Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1893-05-13
THE CHURCH A GARDEN.
DR.. Talmage Discourses on May
Time Thoughts.
The Cactus, the "Giant OF Battles" the
snowdrop and the Violet as Rep
resentative of Christian
Dispositions.

y
the first sunday in May, Rev. Il. Dewitt
Talmage dictated the following sermon
ON timely and seasonable topic,
"May-time Thoughts" the text being
the words of Solomon's Song, iv. 10,
"A fountain of gardens, u well of liv-
ing waters, and streams from Leb-
anon
Some of the finest gardens of olden
times were to be found at the foot of
Mount Lebanon. Snow descended, and
winter whitened the top Of the mount
ain: then. when the warm spring
weather came, the SHOWS melted and
poured down the side of the mountain
and gave great luXuriance to the gar
dens at the foot, and you see now the
allusion of my text when it speaks of
the fountain of gardens and streams
from Lebanon.
Again and again the church is repre-
scented as garden, all up and down the
Word of God, and it is figure specially
suggestive at this season of the year,
when the parks and the orchards are
about to put forth their blossoms, and
the air is filed with bird voices.
A mother wishes to impress her child
with the love of God, and so, in the
spring-time. after the ground had been
prepared in the garden. she took a
handful of flower seed and scattered
these seeds in the shape of letters all
across the bed of the garden. Weeks
passed by, and the rains and the sun
shine had done their work. and one day
the child came in and said: Mother.
come quickly to the garden--come now"
The mother followed the child to the
garden, and the little one said: Look
here. mother. See. it is spelt all over
the ground in flowers, God is Love-"
Oh. my friends. if we only had faith
enough, we could see gospel lessons all
around and about us-lessons in shells
on the beach. lessons in sparkles on the
wave. lessons in stars on the sky, les
sons in flowers all over the earth.
Well. my friends, you know very well
that there have been some beautiful
gardens created. There was the garden.
of Charlemagne. and You remember
that this king ordered gardens laid out
all through the realm. and decided by
decree of government what kind of
flowers should he planted in those gar
dens. Henry ~. at Montpelier, de-
creed that there should be flowers plant
ed throughout his realm and gardens
laid out, and he especially decreed that
there should be Alpine pyrena and
MI h.t
more celebrated for his gardens than for
his poetry: his poetry has faded from
the ages for the most part. but his gar
dens are immortal: to all the beauty of
his place he added perfection of art.
Palisade and arch and arbor and fount-
ain and rustic temple had their most
wonderful specimens, and the oak and
the hazel and the richest woods of the
forest were planted in that garden. He
had genius and he had industry, and
all his genius and all his industry he
applied to the Identification of that
garden. He gave for it 81, 800 and he
sold it at last for 5000, or what was
equal to that number of dollars. 1t
svas an expensive garden. laid out with
great elaboration. And yet l have to
tell You now of garden of vaster eX-
pense-the garden spoken of in my
text-a fountain of gardens with u
stream 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 that he could not |
complete the work as he desired it. At |
his last payment of 100000. after lay
ing out those gardens and building that |
palace of Abbotsford, ut that time his
heart broke his health failed, and he |
died almost an imbecile.
A few years ago, when / walked |
through those gardens, and thought |
at what vast expense they had been
laid out, ut the expense of that mans |
life, it seemed could see in the Grim
son flowers the blood of the old mans
broken heart. But have to tell you
now of garden laid out at vaster eX-
pense-who can calculate that vast eX-
pense? Tell me, We women who watched
him hang; tell me, We eXecutioners who
lifted and let him down; tell me, thou
sun that didst hide, and We rocks that
did fall, what the laying out of this
garden did cost. This morning, amid
the aroma and brightness of the spring
time, it is appropriate that show you
how the church of Christ is a garden.
remark, first, it is garden because
of the rare plants in it, That would be
> strange garden in which there were
no flowers. If you cannot find them
anywhere else, you will find them along
the pathways and you will find them at
the gateway.
If there be no especial taste and no
especial means, you will find there the
hollyhock, and the daffodil, and the
dahlia. If there be no especial means,
YOU will find the Mexican cactus, and