The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1893-03-14
THE RIVER JORDAN.
INDUSTRIOUS IN TIE HISTORY OF
THE CHRISTIAN WORLD.
The Subject of DIR. Talmage's Sermon in the
Presbyterian Church at Detroit, Mich.
Where He is Visiting,

| Presbyterian Church at Detroit, Mich,
| Where He is Visiting,
Detroit, Mich, March 12.-(Special y
| Rev. DR.. Talmage, who is now visiting this
| city, preached today in the Fort Street
| Presby church. of which Rev. DIR.
Radctfe is pastor, to Il large and intensely
interested audience on the Crossing of the
Jordan by the Children of Israel" the text
being from Joshua 3:11: And the priests
that bare the ark of the covenant of the
Lord stood tlrm on dry ground III the midst
of the Jordan, and all the Israelites passed
over on dry ground, until all the people were
passed clean over Jordan"
Washington crossed the Delaware when
crossing was pronounced impossible, but he
did it by boat. NerXes crossed the Helles-
pont with two millions of men, but he did
1t by bridge. The Israelites crossed the
Red sea; but the same orchestra that cele-
brated the delverance of the one army
sounded the Strangulation of the other
This Jordan passage differs from all. There
was no sacrifice of human life-not so much
as the Joss of Il linchpin. The vanguard
of the host made up of priests, advanced
until they put their foot at the brim of the
river, when immedia tely the streets of .Ie-
rusalem were no more dry than the bed of
that river. 1t was as if all the water had
been drawn off and then the dampness had
been soaked up with sponge and then by q
towel the road had been wiped dry. Wonder
goes great army of Israelites, the hosts in
uniform; following them the wives. the
children the tlocks, the herds. The people
look up at the crystalline wall of the Jordan
as they pass, and think what an awful dis
aster would come TO them if, before they
got to the opposite bank of that Ajalon wall,
that wall should fall on them; and the
thought makes the mothers hug their chill
dren close to their hearts rs they swiften
their pace. Quick, now; get them all up on
h. lis armed NylV
and children. flocks and herds, and let this
wonderful Jordanic passage be completed
forever.
Sitting on the shelvcd limestone / look
off upon that Jordan where Joshua crossed
under the triumphal arch of the rainbow
woven out of the spray; the river which
afterward became the bapusEy where
Christ was sprinkled or plunged; the riv-
or where the aX-the borrowed ak
miracously swan at the prophets order;
the world of heroic faith and omnipo-
tent del rance, and typical of scenes
Yet to trnnspire in your life and mine
scenes enough to make US, from the sole
of the foot to the crown of the head, tlngie
with infinite gladness.
Standing on the scene of that affrighted,
fugitive river Jordan, l learn for my
self and for you, first, that obstacles, when
they are touched, vanish The text says
that when these priests came down ana
with their feet-the water parted. They
did not wade in chin deep, or waist deep,
or knee deep, or ankle deep, but as soon as
their feet touched the water 1t vanished.
And it makes me think that almost all the
obstacles of life need only be approached
in order to be conquered. Difficulties but
touched vanish. 1t is the trouble, the dlf-
ficulty the obstacle far in the distance that
seems so huge and tremendous.
The Apostles Paul and John seemed to
Amos In
MS in Philippians, Beware of dogs; and
John seems to shut the gate of heaven
against all the canine species when lie
says, without our dogs. But L nave
been told that when those animals are
furious if they come at you, if You will
keep your eve on them and advance up
on them, they will retreat. Whether that
be so or not, / cannot tell; but l do know
that the vast majority OF the mlSiortunes
and trials and disasters of your hte mat
hound your steps, IL you can Only sGI
your eye on them, and keep your eye on
them. and advance upon them, ana cry,
'Begone." they will sink and cover.
There is a beautiful tradition among the
American Indians that Mamtou was tray
cling in the invisible world, and one day he
came to Il barrier of bramblcs and sharp
thorns which forbade his going on, and
there was a wild beast glarlng at HIM from
the thicket; but, as he determined 10 go
on his way, he did pursue 1t, and those
DranhlcS were IOuHu lO ne ouly phdliboA''o,
and that beast was found to be power
less ghost. and the impossible river that
forbade him rushing to embrace the lara
tilda proved TO be only q phantom rVer.
Well. my friends, the fact Is, there are
great many things that look terrible across
our pathway, which, when we advance
upon them. are only the phantomS, only
the apparitions, only the decisions OF lie.
Difficulties touched are conquered. Tut
Your feet into the brim of the Wnter, and
Jordan retreats. You sometimes see
great duty to perform it Is a very dlsa-
greeahlc duty; you say, Il can't go through
it: | haven't the courage, / haven't the IN
telligcnce, TO 60 through it" Advance
upon it, Jordan will vanish.
| always sigh before ] begin to preach,
at the greatness of the undertaking, but as
soon as l start it becomes to me an eXhla-
ration And any duty undertaken with
confident spirit becomes Il pleasure, and
the higher the duty the higher the pleasure.
Difficulties touched are conquered. There
are a great many people who are afraid of
death in the future. Good John Livingston
once. on n sloop coming from Elizabethport
to New York, was dreadfully frightened.
because he thought he was going to be
drowned as a sudden gust came up. PeO-
pie were surprised at him. If any man Ill
all the world was ready to die, it was good
John Livingston. So there are now q great
many good people who shuddcr i'll passing
Il graveyard, and they hardly dare think of
Canaan because OF the JORDAN tnat inter-
vencs: but once they are down on Il sick
bed. then all their fears are gone; the wa
ters of death daShing on the beach are like
the mellow voice of ocean sheils--they
smell of the blossoms Of the tree of life;
the music of the heavenly ChOirs comes
stealing over the waters, and to cross now
is only q pleasant sail. How long the boat
is coming Come, Lord Jesus. come quickly
Christ the Priest advances ahead. and the
dying Christian goes over dryshod on coral
beds. and flowers Of heaven. and paths of
pearl.
Oh could we make doubts remove
Those gloomy doubts that rise
And view the Canaan that we love
With mbcclouded eyes.
Could we but climb where Moses stood,
And view the landscape O'er
Nor ,JOrdan'S stream, nor deaths cold flood
Could fright us from the shore.
Again. this Jordanic passage teaches me
the completeness Cf everything that God
does When God put an invisible dam
across Jordan, and it was halted, it would
have been natural, YOU would have sup
posed, for the water to have oycrtiowed the
region al around about and that great de
vastation would have taken place. But
when God put the dam in front of the river
ii