Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1893-05-12
REV. DR.. TALMAGE.
The Eminent Brooklyn Divine's Sun.
day Sermon.
Subject: "Mavtimo Thoughts"

were to be found at the foot of Mount 7 -
banon. Snow descended and winter whits,,ad
the top OF the mountain. Then when The
warm spring weather came the SHOWS maltad
and poured down the side OF the mountain
and gave great luxurlance to the gardens ~
the foot, and you see now the allusion of nv
text When II SPEAKS OF the fountain of gar
dens and streams from Lebanon.
Again and again the church Is ranrssor.od
as garden all pand down the word of Cod
and it IS figure specially Suggestive M nj,
season OF the year, when the parks and the
orchards are about to put forth their blossom
and the ar is filed with bird voices
mother wished to impress her child with
the love OF God, and so in the sprino-time
after the ground had been prepared in tho
garden, she took handful Of flower seeds
ana scattered these seeds in shape of Letters
all aeroSsthe bed the garden. Weeks passed
Dy ana the rains and the sunshine had done
their WORK ana one day the child came in
den-cOme now" The mother foIIowede a.
mid TO the garden, and the little child said
LOOK here, mother. See 1t is spelled all
over the ground in flowers. God is Love =,
Os. my friends. il we only had faith
enough we could see Gospei leseons OH
around and about us-lessons in shells on
inc beach, lessons in sparkles on the wave
lessons IN stars on the sky, lessons in flowers
al over the earth. N-'
wei, my friends. you know very we'll that
here have been some beautiful 1arders
treated. There was the garden ~ Shs,Ia9
nagne. and you remember that this Kin,
ordered gardens laid out all through the
-ealm and decided by decree of government
Ehat kind OF flowers should be planted i'm.
nose gardens. Henry ". at MontDelIier
iecreed that there should be flowers planted
throughout his realm and gardens laid out.
ind ne specially decreed that there should be
Alpine pyrana and French plants. Shen-
Tone, the poet. was more celebrated for his
gardens than for his poetry His poetry
aas iaded from the ages for the most par.
put his gardens are immortal. To Ali th,,
beauty of his place he added perfection q,
1T Palisade and arch and arbor and
iountaln and rustic temple had their
most wonderful specimens. and the oak
and the hazel. and the richest woods OF the
crest We're planted in that garden. He had
genius. and he had industry. and all his gen
Us and all his industry he applied TO the
qualification of that garden. He gave To-.
$500. and he sold it at last for SS5. 900. o.
what was equal to that number OF dollars.
. was an expensive garden laid out with
Teat elaboration. And yet haveto tell YOU
low OF garden Of vaster expanse-:he gar
len spoken OF in my texts fountain OF gar
lens with the streams from Lebanon
Walter Scott had the great ambition of his
life to build AbbOtsfOrd and lay out extensive
gardens round about it. 1t broke his heart
hat be could not complete the work as hi
desired it, At his last payment of G1OO, 900.
liter laying out these gardens and building
hat palace of Abbotsford, at that time his
heart broke, his health failed, and he died
almost an imbecile.
4 few WARS --hap I v-aiEOd tL-ov~y,
hose gardens ard thought at what vast ex-
pense they had been laid out-at the expense
d that man life--it seemed could see in
he crimson flowers the blood of the old
man broken heart. But have TO tell YOU
now OF a garden laid out at vaster expense.
Who can calculate thai vast expense? Tell
ne, we women who watched Him hang tell
ne, We executionerG who lifted and let Him
1own tell me. thou sun that didst hide and
sc rocks that did fall. what the laying out OF
This garden cost. This morning, amid tAe
aroma and brightness of the springtime, it Is
appropriate that [ show you how the church
Of Christ is a garden.
remark first it is garden beceSse CT .h0
rare plants in it. That would be O strange
garden in which there were no flowers. II
YOU cannot find them anywhere else, YOU will
Ina them along the paths and you will ind
them at the gateway.
II there be no especial taste and no es-
pecial means. you viii find there the molly
hook. and the dafIodi and the dahlia II
there be no especial taste and no especial
means. you will find the Mexican cactus, and
the bluebeD. and the arbutus. and the clus-
tiers OF Oleanders.
Flowers there must be in every garden, and
| have to tell you that in the garden OF the
church are the rarest plants. Sometimes
YOU will find the violet. incOnspicuOus, but
sweet as heaven Christian souls with no pre-
tense, but Of vast usefulness, comparatively
unknown on earth, but to be glorious in
celestial spheres Yiolets and violets all the
time. You cannot tell where these Christians
have been save by the Frightening face of tho
invalid. or the steaming tUreen of the stand
near the sick pillow or the new curtain that
keeps out the glare OF the sun from the poor
mans cot. Such characters are perhaps bet
ter typihed by the ranunculus which goes
creeping between the thOrns and the briers OF
this life, giving kiss for a sting, and many
man has thought that life before him was a
black rock Of trouble and found il covered
all oyer with delizhtsome jasmine Of Chris
tian sympathy
In this garden OF the Lord find tine Mexi-
can cactus, loveliness within, thorns with
OUT men with great sharpness Of behavior
and manner, but within them the peace OF
God. the love OF God. the grace of God.
They are hard men to handle ugly men to
touch, very apt to strike back when you
strike them. yet within them all loneliness
and attraction, while outside so completely
unfortunate. Mexican cactus all the time
Said a placid elder to a Christian minister.
Doctor you would do better to control your
temper" All" said the minister to the
placid elder, Il control more temper in five
minutes than you do In five years" These
people. gifted men, who have great exaspera-
ton of manner and seem TO be very different
from what they should be, really have in
their souls that which commends them to the
Lord. Mexican cactus all the time. So a
man said to me years ago do you think
/ ought to become a member of the church?
l have such violent temper.
Yesterday l was crossing Jersey City
ferry. 1t was very early In the morning. and
! saw a milkman putting large quantity OF
water into his can, and / said That is
enough, sir. and he got of the cart and in
suited me. and knocked him down. Well
said he. do you think could ever become
a Christian That man had in his soul the
grace Of the Lord Jesus, but outside he was
full Of thorns. and full OF brambles, and full
OF exasperations but he could not hear the
story Of Saviour mercy told without hav-
ing the tears roll down his cheek There was
loveliness within. but roughness outside
But remember in boyboOd that We had in
our fathers garden what we called the Chant
of Battle, peculiar rose, very red and very
fiery. Suggestive flower, 1t was called the
Giant of Battle. And so in the garden OF the
Lord we find that kind OF hower-the Pauls
and Martin Luthers. the Wyciifs, the John
KnOxes-giants Of battle. What in other men
Is a spark, in them is a confagratioD. When
they pray. their prayers take fire when they
suffer, they sweat great drops of blood when
they preach, it is q pentecOst when they
fight, it is Thermopyla; when they die.
1t is martysdom-giants Of battle. You say.
why have we not more of them in the church
of Christ at this timer" l answer your dues-
ton by asking another. why have we not
more Cromwells and Humboldts In the world?"
God wants only few giants of battle. They
do their work, and they do il well.
But / find also in the church OF God a
plant that l shall call the snowdrop. very
beautiful, but cold. II is very Dure-Durs ca
The snowdrop. beautiful as the snowdrop
and as cold as the snowdrop. No special
sympathy That kind Of man never loses
his patience he never weeps, he never
flashes with anger he never utters rash
word Always cold, always precise, always
snowdrop. but don't like
him. I would rather have one Giant OF Bat
tie than 5000 snowdrops
Give me a man who may make some mis-
takes in his ardor for the Lords service
rather than that kind Of nature which spends
IT'S whole life In doing but one thing and