The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1894-03-03
TIIl.YTAKE THE PREY
REV us. TALMAcE breaches WORDS
or HOPE TO THE WEAK.

4 sermon Pun Of Encouragement 10 Those
who Labor Under Disadvantages In the
struggle Of Life Eloquent Plea to Those
who Are Unconverted.
NASHVILLE, Dec. i7.-Dr. Talmage, who
Is now in this city on his western lecture
tour, selected rs his topic for today text
full Of spiritual encouragement for those
who labor under disadvantage in the strug-
gle of life. The text chosen was Isaiah
xxxiii, %, The lame take the prey"
The utter demolition Of the Assyrian host
was here predicted. Not only robust men
should go forth and Catherine spoils Of con
quest. but even men crippled of arm and
crippled Of foot should 60 ont and capture
much that was valuable. Their physical
disadvantages should not hinder their great
enrichment. SO IL has been in the past, SO
It is now, so it will be in the future, so it
is in all departments Men laboring under
seemingly great disadvantages and amid
the most unfavorable circumstances, yet
making grand achievements, getting great
blessing for themselves, great blessing for
the world, great blessing for the church.
And so "the lame take the prey
Do you know that the three great poets
of the world were totally bliud-Homer
Ossian, John Milton9 Do you know that
Mr. Prescott, who wrote that enchanting
book, The Conquest Of Mexico" never
saw Mexico, could not even see the paper
on which he was writing' a framework
across the sheet between which, up and
down went the pen immortal DO you
know that Gambassio, the sculptor, could
not see the marble before him, or the chisel
with which he cut it into shapes bewitch-
ingS Do you know that Alexander Pope,
whose poems will last as long as the Eng
lsh language, was so much Of an invalid
that he had to be sewed up every morning
in rough canvas in order to stand on his
feet atall1
SUCCESS DESPITE DISADVANTAGES.
Do you know that Stuart, the cee brated
painter, did much of his wonderful work
under the shadow Of the dungeon, where he
had been unjustly imprisoned for debt? Do
you know that Demosthenes by almost SUI
perhuman exertion first had to conquer the
lisp of his own speech before he conquered
assemblages with his eloquencey Do you
know that Bacon struggled all through in
Vulnerable sicknesses, and that Lord Byron
and Sir Walter Scott went limpiug on club
foot through all their life, and that many
of the great poets and painters and orators
and historians and heroes of the world had
something to keep them back, and pull
them down, and impede their way and Grip
pie their physical or their intellectual
movement, and yet that they pushed on
and pushed up until they reached the spoils
of worldly success, and amid the huzza of
nations and centuries 1.-THE lame took the
preyi"
You know that a vast multitude of these
men started under the disadvantage of OBJ
scure Observation-Disclosures the son of the
weaver; Ferguson, the astronomer the son
of the shepherd America the prey of the
one; worlds on worlds the prey of the other
Bat what is true in secular directions is
more true in spiritual and religious direc-
tions, and | proceed to prove it.
There are in all communities many inva-
lids. They never know IA well day. They
adhere to their occupations, but they go
painting along the streets with eXhaustions,
and at eventime they lie down on the lounge
with achings beyond all indictments
They have tried all prescriptions, they have
gone through all the cures which were pro-
claimed infallible, and they have come now
to surrender to perpetual ailments They
consider they are among many disadvan-
tages, and when they see those who are
buoyant in health pass by they almost
envy their robust frames and easy respira-
ton.
But have noticed among that invalid
class those who have the greatest knowl.
edge of the Bible, who are in nearest init
macy with Jesus Christ, who have the
most glowing experiences of the truth, who
have had the most remarkable answers to
prayer and who have most eXhiarant an
ticipations of heaven. The temptations
which weary us who are in robust health
they have conquered.
Many who are alert and athletic and
swarthy loiter in the way. The lame take
the prey-Robert Hall an invalid, Ed
ward Payson an invalid, Richard Baxter
An invalid, Samuel Rutherford an invalid.
This morning, when you want to call to
mind those who are Christlike, you think
of some darkened room in your fathers
house from which there went forth an in
6uence potent for eternity.
A step farther; Through raised letters the
art Of printing has been brought to the at
tention Of the blind.
You take up the Bible for the blind, and
you close your eyes and you run your fin
gers over the raised letters, and you say
"Why, never could get any information il
this way What Il slow, lumbrous way o
readingl God help the blindp
And yet find among that class of per
sons-among the blind, the deaf and tn,
dumb-the most thorough Acquaintance
with Gods word. Shut out from all othe
sources Conformation, no sooner does the
hand touch the raised letters than they gath
er prayer. Without eyes they look of
upon the kingdoms of Gods love. Withou
hearing, they catch the minstrelsy of tn
skies. Dumb, yet with pencil or with ir
radiated countenance, they declare the glor,
Of God.
COMFORT FOR THE BLIND.
A large audience assembled in New Yorl
at the anniversary of the deaf and duml
asylum, and one of the visitors with chall
on the blackboard wrote this question Il
the pupils, do you not find it very har,
to be deaf and dumb" And one of tn
pupils took the chalk and wrote on tn
blackbo this sublime sentence in an
swer, when the song of the angels shall
burst upon our enraptured ear, we will
scarce regret that our ears were neve
marred with earthly sounds" Oh, tn
brightest eyes in heaven will be those tina
never saw on earth The ears most alert il
heaven will be those that in this work
heard neither voice of friend, nor thrum o
harp, nor carol of bird, nor doxology o
congregations.
A lad who had been blind from infanc,
was cured. The oculist operated upon tn,
lad and then put very heavy bandage owe
his eyes, and after u few weeks had gone b!
the bandAge was removed, and the mothe
said to her child, Willie can you seei" H
said, "Oh, mamma, is this heavenp Tn
contrast between the darkness before ant
the brightness afterward was overwhelm
ing And tell you the glories of HEAVIER
will be thousandfold brighter for thos
who never saw anything on earth. Will
many with good vision closed their eyes il
eternal light, and many who had good, ar
tistio and cultured ear went down into eter
nal discord, these afflicted ones cried unit
the Lord in their trouble, and he made thei
sorrows their advantage. And SO the lam
took the prey"
In the seventh century there was legent