The Penn's Grove record., 1895-09-27
REV. DR.. TaLQaGE.
The Brooklyn Diyine's Sunday
Sermon.
Subject: "Rough Sailing"

other little ships, and there arose a great
storm Of wind MARK w., 36. 81.
Tiberias, Galilee anil Gennesaret wore
three names for the SAINT lake. II Law ia n
scene of great luxurianee. The surrounding
hills, high. terraced, sloping, gorged, were
so many hanging gardens of beauty. Tn
streams tumbled down through rocks Of gray
and red limestone, ard flashing from tn
hillside bounded to the sea. In the time Of
| our Lord the valleys. headlands and ridge
were covered thickly with vegetation, and 81
great was the variety of climate that thu
palm tree of the torrid and the walnut tree
I Of rigorous climate were only y little way
apart. Men in vineyards and olive gardens
were gathering up the riches for the oil
press. The hills ind valleys were starred
and crimsoned with flowers, from which
| Christ took Histext, andthe disciples learned
lessons of patience and trust. 1t seemed as
II God had dashed a wave of beauty on all
the scene until II hung dripping from the
rocks, the hills, the oleanders. On the back
Of the Lebanon range the CORY ofthe earthly
scene was carried up as If to set 1t in range
with the hills of heaven.
No other gem ever had so exquisite a set.
ting as beautiful Gennesaret. The waters We're
clear and sweet andthickly inhabited tempt
ing innumerable nets and affording q livelj-
hood for great populations. Bethsaida, Choir
azin and Capernaum stood IN the bank roar
ing with wheels Of traffic and flashing with
splendid equipages, and shooting their ves-
| sells across the lake. bringing merchandise
for Damascus and passing great carsoas of
wealthy product. Pleasure boats of Roman
gentlemen and fishing smacks OF the coun-
try people. who had come dow to cast a net
there, passed each other with nod and shout
and welcome, or side by side swung idly at
the mooring. Palace and luxuriant bath
and vineyard, tower and shadowy arbor,
looking off upon the calm sweet scene as ths
evening shadows began to drop, and Her
mon, with its heal covered with perpetual
snow, in the glow OF the setting sun looked
like a white bearded prophet ready to ascend
in a chariot of fire. I think we shall have a
quiet night! Not q leaf winks in the air or
a ripple disturbs the surface Of Gennesaret.
| The shadows of the great headlands stalk |
clear across the water. The voices Of
eveningtide, how drowsily they strike
| the ear-the splash of the boatman's oar, aud
the humping of the captured fish on the
boats bottom, and those Undesirable
sounds which fill the air at nightfall. You
| hasten up the beach Of the lake a little way, |
and there you find an excitement as Of an
e~mbarkation. A fiotilla is pushing out from
the western shore of the lake. not n squad
1 ron with deadly armament. not a clipper to |
| ply with aluable merchandise, not piratic
vessels with graphing hook to hug to death
| whatever they could seize, but a fotilla
laden with messengers of light and mercy
and peace. Jesus is in the front shin. His
| friends and admirers are in the small boats |
| following after. Christ, by the rocking OF
! the boat and the fatigues OF me preaching
exercises of the day. is induced to slumber,
and 1 see Him in the stern of the boat, with
a pillow perhaps extemporized out OF a fish
erman's coat, sound asleep. The breezes of
| the lake run their fingers through the locks OF
the wornout sleeper, and on its surfacethere
rIseth and falleth the light ship, like a child
on the bosom gifts sleeping mother Calm
| night. Starry night. Beautiful night. Run
up all the sails, and ply all the oars. and let
the boats-the big boat and the small boats
go gliding over gentle Gennesaret.
The sailors prophesy a change In the
weather. Clouds begin to travel up the sky
and congreeate. After awhile, even the
passengers hear the moan of the storm,
which comes OF with rapid strides and with
all the terrors OF hurricane and darkness.
The boat, caught in the sudden fury ,tremhles
like a deer at bay amid the Wild clangor OF
the hounds. Great patches of foam are
flung through the air. The loosened sails,
Tapping in the wind. crack like pistols. The
small boats poised on the white oliff OF the
driven sea tremble like ocean petreIs, aad
then plunge into the trough with terrible
swoop until a wave strikes them with thun-
der crack, and overheard go the cordage,
the tackling and the masts, and the drenehed
| disciples rush into the stern of the boat and
shout amid the hurricane, "Master, carest
| Thou not that we perish2" That great per-
sonage lifted his head from the flsherman's
coat and walked out to the PROV Of
the vessel and looked upon the storm.
On all sides were the small boats tossing
In helplessness, and from them came
the cries of drowning men. BY
the flash OF lightning l see the calmness Of
the uncovered brow OF Jesus and the spray
of the sea dripping from Hts beard. He has
two words of eommand-one for the wind,
the other for the sea. Hell looks into the tenn
| pestuous heavens and He cries "peacal' AMI
Their Helooks down into the infuriate waters
and He says, "Be stillF' The thunders beat
a retreat. The waves fall fiat on thejrianos. |
| The ~extinguished stars rekindle theirtorches.
The foam melts. The storm is dead. And
| while the crew are ~untangling the cordage
and the cables and baling out the water
from the hold of the ship the disciples stand
wonder struck, now gazing into the calm
sky, now gazing into the calm sea
now gazing into the calm face of Jesus, |
and whispering one to another, "What man
ner of mar is this. that even the winds and
the sea obey HIM"
I~learn, first, from this subject that when
you are going to a a voyage OF any kind
you ought to have Christ in the ship. The
TACT is that those boats would all have gone
to the bottom II Christ had not been there.
| Now, you are about to voyage out into some
| new enterprise-into some new business re-
lation. You are going to plan some great
matter of profit. I hope 1t is so. If you are
! cOulbut W kO dtoHB IN tnc NTohuulli tuuISo
and plan nothing new, you are not fulfilling
| your mission. What you can do by the ut
| most tension of body, mind and soul that
| you are bound to do. You have no right to
| be colonel OF a regiment II God calls you to
command an army. You have no right to be
stoker In a steamer II God commands you to
be admiral Of the navy. You rAye no
right to engineer o ferryboat from river bank
| to river bank II God commands YOU to en- |
gineer a Cunarder from New York to Liver
pool. But whatever enterprise you under
take, and on whatever voyage you start, he
sure to take Christ in the ship. Here are men
| largely prospered. The seed ola small en-
terprise grew into an accumulated and over
| shadowtng success. Their cup OF prosper
ity is running over. Every day sees a COM
mercial or mechanical triumph. Yet they
are not pulled up. They acknowledge the
all their prosperity. When Disaster comes
that destroys Others, they are only helped
into higher experiences. The coolest wlnis
that ever blew down from snow capped Her
mon and tossed Gennesaret into foam and
agony could not hurt them. Let the
winds blow until they crack their cheeks.
Let the breakers boom-all is well,
Christ is in the ship. Here are other men,
the prey of uncertainties. When they sue
coed, they strut through tho wsrld IN great
vanity and wipe their feet on the sensitive,
ness OF others. Disaster comes, and they
W uttpAaJ iva AhOs dEo kOOuS tllufH Nu
a fair day, when the sky Is clear and the sea
is smooth, but they cannot utride a storm.
After awhile the packet Is tossed abeam's
end, and 1t seems as IL she must 90 down
with all the cargo. Push out from the shore
WITH nfeboat, long boat. shallow and PIN
mace. Youcannot save the crew. The storm
twists of the masts. The sea rises up to take
down the vessel. Down she goes! No Christ
In that ship.
l speak Of young people whose voyage in
life will be a mingling OF sunshine and Of
darkness, of arctic blast and Of tropical tor
nado. You will have many a long, bright
day Of prosperity. The skies clear. the sea
| smooth. The crew exhilarant. The boat
stanch will bound merrily over the pillows.
Crowd on all the canvas. Helgh, hel Land
aheadi But suppose that sickness puts its
bitter cup to your iipsi suppose that death
o~vershadows your heart; suppose mis'or-
tune, with some quick tuN OF the wheel.
hurls you backward; supposAa that the wave
Of trial strikes you athwart Mrs, ~
spirit shivered. and hslyerds stek