Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1895-02-22
REV. DR.. TALMAGE
The Eminent Brooklyn Divine's Sun
day Sermon.
Subject: "a Call to Outsid ers.'

TEXT: "Other sheep have which are not
of this fold. John x, 16.
There is no monopoly in religion. The
grace of God Is not little property that we
may fence off and have all to ourselves. 1t
Is not kings park at which we may look
through the barred gateway, wishing that
we might go in and see the deer and the
statuary and pluck the flowers. and fruits in
the royal conservatory No. 1t Is the
Fathers orchard, and everywhere there are
bars that we may let down and gates that we
may swing open.
In my boyhood next to the country school
house there was an orchard of apples, owned
by very lame man, who, although there
were apples in the place perpetually decaying
and by scores and scores Of bushels, never
would allow any of us to touch the fruit.
One day, in the sinfulness of a nature inner.
tied from our first parents, who were ruined
by the same temptation, some of us invaded
that orchard, but soon retreated, for the man
came after us at speed reckless of making
his lameness worse and cried out, "Boys,
drop those apples. or I'll set the dog on YOU"
Well, my friends, there are Christian men
who have the church under severe guard.
There is fruit in this orchard for the whole
world, but they have a rough and I'M
sympathetic way of accosting outsiders, as
though they had no business here, though
the Lord wants them all to come and take
the largest and ripest fruit on the premises.
Have you an idea, becauseyOu were baptized
at thirteen months Of age, and because you
have all your life been under hallowed in
fluences, that therefore you have right to
one whole side Of the Lords table, spreading
Yourself out and taking up the entire room?
tell you no. You will have 20 haul in your
elbows, for shall place on either side OF you
those whom you never expected would sit
there, for, as Christ said to His favored peo-
pc long ago, so He says to you and to
me, "Other sheep have which are not OF
this fold"
Macdonald, the Scotchman, has four or five
dozen head of sheep. Some of them are
browsing on the heather; some of them are
lying down under the trees; some OF them are
in his yard-they are scattered around in eight
orten different places. Cameron, his neighbor,
comes over and says: ~ see you have thirty
sheep. have just counted them" mo"
says Macdonald, II have great many more
sheep than that. Some are here and some
are elsewhere. They are scattered all around
about 1 have 1000 or 5000 in my 1ocks
Other sheep 1 have which are not in this
fold"
So Christ says to us. Here is knot of
Christians, and there is a knot of Christians,
but they make up small part of the flock.
Here is the Episcopal fold, the Methodist
fold, the Lutheran fold. the Congregational
fold, the Presbyterian fold, the Baptist and
the Pedo-Baptist fold, the only difference be-
tween these last two being the mode ofsheep
washing, and so they are scattered all over,
and we come with our statistics ana say there
are so many thousands of the Lords sheep,
but Christ responds: mo, no. You have
not seen more than one out of 1000 Of My
flock. They are scattered all over the earth.
Other sheep 1 have which are not of this
told"
Christ in my text was prophesying the con-
version of the gentiles with as much conf
dence as though they were already converted,
and He is now, in the words of my text.
prophesying the coming of great multitude
of outsiders that you never supposed would
come in saying to you and saying to me,
'Other sheep l have which are not Of this
fold"
In the first place, 1 remark that the
Heavenly Shepherd will find many of His
sheep among the nonchurchgoers. There are
congregations where they are all Christians,
and they seem to be completely finished and
they remind one Of the skeleton leaves which
by chemical preparation have had all the
greenness and verdure taken off them and
are left cold and white and delicate, nothing
ihem. The minister OF Christ has MOTH
ing to do with such Christians but to
come once a week and with ostrich
leather dust off the accumulation of the
last six days, leaving them bright and
crystalline as before But the other kind Of
a church Is an armory, with perpetual sound
Of drum and fife, gathering recruits for the
Lord of Hosts. We say to every applicant;
''Do you want to be on Gods side-the safe
- 10 10 .1oO n, klo
armory and get equipped. Here Is bath in
which to be cleansed. Here are sandals to
put upon your feet. Here is a helmet foI
your brow. Here is a breastplate for your
heart. Here is sword for your right arm,
and yonder is the battlefield. Quit your
selves like men,"
There are some here who say, ~ stopped
going to church ten or twenty years ago."
Ny brother, is it not strange that you should
be the first man l should talk to today ]
know all your case. know it very we'll. You
have not been accustomed to come into rehg
tous assemblage. but have surprising an
nOuncement to make to you-you are goine
to become one of the Lords sheep. "Ah,"
you say, "it is impossible You don't know
how far l am from anything of that kind" ]
know all about it. Ihave wandered up and
down the world. and understand your case
have still more startling announcement
TO make IN regard TO yOu-yOu are not only
going to become one of the Lords sheep, but
you will become one to-day. You will stay
after this service to be talked with about your
soul. People Of God, pray for that man.
That is the only use for you here. shall not
break of so much as a crumb for you, Chris
tians, in this sermon, for l am going to give
1t all to the outsiders. "Other sheep have
which are not of this fold"
When the Atlantic went to pieces on Mars
rock, and the people clambered upon the
beach, why did not that heroic minister of
Che gospel of whom we have all read sit down
and take care of those men on the beach,
wrapping them in f1annels, kindling fire for
them, seeing that they got plenty of food?
All, he knew that there were others who
would do that. He says: 'Yonder are men
and women freezing in the rigging of that
wreck. Boys, launch the boat" And now
[ see the oar blades bend under the strong
pull, but before they reached the rigging
woman was frozen and dead. She was
washed off, poor thing. But he says, "There
is man to save" and he cries out: "Hold
On five minutes longer and I will save you.
Steady; steady. Give me you hand. Leap
into the lifeboat. Thank God, he is saved!''
So there are those here to-day who are
safe on the shore of Gods mercy. I will not
spend any time with them at all, but see
there are some who are freezing in the rig
cling of sin and surrounded by perilous
storms. Pull away. my lads! Let us reach
them. Alas, one is washed off and gone.
There is one moreto be saved. Let us push
out for that one. Clutch the rope. Oh,
dying man, clutch it as with a death grip.