The Canton times. (Canton, Miss.) 1893-1906, 1896-07-10
CHRISTIAN WEAPONS.
NV Dr.. Talmage breaches on the
Warfare on Sin.
~n~ Chr,stian's Assaults on Vice IN i'S
!, various Forms Likened Unto 'ho
n persistent Pursuit Of Game ny
the Hunter.

The following somewhat UNIQUE dis-
course was delivered by Rev. L. De"ltt
Tslmage before his Washington con-
1t was based on the teNt'
He was mighty hunter before the LORD
Genesis x.,s.
In our day, hunting is sport; out
in the lands and the times in1estea
with wild beasts it was matter OF
life ar death with the people. 1t was
very different from going out on sun
shiny afternoon with patent breech-
aoader, to shoot reed birds on the nals'
when Pullux and Achilles and Dlo.
s,,edes went out to clear the lana OF
lions and tigers and bears. MY text
sets forth Nimrod as a hero wnen !.
Dresents him with broad shoulders ana
shaggy apparel and sun-browned face
and arm punched with muscle-"a
mighty hunter before the LORD.
think he used the bow and the arrows
with great success practicing archery.
have thought if it is such grand
thing and such brave thing to clear
wild beasts out of country, ii 1t is
not better and drawer thing to hunt
down and destroy those great evils OF
society that are stalking the land with
fierce eye and bloody paw, and sharp
fusk and quick spring. l have won
<lered if there is not such thing as
Gospel archery, by which those VINO
have been flying from the truth may
be captured tor God and Heaven. The
Lord Jesus in His sermon used the art
of angling for an illustration when
He said: Il will make you fishers OF
men, And SO think ! have author
ity for using hunting as an illustra-
ton Of Gospel truth; and | pray Goa
that there may be many man to-day
who will begin to study Gospel arch
ery, Of whom it may, after awhile, be
said: HE was mighty hunter be-
fore the Lord"
How much awkward Christian work
there is done in the world How MANY
good people there are who drive souls
away from Christ instead of bringing
them to Him! All their fingers are
shumbs-religiou blunderers who up
set more than they right. Their gun
has a crooked barrel, and kicks as it
goes off. They are like clumsy COM
rade who goes along with shillful
hunters; at the very moment when he
ought to be most quiet. he is cracking
an alder. or falling over log and
frightening away the game. HOW
few Christian people have ever learned
the lesson of which l read at the be-
ginning of this service, how that the
Lord Jesus Christ at the well went
from talking about a cup OF water to
to the most practical religious truths,
which won the woman's soul for God!
Jesus in the wilderness was breaking
bread to the people. think it was good
bread; 1t was very light bread, and the
Yeast had done it's work thoroughly
Christ, after He had broken the bread
said to the people: Beware OF the
yeast, or of the leaven, of the Phari
GEES" So natural transition it was
and how easily they all understood
Him! But how few Christian people
there are who understand how tt
fasten the truths of God and religion
TO the souls of men. Truman Osborne
one of the Evangelists who wen
through this country years ago. had
wonderful art in the right direction
He came to my fathers hous'
one day, and while we were al
seated in the the room, h
said: "Mr. Talmage, are all you
children Christians?' Father said
Eyes, all but De Witt" Then Tru
1nan Osborne looked down into tn
fireplace, and began to tell story G
a storm that came on the mountains
and all the sheep were in the fold; bu
there was one lamb outside that pei
isbed in the storm. Had he locke
me in the eve, / should have been al
gered when he told the story; but b
looked into the fireplace, and it was
pzthetically and beautifully done tina
I never found any peace until wa
xure I was inside the fold, where I'll
other sheep were.
The archers of olden times studio
their art. They were very precise
the matter. The old books gave specis
directions as to how an archer shou
vr,. and as to what an archer should dt
He must stand erect and firm, his lie
foot little in advance OF the rig
foot. With his left hand he must tai
hold of the bow iu the middle, ar
then with the three fingers and Il
thumb of his right hand he should |;
hold of the arrow and affix it to u
.string-so precise was the directio
;1fyen. But how clumsy we are abo
1el;oiou,s work! How little skill al
care we exercise. How often our a
rows miss the mark! Oh, that the
were more institutions established
all the towns and cities of our Ian
where men might learn the art OF d
ing good-studying spiritual archer
and known rs mighty htnters befo
Rhe Lordp