Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-03-30
REV. DR.. TALMAGE
The Eminent Brooklyn DivineS Sun
day Sermon.
Subject: "From Conquest TO Con quest"

husbanirpan swinging the sickle in the thick
grain almost feels the breath Of the horses on
his shoulders. the horses hitched ID the
pillow preparing for a new crop. "Behold
the days come, saith the Lord. that the plow-
man shall overtake the reaper" When is
that? That is now. That is this day, when
hardly have you done reaping one harvest
before the piowman is getting ready for
another.
! know that many declare that Christianity
has collapsed that the Bible is an obsolete
book: that the Christian church is on the
retreat. will here an now show that the
opposite o. THAT is true.
An Arab guide was leading French in.
f1del across desert. and ever and anon the
Arab guide would get down in the sand anil
pray 10 the Lord. 1t disguised the French
jnt1del, and after awhile as the Arab got up
from one OF his prayers the infldel said.
"How do you know there is any God?" and
the Arab guide said chow do know that
a man and camel passed along our tent last
night? know it by the footprints in the
sand. And you want TO know how know
whether there is any God2 Look at that
sunset. Is that the iootstep Of man2" And
by the same process you and have come to
understand that this book is the iootstep of
a God.
Bu> now Let us see whether the Bible Is A
last years almanac, Let us see whether the
church of God il in Bull Run retreat,
nuskets, canteens and haversacks strewin3
all the way, The great English historian,
Sharon Turner, man of vast learning and
OF great accuracy not clergyman, but an
attorney as we'll as historian, gives this
overwhelming statistic in regard to Chris
tianity and in regard TO the number OF Chris
tans in the different centuries: In the first
century, 500.O 900 Christians in the second
century. 1000. 900 Christians in the thir
century, 5000. 900 Christians in the fourth
century, 10000, 900 Christians in the fifth
century, $4,000, 900 Christians /; in the sixth
century, 10000 900 Christians in the seventh
century, 24000.0 COO Christians ; in the eighth
century, 10000. COO Christians in the
ninth century, &C. 000. 900 Christians in the
tenth century. 50,000,00 Christians; in
the eleventh century. 10000. 900 Christians
in the twelfth century, 10000 900 Christians
in thu thirteenth century, 75000,0 900 Christ
ians in the fourteenth century, 80,0O0,000
Christians in the fifteenth century, 100,-
COO, 900 Christians in the sixteenth cen-
ury. 1875, 000.000 Christians; in the sevens
teenth century 155, ZOO, 600; in the eights
eenth century. 200 600, 600 Christians-a de-
cadence, as you observe, in only one century
and more than made up in the following cen-
turtles, while 1t is ths usual compu-
tation that there will be, when the
record of the nineteenth century is made up.
at least 300, 900, 00G Christians.
Poor Christianity What pity it has no
friends How lonesome it must be Who
will take it out Of the poorhOuse2 Poor
Christianity Three hundred millions in one
century. In a few weeks Of the year 1881
100000 copies of the New Testament dis
tributed. Why, the earth is like an old cas-
tie with twenty gates and a park artillery
ready to thunder down every gate. Lay
aside all Christendom and see how heather
com is being surrounded and honeycombed
and attacked by this all conquering gospel.
At the beginning OF this century there were
only $50 missionaries now there are $4,000
missionaries and native helpers and evang-
elists. At the beginning of this century
there were only 30 900 heather converts now
there are 1.7j0,00J converts from heathen-
Com.
There is not a-seacoast on the planet but
the battery of the gospel is planted AMI ready
to march on--nortb. south. east. west. You
all know that the chief WORK Of an army is to
plant the batteries. 1t may take many days
to plant the batteries. and they may do all
their work in ten minutes. These batteries
are being planted all along the seacoasts aud
in all nations. 1t may take good while TO
in one day. They will. Nations are to be
born in one day. But just come back to
Christendom and recognize the fact that
during the last ten years as many people
have connected themselves with evangelical
churches as connected themselves with the
churches in the first fifty years of this CEN
fury.
So Christianity is falling back, and the
Bible, they say. is becoming an obsolete
book. l 90 into court, and wherever l
find Judges bench or a clerks desk find
a Bible. Upon what book could there be
uttered the solemnity OF an oath? What
took is apt to be put in the trunk of the
young man as he leaves for city life? The
Bible What shall 1 find in nine out ofevery
ten homes in Brooklyn? Ine Bible. In nine
out OF every ten homes in Christendom? The
Bibe. Yoltaire wrote the prophecy that the
Bible in the nineteenth century would be-
come extinct. The century is nearly gone,
and as there have been more Bibles pub
lished in the latter part Of the century than
in the ior.rer part OF the century, do you
think the Bible will become extinct in the
next six years?
] have 10 tell YOU that The room in which
Voiairc wrote that prophecy not long ago
was crowded from floor TO ceiling with
Bibles from Switzerland. Suppose the Con-
Sress of the Untel States should pass a law
that there should be no more Bibles printed
in America and no more Bibles read. II
there are 10000 600 grown people in the
United States, there would be 40 900, COO peo-
pie in an army to put down such Jaw and
defend their right TO read the Bible. But
suppose the Congress of the United States
should make a law against the reading or
the publication of any other book, how many
people would 20 out in such a crusade?
Could you get 400, 000 900 people to go out
and risk their lives in defense Of Shake
speare's tragedies or GIadstones tracts or
Maeaulay's "H;story of England?' You
know that there are 1000 men who would
die in defense of this book where there is
not more than one man who would die in
defense OF any other book. You try to in
suit my common sense by telling me the
Bible is fading out from the world.
1t is the most popular book of the century.
How do l know it? know it just as / know
in regard to other books. How many vol
tunes o. that book are published2 We'll, you
say, 5000. How many copies OF that book
are pu5lished2 hundred thousand.
Which is the more popular? Why, of course
the one that has 10J. 900 circulation, And il
this hook has more copies abroad in the
world if there are fvetimss as many Bibles
abroad as any other booI, DOES not that
shOw You that the most popular book on the
Planet to-day is the word OF God?
"Oh, say people, the church is a collec.
ton OF bypocrites, and it is losing its power,
and it is fading out fror the world" Is it!
= bishop OF the Methodist church told me
that that denomination averages two new
churches every day of the year. There are
at least 1900 new Christian churches built in
America every year. Does that look though
the church were fading out, as though it
were de'unct institution? Which institu-
ion stands nearest the hearts of the people
of America to-day? do not care in what
village, or in what CITY, or what neighbor-
hood you go. Which institution is it? Is il