The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1900-06-06
FRUITS OF VICTORY
Dr.. Talmage on the Rewards Ct
Faithful EndeaVor.
TIE LESSON OF CHRIST
In Overcoming the Obstacles
Which seset His Followers.
Satisfactionin in the Compile
ton Of Good Work.

In this discourse DR.. Talmage shows
in an unusual way the antagonisms
that Christ overcame aud finds balssm
for a., wounded hearts; text, John xvii,
/, Il have finished the work when
thou gavest me to do. >
There is a profound satisfaction IN
the completion Of anything we nave
undertaken. We lift the capstone with
exultstion, while, on the other hand,
there is nothing more disappointing
than after having toiled in certain di
rection to find that our time is wasted
and our Investment proftless. Christ
came to throw up highway on which
the whole world might, if it chose,
mount into heaven. He did it. The
foul nouthe6 crew VINO attempted to
tread on him could not extinguish the
sublime satisfaction which he expressed
when he said, Il have finished the
work which thou gavest me to DO.
Alexander the Great was wounded,
and the doctors could not medicate his
wounds, and he seemed TO be dying,
and in his dream the sick man saw
plant with peculiar fower, and he
dreamed that that plant was put upon
his wound and that Immediately 1t was
cured. And Alexander, waking irou
his dream, told this to the physician
wandered out until he found just the
kind of plant which the sick man had
described, brought it to him, and the
wound was healed. Well, the human
race had been hurt with the ghsstliest
of all Eouu1-thst of sin. 1t was the
business of Christ to bring balm for
that Eound-the balm Of divine resto-
ration. In carrying this business to
successful issue the difficulties were
stupendous.
In many of our plans we have our
friends to help US; some to draw a
sketch Of the plan, others to help US IN
the execution. But Christ fought
every inch Of his way against bitter
hostility aud amid circumstances all
calculated to depress and defeat.
In the first place. :. his worldly occu-
patton was against him. l find that he
earned his livelihood by the carpenters
trade-ar occupation always to be high
ly regarded and respected. But you
know as well as do that IN order to
succeed in any employment one must
give his entire time to it, and have
to declare that the fatigues Of carpentry
were unfavorable to the execution Of q
mission which required all mental and
physical faculties. Through high,
hard, dry, husky, insensate, Judaism
to hew way for new and glorious
dispensation was stupendous under
taking that vas enough to demand al!
the concentrated energies even Of
Christ. We have great many 70
mantle stories about what men with
physical toll have accomplished in in
telleetusl departments, but you know
that after q man has been foiling all
dag with adz and saw and hammer,
plane and Ak, all he can do is to rest.
A weary body is an unfavorable ad-
junct to toiling mind. You, whose
life is purely mechanical, if you were
called to the upbuilding Of kingdom,
or the proclamation Of new code OF
morals, or the starting Of q revolution
which should upturn sll nations, could
get some idea of the incoherence Of
Christ's occupation with his heavy
mission.
In his fathers shop no more inter
course was necessary than is orcinsrity
necessary in bargaining with men who
have work to DO; yet Christ, with hands
hard from use Of tools of trade, was
called forth to become public speaker,
to preach in the face of mobs, while
some wept and some shook their fists
and some CRASHED upon him with their
teeth and many wanted him out Of the
way. To address orderly and respect
ful assemblsges IS not so easy as 1t may
seem, but 1t requires more energy and
more ferce and more concentration to
address an exasperateG mob. The vii
layers of Nazareth heard the pounding
Of his hammer, but ali tne " 3e reaches
of eternity were to hear tie stroke Of
his spiritual upbuilding.
So also his habits Of dress and Diet
were against him. The mighty men Of
Uhrist's time did not appear in apparel
without trinkets and adornments. None
of the Cessrs would have appeared in
citizens apparel. Yet here was man,
here was professed king, who always
wore the same coat. Indeed, it was
far from shabby, for after he had worn
it long while the gamblers thought it
worth rafting about, but still it was
far from being an imperial robe. 1t
was a coat that any ordinary man might
have worn on an ordinary occasion.
Neither was there any pretension IN
his diet. No cupbearer with golden
chalice brought him wine to drink. On
the seashore he ate fish, first having
broiled it himself. No one fetched
him water to drink; but, bending over
the well in Samaria, he begged drink.
He sat at only one banquet and that
not st al sunptuous, for to relieve the
awkwar6ness of the host one of the
guests had to prepare wine for the
company.
Other kings ride in chariot; he
walked. Other kings as they advance
have heralds ahead and spplauding sub
jects behind; Cbrist's retinue was made
up of sunburned fishermen. Other
kings sleep under embroidered canopy;
this one on shelterless hill. Riding
but once, as far as now remember, on
q colt-and that borrowed.
His poverty was against him. tire
quires money to build great enterprises.
Men Of means are afraid of penniless
protector, lest loan be demanded. 1t
requires money to print books, to build