Owingsville outlook. [volume] (Owingsville, Ky.) 1879-192?, 1896-01-02
PHILlpPIAN JAILER.
A Sermon Which Appeals to the Un-
controverted Everywhere.
The Query: ">irs. What Must ! DO to he
saved?"-This Was the Cry of an Agi-
tsted soui-Dr. Taimagc Discourses
ON n Question OF incompara-
ble Importance.

Was the Z Agl-
tsted Soul-Dr. Taimagc Discourses
on u Question OF incompara-
ble Importance.
For the closing discourse of the year
Rev. DIR. Talmage chose subject
which appeals to the unconyerted
everywhere The Fhilippian jail
err" The text selected was, 'Sirs, what
must do To he savcd"' Acts xvi, 10
lncarccrated in a Philippian peni-
Tertiary, "A place cold and dark and
damp and loathsome and hidcouS. unil-
lumined save 10y the torch of the official
who comes to see ii they are alive yet,
are two ministers of Christ, their feet
fast in instruments OF torture. their
shoulders dripping from the stroke Of
leathern thongs, their mouths hot
with inflammation of thirst, their
heads faint because they may not lie
down In comforta BILE room al that
same building and amid pleasant sur
roundings is paid officer of the gov
eminent whose business IT is To- super
wise the prison. !, IL night, and all Is
still in the corridors of the dungeon
save as some murderer struggles with
q horrii dream, or a ru ilian turns over
IA his chains. or there il the cough of
a diving consumptivc amid the damp
ness, bat suddenly crash go the walls.
Inc mo clcrCymcn pass out free. The
jail keeper although familiar with the
darkness and horrors lowering around
the dungeon, is startled beyond all
bounds and, hambcau in hand, lie
rushcs through amid the falling walls,
/ shouting at the top OF ms voice, Sirs,
what must do tn he savcd?'''
stand now among those vino are
I ask ing the same question with more or
| less carncstnc>s. and | acco>t you in
! this crisis of your soul with message
| from Heavier. There are those in this
audience who might be more sllillful
| in argument than am: there are those
| here who can dive into deeper depths
of science. or have larger knowledge:
there are in this audience those before
whom would willingly bow as the in
fcrior To the superior. but yield to M
| one in this asScmblagc in desire tn
/ have all the people saved by the power
Of an omnipotcnt gospel
! | shall proceed to characterize the
question of the aritatci jill keeper.
| And. first | characterize the question
rs courteous lie might have rushed
in and said Paul and Silas, You vag-
abonds, are You tearing down this
prison Aren't YOU satisfied with dis
turbing the peace of the city 10y your
| infamous doctrines? And are You now
going to destroy public property?
Back with YOU to your places, you vaga
:, bonds" lie said no sucn thing. The
word of four letters, "sirs. equivalent
to lords" recognized the majesty ana
! the honor of their mission. Sirs' If /
man with a captiouS spirit tries tn fins
the way To Heaven, he will miss it, Il
a man comes out ami pronounces al
Christians as hypocritcs, and the re-
ligior Of Jesus Christ as a fraud, an,
asks irritating questions about the
mysteries and inscrutable, saying
Come, my wise man, explain this a'it
explain that; il this be true, how eat
way to Heaven. The question of tn,
text was decent, courteous, gentleman
ly. deferential Sirs!
Again, characterize this question
Of the agitated Jail keeper by saying
;hat it was prsciica, question. III
70 &c., a. as wiz Col ,sst 81 como int
ia, 81 arid. he'S,N uot-
co..I 80 God AMI man /
son, he dil Lot ask the
DEGREES explained or
I whom Cain married, or M
i cause of the earthquake. = ss- zen
and everlasting welfare was Involve,
in the question, AMI was not that prac
teal? But | know multitudes of PEG
pie who are bothering themselves
about the non-essentials of re
ligion. What would you thinl
of a man who should, while dis
cussing the question OF the light an,
heat of the sun, spend his time dow
in a coal cellar when he might com,
out and see the one and feel the other
Yet there are muliitudes of men who
in discussing he chemistry of the Cos
pei. spend the time down in the dun
geon of their unbelef when God al
the while stands telling them to COM
out into the MONDAY light and warmth
of the sun of righteousness. The ques
ton for you. my brother, to discuss i
not whether Calvin or Arminius wa
right. not whether n handful of waite
in holy baptism or a baptistery is tn
better not whether REORGANIZATION an,
free agency can Toe harmouized Tn,
practical question for you To discus
and for me To discuss is, Where will
spend eternity"
| I oh u i n
the agitated Jail keeper as one persona
to himself have no doubt he ha,
many friends, and he was interested il
their welfare. have no doubt h,
found that there were persons in tina
prison who. if the earthquake had de
stroyed them. would have found thei
ease desperate. lie is not questionin,
about them. The whole weight of hi
question turns on the pronoun Il.
What shall do?" of course, wher
man becomes a Christian. he imme
diately becomes anxious for the saliva
ton of other people, but until tina
point is reached the most impOrtan
question is about your own salvation
What is tn be nv destiny" VIVA
are my prospects for the future?
Where am ! going?' What shall
II do?' The trouble is we shuttle
the responsibility off upon others
We prophesy bad end to that inebri
ate and terrific exposure to that de
faulter and awful catastrophe to tina
profligate. We are 50 busy in weigh
ing other people we forget ourselve
to get into the scales We are SO busy
watching the poor gardens of Other
people that we let our own dooryar,
go to weeds. We are so busy sendin!
off other people into the lifeboat W,
sink in the wave. We cry Fire be
cause our neighbours house is burning
down and seem to be unintcrested, al
though our own house is in the con
fagra;ion. o wandering thoughts
disappear to-day. Blot out this entir,
audience except yourself Your sin, il
itpardoned? Your death, is it provide,
for? Your Heaven. is it secured? 4
mightier earthquake than that which
demolished the Phillippian peniten
tiary will rumble about your ears
The foundations of the earth will give
way. The earth by one tremor will
fling all the American cities into tn,
| dust CathedralS and palaceS and pris