The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1901-04-04
CHRISTIAN HEROISM.
DR.. Talmage Praises It and Tells
of Its Great Rewards.
How the Lord Jesus Will Remember r
the Faithful Soldier of the Cross
Heroes and Martyrs Of
Everyday Life.
Copyright, 1901, by Louis Klopsch.l
Washington,

In this discourse DIR. Talmage
praises Christian heroism and tells of
great rewards. The text is Galatians
vi, II, II bear in my body the marks
of the Lord Jesus"
We hear much about crowns,
thrones, victories, but now tell the
more quiet story of scars, honorable
and dishonorable. There are in all
parts of the world people bearing
dishonorable scars. They went into
the battle of sin and were .worsted,
and to their dying day they will have
q scarification of body or mind or
soul. 1t cannot be hidden. There axe
tens of thousands of men and women
now consecrated to God and living
holy lives who were once corrupt;
but they have been regenerated, and
they are no more what they once
were than rubescence is emaciation,
than balm is vitriol, than MONDAY is
midnight. But in their depleted phys
ical health or mental twist or style
of temptation they are ever and anon
reminded of the obnoxious past:
They have a memory that is deplor-
able. In some twinge of pain or some
| tendency to surrender to the wrong
| they have an unwholesome remin-
iscence. They carry scars, deep scars,
| ignoble scars.
But Paul in my text shows us .
scarifcation which is badge of hon
orable and self-sacrifcing service.
He had in his weak eyes the result
of too much study and in his body.
bent and worn, the signature of
| scourgings and shipwrecks and mall
| treatment by mobs. In my text he
shows those scars as he declares, Il
bear in my body the marks of the
Lord Jesus Notice that it is not
wounds, but scars, and scar is a
healed wound. Before the scar is
well defined upon the flesh the in
fammation must have departed and
right circulation must have been
restored and new tissue must have
been formed. It is a permanent in
dentation of the flesh-a cicatrix.
They were positive and undisputable
proofs that with all his body, mind
and soul he believed what he said.
They were his diploma, showing that
he had graduated from the school of
hardship for Christ. They were Gre
dentials proving his right to lead in
the worlds evangelization.
Men are not ashamed of scars got
in battle for their country. No
American is embarrassed when you
ask him: "Where did you get that
cash across Your forehead?" and he
can answer: ''That was from a saber
cut at San Juan" When you ask
some German: Where did you lose
your right arm?" he is not ashamed
to say: II lost it at Sedan" When
you ask an Italian: "Where did you
lose your eye?" he is not annoyed
when he can answer: 'I suffered that
in the last battle under our glorious
Gen. Garibaldi." But I remind you
of the fact that there are scars not
got in war which are just as illus.
trious. We had in this country years
ago an eminent advocate who was
called into the presidential cabinet
as attorney general. In midlife he
was in Philadelphia courtroom en-
gagged in an important trial. The at
torney on the opposite side of the
case got irritated and angry and il
most brutal manner referred to the
distinguished attorneys disfguret
face, face more deeply SCARED thar
any face 1 ever saw. The legal hero
of whom I am speaking in his clos
ing argument said: Gentlemen O.
the jury, when I was little child
was playing with my sister in thu
nursery, and her clothes caught fire
and I ran to her to put out the fire
I succeeded, but I myself took fire
and before it was extinguished my
face was awfully burned and as blacl
as the heart of the scoundre1ly coun
sci who on the other side of the cas-,
has referred to my misfortune" TIL,
eminent attorney of whom I speal
carried all his life the honorable sea,
of his sisters rescue. Albert Barnes
the most distinguished of all com
mentators, unless it be MATTHEW
Henry, for years at four o'clock il
the morning might have been see1
going from his house in Philadelphi;
to his study in the church and il
those early hours and before break
fast to give all those wonderful com
mentaries, a theological library ii
themselves. He said that as he wa
pastor he felt bound to give all tn
rest of each day to work connecte,
with his pastorate. But ct what
ruinous draft upon his eyesight h
did that early morning work, first B.
candlelight and then by gasight
When he got through those wonder
full volumes of Scriptural exposition
Albert Barnes was q blind mar
Scars, illustrious scars, on his extin
guished eyesight! .-.-szs
People think they must look 70
martyrs on battlefields or go throug
q history. to find burnings at tn
stake, and tortures on racks whe
there are martyrs all about Us. A