Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1901-08-15
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
RELIGION THE GREAT REFRssHMENT
OF OUR TIMES.

When All the FIocks Are Gathered To-
gether"-why Some Are Kept Back
Trust In Gods Providence - Christ's
Eternal Fountains-To he Gospel Wen.
copyright. 1901. by Louis Klopsch. N. VI
Washington, Aug. lin this dis
course DR.. Talmage represents religion
as a great refreshment and invites all
the world to come and receive it;
text, Genesis xxx, s, I'VE cannot until
all the flocks be gathered together and
till they roll the stone from the wells
mouth; then we water the Sheep"
A scene in Mesopotamia, beautifully
pastoral. A we'll of water of great
value in that region. The fields around
about it white with three focks of
sheep lying down waiting for the wa
tering. l hear their bleating coming
on the bright air and the laughter of
young men and maidens indulging in
rustic repartee | look off, and | see
other flocks Of sheep coming. Mean
while Jacob, a stranger, on the inter-
esting errand OF looking for wife,
comes to the well. A beautiful shep-
herdess comes to the same well.
see her approaching. followed by her
fathers flock of sheep. 1t was men,
orable meeting. Jacob married that
shepherdess. The Bible account of it
is, Jacob kissed Rachel and lifted up
his voice and wept." 1t has always
been a mystery to me what he found
to cry about! But before that scene
occurred Jacob accosts the shepherds
and asks them why they postpone the
shaking Of the thirst of these sheep
and why they did not Immediately
proceed to water them. The shep-
herds reply TO the effect: I'VE are all
good neighbors. and as a matter OF
courtesy we wait until all the sheep
of the neighborhood come up. Besides
that, this stone on the wells mouth is
somewhat heavy, and several OF us
take hold of it and push it aside, and
then the buckets and the troughs are
filed and the sheep are satisfied. We
cannot until all the flocks are gathered
together and till they roll the stone
from the wells mouth; then we water
the sheep"
Coming to the Gospel Wei.
II herd of swine come to a well,
they angrily jostle each other for the
precedence; If drove of cattle come
to we'll, they hook each other back
from the water, but when a flock of
sheep come, though a hundred of
them shall be disappointed, they only
express it by sad bleating, they come
together peaceably. We want a great
multitude to come around the gospel
well. | know there are those who do
not like a coward; they think crowd
is vulgar. If they are oppressed for
room in church, it makes them posi-
lively impatient and belligerent. We
have had people permanently leave
church because so many other people
come to it. Not so did these oriental
shepherds. They waited until all the
flocks were gathered, and the more
fiocks that came the better they liked
1t. And so we ought to be anxious that
all the people should come. Go out
into the highways and the hedges and
compel them to come in. Go to the
rich and tell them they are INDECENT
without the gospel Of Jesus. Go to the
poor and tell them the afiiuence there
is in Christ. Go to the blind and tell
them of the touch that gives eternal
illumination. Go to the lame and tell
them of the Joy that will make the
lame man leap like hart. Gather all
the sheep off all the mountains. None
SO torn of the dogs, none SO sick, none
SO worried. none so dying, as to be
omitted. Why not gather a great
flock? All this city in flock, all New
York in flock, all London in flock.
all the world in flock.
This well of the gospel is deep
enough to put out the burning thirst
Of the 1000, 100000 of the race. Do
not let the church by a spirit of ex-
clusiveness keep the world out Let
down all the bars. swing open all the
gatSs, scatter all the invitations.
whatsoever will, let him come" Come,
white and black. Come, red men of
the forest. Come, Laplander. out of
the snow. Come, Patagonian, out of
the south. Come in furs. Come pant
ing under palm leaves. Come one.
Come all. Come now. AS at this well
of Mesopotamia Jacob and Rachel
were betrothed, so this morning at this
well of salvation Christ, our Shep-
herd, will meet you coming up with
your long fiocks of cares and anxieties,
and he will stretch out his hand in
pledge of his affection while all heaven
will cry out: Behold. the BRIDE
groom cometh! Go we out to meet
him."
Why Some Are Kept Back.
Here is another man who is kept
back from this water Of life by the
stone Of an obdurate heart which lies
over the mouth Of the well. You have
no more feeling upon this subject than
II God had yet to do you the first
kindness or you had to do God the
first wrong. Seated on his lap all
these years. his everlasting arms shell
tering you, where Is your gratitude?
Where is your morning and evening
prayer? Where are your consecrated
lives? I say to you, as Daniel said to
Belshazzar, ''The God in whose hand
thy breath Is, and all thy way, thou
hast not glorifed." If you treated any
body as badly as you have treated God,
you would have made 500 apologies;
yea, your whole life would have been
an apology. Three times day you
have been seated at Gods table.
Spring. summer, autumn and winter
he has appropriately appareled you.
" l.