The Progress., 1897-01-23
MOUNTAIN HEIGHTS.
THEY ARE OBSTACLES IN THE WAY
OF CHRISTIAN PROGRESS.
tint Rev Dr. Talmase Shows How They
Nav BE Torn Down and Put Out OF
Sight Forcver-A Sermon OF sublime
encouragement.

WAsHINGToN, Jan. lin the presi-
dents church and before an audience IN
which were prominent senators ana mem
hers of the house of representatives ana
people of all nationalities TINS discourse Vi
su,,lime encouragement was delivered DE- |
TaI,nape's subject was 'Storming the !
Heights and his text Zechariah ", Z:
"Who art thou, o great mountain! De-
fore Zerubbabel thou shalt become a |
plain"
Zerubbabell Who owned that difficult
name in which three times the letter
occurs djsposing most people to stammer
in the pronunciation? Zerubbabel was the
sDlendid man called to rebuild the de-
stroyed temple Of Jerusalem. stone iof
the building had been Quarried, ana the
troyel had rung at the laying of the cor
nerstone. and all went well, when the
Cnthnans offered to help in the work
They were a bad lot Of people, and Zeruo-
babel declined their help, and then the
trouble began. The CutbBans preJudlced
the secretary of the treasury against Zerup-
habel, 90 that the wages of the carpenters
and masons could not be paid, and the
heavy cedar timbers which had been drag
ce.l from Mount Lebanon to the Mediter-
rnnean and fioated In RATS from Beirut
To Joppa and were to be drawn py OK
team from Joppa to Jerusalem had malt
cd and as result OF the WORK OF 'hose
Jealous Cuthcans for 10 years the puila-
l6 years Zerubbabel, the mighty soul, got
4 new call from God to go ahead with the
temple building and the angel of the Lord
IN substance said: They have piled up
obstacles In tho way of Zerubbabel untii
they haze become as a mountain, helght
above height, crag above crag' pu' ~ shs'i,
all be thundered down and made nat ana
smooth as the floor of a house. Who art
thou. O great mountain? Before Zerub-
babel thou shalt become plain
Not All Dead Yet.
Well. the CntheaEs are not all dead yet.
They are busy in every neigh borhood anu
every city and every nation OF every age
heaping obstacles In the way OF the cause
at God, They have piled up hindrances
above hindranoes until they have become a
hill. and the hill has become mountain,
md the mountain has become an Alp, ano
there IL stands, right In the way OF all
movements for the worlds salvation Some
people are so discouraged about the height
and breadth OF this mountain in front OF
them that they have done nothing for IT
vears and many of those who are at worE
irving to do something toward removing
the mountain toll in such a way that car
see they have not much faith that th'
mountain of hiDdrances Will ever De re
moved. They feel they must do their duty
bnt they feel all the time--I can hear it IL
their prayers and exhortations-that the.
arc striking their pickaxes and shovels INT
the side of the Rocky mountains IL th
good Lord will help me while l preach,
will give you the names of some OF the h,gi
mountains which are really In the wa!
and then show you that those mountain
are TO be Frustrated, torn down, ground up
leyeicd, put out of sight forever. who az
thou, o great mountain? Before Zerub
! babel thou shalt become plain.
First, there Is the mountain of preju
dice. as lone as a range of the Pyrenees
Prejudice against the Bible rs dull book
an inconsistens book, n cruel book, an un
clean book and in every way an unfit book
The most OF them have never read 1t. The
think tho strata of the rocks contradict til
nccount in Genesis. The poor souls do nc
know that the Mosaic account agrees e.
actly with the geological account No vi
lin or fluto ever was in better accord. l.
crowbar and pickax and shovel ana plas
ing powder the geologist goes down in Il
earth aud says, 1.-The first thing created
the furnishing of the earth was 81