Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1894-10-10
RBV. DIR. TALMAGE
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S sun.
DAY SERMON.
Subject: "The Tax Collectors Con-
version.o

house. Luke XIX, "
Zaccheus was n politician and taxgath
erer He had an honest calling, but th'
opportunity for "stealings" was SO larg
The temptation was too much for him. Th'
Bible saws he ''was n sinner'-that is, In the
public sense. How many fine men have been
ruined by official position II fs an awful
thing for any man TO seek office under gov.
crnment unless his principles OF integrity
are deeply fixed. Manya man upright in ar
insignificant position has made shipwreck In
n great one. As far as 7 can tell, in the city
o. Jericho this Zaccheus belonged to what
might be called the "ring" They had thingl
their own way. successfully avoiding expo
sura ~ hy no other way perhaps by hiring
somebody to break In and steal the vouch-
ers. Notwithstanding his bad reputation
there were streaks OF good about him. az
there are about almost every man. Gold Is
found in quartz, and sometimes in a small
percentage.
Jesus was coming to town. The people
turned out Ell masse to see Him. Here He
comes the Lord OF glory. on foot, dust COW
cred and travel weary. limping along the
way. carving the griefs and woes OF the
world. He looks TO be sixty years OF age,
when He is only about thirty. Zaccheus was
short man and could not ses over the peo-
pies heads while standing on the ground,
50 he -ot up into sycamore tree that swung
rs nrm clear over the road. Jesus advanced
amid the Wild excitement OF the surging
crowd. The most honorable and popular
men of frhe city are looking on and trying to
gain His attention. Jesus instead OF re-
gar ling them. looks up at the little man in
the tree and says: "Zaccheus. come down.
7 am going home with you" Everybody
was disguised to think that Christ would 60
home with so dishonorable man.
see Christ entering the front door of the
house OF Zaccheus The King OF heaven
and earth SITS down. and as He looks around
on IN" plA,a md the family He pronounces
the benedict on Of the text. "This day is sal.
vat'on come TO this house."
ZarchPu1 had mounted the sycamore tree
ont Of mere inqu'sitiveness. He wanted to
soc how this stranger looked-the color OF
His ewes. the length of His hair. the contour
Of His TEXTURES. tho height OF His stature
''CoTp down " e~i Chris
AMI - MANY p-ori,. in ms day get up in
fothe ire" ot curiosity speculation to sec
Christ. They ask n thousand queer ques-
tions about His divinity. about Gods SOW
ereignty and the eternal DEGREES. They
speculate and criticisa and hang onto the
outside limb OF n great sycamore, but they
must come down from that II they want to
be saved. We cannot be saved as philoso-
pliers. but az little children. You cannot go
10 heaven 10y way OF Athens, but by way o3
Ba.hleHem.
Why be perplexed about the way sin came
into the world when the great question Is
how we shall get sin driven out OF our hearts
How many spend their time in criticism and
religious speculation. They take the rose
of Sharon or the lilly of the valley, pull ont
the anther, scatter the corOlla and say. as
that the beautiful flower of religion that you
are talking about No flower is beautiful
after you have torn 1t all to pieces. The path
TO heaven is so plain that fool need not
make auy mistake about #, and yet men
stop AMI cavil. Suppose that. going toward
the Pacific slope, / had resolved that 1 would
stop until I could kill all the grizzly bears
and the panthers on either side OF the way.
would never have got 10 the Pacific coast.
When / went out TO nunt the grizzly bear,
the grizzly bear would have come out to
hunt me. Here Is plain road to heaven.
Men say they will not take step on II until
they can make game of all the theories that
bark and Growl at them from the thicSets.
They forget the fact that. as they go ..out to
hunt the theory, the theory comes out to
hunt them. and so they perish.
Dr. Ludlow. my professor in the theo-
logical seminary. taught me a lesson shall
never forget. While putting n variety OF
questions TO him that were perplexing he
turned upon me, somewhat in sternness,
Tut more in love, and said, "Mr. Talmage,
YOU will have TO let God know some things
that you don't" We tear our hands on the
spines of the cactus instead of feasting our
eye on its tropical bloom. 4 great COM
pany OF people now sit swinging them
selves on the sycamore tree of their pride,
and cry to you: 'Zaccheus, come down!
Come down out OF your pride, out of your
inqulsitiveness, out of your speculation.
You cannot ride into the gate OF heaven
with coach and four, position ahead and
lackey behind. Except ye become as little
children. ye cannot enter the kingdom OF
God God has chosen the weak things OF
the world to confound the mighty. Ziccheus,
come down, come down..
notice that this taXgatherer accompanied
his surrender to Christ with the restoration
of property that did not belong TO him. He
says. "If have taken anything by false ac-
r ri haf /
have taxed any man for $40. 900 when he had
only $4,000 worth of property and put in my
own pocket the tax for the last $1,000, will
restore TO him fourfold. If took from him
go / will give him $40. II took from him
S40 / will give him $3.50.
Hundreds OF thousands OF dollars have
been sent to Washington during the past few
venrs as "ronscienca MONEY!" snnDose
that money was sent by mn who wanted to
be Christians. but found they could not until |
they made restitution. There is no need OF
our trying TO come TO Christ rs long as we
keep lrauiulently dollar or farthing In |
our possession that belongs TO another. Sup-
pose you have not money enough to pay |
your debts and for the sake of defraudInS |
your creditors you put your property in |
your wife's name. You might cry until the /
d:' IF judgment for pardon, but you would |
rrt --4t 1t without first making restitution
In times Of prosperity II is right, against n
rainy day. 10 assign property TO your wife,
l. Ut II, IN Time OF ptrpleNity anu iOT tHe ssthe
OF defrauding your creditors, you make sIch
assignment you become a culprit before |
God AMI YOU may well stop praying un- |
I'll you have made restitution. Or suppose
one man loans another money on bont or
mortgage. with the understanding that the
mortgage can lie quiet for several years. but
MS soon as the mortgage is given commences
sheriff mounts the auction
block, and tho property is struck down at
half price, and the mortgagee buys II IN.
The mort gagee started TO get the property
nj half price and Is e thief and a roober.
Until he makes restitution there is no mercy
for hin.
You say: az cannot make restitution The .
parties whom swindled are gone. linen
] say, Take the money up to the American
Bible Society and consecrate it TO Col.
Zaccheus was wise when he disgorge1 his
unrighteous gains, and it was his first step IN
the right direction.
The way being plain, Christ walked into
the house of Zaccheus. He becomes differ
ent man |; his wife different woman; the
children are different. oh. it makes great
change in any house when Christ comes 1nto
it! How many beautiful no res are repre-
sented among you? There are pictures on
the wall, there is music in the edrawing-roon, |
and luxuries in the wardrobe, and 1ull sup.
ply in the pantry. Even If you were nall
asleep, there is one word with which could
wake you and thrill you through am.
through, and that word is ''home!' There
are also houses of suffering represented IN
which there are neither pictures nor ward
robe nor radornment-only one room, an q
plain cot, or a bunk In n corner. Yet II Is the
place where your loved ones dwell, and
your whole nature tingles with satisfaction
when you think OF 1t and call ii home.
Though the world may scott at US and prr.
sue us. and all the day we he tossed about,
Mt evpntiIe we sail into the harbor o! nome.
Though there be no rest for US in the busy
world and we go trudging abouf: bearing
burdens that we'll nigh crush us. mere Is
refuge and II hath an easy chair in which
we may SIT. and a lounge where we may lie'
md serenity OF peace in which we may re-
nose and that refuge Is home. The Engnsn
soldiers sitting on the walls around sevas-