The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1894-01-27
BETHLEHEM'S STAR.
REV. on. TALNAGc IN TIE TAeER.
NAcLE PULPIT, BROOKLYN,

The bright aud rriumphnnt symbol OF the
Great Hcdccmrr-urruldof the Dawn OF
MnIennial Glory An Tyc on the Morn.
ing star.
BROOKLYN, Dec. 2i-ln the Brooklyn
Tabernacle today great audience assem-
bled to participate in the Christmas serv.
Ices. Standing before the organ festooned
with Christmas green's, this sermon was
delivered by Rev. Dr. Talmage after the
throngs had sung, THE Star of Bethle-
hem" Text, Revelations xxi, l6, 81 am
the bright and the morning starr
This is Christmas eve Our attention
aud the attention of the world is drawn to
the star that pointed down to the caravan
sary where Christ was born. But do not /
let US forget that Christ himself was a star .
To that luminous fact my text calls MS.
1t seems rs il the natural world were |
anxious TO make up for the damage it did |
orr race in furnishing the forbidden fruit /
If that fruit wrought death among the ma
tions, now all the natural products shall |
become a symbol of blessing. The shower.
ing down of the wealth of the orchard will |.
make us think of him whom Solomon de /
scrbes as the apple tree among the trees of
the wood and the flowers of tangled glen |
and cultured parterre shall be the dew
glinted garland for the brow of the Lord |
Jesus Yea, even the night shall be taxed, |
and its brightest star shall be set as gem
in the coronet of our holy religion.
THE MORNING STAR.
Have you ever seen the morning star adj
vantageouslyY If it was on your way home
from a nights carousal, you saw none of
its beauty If you merely turned over on
your pillow in the darkness, glancing out
of the window, you know nothing about
the cheerful influence of that star. But
there are many in this house tonight who
in great passes of their life, some of them
far out at sea, have gazed at that star and
been thrilled through with understandable
gladness. That star comes trembling as
though with the perils of the darkness
and yet bright with the anticipation of the
day. 1t seems emotional with all tender
ness, its eyes filled with the tears of many
sorrows. 1t is the gem on the hand of the
morning thrust up to signal its coming.
Other stars are dim, like holy candles in
a cathedral, or silver beads counted in SUI
perstitious litany, but this is a living star,
speaking star, historic star, an evan
gelistic star-bright and brilliant and tri-
umphant symbol of the great Redeemer.
The Geographic operator puts his finger on
the silver key of the electric instrument
anu INC lluluBS lly htTOSS Iue CONTINENT,
and so it seems to me that the finger of in
SEPARATION is placed upon this silver point
in the heavens, and it thrills through all
the earth: Behold, bring you good It'd
ings of great joy, which shall be to all peo-
Pile Behold, | am the bright and morning
star" The meaning of my text is this: As
the morning star precedes and promises the
coming of a day, so Christ heralds the nat
ural aud spiritual dawn.
In the first place, Christ heralded the
coming of the creation. There was a time
when there was no order, no sound of beau
ty. No wing stirred. No word was ut
tered. No light sped. As far as God could
look up, as far down, as far out, there was
nothing Unreasonable solitude. Height
and depth and length and breadth of moth
ingness. Did Christ then exist2 Oh, yes
"By him were all things made that are
made-things in heaven and things in EARTH
and things under the earth"
Yes, he antedated the creation He led
forth Arcturus and his sons. He shone be-
fore the first morning. His voice was heard
in the concert when the morning stars SER
enaded the advent of our infant EARTH
when, wrapped in swaddling clothes of
light, it lay in the arms of the great ,Je-
hovah. He saw the first fountain laid He
saw the first light kindled. That hand
which was afterward crushed upon the
cross was thrust into chaos, and it brought
out one world and swung it in that orbit;
and brought another world and swung it
in another orbit, and brought out all the
worlds and swung them in their particular
orbits. They came like sheep at the call of
a shepherd. They knew his voice, and he
called them all by their names.
Oh, it is an interesting thought to me to
know that Christ had something to do with
the creation. / see now why it was so easy
for him to change water into wine; he first
created the water. | see now why it was
so easy for him to cure the mania; he first
created the intellect. | see now why it was
so easy for him to hush the tempest; he
sank Gennesaret. | see now why it was so
easy for him to swing fish into Simon's net;
he made the fish. l see now why it was so
easy for him to give sight to the blind man;
he created the optic nerve.
| see now why it was so easy for him to
raise Lazarus from the dead; he created the
body of Lazarus and the rock that shut
him in. Some suppose that Christ came a
stranger to Bethlehem. Oh, no. He Gre
ated the shepherds, and the hocks they
watched, and the hills on which they pas
tured, and the heavens that overarched their
heads, and the angels that chanted the
chorus on that Christmas night That
hand which was afterward nailed to the
cross was an omnipotent and creative
hand, and the whole universe was poised
on the tip of one of his fingers Before the
world was, Christ was. All the worlds
came troopng up out of the darkness, and
he greeted them, as father greets his chill
dren, with Good morning." or Good
night" Hail, Lord Jesus, morning star of
the first creation
COMFORT FOR CHRISTIANS
Again, Christ herads the dawn of COM
fort in a Christian soul. Sometimes we
come to passes in life where all kinds of
tribulations meet us. You are building up
some great enterprise. You have built the
foundation-the wall. You are Just about
to put on the capstone, when everything is
demolished. You have harp all strung
for sweetest accord, and some great agony
brushes it, There is a little voice hushed in
the household. Blue eye closed. Color
dashed out of the cheek. The foot still.
Instead of the quick feet in the hail, the
heavy tread of those who march to the
grave. Oh, what are people to do amid all
these sorrows2
Some sit down and mourn. Some bite
their lips until the blood comes Some
wiring their pale hands. Some fall on their
faces. Some lie on their backs helpless and
look up into what seems to them an I'M
plying heaven. Some pull their hair down
over their eyes and look through with a
fend's glare. Some with both hands press
their hot brain and want to die and cry:
30 Godl o Godp' Long night, bitter
night, stupendous night of the world sui
feringl Some know not which way to
turn. But not so the Christian man. He
looks up toward the heavens He sees Il
bright appearance in the heavens Can it
be only falling star? Can it be only a de-
lusioni Nay, nay. The longer he looks
the more distinct it becomes, until after
awhile he cries out, "A star, a morning
star, star Of comfort, a star of grace, a
star of peace, the star of the Redeemerl'
Peace for all trouble. Balm for all
wounds. Life for all dead Now Jesus,
fha l.. H.. -