The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1900-12-22
TALMAGE SERMON.
A'NOAY'S Ol COURSE BY TAt AaLf o..
VINE
Subject: Tho Faith of Eahab-There 10
Mercy For All Sinners Cheer For All
Who Are Engaged in Life's Battles
Meaning of the Suns Standing Still.
copyright lsJJ.

| HerCy fOr All sinners Cheer For Al
Who Are Engaged in Life's Battles
Meaning Of the Suns Standing Still.
Copyright lsuo.l
WASHINGTON, d. C.-1n this discourse
DR.. Talmage follows Joshua on his tri
umphal march and speaks encouragi:.;
words to all who are engaged in the bat
ties of this life; text, Joshua i, 5, ''Ther'
shall not any man be able to stand befor,
thee all the days of thy life"
Moses was dead. A beautiful traditio,
says the Lord kissed him and in that ac
drew forth the soul of the dying lawgivcr
He had been buried; only one person a
the funeral-the same One who kissed him
But God never takes man away from
any place of usefulness until He has some
one ready to replace him. The Lord doe,
not so looking around amid 4 great va
riety of candidates to find aome one especi
ally fitted for the vacated position. IIt
makes man for that place. Moses has
| passed of the stage. and Joshua, the hero
puts his foot on the platform of history
so solidly that ali the AGES echo with the
tread. He was a magnificent fighter, bu:
he always fought on the right side, and he
never fought unless God told him to fight
He got his military equipment from God
who gave him the promise az the start,
here shall not any man be alle to
stand lefore thee all the days of thy life :"
God fulfilled this promise, although Josh
na's first battle was with the spring fresh
ct. the ncxt With a stone wall. the next
leading on a regiment o. whipped COW
ards and the next battling against dark.
ness. wheeling the sun and the moon into
his battalion and tie last against the king
of tcrrors. death-fvc great victories.
As a rule, when the general of an army
starts ont in war he would ike to have
a snail battle in order Il at he may get
his own courage up and rally his troors
and get them drilled for greater conflicts,
but the first undertaking of Joshua was
greater thon the leveling Of Fort Pulaski
or the assault Of Gibraltar or the over
throw of the Bastillc. 1t was the crossing
of the Jordan at the time OF the spring
freshet. The SHOWS of Mount Lebanon had
just been melting. and they poured down
the valley, and the whole valley was 3
raging torrent. SO the Canaanites stand
on one hank, and they look across and sec
Joshua ana the 1srAclites, and they laugh
and say: "Aha, They cannot disturb
us until the freshets fall 1t is impossible
for them to reach u.s." But after awhile
they look across the water, and they see
a movement in the army of Joshua. They
say: What is the matter now? Why,
there must be panic among those troops,
and they are going to fly, or perhaps they
are going to march across the river Jor-
dan. Joshua is a lunatic" But Joshua,
the chieftnin, looks ut his army and cries,
Forward. march!" and they start for the
bank of the Jordan. One mile ahead go
two priests carrying G. gttering box four
feet long and two feet wide 1t is the ark
of the covenant. And they come down,
and no sooner do they just touch the rim
of the water with their feet than, by an
Almighty fiat, Jordan parts. The army
of Joshua marches right on without get
ting their feet wet over the bottom of
the river, a path of chalk and broken
shells and pebbles, until they get to the
other bank. Then they lay hold of the OLE
anders and tamar;sls and willows and pull
themselves up bank thirty or forty feet
high, and, having gained the other bank,
they clap their shields and their cymbals
But no sooner have they reached the bank
than the waters Legin to dash and roar,
and with terrific rush they break loose
from their strange anchorage. As the
hard of the Lord God is taken away from
the thus upliftel waters-waters perhaps
uplifted half a ,nile-they rush down, and
some of the unbelicving Israelites say:
Alas, alas, what misfortune! Why
could not not those waters have staid
parted, because, perhaps, We may want
to 50 back? O Lord, we are engaged in
A risky business! These Canaanites may
eas us up. How if we want to go back!
Would i. not have been 7 more complete
if the Lord had parted the waters
to lct us come through and kept them
parted to let us go back if we are de-
fcated?'
But this is no place for the host to
stop: Joshua gives the command, For
ward, i4arch!" Ir the distance there is
. long grove of trees, and at the end of the
grove is a city. 1t is city with arbors,
city with walls seeming to reach to the
heavens, to butt:ess the very sky. 1t is |
he great metropolis that commands the
pass. 1t is Jericho. That city |
Tas afterward captured by Pompey and |
'nce by Herod the Great and once again
~ the Mohammedans, but this campaign |
he Lord plans. There shall be no swords,
10 shieldt, 10 batte!ing ram; there shall
&c ONLY enc weapon OF war, and that
ans horn. The horn of the slain Iam
vas sometimes taken, and holes were
'uncturcd in IL, AID then the musician
would put tao instrument to his lips. and
e would run his fingers over this rude
nuscal instrument and make great deal |
f sweet harmony for the people. That
ms the only kind of weapon Seven
riests were to take these rude, rustic
lusical Instruments, and they were to
O around the city every day for six days
nee day for six days-and then on the
eventh day they were to 60 around blow
lg these rude musical instruments seven
ines, and then at the close of the seventh
lowing of the rams horn on the seventh
ay the peroration Of the whole scene
-as to be shout, at which those great
alls should tumble from capstone TO base.
The seven priests with the rude musical
lstrunents pass all around the city walls
q the first day and score a failure Not
} much as piece of plaster broke loose
ON the wall, not SO much as loosened
)ck. not so much as a piece of mortar ,ost
ON its place. There say The unbe-
ewing Israelites. did l rot tel you so?
Why, those ministers are fools. The idea
going around the city with those musi
Il instruments and expecting in that
ay to destroy it. Joshua has been spoiled.
e thinks because he has oyerthrown and
the spring freshet he can over
row the stone wall. Why, it is not
ailosophic DO you not see there is TO
laton between the blowing Of these
usical instruments and the knocking
,wn cf the wall! 1t is not philosophic."
nd / suppose there were many wiseacre3
no stood with their brows knitted and
ith the forcfnger of the right hand to
e foretinger of the lett hand, arguing it
lst,o l,,t - /