The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1900-04-28
TALMAGE ON CREEDS.
Preacher Would Rid Humanity of
Ecclesias teal Dogma.
Moves for a Creed for All DenominR-
lions Made Out of Scripture Quo
tations-Things Tha Ham
per Christians
copyright, 1900, by Louis Klopsch,]
Washington. 80

what bitterly revived TINS discourse
of DR.. Talmage has a special interest.
The text is John XII, Al: Loose him
and let him 60"
My Bible is at the place of this text
written all over with lead pencil
marks made at Bethany on the ruins
of the house of Mary and Martha and
Lazarus. We dismounted from our
horses on the way up from Jordan to
the Dead sea. Bethany was the sum-
mer evening retreat of Jesus. After
spending the day in the hot city of
Jerusalem he would come out there al
most every evening to the house of
his three friends. l think the occu-
pants of hat house were orphans,
for the father and mother are not
mentioned. But the son and two
daughters must have inherited prop
erty, for it must have been, judging
from what l saw of the foundations
and the size of the rooms, an opulent
home. Lazarus, the brother, was now
at the head of the household. and his
sisters depended on him and were
proud of him, for he was very popular,
and everybody liked him, and these
girls were splendid girls-Martha, a
first-rate housekeeper. and Mary, a
spirituelle, somewhat dreamy, but af-
f%cctionatc and as good a girl as could
be found in all Palestine. But one
day Lazarus got sick, The sisters
were in CONSERVATION Father gone,
and mother gone. they felt very nerv-
80. lnet thax- 1aco thair brother also
Disease did its quick work. How the
girls hung over his pillow! Not much
sleep about that house-no sleep at
all.
From the characteristics otherwise
developed, l judge that Martha pre-
pared tie medicines and made tempt
ing dishes of food for the poor aDpe-
tito of the sufferer. but Mary prayed
and sobbed. Worse and worse gets
Lazarus until the doctor announces
that he can do no more. The Shrek
that went up from that household
when the last breath had been drawn
and the two sisters were being lee
by sympathizers into the adjoining
room all those of us can imagine who
uaNC ~ OuA 10 CNe oN
why was not Jesus there as He had sc
often been? Far away in the country
districts, preaching. healing Other
sick. how unfortunate that this ON
nipotent Doctor had not been at thai
domestic crisis in Bethany. Whe1
at last Jesus arrived in Bethany, Lac
arus had been buried four days ant
dissolution had taken place. In that
climate the breathless body disin
tcgratcs more rapidly than in ours
If, Immediately after decease, the
body had been awakened into life. un
believers might have said he was only
in a comatose state or in a sort o
trance and by some vigorous manipu
latton or powerful stimulant ~vitalit.
had been renewed. No! Four day.
dead.
At the door of the sepulcher is
crowd of people, but the three mos
memorable are jesus, who was tn
family friend, and the two bereft sis
tiers. We went into the traditions
tomb one December day, and it is dee
down and dark. and with torches W
explored it. We found it all quie
that afternoon of our visit, but tn
day spoken of in the Bible there wa
present an excited multitude. l won
der what Jesus will do? He order
the door of the grave removed, an
then he begins to descend the step:
Mary and Martha close after him. an
the crowd after them. Deeper dow
into the shadows and deeper! Th
hot tears of Jesus roll over his cheek
and plash upon the back of Hi
hands. We're ever so many sorrow
compressed into so small a space a
in hat group pressing on down afte
Christ, all the time bemoaning tina
He had not come before?
Now all the whispering and all tn
crying and all the sounds of shu-
fling feet are stopped. 1t is the S
jence of expectancy. Death had COZ
quered, but 10Y the vanquisher {
death confronted the scene. Amid til
awful hush of the tomb, the familia
name which Christ had often ha
upon His lips in the hospitalities
the village home came back to H
tongue. and with pathos and an a
mjghtiness of which the resurrectio
of the last day shall only be an ech
He cries: Lazarus, come forth
The eyes of the slumberer open, al
he rises and comes to the foot of ii
steps and with great difficulty begin
TO ascend, for the cerements of II
tomb arc yet on him, and his feet a
fast and his hands are fast and IL
impediments to all his movements a
so great that Jesus commands: "Tal
off these cerements, Remove the
Eindrances! Unfasten these gray
clothes! Loose him. and let him GO
Oh, / am SO glad that after the Lor
raised Lazarus He went on and cor
manded the loosening of the core
that bound his feet so that he cou.
walk and the breaking of the GER
ments that bound his hands so tn;
he could stretch out his arms in sal
tation and the tearing off of the ban
o from around his jaws so that ]
could speak. What would resurrect,
life have been to Lazarus if he h;
=