The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1894-10-03
TRETaX COLLECTOR.
rrapssormsttcn OF a Fam:ly-The M, tt
eI's Prayer.

Talmage, VINO IS nov preparing " 4oa''
Australia for India on his round tht
world tour, has selected as the subitc
for today's sermon through the pres!
1.-THE Tax Collectors Conversion" th'
text being taken from Luke Xxx, g.
'sThis day is salvation come to thi'
houae."
Z2echeus was politician and tax
gatherer. He had an honest calling bu
the opportunity for ''stealings" was 81
large the temptation was too much fol
him. Tue Bible says he ''Wes sinner
that Is, in the public sense. How
many fac men have been ruined by OF
fclal position! It Is an awful thing fol
any man TO seek ofice under govern
ment unless his principles of integrit!
are deeply fxsd. Many a man upright
in an insignificant position has made
shipWreck in great one. AS far as
can tell, in the city of Jericho
this Zaccheus belonged to what
might be called the ''rlng".
They had things thar own way, success
fully avoiding exposure, if bY no other
way perhaps by hiring somebody to
break in and steal the vouchers. Not
wlthstandlng his bad reputation, there
were streaks ofgood about him, as there
are about almost every man. Gold is
found in quartz, and sometims IN very
small percentage.
Jesus was coming to town. The peo"
pie turned out en- masse to see him.
Here he comes, the Lord of glory, on
foot, dust covered and road weary, limp
ing along the way, carrying the griefs
and Woes of the world. He looks to be
60 wears Of age when he Is only sbout 80
Zsccheus was short man and could
not see over the peoples heads while
standing on the ground, 80 he got up
into sycamore tree that swung its arm
clear over the road. Jesus advanced
amid the wild excitement of the surging
crowd. The most honorable and popu-
lar men of the city are looking on and
trying to gain his attention. Jesus, in
stead of regarding them, looks up at the
little man in the tree and says: ''Zac-
cheus come down. am going home
with you" Everybody was disguised
to think that Christ would go home with
so dishonorsble a 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 the place and the family
be pronouaces the benedictiOp of the
text. "This day is salvation come to this
house."
Zaccheus had mounted the sycamore
tree out of mere fnquisitiveness. He
wanted to see how this stranger looked
tho color of his eyes, the length of his
hair, the contour Of his features, the
height of his stature. "Come down."
said Christ.
And 80 many people in this day get
up ieto the tree of curiosity or specula.
ton to see Christ. They ask thousand
queer questions about his divinity, about
Gods sovereignty and the eternal de-
crees. They speculate and criticise and
hang onto the outside limb of great
sycamore. But they must come down
from thst if they want to be saved. We
cannot be saved ss philosophers, but as
little children. You cannotgo to heaY-
by way of Athens, but by way OF Beth
lehem. Why be perplsxed about the
way sin came into the world when the
great question is how shall We get sin
driven out Of our hearts.
How many spend their time in criti-
cism snd religious speculation! They
take the rose of Sharon or the lily of the
valley, pull out the anther, scatter the
corolla and say, SIS that the beautiful
flower of religion that you. are talking
about?" No flower is beautiful after you
have torn it all to pieces. The path to
heaven is 80 plain that fool need not
make any mistake abou! it, and YET men
stop and cavil. Suppose that. going to.
ward the Pacific slope, I had resolved
that I would stop until I could kill ali
the grizzly bears and panthers On either
side of the way. ! would never have
got to the Padifc coast. When I went
out to hunt the grizzly bear, the grizzly
bear would have come out to hunt me.
Here is a plain road to heaven. Men
say they will not take step on it until
they can make game of all the theories
that bark and growl at them from the
thlckets. They forget the fact that. as
they 60 cut to hunt the theory, the theo-
ry comes out to hunt them, and 80 they
perish. We must receive the kingdom
of heaven in simplicity.
William Pennington was one Of the
wisest men of this country governor
of his own state and afterward speaker
of the house Of representatives. Yet,
when God called him to be q Christian,
he went in and sat down among some
children who were applying for church
membership, and he said to his pastor,
"Talk to me Just as you DO 10 these
children, for know nothing about it,"
There is no need Of botherlng ourselves
about mysteries when there are so many
things that are plain. DR.. Ludlow, my
professor in the theological seminery,
taught me lesson l have never forgot
ten. While putting variety OF ques-
tons to him that were perplexing he
turned upon me, somewhat in sternness
but more in love and said, "Mr. Tai
mage you will haYe to let God know
some things you don't" We tear our
bands on the spines Of the cactus instead
of teasting our eye on its tropical bloom.
A great company of people now sit
swinging themselves on the sycamore
tree OF their pride, and I cry to you:
"Zaccheus, come down! Come down
out of your pride, ont OF your inquisi.
tiveness, out OF your speculation. You
cannot ride into the gate OF heaven with
coach an9 four, position ahead and
lackey behind. Except ye become as
little children, ye cannot enter the king
dom of God.' God has chosen the weak
things Of the world TO confound the
mighty. Zaccbeus, come down, coma
doRnn
I notice that this tax gatherer accom-
panied his surrender to Christ with the
restoration of property that did not be-
long to him. He says, ''If I have taken
srVfhipry nv fa1ea ec2usetiOn 7 restore