The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1896-07-10
CHRISTIAN WEAPONS.
Rev. DIR. Talmage breaches ON the
Warfare on Sin.
The Christians Assaults on Vice In itn
Various Forms LIkened Unto the
Persistent Pursuit. OF Game by
the Hunter.


course was delivered by Rev. I. Dewitt
Talmage before his Washington con-
gregation. 1t was based on the texts
Tie was a mighty hunter before the Lord
Genesis X, ..
In our day. hunting is a sport; out
in the lands and the times infested
with wild beasts it was matter of
life or death with the people. 1t was
very different from going out on a sum
shiny afternoon with a patent breech-
loader, TO shoot reed birds on the fats,
when Pullux and Achilles and Do
medes went out to clear the land of
lions and tigers and bears. My text
sets forth Nimrod as a hero when &c
presents him with broad shoulders and
shaggy apparel and snn-browned face
and arm punched with muscle-"a
mighty hunter before the Lord" I
think he used the bow and the arrows
with great success practicing archery.
l have thought il it is such a grand
thing and such brave thing to clear
wild beasts out of a country, If 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
tusk and quick spring. / have won
dered If there is not such a thing as
Gospel archery, by which those who
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: II will make you fishers of
men," And SO think have author
ity for using hunting as an illustra-
ton of Gospel truthI and pray God
that there may be many a man to-day
who will begin to study Gospel arch
cry, of whom 1t may, after awhile, be
saidi "He was a mighty hunter be-
fore the Lord"
How much awkward Christian work
there is done in the worldl How many
good people there are who drive souls
away from Christ instead of bringing
them to Himl All their fingers are
thumbs-religious blunderers who up
set more than they right. Their gun
has crooked barrel, and kicks as it
goes of. They are like clumsy COM
rade who goes along with slzillful
hunters; at the very moment when he
ought TO be most quiet, he is cracking
an alder, or falling over a log and
frightening away the game How
few Christian people have ever learn ed
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 Godl
L., 4 \
bread to the people. think it was good
bread; it was very light bread, and the
yeast had done its work thoroughly.
Christ, after He had broken the bread,
said to the people: Beware of the
yeast, or of the leaven, of the Phari-
SEES" So natural transition it was;
and how easily they all understood
Hint But how few Christian people
there are who understand how to
fasten the truths of God and religion
to the souls of men. Truman Osborne,
one of the Evangelists who went
through this country years ago, had a
wonderful art in the right direction.
He came to my fathers house
one day, and while we were all
seated in the the room, he
said; 'Mr. Talmage, are all your
children Christians?" Father said:
Eyes, all but De Witt" Then Tru-
man Osborne looked down into the
fireplace, and began to tell story of
a storm that came on the mountains,
and all the sheep were in the fold; but
there was one lamb outside that per-
ished in the storm. Had he looked
me in the eye, 1 should have been an
gered when he told the story; but he
looked into the fireplace, and it was so
pathetically and beautifully done that
never found any peace until was
sure I was inside the fold, where the
other sheep were.
The archers of olden times studied
their art. They were very precise in
the matter. The old books gave special
directions as to how an archer should
go, and as to what an archer should do.
He must stand erect and firm, his left
foot little in advance of the right
foot. With his left hand he must take
hold of the bow iu the middle, and
then with the three fingers and the
thumb of his right hand he should lay
hold of the arrow and affix it to the
string-so precise was the direction
given. But how clumsy we are about
religious work. How little skill and
care we exercise. How often our ar
rows miss the mark Oh, that there
were more institutions established In
all the towns and cities of our land,
where men might learn the art of do
ing good-studying spiritual archery,
and known rs mighty hunters before
the Lordl"
It the first pace, if you want to be
effectual in doing good, you must be
very sure of your weapon. There
was something very fascinating about
the archery of olden times. Perhaps
you do not know what they could do
with the bow and arrow. Why the
chief battles fought by the English
Plantagenets were with the lonR-bow,
They would take the arrow Of pol
ished wood, and feather it with the
plume of bird, and then it would fly
from the bow-string of plated silk.
The broad fields of Agincourt, and
Solway Moss, and Neville's Cross heard
the loud thrum of the archer's bow
string. Now, my Christian friends, we
have a mightier weapon than that. 1t
Is the arrow of the Gospel; it is sharp
arrow il is a straight arrow; it is feath-
cred from the wing of the dove of
Gods spirit; it flies from a bow made
out of the wood of the cross As far
as can estimate or calculate, it has
brought down 400, 600. 600 souls. Paul
knew how TO bring the notch of that
arrow on to that bowstring, and its
Whirr was heard through the Corin-