The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1896-07-16
REV. IAUMAGES SUNDAY SERMON.
AN ELOQUENT DISCOURSE.
Subject; "Kindness for Another,s
Sake.v

on both his feet III Samuel tx. 1 aud 10.
Was there ever anything more romantic
and chivalrous than the love OF David aud
JonathanI Al one time Jonathan was up
and David was down. Now David IL up and
Jonathan's family is down. Az you have
often heard OF two soldiers before going into
battle making covenant that ~ one is shot
the survivor will take charge OF the body,
the watch the momentos and perhaps OF the
bereit family OF the one that dies. 80 David
and Jonathan had made n covenant, and
now that Jonathan Is dead David IL inauiring
about his family, that he may show kind
ness unto thom for their father Jonathan's
sake.
Careful search is made, and son Of Jona-
than by the exceedingly homey name of
Mephioosheth Is found. His nurse. in his In
fancy, had let him fall and the fall had put
both his ankles out of place, and they had
never been set. This decrepit, moor man IA
| brought into the palace OF King David.
David gazes upon him with melting tender
ness, no doubt seeing in his face a rescm-
blance TO his cd friend, the deceased Jona-
than. The whole bearing OF King David
toward him seems TO say; "Hoy glad I am
to see you, Mephiboshethl How YOU remind
me OF your father, my old friend and bene-
factor! made n bargain with your father
good many years ago. and am going 10
keep IL with you. What can / do for you,
Mephiboshcth2 lam resolved what to do
will make you rich man. will restore to
you the contscated property of your grand
father Saul, and you shall be n gue4t OF mine
IA long as you live, and you shall be seated
NJ mytable among the princes" IL was too
much for Mephibosheth. and he cried out
against 1t, calling himself dead dog. "Be
still, says David; "I don't do this on your
account; do this for your father Jonathans
sake. can never forget his kindness I
remember when was bounded from place
70 place how he befriended me. Can 1 evor
forget how he stripped himself OF his
cour.ier apparel aud gave 1t tUmo instead
OF my shepherds coat, and how he took on
his own sword and belt and gave them to
me instead OF my sling2 Oh, can never
forget him! feel as If couldn't do enough
Tor you, his son. l don't do IL for your
sake; l do 1t for your father Jonathan's
sake. SO Mephibosheth dwcit in Jcrusa-
lem. Tor he did eat continually ut. the kings
table and was lame on both his feet"
There Is so much gospel In this quaint In
cident that am embarrassed to know where
TO begin. Whom do Mephibosheth and
David aud Jonathan make you think of
Mephiboshoth, in the first place, stands Tor
the disabled human soul. Lord Byron " ,.
scribes sin as u charming recklcssness, as a
gallantry, as Don Juan; George Sand de.
scrlbes SIN a. triumphant In many intricate
plots; Gavarni, with his engraver's knife,
always shows sin as u great jocularity; but
the Bible presents itas Mephiboshcth, lame
on both Ieet. Sin, like the nurse in the con-
text, attempted to carry Us and let us fall
and we have been disabled, and In oar whole
moral nature we are decrepit. Sometimes
theologlans hagge about technicality
They use the words total depravty." aud
some people believe in the doctrine. AMI
some reject II. What do you meanASy
total dcpravlty? Do YOU mean TINT every
man is as low rs he can be2 Then. / lt
not believe 1t either. But do you mean
that sin has let us fall; that. Il hes sc2.li
He'd and wounded and crippled our "
tire moral nr>ure until we cannot vel
straight and are lame in both feet2
lhen l admit your proposition. There Is
not so much difference in an African jungle
with barking. howing, Kissing. fighing
quadruped and reptile, and paradise, with
It's animals coming before Adam, when he
patted them and stroked them and gave
them names, so that the panther was as
tame as the COW and tho condor as tame rs
the dove-ns there is between the human soul
disabled and that soul rs God originally con.
structed 1t. i do not care what the senti-
mentalis's or the poets say in regard TO sin.
In the name OF Goi | declare to YOU to-day
that SIN II Reorganization, dsintegrution
ghastly designation. hobbing deformi,y.
Your modern theologian tells you that
man is little out Of sorts; he sometimes
thinks wrong; he sometimes acts wrong; in
deed, his nature needs little moral surgery,
an outside splint, n slight compress, a little
rectiilcation. Religion is n good thing to
nave; II might some day come into use Man
10 partially wrong, not all wrong. He is
lame in one foot. Bring the salve OF divine
grace and the ointment and tho pain extrac-
tor, and we will have his one foot cured
Man is only half wrong. not altogether
wrong. In what is mans nature right! In
MS VIII, his Affections his judsmcnty No.
There is an Old book that says: 'The whole
head Is sick and the whole heart faint"
Mcphibosheth lame in both feet. Our belief
OF the TACT that sin has scarinel and deformed
our souls increases rs we 20 on in years
When you started life you thought that man
was little marred by sin ani he was about
one tcnth wrong. By the time you had gone
through the early experience OF your
trade or occupation or profession ycu b.
lieVe thGt man was about half wrong. ~
The time you came to midlife you believed
that man was three-iourths wrong. But
within these past few years, since you have
been so lied about and swlnded and cheated,
you have come to the conclusion that man
Is altogether wrong, and now you can say
with the prayer book and tho Bible, "There
Is no health in us. Now you believe with
the prophet. "The heart is deceltful, above
all things and desperately wicked" What.
ever you may have believed before now YOU
believe that Mephibosheth is lame on both
feet.
Again, Mephiboshe.h in the text stands for
the disabled human SOU humbled and re.
stored. When this invalid OF my text got q
command 10 come to King Dayid's palace he
trembled. The fact was that the gr1indfa her
OF Mephibosheth had treated David most
shoekingly. and now Mephibosheth says 10
himself; "What does the king want of me?
Isn't II enough that ! am lame2 Is he going
TO destroy my life2 Is he going TO wreak on
me the vengeance which he holds toward my
graz htfather, Saul?t It's too bad" But 20
TO the palace Mephibosheth must, since the
king has commanded II. With staff and
crutches and helped by his friends. /
see Mephibosheth going up the stairs OF
the palace. / hear his staff and crutches
rafting on the tessellated fOor Of the
throneroom. No sooner have these two
persons confronted each Other-Mephib-
osheth and David, the king-than Mep-
hibosheth throws himself fiat on his face be-
fore the king and styles himself dead dog.
In the east when man styles himself dog
he utters the utmost term OF fseli-abnegatlon
IL Is not term SO strong In this country
where, ifa dog has fair chance, lie some.
times shows more nobility OF character than
hat