Democratic messenger., 1893-12-16
PAUL'S CONVERSION.
DR.. TALMAGE FINDS LESSONS IN THE
Prosecutors EXPERIENCE.

| PERSECUTOR' EXPERIENCE.
II Is Often Necessary For Man 10 Fall In
Order to Rlse Again. to go Through the
Valley OF Humiliation Before Preach
Ing.
| BIRMINGHAM. Ala. Dec. 10 - Rev. DIR.
Talmage, who lectured in this city yester-
day. having spoken during the week at
Nashville. Memphis and other cities.
preached here this forenoon to n large audi
ence under the auspices of the Baptist
church. The subject was, "Cnhorse,l. 4" and
the text chosen was Acts ix. rs: And as
he journeyed he came near Damascus and
suddenly there shined round about hin,
light from heaven. and he fell to the earth
and heard voice saying unto him. Saul,
Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he
said, Who art thou. Lord? And the ord
said. am Jesus whom thou persecutest."
The Damascus Of Bible times still stands,
with n population Of l35O1. II was CAV
city Of white. and glistening architecture.
its minarets and crescents and domes play
ing with the light Of the morning sun: EN-
powered in groves Of olive and citron and
plunging it's brightness into the scene;
city by the ancients styled IN pearl sur
rounded by emeralds"
A group Of horsemen are advancing upon
that city. Let the ChriSians Of the place
hide. for that cavalcade coming over the
hills is made up Of prosecutors, their leader
small and unattractive in some respects. as
leaders sometimes are insignificant in per
son-witness the Duke of Wellington and
DIR. Archibald Alexander. But there IN
something very intent i'm the eye Of this
man of the text, and the horse he rides is
lathered with the foam Of a long and quick
travel Of 135 miles lie urges on his steetl,
for those Christians must he captured and
silenced, and that religion Of the cross
must be annihilatcd.
Suddenly the horses shy Oft and plunge
until the riders are precipitated. Freed
from the riders. the horses bound snorting
away. You know that dumb animals at
the sight of an eclipse. or an earthquake, or
anything like supernatural appearance.
sometimes become very uncomfortable. A
new sun had been kindled in the heavens,
putting out the glare of the ordinary SUM-
Christ, with the glories Of heaven wrapped
about him, looked out from n cloud, and
the splendor was insufferable. and no won
der the horses sprang and the equestrans
dropped.
Dust covered and bruised, Saul attempts
to get up, shading his eyes with his hands
from the severe luster Of the heavens, but
unsuccessfully. for he is struck stone blind
n he cries out. "Who art thou. Lor,i;" And
Jesus answered him: II am the one YOU
have been chasing. He that whips and
scourges those Damascene Christians whips
and scourgcs me. IL is not their back that
is bleeding-it is mine II is not their heart
that is breaking-it is mine. am Jesus
whom thou persecutest."
HE FELL To RISE AGAIN.
From that wild. exciting and overwhelm-
ing scene there rises up the greatest preach
er of all the ages-Paul. in whose behalf pris-
ons were rocked down. before whom sol
diers turned pale, into whose hand Medi-
terranean sea captains put control Of their
shipwrecking craft. and whose epstles are
the avant courier of a resurrection day.
learn from this scene that worldly fall
sometimes precedes spiritual uplifting.
A man does not get much sympathy by
falling off horse. People say he ought
not tn have got into the saddle IL he could
not ride. Those of us who were brought
up i'm the country remember well how the
workmen laughed when. ON our way back
from the brook, we suddenly lost our ride
When in grand review general toppled
from the stirrups. il became national mer-
riment.
Here is Paul on horseback "A proud man.
riding ON with government documents in
his pocket, n graduate of n most famous
school, in which the celebrated DIR. CANA
liel had been professor. perhaps having al
"a
school-rab, the first; rabbi. the second,
and on his way to rabbak. the third and
highest title. know from his tempcra-
ment that his horse was ahead of the other
horses. But without time to think of what
posture he should take. or without consid-
Grafton for his dignity. he is tumbled into
the dust. and yet that was the best ride
Paul ever took Out Of that violent fall he
arose into the apostleship so IL has been
in all ages. aud so il Is now.
You will never I've worth much for God
and the church until you lose your fortune,
or have your reputation upset. or in some
way, somehow. are thrown and Inundated.
You must go down before you go up. Jo-
seph finds his path to the Egyptian court
through the pit into which his brothers
threw him. Daniel would never have
walked amid the bronzed lions that adorned
the Babylonish throne il he had not first
walked amid the real lions of the cave.
And Paul marshals all the generations OF
Christendom by falling fiat ON his face on
the road to Damascus
Men who have been always prospered
may he efficient servants of the world, hut
will he Of no advantage to Christ. You
may ride maiestically seat ID on your char
ger, rein in hand, foot in stirrup. but you
will never I've worth anything spiritually
until you fail of They who graduate from
the school Of Christ with the highest hon
Ors have on their diploma the seal of
lions muddy paw, or the plash Of an an
CRY wave. or the drop Of n stray tear. or the
brown scorcb Of prosecuting fire. In 800
cases out of 600 there is no moral or spir
itual elevation until there has been thor. |
ough worldly upsetting.
BRAVE MEN FOR CHRIST.
Again, learn from the subject that the |
religion Of Christ is not pusillanimous
thing People in this day try to make us
believe that Christianity is something for |
men Of small calit,er. for women with no
capacity to reason, for children in the infant |
class under o years Of age. but not for stall |
wart men. Look at this man of the text! |
DO you not think that the religion that |
could capture such man as that must |
have some power in il! lie was "a logician;
he was metaphysician; he was AN all con- |
Nuering orator; he was poet of the highest |
type He had nature that could swamp |
the leading men Of his own day, and hurled
hgainst the sanhe,Irin he made it tremble.
He learned all he could get in the school |
Of his native village: then he had gone to a |
higher school. aud ihcr. mastered the
Greek and the Hebrew and perfected him
self In bellies lettres. until in after years he |
astonished the Cretans, and the Corin
,thians, and the Athenians, by quotations
from their own authors. have never
found anything in Carlyle or Goethe or
Herbert Spencer that could compare in
strength or beauty with Paul's epistles.
i do not think there is anything in the
writings Of Sir William Hamilton that
shows such mental discipline as you find in