The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-12-03
REVEALS HELP RELIGION.
Talmage FdVOTS Them and Answers
Objections.

Those Brought in During Rsvivals.
They Have More Persistence and De-
termination Than Persons Who Come
in Under Slow State OF Religion.
The Advantage a Youthful Convert
has Over an Aged One.
Brooklyn. y. Y. Dec. 2-Dr. Taimage
chose for the subject OF his sermon
through the press to-day. the Objections
TO Religious Revivals. from the text:
Luke. 5: 6. They inclosed a great multi
tude Of fishes, and their net brake"
Simon and his comrades had expert
enced the night before what fishermen call
poor luck" Christ steps on board the
fishing smack and tells the sailors to pull
away from the beach and directs them
again TO sink the net. Sure enough, very
soon the net is full Of fishes, and the sail
ors began to haul in. So large a school CT
FISH was taken that the hardy men begin
to look red in the face as they pull, and
hardly had they begun to rejoice at their
success when snap goes a thread of the
net, and snap goes another thread. so
there is danger not only OF losing the fish,
but Of losing the net.
Without much care as TO how much
the boat Tits. or how much water is
splashed on deck, the fishermen rush
about. gathering up the broken meshes of
the net. Out yonder there is ship dancing
on the wave, and they hail it: ship
ahoy! bear down this wayw The ship
comes. and both boats. both fishing
smacks. are filled with the houndering
treasures.
'AhP says some one, "how much better
II would have been if they had stayed on
shore and hshed with hook and line.
and taken one at a time, instead of having
this great excitement, and the boat al
most upset and the net broken, and hav-
ing TO call for help. and getting sopping
wet with the sea- The church is the
boat, the gospel is the net, society is the
sea, and a great revival is a whole school
brought in at one sweep of the net.
have admiration for that man who goes
out with hook and line to fish. 1 ad-
mire the way he unwinds the reel, and
adjusts the bait and drops the hook in a
quiet place on a still afternoon. and here
catches one, and there one; but like also
big boat, and a large crew, and a net
a mile long. and swift oars, and stout
sails, and stiff breeze, and great null
titude Of souls brought-so great multi
tude that you have to get help to draw II
ashore, straining the net to the utmost
until IL breaks here and here letting a few
escape, but bringing the great multitude
into eternal safety.
IN other words j believe in revivals The
great work of saving
three thousand people joining the church
In one day. and 1t will close with forty or
hundred million people saved in twenty
four hours, when nations shall be born
in day. But there are objections to re-
vivals People are opposed to them be-
cause the net might get broken. and if by
the pressure of souls it does not get brok-
en-, then they take their own penknives
and slit the net. ''They inclose a great
multitude of fishes and the net brake"
1t is sometimes opposed to revivals of
religion that those who come into the
church at such times do not hold out; as
long as there is a gale of blessing they
have their sails up but as soon as strong
winds stop blowing, then they drop into
dead calm. But what are the facts in
the case? In all our churches, the vast
majority of the useful people are those
who are brought in under great awaken
ings, and they hold out Who are the
AAANh III liiE 0HittQ oLditS IN
churches, in prayer meetings. in Sabbath
schools? For the most part they are the
product of great awakenings
l have noticed that those who are
brought into the kingdom of God through
revivals have more persistence and more
determination in the Christian life than
those who come in under a low
state of religion. People born in
an ice house may live. but they
will never get over the cold they
caught in the ice housed A cannon-ball
depends upon the impulse with which it
starts for how far it shall go and how
swiftly; and the greater the revival force
with which a soul IS started, the more
far-reaching and fsr-resOunding will be
the execution.
But II Is sometimes objected TO REVEALS
that there Is 30 much excitement that peo-
pie mistake hyEteria for religion.
We must admit that in every revival
of religion there is either a suppressed or
demonstrated excitement. Indeed, If a
man can 20 out Of 4 state Of condemnation
into q state q acceptance with God, or see
others 70, without any agitation Of soul,
he Is an unhealthy morbid state and.
IL a. rsDu1slve and absurd as man who
SHOULD boast be saw a child snatched out
from under Z horses hoofs, and felt no
agitation O saw man rescued from the
fourth story Of ( house On FIRE, and felt
10 SceeleraEion d The pulses
ssaNauon from sin and death in he'll into
LIE and peace and heaven forever, is such
4 tremendous thing. that II a man tells me
ne can look On u without any agitation. 1
cpupt his Christianity. The fact is, that
sometimes excitement is the most impor-
TAFT possible thing. In case Of resuscita-
s2r from GROWING o. freezing, the one
a1ez as 70 excite animation Before CONVEX
Esgz rs arg dead j IS the business Of the
e1ere1 - revive. arouse. awaken, resus-
e4-z1s. s-astle lnte life Excitement is bad
% gDs2e according 70 what IL makes US do.
= q DssSss us % that which Is bad IL is
hS1 excitement but II il makes us agi-
tzte< zDcgt our eternal welfare. If il make
II Pray, = = make as attend upon Chris
tlzl series. y il make Us cry unto God
for mercy then u r. 4 good excitement.
II - SOnsefl11ss said that during REVEALS
Of religion great nnulfltudes Of children
and young peODie are brought into the
church. and tbey 90 not know what they
are about J. has been my observation
that the earlier people come into the king
dom Of God. the more useful they are.
Robert Hail. The prince Of Baptist preach
ers, was converted al twelve years Of age.
IT Is supposed he knew what he was about.
Matthew Henry. the commentator, who
did more than any man Of his century for