The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1893-02-09
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIViNEo sun
DAY SERMON
Subject: .The Sunshine of Religion

Son. Have you heard OF Co.'s dausnt9ry
She was born in heaven oas came do"a
over the hills Of our world. She mad queenly
stan. On her brow was celestial radiance.
Her voice was music. Her name IS Religion.
Nv text introduces her. der ways ara
WAYS of pleasantness, aud all her paths are
But what is religion Tue fact is that
theological study has had different effect
upon NE from the effect sometimes pro-
duced. Every year tear out another leaf
from my theology until have only three OF
four leaves left-in other words, very BRIEF
and pIain statement OF Christian belief.
An aoed Christian minister said: when
l was Young man, | kaey everything;
when got to be thirty-fve years OF age, in
- Ministry he'd or a hundred doctrines
OF religion; when got to be forty years OF
age, / had only fifty doctrines OF reilgloni
onen | got to be sixty years OF age, had
only ten doctrines OF religion, ana now am
dying at seventY-dye years OF age, ana there
is only one thing know, and that is that
Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners And so | have noticed in the study
of Gods word and in my contemplation OF
the character Of God and of the eternal
world that it is necessary for me to drop this
part Of my belief and that part OF my belief
as being uonessental. while | cling to the
one great doctrine that man is sinner, and
Christ is his Almighty and Divine Saviour.
Now 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 room
have passion for throwing open all the
shutters That is what | want to do this
morning We are apt to throw so much of
the sepuchral into our religion and to close
the shutters and to pull down the blinds
that it is only through here and there Gre
vice that the light streams. The religion of
the Lord Jesus Christ is a religion OF joy in
describable and unutterable. Wherever l
can find a bell / mean to ring it,
If there are any in this house this morn
ing who are disposed to hold on to their
melancholy and gloom, let them now depart
this service before the faireSt and the bright
est and the most radiant being of all the
universe comes in. Gods Son has left our
world, but Gods daugher is here. Give her
room. Hail, princess OF heaven! Hail,
daughter of the Lord God Almighty Come
in and make this house thy throneroom.
In setting forth this idea the dominant
theory of religion is one of sunshine. l
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 thereT' "Oh replied the child,
''l'm getting spoonful OF this sunshine"
Would Go that today | might present you
with a cleaning chalice of this glorious
eYeI.aotl.lg ,soorc! .s<rrrsaine.
First of all, l find great deal of sunshine
in Christian society.
! do not know of anything more doleful
than the companiouship OF the mere fun
makers of the world-the Thomas Hoods,
the Charles Lambs, the Charles Matthews
of the world-the men whose entire business
it is to make sport. They make others
laugh. but if you will examine their autobi-
ography or biography you viii find that
down in their soul there was terrific dis
quietude. Laughter is no sign of happiness.
The manaic laughs. The hyena laughs. The
loon among the Adirondacks laugh The
drunkard, dashing his decanter against the
wall, laughs.
There is terrible reaction from all sinful
amusement and sinful merriment. Suca
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 re 3soa it was so dull,
so inane and so stupid. Ny nature is
voracious OF joy. | must have 1t.
l 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 l like their style of
amusement better. They live longer.
Christian people, [ sometimes notice, live on
when by all natural law they eught to have
died, ] have known persons who have con.
tlnued 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 AMI physiology, but
they had this supernatural vlvacity of the
Gospel in their soul, and that kept them
alive.
Put ten or twelve Christian people in
room for Christian conversation, AMI you
viii from to 10 o'clock hear more resound-
ing glee, see more bright strokes OF wit, and
find more thought ndprolound satisfac-
ton than in any merely worldly party.
Now, when say "worldly party | mean
that to which you ara invitel, because I'M
der all the circumstances OF the case it is
the best for you to be invited, aud to which
you 90 because under all circu ustanc IS OF
the case 1t Is better that you 90 and leaving
the shawls on the second door you go to TIA
parlor 10 give formal sanitation TO the host
an the hostess, ami then move around
spending the whole evening in the discus.
sion OF the weather, AMI in apology for
treading on long trails ami in effort to keep
the corners OF the mouth up - the sisn
Oh pleasure, an1 going around with an
sf, = - "a
lalotic he-ae about nothing, ultil tas colla.
ton IS served, ami then after tao collation.
IS served going back gain into the parlor
70 resume the weather, and then at the close
gong at very late hour to thu host AMI
hostess and assuring them that YOU have
mad most delightful evening, an then pass
ing down off the front steps, the slan OF tae
door the only satisfaction OF the evening.
On, young man, come from the country
to spend your days in city life, waere are
you gong TO spend your eveningsg Let ME
tell you, while there are many places of in
nocent worldly amusement, it Is most wise
Tor you TO throw your DO ", min aul soul
into Christian society. Come to me at thu
close of five years aud tell me what has be IN
the result OF this advice. Bring with you
the young man who refuse to take the al
vice and who went into sinful amusement.
He will come dissipated. shabby in apparel.
ind sposed 10 look any one in the eyes, moral
character eighty-fve per cent. of. You will
come with principle settled, codnteuancs
frank, habits good, soul saved and all the
inhabitants of heaven from the lowest angel
up to the archangel and clear past him to
the Lord God Almighty, your coadiutors.
This Is not the advice of misanthrope
There Is no man in the house to whom the
world is brighter than it is TO me. 1t is not
the advice OF dyspeptic--ny digestion is
perfect; il is not tue advice of a man who
cannot understand JOKE or who prefers
funeral; 1t is not the advice of a wornout
man, but the advics of man who eau see
this world in ali its brightness, anI, consii-
ering myself competent in Judging what is
good cheer. | tell the mu,titu les OK Young
. -, 81,