Owingsville outlook. [volume] (Owingsville, Ky.) 1879-192?, 1896-07-16
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Eloquent Preacher Dscourses on
the Love of David and Jonathan.
Both Feet Crippled, hut IT Made No DIFF
ference to Da,ld-iIe Took the UnforA
tunate Into His Fine Palace. and sat
Him Down at the Royal banquet.


Him Down at the Royal banquet.
DIR. Talmagc's text was II Samuel XII
and IL: is there yet any that is left
of the housc of Saul that | may show
him kindness for Jonathau's sake?
80 McphiboShcth dwclt in .Ieru-
salem. for he did eat continually at the
Kings table aud was lame on both his
feet"
Was there ever anything more To-
mantle and chivalrous than the love uf
David and Jonathan? ~ one time jon
athan was up and David wis down.
Now David IL up and .Ionathan's family
is down. rs You have often heard of
tw" soldiers before going into battle
making a covenant that if one is shot
the survivor will take charge Of
the body, the watch, the me-
mcntns, and perhaps of the be-
rcft family of the one that dies. 81
David and Jonathan had made covcn-
ant, and now, that Jonathan i dead,
David is inPuirng about his family
that he NAV show kindness unto them
for their father Ionatlian's sake. Care
full search is made, and son of iona
than 10y the drcadfullv homcly name of
McphiboShcth i found. His nurse in
his infancy had let him fall. and the
fall had put both his ankles ont of
place, and they hnd never been set.
This dccrrpit. poor man is brought
into the palace of King David.
David looks upon him with melt
ing tenderness, no doubt seeing
In his face resemblance To his old
friend, the deceased Jonathan The
whole hearing of King David toward
him seems To say: How glad am to
see YOU. McphibuShcth How YOU re-
mind me of YOUR father. my old friend
and bcnfactor. | made a bargain with
your father II Eoud many years agh,
and | am going To keep it with you.
What can do for you, Mcphihoshcth?
am resolved what To- do. ! will make
you a rich man. will restore Ia YOU
the contiscated property at Your grand
father saul. aul you shall I've stucst
Of mine rs long a. you live, and YOU
shall he seated AT my table among the
princes" 1t was too much for Mephi-
bosheth, and he cried out against it,
calling himself a dead dog. BE still. "
says David, Il don't do this on your
own account: | do this for your father
Jonathan's sake. ! can never forget
his kindness. remember when | was
bounded front place TO place how
he bcfriended me. Tan ever
forget how hc stripped himself
of his courtirr apparel and
gave it To ms instead of my shcrherd's
coat, and how he took off his own
sword and belt and gave them To me
instead of my sling? Oh. | can never
forget him. feel rs il | couldn't do
enough for YOU, his son. don't do it
for your sake: do it for your father
Jonathan's sake" so Mcphibosheth
dwelt in JerulSalcm: orhc did eat con-
tinually at the kings table, and was
lame on both his feet"
There is 81 much gospel in tins rr int
incident that | ain embarras Ia
iHow where to begir. Whom do Nap"
boshcth. and D.v.1 and jon IA
make you think b
Mcphibosheth. in .rr first 7, see,
stands for the disabled huuS on lord
Byron describes sin as a cha r.ivg eek
lessncSs, as "A gallantry, a. Don
Juan; George Sand describes sin as
triumphant in many intricate plots;
Gavarina, with his cngraver'S knife. al
ways shows sin aS a great popularity;
but the Bible presents it as n Mcphi-
6o>hrth, lame on both feet, Sin, like
the muse in the context, attem'a,I 10
carry MS, and lei MS fall, and .a.
been disabled. and in ottE-whoic moral
nature we are decrepit. Sol. rrime
theologians hagglc about a technical
ity. They use the words total deprav-
ity,' and some people believe IN 'Le
doctrine. and some reject it " hat ~
you mean by total depravit Ifo you
mean that every man is as bad as he
can be? Then | do not believe it either.
But do you mean that sin has let us
fall. that il has sacrificed and disabled,
and crippled our entire moral nature,
until we can not wall, straight. and are
lame i'm both feet? Then admit your
proposition. There Is not 50 much diff
ference in an African Jungle, with
barking, bowling, kissing, fighting
quadruped and reptile, and Paradise
with its animals coming before Adam
when he pattcd them and stroked them
and gave them names, SO that the pam
Their was as tame as the cow. and the
condor as tame as the dove, as there Is
between the human soul disabled and
that soul as God originally constructed
it. | do not care what the SEN
fali - he IL,
regard to sin; in the name of
God | declare to you to-day that sin
is disorganization, disintegration,
CHASTITY designation, hobbling de-
formity.
Your modern theologian tells You
that man is little out of sorts; he some
times thinks wrong; he sometimes does
wrong: indeed, his nature needs a little
moral surgery, an outside splint, a
slight compress, little rectification.
Religion is good thing to have; it
might some day come into use. Man is
partially wrong. not all wrong. lie is
lame in one foot. Bring the
salve of divine grace and the
ointment, and the pain extractor,
and we will have his one foot
cured. Man is only half wrong. not
altogether wrong. In what is mans
nature right? In his will? his affec-
tons? his Judgment? No. There is an
old book that SAYS: The whole head is
sick, and the whole heart faint" Nc
phihs beth lame in both feet. Our be-
lief of he fact that sin has sacrificed
and deformcd our souls increases as
we go ON in years. When you start
ed life you thought that man
was IA little married by sin and
Ia was about one-tenth wrong.
by tn, time you had gone through
the early experience of your trade,
or occupation, or profession, you be-
lievcd that man was about half wrong.
by the time you came to mid-lifc you
lieved that man was threc-fourths
wrong. But within these past few
years, since you have been 80 lied about
and swindled and cheated, you have
come to the conclusion that man is al
together wrong, and now you can say
with the prayer book and with the
Bible: There is no health in U.S." Now
you believe with the prophet, The
heart is deceitful above all things, and
desperately wicked" Whatever you
may have believed before, now you be-
lieve that Mephibosheth is lame on
both feet.
Again, Mephibosheth in the text
stands for the disabled human soul