The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1896-01-30
REV. TALMAGE'S SUNDAY SERMON.
AN ELOQUENT DISCOURSE.
The Way of Salvation Made Plain to Every
Weary wanderer

What We have seen me do mako haste and
do ne have done And all the peoplo like
wise cut down every man his bough. ~
Judges ix., AZ.
Abimelech is q name malodorous in Bible
history and yet full OF profitable suggestion.
Buoys are black and uncomoly, but they tell
where the rocks are. The snakes rattle Is
hideous. but it gives timely warning. From
the piazza OF my summer home night by
night saw n lighthouse fifteen miles away
not placed there for adornment but TO tell
mariners to stand of from that dangerous
point, SO all the iron-bound coast or moral
danger Is marked with Saul and Hcrod and
Rehoboam and Jezebel aud Abimelech
These bad people are mentioned in the Bible
/ not only ne warnings. but because there were
/ sometimes flashes Of good conduct in their
lives worthy of imitation. God sometimes
f drives very straight nail with very poor
hammer.
The city OF Schcchcm had to be taken. and
Abimelech and his men were To- do IL. | see
B the dust rolling up from their excited march.
/ hear the shouting OF the captains and the
/ yell OF the besiegers. The swords clack
sharply on tho parrying shields, aud the vo-
'it"ration OF two armies in death grapplo H.
. horrible 60 hear. Tha battle goes on all day
and ns the sun H. setting Abimplpch and his
army cry "Surrenderl' to the beaten foe
| aud, unable longer 10 resist the city ~
/ Shechem falls. and there are pools Of blood
. ing up begginglv for mercy that war never
shows, and dying soldiers with their head on
. the lap Of mother or wife or sister. who have
come out for ,ho last offices OF Kindness and
affection, and groun rolls across the city,
/ stopping not. because there r. no spot for 10
, 10 rest, so full Is the place ot other rrouns
A city wounded! 4 city dying! 4 city dead!
Wall for Snechem. all yc VINO know the hor-
rors NJ sacked town.
As | look over tho city find only ono
. building standing, AM that Is the Temple OF
tn" got Berth. Some soldiers outside Of
the city I'm u tower. Unding that they can no
/ longer defend Sh"ch"m, now begin TO luu,
out for their own personal safety. and they
7 fly % this temple of Berth. They go within
the door. shut IL. and they say: "Npw we
are SAFE. AhiWolcch has taken the whole
city, but no cannot take this temple oi
Berth. Here We shall bee under the proicr-
tion ~ the gods" q Berth the god, do
your best now for these refugees. II YOU
have eyes. pity them. II You have hands
help them. Il You have tmiudCrbolt-, strike
for them. But how shall Abimelcch and hI.
army tnkc this temple OF Berth aud IN, mon
who nrr th'rc fortified viii thcvdo itwith
the swor32 Nay. viii they do IL with the
sprar3 Nav. with the batterinc ram ROLLED
up by hundred armed strength crashing
against tho walls? Nay. Ahimclvch marrhc-
his men 10 a wood in Xalmon. with his aN
he news oil a limb of tree and puts that
+.
his mon. "Nou do the same"
They Hre ohoiicut TO their commander.
There Is a struggle as 10 who shall have axes.
The whole wood is full Of bending bou.h.,
AMI the cruckling and the hacking. and the
cutting. until every one OF the host has q
limb of u tree cut down. and not only that.
but has put II on his shoulder lust as Abb
melcch showed him how. Are these men all
armed with the tree hranchl The reply
comes, "All armed" And they march on.
On, what Il strange army. with that strange
equipment! They come up to the foot ui
the temple nj Berth, and Abimclcch takes
his limb of a tree and throws IL down, and
the first platoon of soldiers come up, AMI
they throw down their branches, and the
second platoon, and tho third, until ull
around about the temple Of Berth there l. u
pile Of tree branches. The Shcchcmiics look
out from the window Of the temple upon
what seems to them childish play ON the
parts ofthrir enemies. But soon the hints are
struck. and the spark begins to kndle the
brush. and the fame come, MP all through
the pile. AMI the rel elements ioau 10 the
easement, ana the WOO !wori begins TO blaze,
and one arm Of flame is thrown up on the
right side of the temple, AMI another arm oi
flame Is thrown up on the lett side uf the
temple, until they clasp their lurd puim-
. under the wild night sky, aul the cry uI
"Fira" whitman Fire without announces
the terror, aud the stranguntiuu. AMI tine
doom OF the Shcchemitc~, ana the complete
overthrow OF the temple ot the god Berth.
Then there went up n shout. long and lOUi
from the stout lungs and swurthv chests ut
Ahimolerh and his men as they stood amid
the ashes aud the dust crying, "Ni'tory,
victory
Oh. my friends, the gospel is not syiio-
gism; II Is not cHsu,try; IL i- not polemir-. ct
the science Of squabbles. II Is blood red fact
II Is warm hearted invitation; II j. lcapius
bounding, flying good news; II j. cillOre,'rn,
with all light; II Is ruhcscrnt with AL SUM
mery glow; ii is arhorescnnt with all -w.'rt
shade. | have seen the sun ri-" on Noun,
Washington, aud from the Tiptop House, hut
there was no beauty in that compared with
the daysprng from on high when Chris,
gives ligLt To n soul. ! have heard parpua
sing, but there was no music in that com
pared with the voice of Christ when He said
"Ihy sins are forgiven thee; 20 in pence. '
Good news! Let every one cut down branch
Of this tree Of life and wave It. Let him
throw it down ana kindlc 1t. Let all the way
from Mount XalmOn to Shechem he filed
with thrtOssing Joy. Good news, This bon
fire OF the gospel shall consume the last tenn
pie OF sin, and will illumine tho sky with
apOcalyptic joy. that Jesus Christ came into
the world to save sinners. Any new plan
that makes man quit hissin, and that pros
trates IA wrong, am as much in favor OF ~
though all the doctors, and the bishops, and
the archhishops, and the synods, and the
acaielulcal gOWnsmen OF Christianity saur-
toned il. The temple Of Berth must come
down, and | do not care how II comes.
Still further learn from this subject the
power Of example. II Abimelech had sat
down on the grass and told his men 10 20 aud
get the boughs and go out to the battle they
would never had gone at ALL or II they hai
1t would have been without any spirit or
effective result but when Abmelech goes
with his own AK and news down branch
and with Abimelechs arm puts IL on Abime-
lech's shoulder and marches on, then. my
text says. all the people did the same. How
natural that was What made GHribaldi and
/ Stonewall Jackson the most magnetic COM
: manders OF this century? They always rode
ahead. Oh, the overwhelming power of ex-
ample! Here is the father ON the wrong road.
All his boys go on the wrong road. Here is
father who enlists for Christ His children
enlist. | saw in some OF the picture CALLER
les OF Europe that before many OF the great
works OF the great masters, the old masters,
there would be sometimes four and five ar
lists takirg copies Of pictures. These copies
they were going TO carry with them. per.
haps TO distant lands and 1 have thought