The Monitor-register., 1896-08-21
THEGREAT LAWSUIT.
a SERMON DRAWN FROM SCENES IN
THE COURTROOM.

HONS OIL ILLS
soones in a courtroom, with which DIR.
Talmage became familiar when he was
studying law, before he studied for the
ministry, The text is [ John IL, /,
1--WE have an advocate with the Father
Jesus Christ, the righteous.
Standing in a courtroom, you say TO
yourself, SAT this bar crime has OFTEN
been a~rraigned; at this witness stano
the oath has often been taken; at TINS
iurors' bench the verdict has been rem
dered; at this judges desk sentence has
been pronounced. But L have TO tell
YOU today of a trial higher than any
over and terminer Or circuit or supreme
or chancery. 1t is the trial OF every
Christian man for the life Of his o
This trial is different from any other III
the fact that it is both civil and crlml-
nal. ,s
The issues at stake are tremendou
and I shall i'll my sermon show you
first what are the grounds of complaint
then who are the witnesses Ill the cause
and lastly who are the advocates.
When a trial is called on, Inc hfst
thing is to have the Indictment read.
Stand ND then, o Christian man, and
bear the Indictment of the court OF high
heaven against thy soul. 1t is an indict-
ment of fen counts, for thou hast di-
rectly or indirectly broken all the Ten
Commandments. You know how it
thundered Oh Sinai, and when God came
down how the mountain rocked, and the
smoke assembled as from a smolderlng
urnace,a and the darkness gathered thick,
and the loud, deep trumpet uttered the
words 'sThe soul that sinneth, it shall
diel'' Are You guilty or not guilty? Do
not nut in a 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
n Whosoever shall keep the whole
law, vet offend in II point, he is guilty
of all" Do not, therefore, be too hasty
in p%ronouncing yourself not guilty.
A Broken Contract.
This lawsuit before us also charges
YOU with the breaking of a solemn con-
tract. Many % time did we promise to
be the Lords. We got down on u
knees and said, 80 Lord, I am thine
now and forever" Did you keep the
promise? Have you stood up to the con-
tract? [ go back to your first commu-
Mon. You remember it as well as if it
were Yesterday. You know how the
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,
.fDa.a-,LO. $40 - Won rnoo1I hour tho
cup of communion trembled in your
hand when you first took it, and as in a
seashell you may hear, or think you
hear, the roaring of the surf vel after
the shell has been taken from the beach,
so you lifted the cup of communion, and
you heard in it the surging of the great
ocean of a Saviour's agony, and you
came forth from that communion serv-
ice with face shining as though you had
been Oh the mount of TRANSPORTATION,
and the very air seems tremulous with
the love of Jesus, and the woods, and
the leaves, and the grass, and the birds
were brighter and sweeter voiced than
even before, and you said down in the
very depths Of your soul, Lord, thou
knowest all things; thou knowest that
1 love thee" Have you kept the bar
gain, o Christian man? Have you not
sometimes faltered when you ought to
have been true? Have you not been
proud when you ought to have been
humble? Have you not played the cow
ard when you ought to have been the
hero? I charge it upon you, and I charge
- r,nOn ,,vco1f xyn baun hrOIyan fho
contract.
Still further, this lawsuit claims
damages at your hands. The greatest
Islander on the Christian religion is an
inconsistent professor. The Bible says
religion is one thing; We, by our incon-
sistency, say religion is some other
thing, and what is more d~eplorable
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 her
head to the sole CT her foot, a perfect
blotch of sin herself, she will go tat
Ting, tattling, tattling all the years Of
her life about the inconsistencies OF
others, having no idea that she is incon-
sistent herself. God save the world from
the gossip, female and male! l think
the males are the worst! Now the char
lot of Christ salvation goes OH through
the world; but it is u inconsistencies,
my brethren, that block up the wheels,
while all along the line there ought to
have been cast nothing but palm
branches, aud the shout should have
been lifted, 'tHosanna to the Son of
David!';"
Now you have heard the Indictment
read. Are you ready to plead guilty or
not guilty? Perhaps you are not ready
yet to plead. Then the trial will go on.
The witnesses will be called, and we
shall have the matter decided. In the
name Of God [ now make proclamation :
Oyezl Oyez. Oyez! whatsoever hath any
thing to offer i'll this trial in which God
is the plaintiff and the Christian soul
the defendant, let him now step forth
and give testimony in this solemn trial.
Call the Witnesses.
The first witness [ call upon the stand
in behalf of the prosecution is the
world-all critical and observant of
Christian character. You know that
there are people around you who per-
petually banquet on the frailties of
Gods children. You may know, if you
have lived in the country, that a crow
cares for nothing SO much as carrion.
There are those who imagine that out
of the faults of Christians they can
make a bridge of boats across the stream
# death, and they are going to try it.
But alas for the mistakel When they
get midstream away will go the bridge
and down will go their souls to perdi-
ton. Q. world of the greedy eye and
the hard heart, come ON the stand now
and testify i'll behalf Of the prosecution
against this Christian soul on trial.
What do you know about this Christian
man? "Oh," says the world, 81 know
a great deal about him. He talks about
putting his treasures in heaven, but he
is the sharpest mar in a trade I ever
knew. He seems to want us to believe
that he is a child of God, but he is just
full of imperfections. l do not know
but ] am a great deal better than he is
now. Oftentimes he is very. earthly, and
ne talks so little about Christ and sc
much about himself. I am very glad to
testify that this is a bad man."
Stop, o world with the greedy eye
and hard heart. I fear you are too much
interested in this trial to give impartial
evidence. Let all those who hear the
testimony of this witness know that
there is an old f.:i.lly quarrel between
these two parties. There always has
been a variance between the world and
the church, and while the world on the
witness stand today has told a great
deal of truth about this Christian man,