The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1901-07-13
HARVEST TIME HERE
A Sermon of Generalization for
Christian Endeavorers.
Dr. Tnimngc Finds n Mighty sugGes-
tiyenesS In His Text-The Growth
and Perfection of Chris
tianity.

Although DIR. Talmage was hindered
from attending the great annual meet
ing of the Christian Endeavor society
at Cincinnati, his sermon shows him to
be in sympathy with the great move
ment; text, Amos 9:13: "Behold the
DAYS come, saith the Lord, that the
plowman shall overtake the reaper
Unable because of other important
duties To accept the invitation TO take
part in the great convention OF Chris
tian Endeavorers at Cincinnati, begun
last week, preach sermon OF con-
graduation for all the members of that
magnificent association, whether now
gathered in vast assemblage or busyin
their places of usefulness, transatlan-
tic and cisatlantic, and as IL is now har-
vest time in the fields and sickles are
ASKING in the gathering OF great
crop, find mighty suggestiveness In
my text
1t is a picture of tropical cline,
with a season so prosperous that the
harvest reaches clear over to the plant
ing time, and the swarthy husband
man, busy cutting the grain, almost
. 1ttls inc DItaih va NV io' % 80 49,
shoulders, the horses hitched to the
plow, preparing for new crop. Be
hold the days come, saith the LORD,
that the plowman shall overtake the
reaper" When is that? That is now.
That is this day, when hardly have you
done reaping one harvest of religious
result than the plowman is getting
ready for another.
In phraseology charged with all ven-
ON and abuse and caricature l know
that infidels and agnostics have de-
clared that Christianity has collapsed;
that the Bible is an obsolete book; that
the Christian church is on the retreat
shall answer that wholesale charge
to-day.
Between 100000 and 100000 En-
dcavorers sworn before high Heaven
that they will do all they can to take
America for God, Europe for God, Asia
and Africa for God--are not the signs
most cheering? Or, to return to the
agricultural figure of my text, more
than a million reapers are overtaken
by more than a million plowmen. Be-
sides this, there are more people who
DtlltNt III the blDIt ludn AllhC
in the worlds existence. An Arab
guide was leading a French infidel
across the desert, and ever and anon
the Arab guide would get down in the
sand and pray to the Lord. 1t disgust
ed the French infidel, and after awhile,
as the Arab got up from one of his
prayers, the infidel said: How do
you know there is any God?" And the
Arab guide said: Glow do know that
man and camel passed by our tent
last night? ! know ii by the footprint
in the sand. And you want TO know
how know whether there sany God
Look at the sunset. Is that the foot
step of a man?" And by the same
process YOU and have come to under
stand that this book is the footstep
of God.
But now let us see whether the book
is a last years almanac. Let us see
whether the church of God is Bull
Runt retreat, muskets, canteens and
haversacks strewing all the way. The
great English historian Sharon Tur-
ncr, man of vast learning and great
accuracy, not clergyman, but an at
X
overwhelming statistic in regard to
Christianity and in regard to the num-
Der of Christians in the different cen.
turtles: In the first century 100000
Christians, in the second century 2 900.
600 Christians, in the third century
100000 Christians, in the fourth cen.
fury 10000, 900 Christians, in the fifth
century 15,O00,000 Christians, in the
sixth century 20,0O0,0O0 Christians, in
the seventh century 24,000000 Chris.
tians, in the eighth century 30,O00,00C
Christians, in the ninth century 40 ,0O0,.
600 Christians, in the tenth century So.
100000 Christians, in the eleventh cen.
fury 20, 000, 900 Christians, in the twelfth
century sO,OO0,OOO Christians. in the
thirteenth century $4,000 900 Chris
tians, in the fourteenth century 10000,
900 Christians, in the fifteenth century
100, 100000 Christians, in the sixteenth
century 125,00O,OO0 Christians. in tho
seventeenth century 155.000,000 Chris.
tians, in the eighteenth century 2O0
900, 900 Christians decadence, as you
observe, in only one century and more
than made up in the following cen.
turtles. while ii is the usual compute.
ton that there were at the close of the
nineteenth century 470.0O0.000 Chris.
tians, making us to believe that before
this century is closed the millennium
will have started it's boom and lifted
it's hosanna.
Poor Christianity! What a pity 4,
has no friend! How lonesome il must
bel! Who will take il out of the poor.
house? Poor Christianity! Four hun
dred millions in one century. In few
weeks of this year 100000 copies OF
the New Testament distributed. Why
the earth is like an old castle with &c
gates and park of artillery ready to
thunder down every gate. See how
heathendom is being surrounded and
honeycombed and attacked by this all
conquering Gospel. At the beginning
of the nineteenth century $50 mission
aries; at the close of that century s4,.
900 missionaries and native helpers
and evangelists. At the beginning OF
the nineteenth century there were only
60 900 converts. Now there are over