The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1895-07-31
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
SUNDAYS DISCOURSE BY THE
NOTED DIVINE.
Subject: "The objectionable SIM"

AnAtS- All uldQner OF SlI. dC'l DldSpneU
snail be forgiven unto men. but the bias
phemv against the Holy Ghost sheil not b
forgiven unto men. And whcS1e-7r spenketl
awori against the Son Of Man Il SHALL be for
gwen him. but whosoever Speaketh aCains
the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven him
neither in this world. neither in the world t
come. Matthew xii. 81. 50 "He found n
place of repentance. though he sought i
carefully with tears. Hebrews xii. II.
As sometimes vo; Gather the whole fauii,
around the evening stand to heaT some boot
read. 80 now we gather. n great ChrStiar
family groun. to study this text. and now
may one and the same lamp cast its glow OIL
all the circle.
You see from the first passage that I reaf
that there is sin against the Holy Gaost for
which n man is never pardoned. Oncf
having committed Ii. he is bound hand and
foot for the dungeons OF despair. Sermons
may be preached to him. songs MAY be sung
to him. u-averS may be offered in his behalf
but ail to no purpose. He is captive for this
world and n captive FOR the world that is to
come. Do you suppose tfat there is any one
here who has committed that sin! All sins
are against the Holy Ghost. but nv text
speaks Of one especially. 1t is very clear to
my mind that the sin against the Holy Ghost
was the ascrioing OF the works OF the spirit
to the agency CT the devil in the time Of the
apostles.
Indeed the Bible distinctly tells Us that. In
other words. il a man had sight given to
him, orif another was raised from the dead,
and some one standing there should say,
"This man got his sight by satanic power;
the HOLY Spirit did not do this; Beelzebub
accomplished it." or This man raised from
the dead was raised by satanic influence.
the man who said that dropped down under
the curse OF the text and had committed the
fatal sin against the Holy Ghost.
Now. do not think it is possible in this
day to commit that sin. I think it was pos
sible only in apostolic times. But 1t is very
terrible thing ever to say anything against
the Holy Ghost. and 1t is a marked fact that
our race has been marvelously kept back
from that profanity. You hear Inau swear
by the name Of the eternal God. and by the
hame OF Jesus Christ. but you never hear a
man swear by the name Of the Holy Ghost.
There are those here to-day who fear they
are guilty OF the objectionable sin. Have
you such anxiety? Then have to tell you
positively that you have not committed that
sn, because the very anxiety is a result OF
the movement of the gracious Spirit. and
your anxietvis proof positive. as certainly as
anything that can be demonstrated in math-
smatics. that you have not committed the
Nn CQ1l nave Deeu SpethtuS VI. Shh Aooh
ofr upon this audience and feel that there Is
salvation for all. 1, is not like when thev
put out with those lifeboats from the Loeb
Earn for the Vile de Havre. They knew
there was not room for all the passengers.
but they were going 10 do as we'll as they
sould. But to-day we man the Efeboat of
the gospel. and we cry out over the sea,
"Room for air. Oh. that the Lord Jesus
Christ would this hour bring you all out OF
the food OF sin and plant you on the deck OF
the glorious old gospel craft!
There is an impression in almost every
mans mind that somewhere in the future
there will be chance where he can correct
all his mistakes. Live as we may, if we
only repent in time God will forgive US, and
then all will be as we'll as though We had
never committed sin. My discourse shall
come in collision with that theory. l shall
show you. my friends. as God will help me.
that there is such thing as unsuccessful
repentance; that there are things done wrong
that always stay wrong. and for them You
may seek some place OF repentance AMI seek
It carefully, but never find it.
Belonging to this class Of irrevocablc mis-
takes is the folly Of misspent youth. We
may look back to our college days and think
how we neglected chemistry or geology or
botany or mathematics. We may be sorry
about it all our days. Can VIC ever get the
discipline or the advantage that We would
have had had We attended to those duties in
early life! A man wakes up at forty years
of age and finds that his youth has been
wasted, and he strives to get back his early
Advantages. Does he get them bacS-the
days OF boyhood, the days in college. the
days under his fathers root! "Oh, u he says,
tsif could only get those times back again
how I would improve them" My brother,
~ thnp mil hay ora
gone, gone. You may be very sorry about
1t, and God may forgive. so that you may at
last reach heaven, bur you will never ges
over some Of the mishaps that have come to
your soul as q result of your neglect OF early
duty You may try to undo it; you cannot
undo it. When you had Il boys arms. and
boys eyes, and boys heart, you ought to
have attended to those things. 4 maa says
at fifty years Of age, Il do wish could get
over these habits OF incidence" When did
you get them? At twenty or twenty-five
years Of age. You cannot shake them of.
They will hang to you to the very day o.
your death. If young man through long
course of evil conduct uldermineS his physi-
cal health and then repents of it in after life,
the Lord may pardon him, but that does not
bring back good physical condition. L said
to minister Of the gospel one Sabbath at the
close of the service, Where are you preach
ing now?" "Oh." he says. 81 am not preach.
ing. I am suffering from the physical effects
Of earlysin. can't preach now; an sick. "
consecrared man he nowis, and he mourns
bitterly over early sins, but that does not
arrest their bodily effects.
The simple fact is thar men and women
often take twenty years OF their life to build
up influences that require all the rest OF
their life to break down. Talk about man
beginning life when he iS twenty-one years
of age; talk about q woman beginning life
when she Is eighteen years Of age. Alb, no.
In many respects that is the time they close
life In nine cases out Of ten all the ques-
tions of eternity are decided before that.
Talk about majority OF men getting their
fortunes between thirty and forty years.
They get or lose fortunes between ten and
lust beginning life. tell you he is just clos
Ing it. The next fifty years will not be Of as
much importance to him as the first twenty.
Now. why do I say this? Is it for the
ANNOYANCE Of those who have only baleful
retro5pection? You know that is not my
way. I say it for the benefit Of young men
and women. I&ant them to understand that
eternity Is wrapped up in this hour; that the
sins OF youth We never get over; that you are
now fashioning the mold in which your
great future is to run; that a minute, in
stead Oh OelnS Sixty Secouls IonS, - IL
up OF everlasting ages. You can see what
dignity and importance this gives to the
life of all our young folks. Why, in the
light of this subject life is not something to
be frittered away. not something to ba
smirked about, not something to be dance u
out, but something to be weighed In the
balances Of eternity. Oh, young man. the
sin Of yesterday, the sin OF tomorrow will
reach over II, 900 years-aye, over the great
and unending eternity. You may after
awhile say: "Iam very sorry. Now have
got to be thirty or forty years OF age. and
do wish had never committed those sins. y
What does that amount TO? God may paS-
don YOU. but undo those things you never