The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-12-18
THE VOICE OF THE PULPIT
THE MODERN ABsALOMs A Dis
COURSE FOR YOUNG MEN.
BY the Rev. j. IA Costa Chisholm, Dc
D., Pastor OF the First Presbyteri-
an Church, Concord, o.

Young man, keep your record clean"
were the last words of John 3. Cough 90
he received the summons of death, while
in the midst of an earnest appeal to young
men. The great reformer is now gone, hut
the echo of his last sentence stu revefber-
ates throughout the land, and it viii not
cease until every vestige of intemrerancs
and immortality have been wiped from tho
pages of society.
The evils against which Cough was bait
Ting have their origin n antiquity. IL We
peruse the records OF the many princes and
linen of nobility" in the past, we VIII find
that the same temptations proved the GOWN
fail of many a one of them. Often the his
tory Of a reign is but record of debauch
and corruption.
Even the brightest page in the history
of Israel is stained by a blot, brought upon
it by the favorite son Of the great King
David, whose love for his boy Absalom was
truly wonderful; yet his only reward was
base insratitude. desertion and conspiracy.
Born into a royal family, fondled in the
arms of his loving parents, surrounded by
all the comforts and luxuries which wealth
alone can give, and possessed Of face ana
figure so handsome that he was, at once,
the idol of the household, and the pride OF
all his countrymen-with all this he yet
became deserter to his fireside and a
traitor to his country.
So base and vile did his spirit become
that not only did he rebel against the rule
of his father, but drove him from mis- homes
pursued his little band of faithful ones, that
they might satisfy his Unsuitable greed for
blood. Yet so powerful was the fathers love
that when his trusted warriors were depart-
ing for the scene of battle he implored them
Co.. 10 Will
young man. even Absalom."
SO also when the messengers with the
befoTe u him. the first question Which he put
to them was: us the young man Absalom
safe?' So much is he a father that he Tor
gets he is a king, and the thought OF tri-
umph is thrust aside for the grief whicn
fills the poor mans heart and wells torth
in that memorials Die sentence - my SCH
AbsaIom! my son. my son Absalom! would
God ] had died for thee, Absalofn' my
son, my son!' - -
thought of such ingratitude, and the name
Of Absalom fills us with contempt; we pc
ture him as one whose every look petrayed
an inward nature of selfishness and deceit.
ABSALOMS OF THE PRESENT.
Yet had he lived in the present day he
would have been a young lion in society
and the most popular one in the ranks OF
the young men, for not only was his stature
Of noble type and his face nodded in the
cast Of beauty, but his disposition was so
winning that, we read, he "stole the hearts
of the men of Israel" and when his bugle
call resounded throughout the land multi
tudes hocked to his banner who before had
stood nobly by their King, David. In the
world Of fiction he might have become the
hero of some beautiful romance; in the days
of chivalry he Inight have won favor as a
knight of valor; but what use he made
of his talentsl
yet many an Ahsalom may be found among
the young men of to-day many a one VINO
is pursuing course similar to that OF the
unfortunate prince of Israel. In following
such a course they are false to themselves
not only, but to all with whom they have
merit most their loyalty and affection. II
every man were true to himself, every man
would be true to his fellow-man, for truth
is a unit with every element in harmony.
False to himself and his own arch enemy
is the youth who dallies with vice, with dis
honesty, with wickedness in any form. The
contagion affects body and mind and soul.
the senses become deadened, the consciencd
scared, the emotions dulled, the heart black
ned, the character blemished and the hfe
But this is not all, for however low the
wayward son may sink in the slough of
shame, the feeble arms Of the loving parent
are always ready to receive their boy and
shield him from tho world. Yet, in many
case the young mans selfish spirit is insen-
sible to the loving touch of home, which
soon becomes to him but lodging house.
All the toll, trouble and sacrifice which
faithful father ard devoted mother have I'M
dergone from their babys cradle to his
years of manhood are now forgotten, and
he becomes q voluntary exile from their
fireside. that he might perceive the
havoc he is making in the happiness of that
home, and see his duty to that sacred spot!
But too often, like the Absalom OF old,
his heart is steeled against such thoughts,
and the lordly ambition rules his soul with
the hand of despot. Nothing cuts TO the
marrow of the tender parent quicker than
a chIds neglect for, in their declining
years they weigh every word and act, and
their lives brighten or darken accordingly.
drive away every frown and smooth away
the wrinkles to enlighten the countenance
and surround the lives of our loved ones
with every need and comfort.
Then when the finger of death lays itself
upon the beloved brow we shall be spared
the bitterness of self-reproach; nor viii they
need to ask, rs the young man Absalom
safe?" as with doubts dispelled, they find
rest from the storm and tempest and the
swollen waves of life's fitful ocean, and the
Great Pilot carries them safely into the
eternal harbor of peace.
PITFALL OF POLITICS.
Yet another pitfall into which the modern
AbsaIom is liable to fall is that of politics.
The name politics should be an honorable /.
one, but so often has this field been trod
upon by base and designing tricksters that
the very name has become a synonym for
corruption and vice. Most men are loyal
to home and country whenever the chastity
of the one or the honor of the other is about
to be assailed; but too often it needs the frs
Of opposition to bring it forth, and when
the conflict is over it becomes a latent force.
If this same spirit of patriotism would
only infuse itself into the hearts of our Leg
islators, many a blot might be erased, and
our Nation put upon a frner basis. III the
older generation has proven its weakness
to adequately cope with this problem, tha
commission now comes to the young men,
and may they worthily meet the RESPONSE
bility. May they not dishonor themselves
their country nor their God, by even dipping
the tips OF their fingers into the filthy cess
pools of pollution and vice, the stencil Of
whose contents is breeding contagion from
the center to circumference of our be-
loved land. Scarcely a city but has been
touched by at least brash of this loath-
some disease of municipal corruption, and
unless they are soon rescued, the pulse OF
their government will seon become insensi-
BILE 70 all moral disinfectants.
The youth of America hold the key to
the situation, and If the spirit of reform
which is now sweeping over our country
would only receive their earnest and hearty
support the government would enter upon
a new epoch of progress. and a higher value
be placed upon the standard of good citi-
ZenshiD.
But finally, looming above all the dr. ties
which we owe to ourselves our parents or
our country. appears the climax of all,
namely, our duty to God. AS his creatures
we owe him obedience; as citizens. ale-
glance, and as children. the love and respect
which belongs to a kind and tender father
Not a moment in our lives is free from the