The Portland daily press., 1893-07-17
In THE SILENT NIGHT.
DR.. Talmage on the Ministry Of
Silence, Grief and Death.


Us of Coming Change Compared With
Which All Earthly Changes Are as
Naught-The Great Compensation.
BooKLyN, July 9.-Rev. DR.. Talmage
has chosen as his subject for today the
text, SAT evening time it shall be light
Nechariah xiv, y.
While might" in all languages is the
the symbol for gloom and suffering, it is
often really cheerful, bright and impress
I've. speak not of such nights as come
down with no star pouring light from
above or silvered wave tossing up light
from beneath-murky, hurtling, portent-
Ous-bat such as you often see when the
pomp and magnifcence of heaven turn
out on night parade, and it seems as
though the song which the morning stars
began 80 long ago were Ginning yet
among the consultations and the sons
of God were shouting for joy.
Such nights the sailor blesses from the
forecastle, and the trapper on the vast
prairie. ana the belated traveller by the
roadside, and the soldier from the tent,
earthly hosts gazing upon heavenly, and
Shepherds guarding their focks afield,
while angel hands above them set the
silver bells a-rdnging, "Glory to God in
the highest and on earth peace; good
will toward men"
What a solemn and glorious thing is
might in the wilderness! Night among
the mountainsl Night on the ocean!
Fragrantnight among tropical grovesl
Flashing night amid arctic seventies!
Calm night on Roman campagna! Aw-
full night among the cordillerasl Glori-
GUS night mid sea after tempest!
Thank God fer the night The moon
and the stars which rule it are light
houses ON the coast toward which, I hope,
we are all sailing, and blind mariners
are welt with SO many beaming, burn
ing, flaming glories to guide us we can
not find our way into the harbor. My
text may wellsuggest that as the nat
ural evening is often luminous so it
shall be HIGHT in the evening of our sor-
rows-of old age-of the worlds history
-of the Christian life. SAT eventime it
shall be light"
This prophecy will be fulfilled in the
evening of Christian sorrow. Fora long
time it is broad daylight. The sun rides
high. Innumerable activities go ahead
with thousand feet and work with a
thousand arms, and the pickax struck a
mine, and the battery made a discovery,
and the investment yielded its 90 per
cent, and the book came to its twentieth
edition, and the farm quadrupled in
value, and sudden fortune hoisted to
high position, and children were praised,
and friends without number swarmed
into the family hive, and prosperity sang
in the music and stepped in the dance
and glowed IN the wine and ate at the
banquet, and all the gods of music and
ease and qualification gathered around
this Jupiter holding in his hands SO many
thunderbolts of power.
But every sun must set, and the bright
est day must have its twilight. Sudden
ly the sky was overcast. The fountain
dried up. The song hushed. The wolf
broke into the family fold and carried off
the best lamb. A deep howl of woe
came crashing down through the joyous
symphonies. At one rough twang of the
hand of disaster the harp strings all
broke. Down went the strong business
firm! Away went long established cred
it'll Up flew flock of calumnies! The
new book would not sell. A patent
could not be secured for the invention.
Stocks sank like lead. The insurance
company exploded. "How much" says
the sheriff, twill you bid for this piano?''
"How much for this libraryg' GLOW
much for this family picture?'
Will the grace of God hold one up in
such circumstances What have become
of the great multitude of Gods children
who have been pounded of the fail and
crushed under the wheel and trampled
under the hoof3 Did they lie down in
the dust weeping, wailing and gnashing
their teeth3 When the rod of fatherly
chastisement struck them, did they strike
back? Because they found one bitter cup
On the table of Gods supply, did they
upset the whole table? Did they kneel
down at their empty money vault and
say, "All my treasures are goner' Did
they stand by the grave Of their dead
saying, "There never will be resurrec-
tion?"
Did they bemoan their thwarted plans
and say, 4'The stocks are down-would
God were deadr' Did the night of
their disaster come upon them moonless,
starless, dark and bowling, smothering
snd choking their life out? No! No!
No? At eventime it was light. The
swift promises overlook them. The eter-
hal consultations from the circuit about
Gods throne poured down an infinite
luster Under their shining the pillows
of trouble took on crests and plumes of
gold and Jasper and amethyst and flame.
All the trees of life rustled in the mid
summer air of Gods love. The night
blooming assurances of Christ's sympa-
thy filed all the atmosphere with heav-
en-. The soul at every step seemed to
6tart up from its feet bright winged joys