The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1896-08-26
In THE COURTROOM.
REV.. DR.. TALMAG= DISCUSSES A
1 GREAT LAWSUIT. 5

aRsport ola Trial For the Life ofs Soul.
A Call For Preparation.
.@WAsaNGroN, Aug. 16.-rhe illus
Irations OF this sermon are dra awn from
the scenes in courtroom, with which
Dc. Talmage became familiar when he
was studying Law, before he studied
for the ministry. The text is John
ii. 1, I'VE have an advocate with tha
Father. Jesus Carist, the righteous. "
Standing in courtroom you say to
yourself, "At this bar crime has Of
ten been arraigned; at this witness
stand the oath has often been taken;
at this jurors b,nch the verdict has
bsen rendered; at this judges desk
sentence has been pronounced" Bat
l have to tell you today ola trial high
er than any oyer and terminer or cir
cult or supreme or cisancery. It IS
the trial Of every Christian man for
the life of his soul. This trial is diff
ferent from any other in the fact that
tits both civil and criminal.
The issues at stake are tremendous.
snd I shall in my sermon show you
first what are the grounds OF com.
plsint, then who are the witnesses 10
the cause and lastly who are the ai-
yOcateS.
When trial is called on, ths first
thing is to have the indictment read.
Stand up then, 0 Christian man, aud
hear the indictment of the court Of
high heaven against thy oul. It IS
an Indictment of ten counts, for thou
hast directly or Indirectly broken all
the Ten Commandments. You know
how it thundered on Sinai, and when
God came down how the mountain
rocked, and the smoke assembled as
from smoldering furnace, and the
darkness gathered thick, and the loud,
deep trumpet uttered the words, 1.-The
soul that sinneth, it shall die!" Are
you guilty or not guiity2 Do not put
In negative plea too quick, for have
to announce that ''all have sinned and
come short of the glory OF God.
There is none that doeth good. No,
not one. Whosoever shall keep the
whole law, yet offend in one point, he
IS guilty of ALL" Do not therefore be
too hasty in pronouncing yourself not
guilty.
This lawsuit before US also charges
you with the breaking of a solemn
contract, Many time did we prom
iset be the Lords. We got down on
our knees and said, 30 Lord, I am
thine now and forever" Did you keep
the promise? Have YOU stood up to
the contract? I 60 back to your hrst
communion. You remember it as well
SIS Il it were yesterday. You know
how tha vision Of the cross rose before
you. You remember how from the
head, and the hands, and the side, and
the feet there came bleeding forth
these two words, Remember me. F."
You recall how the cup of communion
trembled in your hand when you first
took it, and as in seasheu you may
hear, or think you hear, the roaring
of the surf even after the shell has
been taken from the beach, so you
lifted the cup of communion and yon
heard in it the surging OF the great
ocean of a Saviour's agony, and you
came forth from that communion SER
vice with face shining as though you
had bean on the mount Of Transtgu-
ration, and the very air seemed trem-
ulous with the love of Jesus, and the
woods and the leaves and the grass
and the birds were brighter and sweet
: er voiced than ever before, and you
said down in the very depths OF your
soul, lord, thou howest all things:
thou knowest that 7 love thee" Have
you kept the bargain, 0 Christian
man2 Have you not sometimes fal-
tered when you ought to have been
trues Have you not been proud when
you ought to have been humble?
Have you not played the coward when
you eught to have been the hero2 ]
charge it upon you and I charge 1t up
on mysef-we have broken the con-
tract.
Still further. This lawsuit claims
damages at your hands. The greatest
slander on the Christian religion IS an
inconsistent professor. The Bible says
religion is one thing. We, by our In
consistency, say religion is some other
thing, and what IS more deploraole
about it is that people can see faults IN
others while they cannot see any IN
themselves. If you shall at any time
find some miserable old gossip, with
imperfections from the crown Of hei
head to the sole of her foot, perfect
blotch of sin herself, she will go tat
Ting, tattling, tattling all the years o1
her life about the inconsistencies o
others, having no idea that she IS IN
consistent herself. God save the
world from the gossip, female anc
male! think the males are the worst
Now the chariot of Christ's salvation
goes on through the world, but it Is
our inconsistencies, my brethren, tina
block up the wheels, while au along
the line there ought to have been cas-
nothing but palm branches, and tht
shout should have been lifted, "Ho
sanna to the Son of David"
Now you have heard the indictmen
read. Are you ready to plead guilty
or not guiltys Perhaps you are no
ready yet to plead. Then the trial viii
90 on. The witnesses will be called
and we shall have the matter decided
In the name of God Inow make procla
maticn: Oyez, oyez, oyez, whosoevel
hath anything to offer in this trial, II
which God is the plaintiff and the
Christian soul the defendant, let hin
new step forth and give testimony II
this solemn trial.
The first witness I cali upon TIT
stsnd in behalf OF the prosecution i:
the world, all critical and observant o
Christian character. You know tina
there are people around you who per
petually banquet ON the frailties O
Gods children. You may know, j
you have lived in the country, that s
crow.cares for nothingso much as car
rion. There are those who imagine
that out of the faults of Christian: