Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1896-08-08
THE GLOW OF SUNSET
REV. DR.. TALMAGE SOUNDS THE Cos
PEI OF GOOD CHEER.

Toward Evcning-The Gloomy Hour of
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES to Borrow Trou-
bie-sweoteninG the Cup-The Biotting
Out of Life-Bereavements Lifted.
WASHINGTON, Aug. DIR. Tai.
IMAGES subject today lights up the SOY
rows of this life and sounds the gospel
of good cheer for all who will receive
it. His text WIS Luke xiv, 80, abide
with us, for it is toward evening.
Two villagers, having concluded their
crrand in Jerusalem, have started out
ut the city gate and are on their way to
Emmaus, the place Of their residence.
They go with a sad heart. Jesus. who
had been their admiration and their
joy, had been basely massacred and en-
tombed. As, with sad face and broken
heart they pass Oh their way stranger
accosts them. They tell him their anx-
ietics and bitterness Of soul. He i'll turn
talks to them, nightly cxpounding the
Scriptures He throws over them the
fascination of intelligent conversation.
They forget the time and notice not tho
objects they pass. and before they are
aware have come up i'll front OF their
house. They pause before tho entrance
and attempt to persuade the stranger to
tarry with them. They press upon him
their inequalities. Night is coming OH,
and ne may meeta prowling wild beast
or be obliged to lie unshclterod from the
dow. He cannot 60 much farther now.
Why not stop there and continue their
pleasant conversation? They take him
by the arm, and they insist upon his
coming in, addressing him in the words,
abide with us, for it is toward even-
ing.
Toward Evening.
The candles are lighted; the table is
spread pleasant socialtics are enkindled.
They rejoice in the presence of the
stranger guest. He asks blessing upon
the bread they eat, and he hands piece
Of it to each. Suddenly and with over
whelming power the thought flashes
upon the astonished people-it is the
Lord! And as they sit i'll breathlcss
wonder, looking upon the resurrected
body of Jesus, he vanished. The inter
view ended. He was gone
With many Of US it is bright, sun
shiny day Of prosperity. There is not q
cloud in the sky; not leaf rustling in
the forest; no chill III tho air. But we
cannot expect all this to last He is not
an intelligent man who expects perpet-
nal daylight of JOY. The sun will after
awhile near the horizon. The shadows
will lengthen. While speak many Of
us stand in tho very hour described III
the text, ''for it is toward evening.
The request of the text is appropriate
for some before me, for with them it
is toward the evening of old age. They
have passed the meridian of life. They
are sometimes startled to think how old
they are. They do not, however, like to
have others remark upon it If others
suggest their approximation toward
venerable appearance, they say, why,
I'm not so old, after all. " They do, in
decd, notice that they cannot lift quite
SO much as once. They cannot walk
quite so fast. They cannot read quite so
we'll without spectacles. They cannot so
easily recover from q cough or any occa-
sional ailment. They have lost their
taste for merriment. They are surprised
at the quick passage Of the year. They
say that it only seems a little while ago
that they were boys They are going %
little down hill. There is something III
their health, something in their vision,
something III their walk, something in
their changing associations, something
above, something beneath, something
within, to remind them that it is to-
ward evening.
The great want of all such is to have
Jesus abide with them. 1t is dismal
thing to be getting old without the re-
juvenating influence of religion. When
we step OH the down grade of life and
see that it dir to the verge of the cold
river, we wal. to behold some one near
who will help US across it. When the
sight loses its power to glance and
gather up, we need the faith that can
illumine. When we feel the failure of
the ear, wo need the clear tones Of that
voice which in oldcn times broke up tho
silence Of the deaf with cadcnces Of
mercy. When the axmen of death hew
down whole forests of strength and
beauty around us and we are left in sol
itude, we need the dove of divine mercy
to sing i'll our branches. When the
shadows begin to fall and we feel that
the day is far spent, we need most OF
all to supplicate the strong, beneficent
Jesus in the prayer of the villagers,
"Abide with US, for it is toward even
ing"
Temptation.
The request of the text is an appro-
pirate exclamation for all those who are
in the gloomy hour of
temptation. There is nothing easier
than to be good natured when every
thing pleases, or to be humble when
there is nothing to oppose us, orforgiv
ing when we have not been assailed, or
honest when we have no inducement to
fraud. But you have felt the grapple OF
some temptation. Your nature at some
time quaked and groaned under the in
fernal force. You felt that the devil was
after you You saw your Christian
graces retreating. You feared that you
would fall in the awful wrcstle with
sin and be thrown into the dust. The
gloom thickened. The first indications
of the Light were seen i'll all the trem'
bling Of your soul, in all the internal
of Satan, in all the surging
up of tumultuous passions and excite
ments. You felt with awful emphasis
that it was toward evening. In the
tempted hour you need to ask Jesus to
abide with you. You can beat back the
that would devour you. You
can unhorse the sin that would ride you
down. You can sharpen the battleax
with which you split the head of he!-
melted abomination. Who helped Paul
shake the brazen gated heart of Felix?
Who acted like a good sailor when all
the crew howled in the Mediterranean
Who helped the martyrs to