Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1893-02-03
TABERNACLE PULPIT.
TALMAOE breaches ON SUM-
SHINE OF RELIGION.
"Her ways Are Ways OF Pieasantness"--
"A Beautiful Sermon ON the Worship
OF God-The Christians Self De-
malls. Ia

BROOKLYN, Jan. 20. The Rev. DR.. Talmage
the Tabernacle on '"rne Sunshine OF Religion, v.
the text chosen being, Proverbs 3: Ia: Her
ways are ways Of pleasantness."
You have all heard of Gods only be-
gotten son. Have you heard of Gods
daughter? She was born in heaven.
She came down over the hills of our
world. She had queenly step. On her
brow was celestial radiance. Her
voice was music. Her name is Religion.
My text introduces her. "Her ways
are ways of pleasantness, and ali her
paths are peace,
But what is religion? The fact is
that theological study has had a diff
ferent effect upon me from the effect
sometimes produced. Every year l
tear out another leaf from my theology
until have only three or four leaves
left In other words, a very brief and
plain statement of Christian belief.
An aged Christian minister said:
"When l was young man, l knew
everything; when / got to be 35 years
of age in my ministry had only hun
dred doctrines of religion; when l got
TO be 40 years of age, had only fifty
doctrines of religion; when got to be
90 years of age, had only ten doctrines
years of age, and there is only one
thing know. and that is, that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sim
ners" And so have noticed in the
study of Gods word, and in my con-
temptation of the character of God and
of the eternal world, that it is neces-
sary for me to drop this part of my be-
lief and that part of my belief as being
non-essential, while cling to the one
great doctrine that man is a sinner,
and Christ is his Almighty and divine
Savior.
Now, I take these three or four
leaves of my theology, and find that
In the first place, and dominant above
all others, is the sunshine of religion.
When go into a room have passion
for throwing open all the shutters.
That is what want to do this morn
ing. We are apt to throw SO much of
the sepulchral into our religion, and
to close the shutters, and to pull down
the blinds, that it is only through here
and there a crevice that the light
streams. The religion OF the Lord
Jesus Christ is religion of joy indie
scribable and unutterable. Wherever
/ can find bell / mean to ring it.
If there are any in this house this
morning who are disposed to hold onto
their melancholy and gloom, let them
now depart this service before the fair
est and the brightest and the most rad
liant being of all the universe comes in.
Gods SON has left our world. but OOd's
daughter is here Give her room!
HALT Princess of heaven. Hail!
daughter of the Lord GOD Almighty.
Come in and make this house thy
throne-room
In setting forth this idea, the domi-
nant theory of religion is one of sun
shine. hardly know where to begin
for there are SO many thoughts that
rush upon my soul. A mother saw
her little child seated on the floor in
the sunshine, and with a spoon in her
hand She said: my darling, what
are you doing there?" o." replied
the child, IN getting spoonful of
the sunshine" Would God that to-day
j might present you with a cleaning
chalice of this glorious, everlasting,
Gospel sunshine!
First of all, find great deal of sun
shine in Christian society.
do not know of anything more dole
full than the companionship of the mere
funmakers of the world-the Thomas
Hoods, the Charles Lambs, the Charles
Matthews of the world--the men
whose entire business is to make sport
They make others laugh, but If you
will examine their autobiography, 'or
biography, you will find that down in
their soul there was a terrific disqui-
etude. Laughter is no sign of happi-
ness. The maniac laughs. The hyena
laughs. The loon among the Adiron-
dacks laughs. The drunkard dashing
his decanter against the wall, laughs.
There is terrible reaction from all
sinful amusement and sinful merri-
ment Such men are cross the next
day. They snap at you on exchange,
or they pass you, not recognizing you.
Long ago quit mere worldly society
for the reason it was dull, so insane
and SO stupid. Ny nature is voracious
of joy. j must have it.
ALWAYS walk on the sunny side of
the street and for that reason / have
crossed over into Christian society.
like their mode of repartee better.
like their style of amusement
better. They live longer. Chris
tan people, / sometimes notice,
live on when by all natural
law they ought to have died. / have
known persons who have continued in
their existence when the doctor said
they ought to have been dead ten
years. Every day of their existence
was defiance of the laws OF anatomy
and physiology; but they had this
supernatural vivacity of the gospel in
their soul, and that kept them alive.
Put ten or twelve Christian people in a
room for Christian conversation, and
you will from to 10 o'clock hear more
resounding glee, see more bright
strokes of wit, and find more thought
and profound satisfaction, than
in any me ely worldly party.
Now, when say a worldly
party" mean that TO
which you are invited, because under
all the circumstances of the case it is
the best for you to be invited, and to
which you go because under all the
circumstances of the case it is better
that you go; and leaving the shawls
on the second floor, you go TO the par
Tor TO give formal salutation to the
host and the hostess, and then move
around, spending the whole evening
In the discussion of the weather, and
in apology for treading on long trails,
and in effort to keep the corners OF
the mouth up To the sign of pleasure,