Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-05-11
REV. DR.. TALMAGE.
he Eminent Brooklyn Divine'S Sun-
day Sermon.
:ub,cct. "1he Spiritual COna:ets of Life.''


vailed not AGAINST hin, he touched The hot
lo,D of his hiqh. and the hollO,c of Jacobs
hiqh acaS out of Joint as he DreStled 10Th him.
And he said, Let me 60. for the day Jreaheth.
And he said I aoiH not let tAee 90 except MOu
bless me. "-Genesis xxi, 2E26
Tho dust arose from travelling herd Of
cattle and sheep and goats and camels.
They are the present that Jacob sends to gain
the good will of his offended brother. That
night Jacob balts by the brook JabboI. But
there is no rest for the weary man, no shining
ladder to let the angels down into his dream,
but fierce combat, that lasts until the morn
ing, with an unknown visitor. They each
try to throw the other. The unknown visit
or, TO reveal his superior power, by touch
wrenches jacobs thigh bone from its socket,
perhaps manning him for life. AS on the
morning sky the clusters Of purple clou1 be-
gin to 1ipen JACOB sees it is an angel with
whom he has been contending, and not one
of his brothers CONDUCTORS. "Let mo go"
cries the angel, lifting himself up, into in
creasng light, "The day breaketh y
You see, in the first place, that Go allows
goo people sometimes to get into aterriblo
struggle. jacob was Il goo man, but here
he is let a'one in the midnight to wrestle
with a tremen lous influence by the brook
Jabbok. For Joseph, pit ; for Daniel,
wild beast den for David, dethronement AMI
exile, for John the Baptist, wilderness
! diet and the executiOners AK for Peter,
prison for Paul. sbipwreck for John, desc
late Patmos; for Vashtt, most insulting
cruelty for Josephine, Punishment for Mrs.
| Sigourney, the agony of q drunkard's wife;
for John Wesley, stones hurled by an infur-
! ated mob for Catherine, the Scotch girl. the
drowning surges of the sea for Mr.. Burns,
the buffeing Of the Montreal populacs for
John Brown, Of Edinburgh. the pistol shot
of Lord Claverhouse for Hugh McKai, the
scalfOld for Latimer the stake; for Christ,
the cross. For whom the rocks, the gibbets,
the gullotines, the thumbscraws2 For the
sons and daughters of the Lord Col Al
mighty. Some one said to n Christian re-
former, "The world is against you. "Then,
! he replied, 81 am against the world.
/ will go further and say that every Chris
tian has his struggle. This man had his
combat in Wall street this one on Broad
street this one on Fulton street :; this one on
! Chestnut street this one on State street
this one on Lombard street this one on the
bourse. With financial misfortune you have
! had the midnight wrestle. Redhot disasters
have dropped into your store from lott TO
cellar. What you bought you could not sell.
Whom you trusted fed. The help you ex'
pected would not come. Some giant panic,
with long arms and grip like death, took
|
you have not yet escaped, AMI it is uncer-
tain whether it will throw you or you will
throw it.
Here is another soul in struggle with some
bad appetite. He knew not how stealthily
| il was growing upon him. One hour he
woke up. He sud, "For the sake of my
soul. of my family, and of my children, and
of my Col, must stop ths!' Aud, behold,
lie found himself alone by the brook Jab-
ok, and it was midnight. That evil appe-
to seized upon him, and no s9ize1 upon 1t,
and, oh. the horror of the conflict When
once bad habit has aroused itself up TO de-
strov a man aud the man has sworn that by
the help OF the eternal Col, he will destroy
if. all heaven draws itself out in a long line
/ OF light to look from above, AMI hell
stretches itself in myrnidons Of spite to look
up from beneath. ] have seen men rally
themselves for such struggle, and they
have bitten their lips and clinched their
fists and cried, with a blood red earnest"
ness AMI rain Of scalding tears, GOD
help met
From wrestle with habit have seen men
fall back defeated. Calling for no help but
reJyIng on their own resolutions, they have
come into the struggle, AMI for a time it
seemed as if they we're getting the upper
hand OF their habit, but that habit rdlliel
again its internal power and lifteI soul
from its standing, and with force borrowed
from the pit hurel it into utter darkness
First saw the auctioneers mallet fall on
the pictures and musical instruments andthe
rich upholstery Of his family parlor. After
awhile l saw him fall into the ditch. Then,
In the midnight, when the children were
dreaming their sweetest dreams and Chris.
tian households are silent with slumber, an
gel watched, l heard him give the sharp
shrek that followed the stab of his own
poniarl He fell IRON an honore1 social po'
sition he fell from family circle OF which
once he was the grandest attraction he fell
from the house OF Col, at whose alters he
had been consecrlted; he fell-forever
But, thank God, have often seen a better
termination than that.
1 have seen men prepare themselves for
such wrestling. They laid hold OF Gods
help when they went into combat. The giant
habit, RECALLED by the cup OF mIny tempta-
tons, came out strong AMI defiant They
clinched. There were the writings an |
distortions of a fearful struggle. But the
old giant began to WAIVER, an |, at last, in the
midnight alone, with none but God to wit.
ness, by the brook Jabbok, the giant fell,
and the triumphant wrestler broke the dark
ness with the cry, Thanks be unto Goi
who gIveth us the victory through OR LOr
Jesus Christ" Fner) is widows hear
that first was deso'ateI by bere lvoncnt an
since by the anxieties an trials that cam,
in the support Of n family.
It's sad thing TO SEQ a man conten1in,
for a livelihood under dis9dvdnta yes. but tC
see delicate woman, with helpless LITTLE
ones Mt her blcH, fighting the giants of pow
erty and sorrow, is most affecting 1t was
humble home, and pass ersby knew not that
within those four walls were displays o
courage more admirable than those Of Han
niba crossing the Alps, or the piss OF Tner
mopyn or Balaklava, where "into the jaw
Of death rode tho six hundred
These heroes had the whole world to chez
them on, but there were none to applaud tn
struggle in the humble home She fought TO
bread, for clothing, for fire, for shelter, witt
aching head. and weak side, and exhauste
strength, through the long night by the broo
Jabhok. Could it be that none would Civ
her help? Had God forgotten to be gracious
No. cohtending soul! Tho midnight air j
full of wings coming to the rescue. Sh
hears II now in the sough Of the night wind
In the ripple OF the brook Jabbok the prom
Use made 50 long ago ringing down the sky
"Thy fatherles5 children. l will preserv
them alive, and let thy widows irust in lie !!
Some one said 10 very poor woman
Chow is it that in such distress You keel
cheerful?' She said. 81 do it by what cal
cross prayers When l had my rent to pa
and nothing to pay it with, and bread to bu
and nothing to buy it with used to sit dow
aud cry But now do not get discouraged
| II | 20 along the street. when | come 10
corner Of tho street say, The Lord hell
me- then go on until come 10 another
crossing of the street, an again | say, 'Td'
Lord help me- An so | utter prayer a
every crossing, and since | have got into thu