country, and IL was but
Iterdny that by my own hand sent for
Dtributions gratefully received nearly 80
knowle1gments east, west, north and
Ipth.
Dur trust is In the Lord who divided the
~ Sea and made the mountains skip like
nbS" With this paragraph ! dismis, the
hncial subject aud rcturn 70 the spiritual.
Ms morning the greatness OF Gods kind
e obliterates everything. and IL wanted
build groan do not know in what for
would hew the timber, or from what
WOull tLOnH. OF
20 would construct for me an organ with
|<remelo for the only stop. And 50 this
1orning I occupy my time in building one
ii, massive, biyh, deep. broad. heaven
I1rcng halleluiah In the review OF the
q ~ years | think 10 may bs useful TO
oDsider some OF the characteristics OF
1<poklyn pastorate.
ID the first place remark that n - ook-
~ pastorate is always difficult pastorate.
(octy under the sun has a grander array
pulpit talent than Brooklyn. The Metho-
the Baptist, the Congregntiouali,t. the
Iscopalians, all the denominations send
fr brightest lights here. He who stands
amy pulpit In Brooklyn preaching may
xlBw that he stands within fifteen minutes
.1)k OF sermons which a Saurin, and
0rdalone, and a John NJ. Mason and a
.1orge Whitehed would not be ashamed OF.
|ocity under the sun whore "a poor sermon
4 GIich drug on the market.
br forty years Brooklyn has been sur
|1rged with homiletics, an electricity OF
uencc that struck every time IL flashed
the old pulpits which quaked with the
5ers of Bethune. and Cox. and a
pcer, and a Spear, aud Vintou, and a
ley, and Beecher not mentioning the
&knficent men now manning the Brooklyn
pits. SO during all ths time there has
something To appeal to every mans
and to crafty every mans preferences.
)ow. let me say to all ministers OF the
Del who are ambitious for Brooklyn
pit that IL is always a difficult pastorate.
man shall come and stand before any
3ence in almost any church In Brooklyn
4 Fill lind before him men who have heard
I mightiest themes discussed in the
&&Hhtiest way. You will have before you,
( kyeu tail in an argument, fifty logicians in
k0dget. II you maze slip In the use OF
1numercial figure OF speech. there will be
% Merchants VINO will notice IL, IL YOU
TOW out an anCaor or furl n sail in the
Vfong way, there will be ship captains right
- no will wonder IL you are as ignorant
y Zoology as you ore OF navigation! So
{ Vill he place of hard study. II you
- gonS 10 maintain yourself, you will
~ b brooklyn pastorate difficult pas
xfemark still further, n BROOKLYN pasto-
1@4is always n conspicuous pastorate. The
x4eing press OF the country has no Q reater
oeue than ON the seacoast, Every pulpit
V0|p, good or bad. wiss or ignorant kind
- pam, Is watched. The reportorial corps
ese cities Is an organized army. Many
= I'm have collegiate education and large
'Qlre, and they are able TO weigh Grafton
y Iiress or sermon. IL you say a silly
l11k you will never nenr the end OF II, and
= ~ say wise thing it will 60 into per-
.? multiplication. There Is no need OF
!lc<{3ing that fact. Men. whose influence
~ Ren built by the printing press spend
1o4ost OF their lives in denouncing news
The newspaper is the pulpit on the
More preaching done on Monday
4pn Sunday. The omnivorous, all eyed
~ )ng press is ever vigilaut,
des that, a Brooklyn pastorate Is
H. " conspicuous in the fact that every-
comes here. Brooklyn is New York
= better mood. Strangers have not seen
44~ ork until they have seen BROOKLYN,
<I1<ast River Is the chasm in which our
pants drop their cares, and their
fles. and their business troubles. and
time they have greeted their families
y home circle they have forgotten all
1uHH Wall street ana Broadway and the
les. III they commit business sins in
zzS$x y ork during the day, they come over
g fposlyn To repent of tnem.
AtHyhody comes here. Stand at the
o1uke entrance or at the ferry gates on
naoueth morning at 10 o'clock, or Sabbath
evening at O'clock and you see north.
soutp east, west-Europe, Asia, Africa,
nov zealand, Australia-coming TO Brook
lyn % spend the Sabbath, or part of il in the
[?ersons OF their epresentatives-soms of
them Fresh from the sea- They have inst
1.uaed. ana they want TO seek the houss of
kto4 pnbllcly TO thank the Lord for their
from cyclones ana fog banks Off
neHfoundland. Every song SUNG every
nInyeL offered, every sermon preaohei IN
NtW YORK ana BROOKLYN aud all alone this
~ cphst IN some share goes all ro,nd