The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1894-10-03
THETAx COLLECTOR.

TAETAx COLLECTOR.
Transformation o: s. Fsm:ly-ThS Meth
e1's P5sye-.
BROOKLYN, Sept. 23.-RsV. Dr..
Talmage, who is roz preparing to leave
Australia for Icdia on his rcuud the
world tour, has selected as Tie suolect
for today's sermon through the press
1.-THE Tax Collectors Conversion, j" tee
text being taken frcm Lake Xxx, 9,
ssThis cay IS salvation come 20 this
hcuae."
Zscchsus was d politician and q tax
eatherer. BE had an honest calling cut
the opportunity for s's.sslinGs" wss so
large the temptation was too much for
him. The Bible says he "was sinner"
that Is, in the public sense. How
maay fine msn have been ruined By ef-
fetal position! Il is 81 awful thing for
any man to ssek ofice under govern
ment unless bis principles OF integrity
are deeply fxad. Many a man upright
in sr Insignificant position has made
shipHreck in great one. as far as I
can tell, in the city Of Jericho
this Zaccheus belonged to what
might be called the ''rllg".
They had things thar own wsg, success
fully svoiding exposure, i by 40 other
way perhaps by hiring sonsoody to
break in and steal the vouchers. Not
wlthstanding his bad reputation, there
were streaks Of good about him, IS there
are about almost every man. Gold IS
found in quarts, and sometime in very
small percentage.
Jesus was coming to town. The pso-
pie turned out en- mssse to see him.
Here he comes, the Lord OF glory, on
foot. dust covered and road weary, limp
ing slong the Eay, carrying the griets
and woes Of the world. He looks to be
so wears Of sge when he Is only about 30
Zsccheus was q short man ard could
not see over the peoples heads whle
standing On the ground, so he got up
into sycamore tree that swung its arm
clear over tie read. Jesus advanced
amid the wild excitement Of the surging
crowd. The most honorable and popu.
lar men of the city ere looking cn and
trying to gain bis attention. Jesus, IN
stead of regarding them, looks up at the
little man in the tree and says: ''Zac-
cheus come down. I am going hons
with you.' Everybody was disgusted
to think thst Christ would 60 hoce with
SO 6ishonorable man.
Z see Christ entering the front door OF
the house of Zsccheus. The king OF
heaven and earth sits down, and SIS be
looks around on the place and the family
he pronouRces the benediction OF the
text. 'sThis day is salvation come to this
house,
Zsccheus had mounted the sycamore
tree out Of mere fnquisitiveness. He
wanted to see how this stranger looked
the color of bis eyes, the length OF bis
hair, the contour of his features, the
height of his stature. ''Come down."
said Christ.
And so many people in this day get
up into the tree of curiosity OF ssecula.
ton to see Christ. They ask thousand
queer questions about bis divinity, about
Gods sovereignty and the eternal de.
crees. They speculate and critlcise and
hang onto the outside limb OF great
sycamore. But they must come down
from that if they want to be saved. We
cannot be saved as philosophers, but as
little children. You cannot 60 to hea7.
by way Of Athens, but by way OF Beth
lehem. Why be perplexed about the
way sin came into the world when the
great question is how shall we get sin
driven out Of our hearts.
How many spend their time in criti-
cism and religious speculation! They
take the rose Of Sharon or the lily Of the
valley, pull out the anther, scatter the
corolla and cay, SIS that the beautiful
flower Of religion that you ale talking
aboute' No flower is besutitul after you
have torn it all to pieces. The path to
heaven is 80 plain that fool need not
make any mistake about it, and yet men
stop and cayil. Suppose that. going to.
ward the Pacific slope, I hsd resolved
that would stop until I could kill all
the grizzly bears and panthers On either
side of the way. I would never have
got to the Padifc coast. When I went
cut to hunt the grizzly bear, the grizzly
bear would have come cut to hunt me.
Here is plain road to heaven. Men
say they will not take step OF it until
they csn make game of all the theories
that bark and groWl at them from the
thickets. They forget the fact that, as
they go out to hunt the theory, the theo-
~ comes out to hunt them, and so they
parish. We must receive the kingdom
of heaven in simplicity.
William Pennington was oae Of the
Wisest men Of this country governor
OF his own state and afterTard speaker
of the house of representatives.. Yet,
when Gc6 called him to be Christian,
he went in and sat down among some
children who were Supplying for church
membership, and he said to his pastor,
s'Talk to me just as you do to these
children, for know nothing about it."
There is no need of botherlng ourselves
about mysteries wnen there are so many
things that are plain. DR.. Ludlow, my
professor in the theological seminsry,
taught me a lesson have never forgot
ten. While putting variety OF Ques-
tons to him that were perplexing he
turned upon me, somewhat IN sternness
but more in love and said, M. Tai
mage you will haye to let God know
some things you DON'T" We tear our
bands on the spines of the cactus instead
ofteasting our eye on its tropical bloom.
a great company OF people now sit
swinging themselves on the sycamore
tree OF their pride, and I cry to you:
'sZaccheus, come cow! Come down
out of your pride, ont of your inqu:si.
tiyeness, out of your speculation. You
cannot ride into the gate OF heaven with