Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1901-01-10
Dr.TALMAGE SERMON
THE GREAT DIvlNE'S ELOQUENT
MESSAGE.

F #A
Subject: The Mission Of Christ - Il Was
to Teach the World That God is Love
= The sympathy and Compassion Of
the Almighty King.
copyright 1901
WASHINGTON, D. C.-In this discourse
DR.. Talmage describes in a new way the
sacrifices made for the worlds disentrall-
ment and deliyerance. His text is I. John
iv, Is, "God is love"
tempt a comparison between the attributes
of God. They are not like a mountain
range. with here and there a higher peak,
nor like the ocean, with here and there a
profounder depth. We cannot measure
infnities. We would not dare say whether
His omnipotence or omnisclence or omnl-
| presence or immutability or wisdom or
| Justice or love is the greater attribute.
| But the one mentioned in my text makes
| deeper impression upon us than any other.
It was evidently a very old man who wrote
the chapter from which take the text.
! John was not in his dotage, as Professor
Eichhorn asserted, but you can tell by the
repetitions in the epistle and the rambling
style, and that he called grown people
slittle children" that the author was
probably an oct~ogenarian. Yet Paul, In
midlife mastering an audience of Athenian
critics on Mars Hill, said nothing stronger
or more important than did the venerable
John when he wrote the three words OF
my text. Good is love"
Indeed, the older one gets the more he
appreciates this attribute. The h~arshness
and the conbativeness and the severity
have gone out of the old man, and he is
more lenient and, aware of his W faults,
is more disposed to make excuses for the
faults of others, and he frequently ejacu'
lates, "Poor human nature!" The young
minister preached three sermons or the
justice of God and one on the love Of God,
but when he got old he preached three
sermons on the love of God and one on
the justice of God.
Far back in the eternities there came a
time when God would express one emotion
of His nature which was yet unexpressed
He had made more worlds than were seer
by the ancients from the top Of the Egyp
tian pyramid, which was used as an obser
vatory, and more worlds than modern as
tronomy has catalogued or deserted
through telescope lens. All that showed
the Lords almightiness, but it gave NJ
demonstration Of His love. He might
make fifty Saturns and 100 Jupiters ano
not demonstrate an instant of love. Tha'
was an unknown passion and the secret O
the universe. It was a suppressed emo
tion of the great God. But there woult
come a time when this passion Of infinit!
love would be declared and illustrated
God would veil it no longer. After Thu
clock of many centuries had run down AM
worlds had been born and demolished
on a comparatively obscure star a race o
human beings would be born and who
though so bountifully provided for tina
they ought to have behaved themselve
we'll, went into Instruction and conspir
acy and revolt and war-finite against in
finite, weak arm against thunderbolt, nal
against God.
If high intelligences looked down an
saw what was going on, they must hav
prophesied determination complete ez
termination-of these offenders of Jehc
yah. But, no! Who is that coming out G
the throneroom Of heaven? Who is tina
coming out of the palaces of the eternal
It is the Son Of the Emperor of the I'm
verse. Down the stairs of the high hea,
ems He comes till He reaches the cold a!
g of a December night in Palestine, an
9 amid the bleatings of sheep and the low
+ ing of cattle and the moaning of camel
9 and the banter of the herdsmen, takes III
first sleep IN earth, and for thirty-thre
. years invites the wandering race to retur
to God and happiness and heaven. The
were the longest thirty-three years eve
e known in heaven. Among many high inte
. llgences what impatience to get Hir
j. back? The infinite Father looked dow
y and saw His Son slapped and spit on an
j. supperless and homeless, and then, ami
d horrors that made the MONDAY HEAVIER
turn black in the face, His body and so,
parted. And all for what? Why, allo
the Crown Prince to come on such an e
rand and endure such sorrow and die SUE
n Snofh2 Il 1ror n ~-,4o &lo l,-o~- ~4.
: to put down it's %antipathies and resis
o ance. It was because "God is love-"
Now, there is nothing beautiful in
If shipwreck. We go down to look at t
=; battered and split hulk of an old ship
- the Long Island or New Jersey coast.
~excites our interest, We wonder VIII
t. and how it came ashore. and whether
was the recklessness of a pilot or a stor
before which nothing could bear up. Fl
man nature wrecked may interest the
hahitants of other worlds as a %curiosit
but there is nothing lovely in that viii
has foundered on the rocks Of sin a.
sorrow. Yet it was in that condition
~ moral break up that heaven moved to t
rescue. It was loneliness lowering oy
>. deformity. It was the lfeboat putting @
~ into the surf that attempted it's demo
1t. ton. It was harmony plying discord.
=, was a living God putting His arms arou
ia q recreant world.
The schoolmen deride the idea that G
= has emotion. They think it would be
divine weakness to be stirred by a
earthly spectacle. The God of the learn
Bruch and Schleiermacher is an infin
intelligence without feeling, a cold a
cherries divinity. But the God we W
ship is one of sympathy and compassi
and helpfulness and affection. God
. love-"
4 In all the Bible there is no more G.
- solatory statement. The very best D
n pie have in their lives occurrences mex,
- cable. They are bereft or prosecuted
e impoverished or invaded. They h;
only one child, and that dies. while
II next door n~eighbor has seven childr
and they are all spared! The unfortuna
buy at a time when the market is risi
and the day after the market falls. A
r, time when they need to feel the best
the discharge Of some duty they are sci
III with physical collapse. Trying to de-
good and honest and useful thing. thew
misrepresented and belied as if thew
l. practiced a ~villainy. There are nec
n who all their lives have suffered inirsti,
n Others of less talent, with less conse,
~ ton, go on and up, while they go on
down. There are in many lives riddles t
have never been explained, hcartbre
VS. chat have never been healed. Go to t
man or that woman with philosophic
it iplanation, and your attempt at com: