The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1894-12-07
AND THE NET BROKE.
REV. DR.. TALMAGE MAKES A STRONG
PLEA FOR REVEALS.


tai Mistakes-An Unconverted Ministry
Training For Heaven.
BROOKLYN, Dec 2.-Dr. Talmag,
chose for the subject Of his sermon
through the press today "The Objec
tions to Religious Revivals, " from the
text Luke v, 6, ''They inclosed grea,
multitude of fishes, and their net brake. y
Simon and his comrades had expert
enced the night before what fishermen
call 'poor luck" Christ steps on board
the fishing smack and tells the sailors
to pull away from the beach and directs
them again to sink the net. Sure enough,
very soon the net is full of fishes, and
the sailors begin to haul in. So large a
school of fish was taken that the hardy
men begin to look red in the face as
they pull, and hardly have they begun
to rejoice at their success when snap
goes thread of the net, and snapjgoes
another thread, so there is danger not
only of losing the fish, but of losing the
net.
Without much care as to how much
the boat tits or how much water is
splashed ON deck, the fishermen rush
about gathering up the broken meshes
Of the net. Out yonder there is ship
dancing on the wave, and they hail it,
"Ship ahoy, bear down this way!" The
ship comes, and both boats, both fishing
smacks, are filled with the foundering
treasures.
"Ah," says some one, chow much
better it would have been if they had
staid on Shore and fished with hook
and line, and taken one at a time in
stead of having this great excitement,
and the boat almost upset, and the net
broken, and having to call for help, and
getting sopping wet with the seaP' The
church is the boat, the gospel is the
net, society is the sea, and great reviv-
oil is a whole school brought in at one
sweep of the net. l have admiration for
that man who goes out with hook and
line to fish I admire the way he I'M
winds the reel and adjusts the bait and
drops the hook in quiet place on
still afternoon, and here catches one and
there one, but l like also big boat, and
large crew, and a net mile long, and
swift oars, and stout sails, and stiff
breeze, and a great multitude of souls
brought-so great multitude that you
have to get help to draw it ashore
straining the net to the utmost until it
breaks here and there, letting few es-
cape, but bringing the great multitude
into eternal safety.
The First Revival.
In other words, l belle in revivals.
The great work of saving men began
with 5000 people joining the church in
one day, and it will close with 40, 000,-
900 or 100, 900, 900 people saved in "a
hours, when nations shall be born in a
day. But there are objections to reviv
ais. People are opposed to them be-
cause the net might get broken, and if
by the pressure of souls it does not get
broken then they take their own pen
knives and slit the net. "They Enclosed
great multitude of fishes, and the net
brake. "
1t is sometimes opposed to revivals of
religion that those who come into the |
church at such times do not hold out;
as long as there is gale of blessing |
they have their sails up, but as soon
as strong winds stop blowing then they
drop into dead calm. But what are |
the facts il the case? In all our church
es the vast majority of the useful peo-
pie are those who are brought in under |
great awakenings, and they hold out
Who are the prominent men in the |
United States in churches, in prayer
meetings, in Sabbath schools? For the
most part they are the product of great
awakenings.
| have noticed that those who are
brought into the kingdom of God
through revivals have more persistence
and more determination in the Christian
life than those who come in under
low state of religion. People born in an
icehouse may live, but they will never
get over the cold they caught in the ice
housed A cannon ball depends upon the
impulse with which it starts for how
far it shall go and how swiftly, and the
greater the revival force with which
soul is started the more farreaching
and far resembling will be the execu-
ton.
But it is sometimes objected to reviv-
ais that there is so much excitement
that people mistake hysteria for reli-
gion.
Excitement.
We must admit that in every revival
Of religion there is either suppressed
or demonstrated excitement. Indeed if
q man can go out of state of condem-
nation into state of acceptance with
God, or see others go, without any agi-
tation of soul, he is in an unhealthy,
morbid state, and is as repulsive and
absurd as man who should boast he
saw child snatched out from under
horses hoofs and felt no agitation, or
saw man rescued from the fourth sto-
y of house ON fire and felt no accel-
sration of the pulses.
Salvation from sin and death and
hell into life and peace and heaven for
sver is such a tremendous thing that
4 man tells me he can look ON it with
nut any agitation doubt his Christian
ty. The fact is that sometimes excite
nent is the most important possible
hing. In case of resuscitation from
irowning or freezing, the one idea is to
'xcite animation. Before conversion we