The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1900-08-30
REV. DIR. TALMAGE
DISCOURSE By HE EMINENT DI
VINE LAST SUNDAY

Subject: Spiritual Enthusiastically Riches
Are Transitory, But the Glories of
Heaven,Are Everlastir Com pares the
Priceless Soul With tho yalueless Body
Copyright 1soOI
WASHINGTON, d. c. From Berlin,
where he preached in the American church
to congregation comprising many OF his
countrymen who are travelling through
Europe, DIR. Talmage sends this discourse,
in which, by original methods, he calcu-
lates spiritual values and urges higher APP
probation of things religious. The text
is Mark viii, SO: "What shall it profit a
man if he shall gain the whole world and
lose his own soulE'
Men of all OCCUPATIONS are to be found
in the assemblies of the house of God, but
in these days of extensive business opera
tons large proportion are engaged from
Monday morning to Saturday night in bar
gain making. In many of the families
across the breakfast table and the tea
table are discussed questions of loss and
gain. You are every day asking yourself:
"What is the value of this? What is the
value of that?" You would not think of
giving something of greater value for that
which is of lesser value. You would not
think of selling that which cost you $40
for S.. If you had a property that was
worth $4,000, you would not sell it for
GtUOU. L GU are luJeulReHI Ill oil lldLtelS
of bargain making. Are you as wise in
the things that pertain to the matters of
the soul? Christ adapted His instruc-
lions to the circumstances of those to
whom He spoke. When He talked to
fishermen, He spoke of the gospel net
When He talked to the farmers He said:
"A sower went forth to SOW" When He
BILE of the lost sheep. And am l not right
when speaking to an audience made up Of
bargain makers that | address them in the
words of my text, asking, what shall it
profit man if he shall gain the whole
world and lose his own soul?'
[ propose, as far as possible, to estimate
and compare the value of the two proper
ties.
First l have to say that the world is
very grand property. Its flowers are
Gods thoughts in bloom. Its rocks are
Gods thoughts in stone. Its dewdrops
are Gods thoughts in pearl. This world
is Gods chlld-a hayward child, indeed;
it has wandered off through the heavens
But about 1909 years ago, one Christmas
night God sent out sister world to call
that wanderer back, and it hung over
Bethlehem only long enough to get the
promise of the wanderers return, and
now that lost world, with soft feet of
light, comes treading back through the
heavens. The hills, how beautiful they
DlllOW up, Iue tuSc VI Iue wave NllitG
with the foam of crocuses, How beautiful
the rainbow, the arched bridge on which
heaven and earth come and talk to each
other in tears after the storm is overi
How nimble the feet of lampighters that
in few minutes set all the dome Of the
night ablaze with brackets of fire! How
bright the oar of the saffron cloud that
rows across the deep sea of heaven. How
beautiful the spring, with bridal blossoms
in her hair! / wonder who it is that beats
time on June morning for the bird or
chestra. How gently the harebell tolls its
fragrance on the air! There may be
grander worlds, larFer worlds than this,
but l think that this is most exquisite
world-a mignonette on the bosom of i'm
give me that world! l am willing to take
it in exchange. L am ready now for the
bargain. 1t is so beautiful a world, so
sweet world, so grand world"
But let us look more infinitely into the
value of this world You will not buy
property unless you can get good title to
it. After you have looked at the property
and found out that it suits you you send
an attorney to the public Office, and he
examines the book Of deeds and the book
of mortgages and the book of judgments
and the book of liens, and he decides
whether the title is good before you will
have anything to do with it, There might
De Il SpleHulu property CNCty way
exactly suited to your want, but II you
cannot get a good title you will not take
it. Now, | am here to say that 1t Is I'M
possible to get good title to this world.
If j settle down uDon it, in the very year
l SO settle down upon it as permanent
possession, | may be driven away from 1t.
Aye, in five minutes atterward L give up
my soul for the world l may have to part
with the world, and what kind 81 title
do you call that? There is only one way
in which | can hold an earthly possession,
and that is through the senses. All beau
tiful sights through the eye, but the eye
may be bloJLed out; all captivating sounds
through the ear, but my ear may be deaf
ened; all lusciousness of fruits and viands
through my taste, but my taste may be de
stroyed; all appreciation OF culture and OF
art through my mind, but l may lose my
mind. What a frail hold, then, L have
upon any earthly possession.
In courts of law, if you want to get
man off a property you must serve upon
him a writ of eJectment, giving him GER
tain time to vacate the premises, but
when death comes to us and serves writ
of ejectment he does not give us one sec
ond of forewarning. He says: "Of of this
place! You have no right any longer to
the possession" We might cry out Il
gave you 100000 for that property" the
plea would be of no avail. We might say,
we nave Wdfrdntee ueeu LOT IndC pTOp-
erty;" the plea would be of no avail.
We might say, eve have lien on that
storehouse;" that would do us no good.
Death is blind, and he canpot see a seal
and cannot read an indenture. So that,
when you propose that l give up my soul
first and last, 1 want to tell you that
for the world you cannot give me the first
item of title.
Having examined the title of property
your next question is about insurance. You
would not be silly enough to buy a large
warehouse that could not possibly be in
sured You would not have anything to
do with such property. Now, ask you
what assurance can you give me that this
world is not going to be burned up?
Absolutely none. Biologists tell us that
it Is already on fire; that the heart of the
world is one great living coal; that it is
just like ship on fire at sea, the flames
not bursting out because the matches are
kept down. And yet you propose to palm
off on me, in return for my soul, a world
for which in the first place, you give no
title, and, in the second place, for which
you can give no insurance. oh" you
ha 6 +Lo will h