Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1897-03-17
REV. DR.. TALMAGE,
The Eminent Divine's Sunday
Dlseourse>


kill it," Luke xv., %.
In all ages of the world it has been custom
ary to celebrate joyful events by festivity.
The signing of treaties. the proclamation OF
peace. the inauguration OF presidents, the
coronation OF kings, the Christmas. the - ar
riaye. However much on other days OF thr
year cur table may have 5tintet supply, on
Thanksgiving Day there must be something
bounteous. And all the comfortable homes
OF Chrisiendom have at some time cale-
brated joyful events by banquet and fes
tivity. Someth my has happened on the old
homestead greater than anything that has
ever happened efore. A fHvorite son whom
the world supposed would become vaga-
bond and outlaw forever has got tired Of
sightseeing and has returned to his fathers
home The world said he would never come
back. The old man always said his son
would come back. He had been looking for
him day after day aud year after year. He
knew he would come back. Now having re-
turned to his fathers house the father pro-
claims celebration. There Is in the paddock
calf that has been kept up and fed to ut
most capacity, SO as TO be ready for some
occasion of joy that might come along. All,
there never would be a grander day on the
old homestead than this day! Let the butch
ers do their work, and the housekeepers
bring into the ,ble the smoking meat. The
musicians will take their plsces. and the gay
groups will move up and down the floor.
All the friends and neirhbors are gathered
In and an extra supply Is sent out to the
table OF the servants. The father presides at
the table and says grace, and thanks God
that his long absent Toy Is home again.
Oh. how they missed him. how glad they are
to have him back,
One brother stands pouting at :he back
door and says: This is a great ado about
nothing. This bad boy should have been
chastised instead of greeted. Veal is toe
good for him" Blu, the father says. Moth
ing is good enough" There sits the young
man, glad at the hearty reception. but
shadow of sorrow fitting across his brow at
the remembrance of the trouble he had seen.
All ready now. Let the covers lift. Music.
He was dead and he is alive again! He was
lost and he is found! By such bold imagery
does the Bible set forth the merrymaking
VII sn n soui comes home to God.
First OF all, there is the new converts Joy.
1t Is no tame thing TO become a Christian.
The most tremendous moment in mans
life is when he surrenders himself to God.
The grandest time on the fathers homestead
Is when the boy comes back. Among the
great throng who in the parlors Of our church
professed Christ one night was n young man
who next morning rang my door bell and
said: 'Sir cannot contain myself with the
joy feel. l came here this morning to eX-
press ii. | have founi more JOY in five
minutes in serving God than in all the years
OF my prodiga ity, and 1 came to say So"
You have seen perhaps man running for
his temporal liberty and the officers OF the
law after him. and you saw him escape, or
afterward you hear the judge had pardoned
him, and how great was the elee OF that res
cusd man; but it is very tame thing, that,
compared with the running for ones ever
lasting life, the terrors of the law after him
and Christ coming in to pardon and bless
and rescue and save.
You remember John Bunyan in his great
story tells how the pilgrim put his fingers to
his ears and ran. crying: Life, life, eternal
lifel' A poor car driver some time ago,
after years having had TO struggle to sup
port his family suddenly was informed that
a large Inheritance was his, and there was a
joy amounting to bewildermenf, but that is
a small thing compared with the experience
of one when he has put in his hands the title
deed to the joys, the raptures, The splendors
of heaven, and he can truly say, "Iis man
sions are mine, its temples are mine, its
songs are mine, its God is mine" Oh. il is
no tame thing to become u Christian. 1t is
a merrymaking. 1t is the killing of the
fatted calf. 1t is a jubilee. You know the
Bible never compares it TO funeral, but
1t is more apt to be compared to a banquet
than anything else. 1t is compared in the
Bible 10 water, bright, flashing water, to the
morning, roseate, fireworked, mountain
transfigured morning.
l wish l could to-day take all the Bible ex-
pressions about pardon, and peace, and life,
and comfort. and hope, and heaven. and
twist them into ona garland and put it on
the brow of the humblest child of God in
this assemb!age ami cry, "Wear it, wear IL
now. wear it forever, son OF God, daughter
Of the Lord God mighty" Oh. the Joy of
the new conver, oh, the gladness of the
Christian service You have seen some
times man in a religious assembly get up
and give his experience. Well. Paul gave
his experience. He arose in the presence
of two churches the church on earth and the
church in heaven, and he said, Now this Is
my experience-sorrowful, yet always re-
ioicing: poor. yet making many rich; having
nothing. vet possessing all things If the
people in this house knew the Joys o; the
Christian religion, they would all pass over
into the kingdom of God the next moment.
When Daniel Sandeman was dying of chol-
era, his attendant said, Have you much
pain?"
"Oh, he replied, 'since found the Lord
have nev,r had any pain eIcep, sim" Then
they said to him, Would You like to send a
message to your fr.endsY" Yes, l would.
Tell them that only last Light the love of
Jesus came rushing into my soul like the
surges of the sea- and / had to cry OUT,
stop, Lord, it is enough; stop, Lord
enough" On, the joys o: this Christian re-
ligiop. Just pass over from those tame joys
in which you are induiging, joys OF this
world, into the raptur.s of the gospel. The
world cannot satisfy you. You have found
that out. Alexander longing for other worlds
TO conquer and yet drowned in his own bot
tie; Byron whipped by disquietudes around
the world; Voltaire cursing hs own soul
while all the streets of Paris were applaud
ing him; Henry ii consuming with hatred
against pooT Thomas Beckett
all Illustrations Of the fact that this
The very man who poisoned the ponmel of
the saddle on which Queen Elizabeth rode
shouted IN the street. God save the Queen"
One moment the world app'auis. AMI the
next moment the world anath matizes. Oh,
come over into this greater JOY, this sublime
solace, this magnificent beatitude, The night
after the tattle OF Shiloh. and there were
OF wounded on the field, and the
ambulances had not come. one Christian
soldier lying there a-dying under the star
light began to sing:
There is land of pure delight.
And when he came to the next line there
were scores of voices singing:
Where saints immortal reign.
The song was caught up all through the
fields among the wounded until 1t was said
there were at least 10, 900 wounded mon unit
ing their voices as they came to the verse
There everlasting spring abides
And never witherIng flowers.
'Tis but narrow stream divides
his heavenly land from ours.
Oh, it is great religion to live by and
grear religion to die by! There is only one
hear. throb between you and that religion
Just look into the face OF your pardoning
God and surrender yourself for time and for
and He is yours and heaven is
yours and all is yours. Some Of you, like
the Young man OF the text, have gone far
astray. l know nor the history, but you
know ii, you know 1t. When a young man
forth ipfn 10. lacapA
guardian angel went forth with him, and
getting him into field, the guardian angel
swept a circle around where the young man
stood. 1t was circle of virtue and honor
and he must not step beyond that circle.
.rmed foes came down, but were obliged
10 halt at that circle. They could not
lass. But one day temptress, with dia-