The Penn's Grove record., 1894-04-06
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIvINE'S SUM-
DAY SERMON.
Subject "Sustainins Power of Re
ligion."

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suppose you know what the Israelites
did down in Egyptian slavery. They made
bricks. Amid the utensils OF the brickk1ln
there were also other utensils Of cookery
the kettles, the pots, the pans, with which
they prepared their daily food, and when
these poor slaves, tired OF the days work, lay
down 10 rest they lay down among thei i'm
elements of cookery and the implements Of
hard work. When they arose in the morn
ing, they found their garments covered with
the clay, and the smoke. and the dust, and
besmirched and begrimed witt the utensils
OF cookery.
But after n while the Lord broke up that
slavery, and He took these poor slaves into a
land where they had better garb, bright and
clean and beautiful apparel. No more bricks
for them to make. Let Pharaoh make his
W bricks. When David, in my text, comes
to describe the transition Of these poor Is
r~aelites from their bondage amid the brick
kilns into the glorious emancipation for
which God had prepared them, he says,
Though We have lain among the pots, yet
shall We be as the wings of a dove covered
with silver and her feathers with yellow
gold"
Miss WhateIy. the author OF a celebrated
book, "Life In Egypt" said she sometimes
saw people in the East cooking their food on
the tops Of houses, and that she had often
6ONl IoII ttIoio AtO" PiASN19 tAaN-
doves, which had during the heat OF the day
been hiding amongth kettles n the pans
with which the food was prepared, picking
up the crumbs that they might find. Just
about the hour of sunset they would spread
their wings and fly ~heavenward, entirely
unsoiled by the region in which they had
moved, for the pigeon is a very clearly bird.
And as the pigeons flew away the setting
sur would throw silver on their wings and
gold on their breasts. So you see it is not a
farfetched simile or an unnatural COM
parison when David, in my text. says to
these emancipated fsraelites, and says to all
those who are brought out OF any kind of
trouble into any kind OF spiritual joy,
Though We have lain among the pots, yet
shall ye be as the wings Of dove covered
with silver and her feathers with yellow
gold"
Sin Is the hardest OF all taskmasters.
Worse than Pharaoh, 1t keeps us drudging
In a most degrading service, but after awhile
Christ comes, and He says, "Let My people
CO." and we pass out from among the brick
kilns of sin into the glorious liberty Of the
gospel. We put on the clean robes OF a
Christian profession, and when at last W
soar away TO the warm nest which God has
provided for US In heaven we shall go fairer
than a dove, its wings covered with silver
and its feathers with yellow gold.
l am going to preach something which
some OF you do not believe, and that is that
the grandest possible adornment Is the re-
ligion Of Jesus Christ. There are a great
many people who suppose that religion is a
very different thing from what it really is.
The reason men condemn the Bible Is because
they d. not understand the Bible. They
have not properly examinedit DR.. johnson
said that Hume told a minister in the bishop
nc Of Durham that he had never particularly
examined the New Testament, yet all his life
warning against it. Haley, the astronomer,
announced his skepticism to Sir Isaac New
ton. and Sir Isaac Newton said ''Now, sir,
I have examined the subject, and you have
not. And I am ashamed that you, profess
ing to be a philosopher, consent to condemn
a thing you have never examined"
And so men reject the religion OF Jesus
Christ because they really have never in
v~estigated it.. They think it something I'M
desirable. something that will not work,
something Pecksnifl an, something hypocrit-
ical, something repulsive, when 1t Is so
bright and 30 beautiful you might compare
1t to q chaflnch, you might compare 1t to a
robin red breast, you might compare it to a
dove-its wings covered with silver n its
feathers with yellow gold.
But how is 1t II q young man becomes a
Christian? All through the clubrooms where
he associates, all through the business cir
Giles where he Is known, there is commisera-
tAOhs Ahtl ouSF "h"t q a. kihh "a gouhS
man who had such bright prospects should
so have been despoiled by those Christians,
giving up all his worldly prospects for some
thing which Is Of nc particular present
worth" Here Is a young woman who be-
comes a C~hristian-her voice, her face, her
manners the charm Of the drawing room.
Now all through the fashionable circles
the whisper goes, '''What a pity that such a
bright light should have been extinguished,
that such a graceful gait should be crippled,
that such worldly prospects should be
obliterated All, my friends, it can be
shown that religions ways are ways OF
pleasantness and that all her paths are
peace that religion, instead OF being dark
and doleful and lachrymose and repulsive,
is bright and beautiful, fairer thar a dove,
its wings covered with silver n its feathers
with yellow gold.
See, in the first place, what religion will
do for a mans heart. Icare not how cheer
full aman may naturally be before conversion,
conversion brings him up to a higher
standard Of cheerfulness. 1 do not say he
will laugh any louder. do not say but he
In which he once INDUCED, but there comes
into his soul an immense satisfaction. A
young man not a Christian depends upon
worldly successes to keep his spirits up.
Now he Is prospered, now he has a large
salary, now he has a beautiful wardrobe,
now he has pleasant friends. now he has
more money than he knows how to spend.
Everything goes bright and we'll with him.
But trouble comes. There are many young
men in the house this morning who can tes-
tify out OF their W experience that some
times to young men trouble comes-his
friends are gone, his salary is gone, his health
Is gone. He goes down, down.. He becomes
sour, cross, queer, misanthropic, blames the
world, blames society. blames the church,
blames everything, rushes perhaps to the In
toxicating cup to drown his trouble, but In
stead Of drowning his trouble he browns his
body and browns his soul.
But here is a Christian young man.
Trouble comes to him. Does he give IN?
No! He throws himself back on the re-
sources Of heaven. He says tGod Is nv
Father. Out Of all these disasters I shall
pluck advantage for my soul. All the prom
ises are mine, Christ is mine, Christian COM
partnership is mine, heaven Is mine. What
though my apparel be worn out2 Christ
gives me q robe OF righteousness. What
though my money be gone? I have a title
deed to the whole universe In the promise.
AN are yours What though my worldly
friends fall away Ministering angels are
my body-guard. What Though my fare be
poor n my bread be scant2 sit at the
Kings banquet r.
oh, what a poor, shallow stream Is worldly
enjoyment compared with the deep, broad,
OVERLOOKING river OF Gods peace, rolling
midway in the Christian hearth Sometimes
you have gone out OF the iron bound beach
ofthe sea when there has been a storm on
the ocean. and you have seen the waves dash
into white foam at your feet. They did not
do you any harm. While there you thought
Of the chapter written by the psalmist, and
perhaps you recited 1t to yourself while the
storm was making commentary upon the pas
sage "God is our refuge and strength, a
very present help In time OF trouble. There
fore will I not fear, though the earth be re-
moved, and though the mountains be carried
into the midst of the sea, though the waters
thereof roar and be troubled, though the
mountains shake with the swelling thereof"
oh, how independent the religion ofChrlst
mates a man OF worldly success and worldly
circumstances Nelson, the night before his
last battle, said, Tomorrow I shall win
either a peerage or a grave in Westminster
Abbey" And II does not make much differ
ence to the Christian whether he rises or falls
in worldly matters. He has everlasting re.
nown anyway. Other plumage may be torn
in the blast. but that soul adorned with
Christian grace is fairer than the dove-its
wings covered with silver and its feathers
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