Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1895-05-11
A DISTURBING FORCE
REV. DR.. TALMAGE'S ELOQUENT SER
MON ON THE CONSCIENCE.

REV. DR.. TALmAGE'S ELOQUENT SER
MON ON THE CONSCIENCE.
Christ Before Piiate-The Power Of the
"stIII. Small voice"-The True Conver-
sicn-A Wash In the Glorious Gospel
Laver-Psrdoning Mercy.
NEW YORK, May 5.-Rarcly does any
discourse hold an audience with such In
tense interest as did that which Rev. DIR.
Talmage delivered this afternoon in tho
Academy OF Music. He chose for his sub
jcct Conscience, the text selected being
Matthew xvii, "a: "Hc took water and
washed his hands before the multitude,
eaying: i am innocent of the blood of this
just person. See We 10 it
At about o'clock In the morning up
the marble stairs of palace, and across
the floors OF richest mosaic, and under cell
ings dyed with all the splcndors OF color,
ard between snowbanks of white and
glistcning sculpture, passes poor, pale,
sick young man of 80, already condemned
to death. on his way TO DO condemned
again. Jesus Of Nazareth is his name
Coming out to meet him on this tcssel
lated pavement Is an INSCRIPTIONS, com
promising, timcserving, cowardly man,
with a few traces OF sympathy and fair
dealing left in his composition-Governor
Pontius PLATE. Did ever such oppositcs
mcctS Luxury and pain selfishncss and
generosity, arrogance and humility, sin
and holiness, midnight and midnoon.
The bloatcd Tipped governor takes the
cushioned seat, but the prisoner stands, his
.fa1 f..t
the prisoner are the sanhedrists, with
flashing eyes and brandished fists prose
cutting this case in the name of religion,
for the bittcrcst prosecutions have been re-
ligious prosecutions, and when satan takes
hold of good man he makes up by inten-
sity for brevity Of occupation. II you have
never seen an ecclesiastical court trying n
man. then you have no idea of the foam
ing infcrnalism Of these old religious san
hedrSts Governor Pilate cross questions
the prisoner and finds right away he Is in
noccnt and wants to let him go. His eau
tion Is also increased by some one who
comes To the governor and whispers in his
ear The governor puts his hand behind
his ear. So as TO catch the words almost in
audible. 1t is message from Claudia
Procula, his wife, who has had n dream
about the innocence of this prisoner and
about the danger of executing him. and
she awakens from this morning dream in
| time To send the message 10 her husband
then on the judicial bench And what
with the protest OF his wife, and the voice
Of his own conscience, and the entire fail
ure of the sanhcdrists to make out their
case, Governor PLATE resolves to discharge
the prisoner from custody.
The FanaticaI Sanhcdrists.
But tho intimation of such thing
brings upon the governor an cquinoctial
storm of Indignation. They will report
him to the emperor at Rome. They will
have him recalled They will send him up
home, and he will bc hung for treason, for
| the emperor at Rome has already sus-
picion in regard TO Pilatc, and that sus-
4 picion does not cease until Pilate is ban
| ished and commits suicide. So Governor
! Pontius plate compromises the matter
and proposes that Christ be whipped In
stead of assassinated. So the prisoner is
! fastened to n low pillar and on his bent and
barred back come the thongs of leather,
with pieces of lead and bone intertwistcd,
so that every stroke shall be the more aw-
| full Christ lifts himself from the scourg-
ing, with flushed cheek and torn and quiv
cring and manglcd flesh, presenting a
spectacle of suffering in which Rubcns,
/ the painter, found the theme for his great
est masterpiece
! But tho sanhedrists nrc not yet satisfied.
/ They have had some of his nerves laccrat
ed; they want them all laccratcd. They
! have had some of his blood; they want all
of IL, down To the last corpuscle. so Gov
ernor Pontius PLATE, after all this mcrci-
ful hesitation, surrcnders to the dcmoni-
80 q. t.t a.
ernor sends for something. He sends n
slave out To get something. Although the
constablcs arS in haste to take the prisoner
10 execution and the mob outside are i'm
patient to glare upon their victim, pause
Is ncccssitatcd. Yondcr IL comes, wash
basin. Some pure, bright water Is poured
| into II, and then Governor plate puts his
white. delicate hands into the water and
rubs them together and then lifts them,
dripping, for the towel fastened at the
| slaves girdlc, while he practically says:
II wash my hands of this whole homicidal
| transaction. wash my hands of this en-
tire responsibility. You will have 10 bear
! it." That Is the meaning OF my text when
| IL says: "Hc took water and washed his
| hands before tho multitude saying: l am
innocent OF the blood OF this just person.
See ye TO it..
Pilates Wash Basin.
Behold In this that ceremony amounts
| to nothing, IL there are not In Ii CORE
spondcncics of heart and life 1t Is u good
thing to wash the hands. God created
thrce-quartcrs OF the world water, and In
that commanded cleanliness, and when
the ancicnts did not take the hint he
plunged tho whole world under water and
kept II there for some time. Hand wash
ing was n religious ceremony among the
Jews. The Jewish Mishna gave particular
direction how that the hands must be
thrust three times up to the wrists In wa
ter, and the palm OF the hand must he
rubbed with tho closed fist of the other.
All that well enough for symbol, but
here in the text is man who proposes to
wash away the guilt of n sin which he
does not quit and of which he does not
make any rcpentance Pilates wash basin
was n dead failure.
Ceremonies, however beautiful and up
propriatc, may be no more than this hypo-
critical ablution. In infancy we may be
sprinkled from the baptismal font and in
manhood We may wade into deep INNER
sions and yet never come TO moral purif-
cation We may knccl without prayer
and bow without rcvercnJc, md sing with
out any acceptance. All your Cfct - dh''
liturgi,s and sacraments and gcnutlcctions
and religious conventions amount 70
! nothing unless your heart life 90 into
them. When that bronzcd slave took from
the presence of PLATE that wash basin, he
carried away none of Pilates cruelty, or
Pilates wickcdncss, or Pilates guilt.
Wash the Heart
Nothing against crecds; we all have
them, either written or implied. Nothing
| aoainst ceremonies. they nrp nf infnif,