The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1898-12-16
THE LORDS SHUT In"
Compsnsations of Sickness as Seen
by DR.. Talmage.
A sermon for 1nvnIids from the story
of Noah and the ArL-God's
Designs for Our Bet-
termeut.

Washington, Dec II. Copyright, 1881
This discourse OF DR.. Talnage, which
is helpful 10 all who find life struggle,
Is especially addressed TO a class OF per-
sons probably never before addressed
In sermon The text is Genesis vii. 10,
"The Lord smut him in
CosmogOny has no more interesting
chnPer than the one which speaks of
that catastrophe of the ages the sub
meision of our world in time of Noah,
the firsI ship carpenter. Many of the
nations who never saw a Bible have
food story Egyptian food story,
Grecan flood story, of which Ducalion
was the Noah; Hawaiian food story,
New Zealand flood story. Chinese flood
story, American Indian flood story-ail
of which accounts agree in the INNER
sion OF the continents under universal
rains. and that there was shi floating
with a select few OF the human family
and with specimens of geological and
archaeological and reptilian worlds. al.
though ] could have wished that these
hast had been shut out of the ark and
drowned.
All of these food stories represent
the ship thus afloat as finally stranded
on a mountain top. Hugh Miller in his
Testimony OF the Ro,Ss" THINKS nat
all these flood stories were inirm tradi-
tions of the Biblical account. AID be-
beve him. The worst thing aoout that
great freshet WAS that it struck Noah's
Great Eastern from above and beneath.
lag -.
crystal and rolled over the land. and the
heavens opened their clouds for falling
columns OF water which roared and
Numbered on the root of the great ship
for a month and ten days There was
one door to the ship. but there were
three parts to that door. one part for
each of the three II; cries. The Bible ac-
count says nothing about parts of the
door belonging TO two Of he stories
and do not know on which floor Noah
and his family voyaged, but my next
tells us that the part Of the door of tina:
particular floor on which Noah staid
was closed after he had entered. THE
Lord shut him in" SO there are many
people now in the world who are as
thoroughly shut in. some by sickness
some by old age, some by special duties
that will not allow them TO go forth,
some surrounded by deluges of misfor-
tame and trouble, and for them often
receive messages, and this sermon,
which / hope may do good to others. Is
more especially intended for them. To-
day address the shut in. 1.-THE Lord
shut him in"
Notice first of all who closed the door
so that they could not get out. Noah
did not do 1t, nor his son Shem nor did
Ham. nor did Japhsth, nor did either of
the four married women who were on
shiPboard, nor did desperadoes who had
scoiIed at the idea of peril which Noah
had been preaching close that door
They had turned their backs on the ark
and had in disgust gone away. | will
tell YOU how il was done. \ hand was
stretched down from heaven to close
that door. 1t was divine hand as well
as kind hand. The Lord shut him in"
The world has no statistics as to the
number of invalids. The physicians
know something about il, and the
npothecarieS and the pastors. hut who
car tell us the number of blind eyes.
and deaf ears, and diseased lungs and
cougestcd iivers. and tangled nerves.
and ueuralgic temples, and rheumatic
feet or how mary took no food this
mouning because they mad no appetite
10 eat or digestive organs 20 aSsimilate.
OF have lungs so delicate they cannot
go forth when The wind is in the east.
M tbara Il tor ,.i.fppr fr,,,, tI, ,;,.,r
or there IS dampnoSs on the ground
or pa;eInent because of the frost com
ing out? IT would be easy to count the
people who every day 90 through
street. or the number of passengers
carried by railroad company in year,
or the number OF those who cross the
ocean in ships. But who can give us the
statistics Of the great multitudes who
are shut in? | call the attention OF all
such to their superior opportunities OF
doing good.
Those of us who are well. and can see
clearly and hear distinctly and par
take Of food of all sorts. and questions
OF digestion never occur % us. and we
can wade the snowbanks. and take an
equinox in our faces, and endure the
thermometer at zero, and every breath
of air is tonic and "a stimulus, and
sound sleep meets MS within five min
utes after our mead touches the pillow,
do not make so much of an impression
when we talk about the consultations of
religion. The world says right away:
81 guess that man mistakes buoyancy
of natural spirits for religion. What
does he know about IL? lie has never
been tried" But when one goes out
and reports TO the world that that
morning on his way TO business he
called to see You and found you, after
being kept I'm your room for two
months cheerful and hopeful, and that
you had not one word of complaint and
asked all about every body and reioiced
In the success of your business friends,
although your own business had almost
come to standstll through your alb
sence from store or Office or shop, and