The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1896-05-01
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE NOTED DTvINE's SUNDAY
DISCOURSE.
Subject ''rho rrodl.a'. Return"

Of bread. Il was that fact that took the Ore
out OF this young man OF the text. Storm
ana exposure VIII wear out any mans liio in
time, but hunger makes quick work The
most awful cry ever heard on earth "a the
cry Tor bread. A traveller tells ms that in
Asia Minor there are trees which bear fruit
looking very much ike the long bean Of our
time. 10 "a called he car0h. Once In awhile
tho people, reduced 90 restitution. would eat
these CAROLS, but generally the carobs-tho
beans spoken Of hore IN the toxt-wore
thrown only 20 the swine, and they erunehed
them With great avidity. But this young
man OF my text could not even get Thorn
without stealing Them. SO one day, amid
the swine tr0ughs, DO begins 90 80llloquze.
h0 says THESE are no clothes for q rion
mans son TO wear This "a no kind Of BUSH
ness Tor jew TO be- engaged TO- feeding
swine. III 80 home. IN 90 home. VIII
arise and 60 20 my father"
know there are a great many people who
try TO throw a fascination, a romance, q
halo, about sins but, Notwithstanding an that
Lord Byron and George Sand have said Ia
regard 20 IT., tits mean. low, contemplate
business, and putting food aud fodder into
the trOughs OF q herd OF iniquities that root
and wallow In the soul OF man a. a very poor
business for men and women intended TO be
sons and daughters OF the Lord Almighty,
and when this young man resolved 70 60
home II was a very wise thing for him 70 do,
and the only question Is whether we viii fol-
low him. Satan promises large wages II we
will serve him, but he clothes his victims
with rags, and no pinches them with hunger,
and when they start out TO do better he sets
after them all the bloodhounds OF hell. Satan
comes to as to-day, and no promises an lux
uries and emoluments II we will only serve
him. Liar, down with thee 10 the pitt "The
wages OF sin Is DEATH" Oh, the young man
OF the text was wise when he utterrd the res
olution, II will arise and 60 to my iather!"
IN the time OF Mary, the prosecutor, a perse-
cutor came TO a Christian woman who had
hidden In her house for the Lords sake one
OF Christ's servants, and the prosecutor said
| "Where Is that hereticY" The Christian wO-
man said, "You open that trunk, and you
/ will see the hereto" The prosecutor opened
/ the trunk. and on the top OF the linen of the
/ trunk he saw a glass. He said, "There Is no
/ hereto here" "Ah!' she said. ''You look
/ in the glass, and you will see the hereto"
] AS take up the mirror Of Gods word to-
/ day would that instead Of seeing the prod
! igal OF the text we might see ourseves-our
want, our wandering, our sin, our lost con-
( dition, 50 that we might be as wise as this
/ young man was aud say, 81 will arise and
20 TO my father" The resolution Of this
text was formed In a disgust at his present
circumstances. If this young man had been
by his employer set to culturing flowers, or
training vines over Sn arbOr, or keeping an
account Of the pork market, or overseeing
other labOrers, he would not have thought Of
going home-ifh he had had his pockets full
of money;i he had been able to say: ~ have
| $1,000 now Of my own. What's the use Of
my going back to my fathers house? Do
you think I'm going back to apologize to the
old man? Why, he would put me on the
limits. He would not have going on around
the old place such conduct as l have been
engaged in. won't 90 home. There is no
reason why should go home. I have plenty
OF money. plenty Of pleasant surroundings.
Why should 60 homer" All, it was his
pauperism, it was his beggary! He had to
go home. Some man comes and says to me;
"Why do you talk about the ruined state of
the human soul2 Why don't you speak
about the progress Of the nineteenth
century and talk of something more
exhilarating2" 1t is for this rea-
son: A man never wants the gospel un-
til he realizes he is in famine struck State.
Suppose l should come to you in your home,
and you are in good, sound, robust health,
and l should begin to talk about medicines,
and about how much better this medicine is
than that, and some other medicine than
some other medicine, and talk about this
physician and that physician. After awhile
you would get tired, and you would say
II don't want to hear about medicines. Why
do you talk to me OF physicians / never
have e DOCTOR" But suppose / come into
your house, and find you severely sick and
know the medicines that will cure you, and
] know the physician who Is sdllful enough
to meet your case. You say: "Bring on all
that medicine; bring on that physician.
am terribly sick, and l want help" IL
come to you, and you feel you are all right
in body, and all right in mind, and all right
in soul, you have need Of nothing. but sup
pose have persuaded you that the leprosJ
OF sin is upon you, the worst OF all sickness
Oh then you say, "Bring me that balm oil
the gospel; bring me that divine medica.
ment; bring me Jesus Christ"
But" says some one in the audience
chow do you know that we are in a ruined
condition by sinP' Well, / can prove it II
two ways, and you may have your choice.
can prove 1t either by the statements of mel
or by the statement Of God. Which shall
be2 You say, "Let us have the statement o
Hod." Well, He says In one place, "ph
heart is deceitful above all things and desDer
J ately wicked" He says in another place
"What is man that he should be clean, ant
he which is born of woman that he shoul(
be righteous2" He says in anothe
place, "There is none that doeth good
no, not one. lie says IN anOtner place
; "As by one man sin entered into the world
and death by sin, and so death passed upoi
all men, for that all had sinned." "Well,
you say, 81 am willing to acknowledge that
but why should take the particular rescu
that you propose?" This is the reason: "Ex
eept a man be born again he cannot see tn
kingdom Of God" This is the reason
| "There is one name given under heave
among men whereby they may be saved.
, Then there are a thousand voices here read
to say: "WeIl. 1 am ready to accept thi
help Of the gospel. would like to hav
3 this divine cure. How shall 1 90 to work2
Let me say that a mtre within, an underline
longing, amounts to nothing. You mus
, have stout, tremendous resolution lik
this young man OF the text when he said, "
= will arise and 90 to my father" "Oh," say
, some man, chow do / know my father wan
me2 How do / know II / 90 back / woul
be received" ooh, !" says some man, ''yo
! don't know where have been. You don
know how far have wandered 70
= wouldn't talk that way to me II you kue
, all the iniquities have committed. WHIT
is that hutter among the angels Of Coz
I What is that horseman running with quiC