The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1900-01-21
DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON.
. -RrEr SYNOPSIS OF THE DIvxNEs
SUNDAY DISCOURSE

inject: The Coming ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
For the Future Religious Elaboration
Will BE Drawn From the Living christ
Theology Must Take Back seat'
fcopyright, Louis Klopsch. 1891
W.sH1Soroy. D. Gin this discourse DR..
ralmaQe addresses all Christian workers
md describes what he thinks Will be the
modes OF preaching the gospel In the future;
seyt Romans Kill, 2, "Or ministry, let US
rajt on our ministerlng."
while was seated on piazza OF hotel
AZ darlington, KY, one summer evening
sentIeman asked me, what do you think
n the coming sermonf" Isupposed be was
asking me In regard to some new discourse
Of DR.. Cumming OF London. VINO some-
times preached startling sermons. and
ranlied. ~ have not eeen It." But found
ant afterward that he meant to ask what
fhoueht would be tho characteristics OF
she Coming sermon OF the world, the SER
mons Of the future, the word Cumming"
AZ a noun pronounced the same as the
word looming" as an adjective: But my
mistake suggested to me very important
and nracticul theme, "The Coming Ser
mon."
Before the world is converted the style OF
reIioious discourse will have to be con-
verted. You might as well 60 into the
modern Sedan or Gettysburg With bows
and arrows, instead OF rifles and bombshells
and parks Of artillery. as to expect to con-
quer this world for God by the OLD styles
Of exhortStlon and sermonology. Jona-
than Edwards preached the sermons most
adapted to the age in which he lived, but
II those sermons were preached now they
would divide an audience into two classes
those sound asleep and those wanting to
90 home.
But there Is discourse OF the future.
Who will preach 1t have no Idea. In what
part OF the earth 1t will be born have no
idea In which denomination OF Christians
II will be delivered cannot guess. That
discourse OF exhortation may BIO born In
the country meeting house on the banks OF
the st. Lawrence or the Oregon or the Ohio
or the Tombigbee or the Alabama. The
person who shall deliver 1t may this mo-
ment be in a cradle under the shadow OF
the Sierra Nevadas or in New England
farmhouse or amid the ricefelds OF South
srn savannas, or this moment there may be
some Young man in one Of our theological
semiparies, In the junior or middle or SEN
Tor class. shaping that weapon OF power,
or there may be coming some new baptism
OF the Holy Ghost on the churches, SO that
some of us who now stand in the watcn-
towers of Zion, waking to retaliation OF
our present efficiency, may preach 1t 7ur-
fifty years OF. And let us pray Goo hat
its arrival may be fastened while an
nouuce to you what Think will be the shiel
characteristics OF that discourse or exnor.
tation when 1t does arrive, and I wan. to
make my remarks appropriate and sug'
gestive to all Glasses OF Christian workers,
First OF all, remark that that future re.
liglous discourse will be full OF a living
Christ in Standardization to didactic
technicalities. A discourse may be full Of
Christ though hardly mentioning His name
and u sermon may be empty OF Christ while
every sentence Is repetitious OF His titles
The world wants a living Christ, not {
Christ standing at thehead OF formal sys
T.. tenn OF theology. but Christ who means
pardon and sympathy and coincidence an;
brotherhood and life and heaven, q poo
mans Christ, q rich mans Christ. an ovor
worked mans Christ, an invalld's Christ,
fdfmer's Christ, q merchants Christ, an ar
tisan's Christ, an every mans Christ.
A symmetrical and fine worded system o
theology Is we'll enough for the theological
classes, but II has no more business In |
pulpit than have the technical phrases o
an anatomist or psychologist or physi
clan In the sickroom OF a patient. Th
world wants help, immediate and worl,
uplifting, and II will come through dis
course in which Christ shall walk RICH
down into the immortal soul and take ever
lasting possession OF 1t. filling 1t as full o
light as is this MONDAY armament.
That sermon OF exhortation Of the futur
will not deal with men In the threadbar
Illustrations of Jesus Christ. In that com
ing address there will be instances o
vicarious suffering taken right out o
everyday life, for there Is not day whel
somebody is not dying for others-as tn
physician saving his diphtheritic patisn
by sacrificing his oNl life; as the ship CD"
tain going down With his vesseI While n
Is getting his passengers Into the lifeboat
as the fireman consuming In the burning
building while he is taking child out Of
fourth story window; as in summer tn
strong swimmer at East Hampton or Lont
Branch or Cape May or Lake George him
self persisted trying to rescue the drown
ing; as the newspaper boy one summer
supporting his mother for some years. nj
Invalid mother, when offered by gentle
man fifty cents to get some special paper
and he got 1t and rushed up In his anxiet
to deliver 1t and was crushed under TIL
wheels of tho train and lay on the gras
with only strength enough to say, ooh
what will become OF my poor. sick mothe
now?" yicarious suffering-t the world
full Of Il. An engineer said to me on
locomotive In Dakota: eve men seem (
be coming to better appreciation tina
We used to. Did you see that account th
other day OF an engineer who to savo hi
passengers stuck to his post, and when b
was found dead In the locomotive whic
was upside down. he WAS found still smi
ing, his hand on the air-brake:" And q
the engineer said 1t to me- he put his han
on the air-hrake to illustrate his meaning
and looked at me and thought: "Yo
would be Just as much hero In the sam
crisis"
Oh, in that religious discourse OF tn
future there will be living Illustration
taken out from everyday lie OF vicariou
suffering-ilustrations that will tring t
mind the ghastlier sacrifice OF Him, who 1
the high places OF the field, on the eros!
fought our battles, and endured our strug
gle and died our death. A German sculI
tor made an image OF Christ, and he aske
his little child, two years old, who 1t wa.
great man." Tho sculptor was displease
with the criticism, so he got another bloc
OF marble and chiseled away on 1t two Q
three years. and then he brought In hi
little child, four or Ave years OF age, an
said to her, "Who do you think that is2
She said, "That must be the One who too
little children in His arms and blesse
them" Then the sculptor was satislle,
Oh, my friends, what the world wants
not q cold Christ, not an intellectu,
Christ, not a severely magisterial Chris
but loving Christ, spreading out II
arms OF sympathy to press the whole worl
TO His loving heart.
But I remark again that the religion
discourse OF the future will have to
short. Condensation l. demanded by IL
age In which we live. No more need
long introductions and long application
and 80 many divisions to a discourse thi
1t may BIO said to be hydra headed.
other days men got all their iuformatic
from ths pulpit. There were few book