The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1897-01-02
TALMAGE's SERMON.
The Need Of tho Hour is More Prac-
teal Religion
sgsith without Works Is Dead"-Thore
Must he Now Departure In tho
- Application of Religion to
Everyday Affairs.

Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage talked on
s@Practical Religion" in recent SER
mon before his Washington congrega'
tiou. His sermon was based on the
text:
.B'aith without works is dead"-James H..
The Roman Catholic church has been
charged with putting too much stress
upon good works and not enough upon
gath. l charge Professionalism with
putting not enough stress upon good
works as connected with salvation.
Good works will never save man,
but if u man have not good works he
has no real faith and no genuine re-
lirion. There are those who depend
upon the fact that they are all right
inside, while their conduct is wrong
outside. Their religion, for the most
part, is made up of talk-vigorous
talk, fluent talk. boastful talk, per-
petuul talk. They will entertain you
by the hour in telling you how good
they are. They come up TO such u
higher life that they have no patience
with ordinary Christians in the plain
discharge of their duty. AS near as l
can tell, this ocean craft is mostly sail
and very little tonnage. Foretopmast
staysail, foretopmast studding sail,
maiptopsail, mizzentopsail - every
thing from flying jib to mizzen spanker,
but making no useful voyage. Now,
the world has got tired of this ana it
wants a religion that will work into
all the circumstances of life. We do
not want u new religion, but the old
religion applied in all possible direc-
tons.
Yonder is river with steep and
rocky banks, and it roars like young
Niagara as it rolls on over it's rough
bed. 1t does nothing but talk about
itself all the way from its source in
the mountain TO the place where it
empties into the sen. The banks are
90 steep that the cattle can not come
down TO drink. 1t does not run one
fertilizing rill into the adjoining field.
1t has not one grist mill or factory on
either side. IL sullis in wet weather
with chilling fogs. No one cares when
that river is born among the rocks,
and no one cares when 1t dies into the
sea. But yonder is another river, and
1t mosses its banks with the warm
tides, and it rocks with floral lulluby
the water lilies asleep on its bosom.
1t invites herds of cattle and hocks Of
sheep and conveys of birds to come
there and drink. 1t has three grist-
mills on one side and six cotton fac
tories on the other. 1t is the wealth
of 200 miles of luXuriast farms. The
. birds of heaven chantcd when it was
born in the mountains, and the ocean
shipping will press in from the sea to
hail it as it comes down from the At
lautic coast. The one river is man
who lives for himself. The other river
is u man who lives for others.
! DO you know how the site of the an.
Client City of Jerusalem was chosen?
There were two brothers who had adj
joining farms. The one brother had
a large family, the other had no fam
lily. The brother with the large fam
fly said: There is my brother with
NO family; he must be lonely, and l
will try to cheer him up, and / will
take some of the sheaves from my field
In the night time and set them over
on his farm, and say nothing about
it" The other brother said: "My
brother has a large family, and it is
very difficult for him to support them,
and l will help him along, and i will
take some of the sheavcs from my
farm in the night time, and
set them over ON his farm, and
say nothing about it," 80 the work OF
transference went on night after
night, and night after night; but
every morning things seemed to be
just as they were, for, though sheavcs
had been subtracted from each farm,
sheaves had also been added, and the
brothers were perplexed and could not
understand. But one night the
brothers happened to meet while max
ing this generous transference; and
the spot where they met was SO sacred
that it was chosen as the site of the
city Of Jerusalem. If that tradition
should prove unfounded, it will never
theless stand as II beautiful allegory,
setting forth the idea that wherever Il
kindly and generous and loving act is
performed, that is the spot tit Tor some
temple Of commcmoration.
l have often spoken to you about
faith, but this morning speak to you
about works, for faith without works
is dead" think you will agree with
me in the statement that the great
want OF this world is more practical
religion. We want practical religion
70 go into all merchandise. 1t will su.
pervise the labelling of goods. 1t will
not allow man to say that thing
was made in one factory when it was
made in another. 1t will not allow
the merchant to say that watch was
manufactured in Geneva, Switzerland,
when it was manufactured in Massa-
chusetts. 1t will not allow the mer-
chant 10 say that wine came from Ma.
deira when it came from California.
Practical religion will walk along by
thc store shelves and tear off all the
tags that make Misrepresentation. II
will not allow the merchant to say
that Is pure coffee when d,ndcliou
root and thickory and other ingredi
cnts go into it. 1t will not allow him
to say that Is pure sugar whom there
t.t IL "A 4