The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1896-04-01
THE JOY OF DOING GOOD.
It is the Most Magnificent Recre-
alton in the World.
There is Also Much Innocent Enjoyment
in This World that We Gould Par
take of With Beneft-Muslc and
Calesthenics Commended.

discussed by Rev. t. Dewitt Talmage
in his most recent sermon. Hepointed
out those that could be indulged in
with profit to our bodies and urged the
people to make their homes happy and
cheerful with innocent amusements.
The following texts were chosen as
basis for his remarks: "They that use
this world as not abusing it. II. Cor,
T:31 Sand it came to pass, when their
hearts were merry, that they said, call
for Sampson, that he may make us
sport Judges 1925
There were 5000 people assembled in
the temple of Dagon, They had come
to make sport of eyeless Samson. They
were all ready for the entertainment.
They began to clap and pound, impa-
tient for the amusement to begin, and
they cried: Fetch him out, fetch him
outl' Yonder see the blind old giant
coming, led by the hand of a child into
the very midst of the temple. At his
first appearance there goes up shout
of laughter and derision The blind
old giant pretends he is tired, and
wants to rest himself against the pill
lars of the house; so he says to the lad
who leads him: "Show me where the
main pillars are!" The lad does So
Then the strong man puts his rlght
hand on one pillar and his left hand on
another pillar, and, with the mightiest
push that mortal ever made, throws
himself forward until the whole house
comes down in thunderous crash,
grinding the audience like grapes in
wine press. "And so it came to pass,
when their hearts were merry, that
they said, call for Samson, that he may
make us sport. And they called for
Samson out of the prison house, and he
made them sport"
In other words, there are amusements
that are destructive, and bring down
disaster and death upon the heads OF
those who practice them. While they
laugh and cheer, they die. The three
thousand who perished that. day in
GAIA, are as nothing compared to the
tens of thousands who have been de-
stroyed by sinful amusements.
But my first text implies that there
! it a lawful use of the world, as we'll as
an unlawful abuse of it, and the differ
ence between the man Christian and the
man UNI Christian is, that in the former
case the man masters the world, while
; in the latter case the world masters
him. For whom did God make this
grand and beautiful world? For whom
this wonderful expenditure OF color
this pracefulness of line, this mosaic
of the ground, this fresco Of the sky
this glowing fruitage Of orchard anc
vineyard, this full orchestra OF the
tempest, in which the tree branche
flute, and the winds trumpet, and th'
: thunders drum, and all the splendor
of earth and sky come clashing thei
cymbals? For whom did God sprin!
. the arched bridge of colors resting
upon buttresses of broken storm cloud
For whom did he gather the upholster.
of fire around the window of the set
ting sun? For all men; but more es
pecially for his own dear children.
If YOU build large mansion an
spread great feast after 1T, to cele
brate the completion of the structure
do you allow strangers to come in an
occupy the place. while you thrus
your own children in the kitchen, Q
O the barn, or the fields? Oh, no! Yo
say: 81 am very glad to see stranger
0 in my mansion, but my own sons an
daughters shall have the first righ
there" Now, God has built this gran
n mansion of world, and He has sprea
glorious feast in it, and while thos
: who are strangers to His grace ma
come in, think that God especially il
tends to give the advantage to His ow
: children-those who are the sons an
daughters of the Lord Almighty, thos
n who through grace can look up an
saw, abba, Father" If, therefor
81 people of the world have locke
with dolorous sympathy upon thos
- who make profession of religion, an
have said: "These new converts al
going down into privation and int
hardship. Why did they not tarry
little longer in the world, and hay
p some of its enjoyments and anus
y ments and recreations?"-1 say to sue
men of the world, "You are great
mistaken" and before l get through
will show that these people who stf
= out of the kingdom of God have I'll
hardships and self-denials, while tho
who come in have the joys and sat-
factions.
In the name of the King of Heav'
and earth, serve writ of ejectme
upon all the sinful and polluted WI
have suuatted on the domain of earth
pleasure as though it belonged to thel
while claim, in behalf of the good al
the pure and the true, the eternal
heritance which God has given thel
Hitherto, Christian philanthropis'
clerical and lay, have busted the
selves chiefly in denouncing sinful re
reations; but feel we have no rig
to stand before men and women
whose hearts there is desire for n
reation amounting to positive neces
ty, denouncing this and that and t
other thing, when we do not propose
give them something better. God he
ing me, and with reference to my Ii
account, shall enter upon sphe
not usual in sermonizing, but a subj'
which think ought to be presented
this time. propose now to lay befc
you some of the recreations which {
not only innocent, but positively he
full and advantageous.
In the first place, ! commend, amo
indoor recreations, music-vocal a
instrumental. Among the first thir
created was the bird, SO that the eai
might have music at the start 7