Connecticut western news., 1901-03-28
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WASHINGTON, March "a. - This dis
course Of DIR. Talmage Is most peril
effort for religious awakening is being
made; text, Luke v, 6, "They inclosed
great multitude of fishes, and their
net brake"
Simon and his comrades had expert
enced the night before what fishermen
call poor luck" Christ steps on board
the fishing smack and tells the sailors
to pull away from the beach and d.
reefs them again to sink the net. Sure
enough, very soon the net Is full of
fishes, and the sailors begin to haul In.
So large school of fishes was taken
that the hardy men begin to look red
In the face as they pull, and hardly
have they begun to rejoice at their sue
cess when snap goes thread of the
net, and snap goes another thread, so
there Is danger not only of losing the
fish, but of losing the net.
; Without much care as to how much
the boat tits or how much water Is
splashed on deck the fishermen rush
about gathering up the broken meshes
of the net. Out yonder there is ship
dancing on the waves, and they hail 1t:
"Ship ahoy! Bear down this way|
The ship comes, and both boats, both
fishing smacks, are filled with the
Houndering treasures.
"Ah," says some one, "how much bet
ter 1t would have been If they had staid
on shore and fshed with q hook and
line and taken one at a time instead of
having this great excitement and the
boat almost upset and the net broken
and having to call for help and getting
sopping wet with the seap
The church is the boat, the gospel Is
the net, society Is the sea, and a great
revival Is a whole school brought in at
one sweep Of the net. l have admira-
ton for that man who goes out with
hook and line to fish. l admire the way
he unwinds the reel and adjusts the
bait and drops the hook In quiet place
on q still afternoon and here catches
one and there one, but like also big
boat and large crew and a net a mile
long and swift oars and stout sails and
a stifr breeze and a great multitude of
souls brought - so great a multitude
that you have to get help to draw it
ashore, straining the net to the utmost
until 1t breaks here and there, letting a
few escape, but bringing the great null
tltude into eternal safety.
Work of Saving Men.
In other words, believe In REVEALS.
The great work Of saving men began
with 1900 people joining the church In
one day, and 1t will close with forty or
a hundred million people saved In "a
hours when nations shall be born In a
day. But there are objections to re-
vivals. People are opposed to them be-
cause the net might get broken, and If
by the pressure of souls 1t does not get
broken, then they take their own pen
knives and slit the net. "They inclosed
q great multitude of fishes, and the net
brake"
1t Is sometimes opposed to revivals of
religion that those who come into the
church at such times do not hold out.
As long as there is gale of blessing
strong winds stop blowing then they
drop into dead calm. But what are the
facts In the case? In all our churches
the vast majority of the useful people
are those who are brought In under
great awakenings, and they hold out.
Who are the prominent men In the
United States In churches, In prayer
meetings, In Sabbath schools? For the
most part they are the product of great
awakenings.
I have noticed that those who are
brought into the kingdom of God
through REVEALS have more persistence
and more determination In the Chris
tian life than those who come In under
low state Of religion. People born in
an icehouse may live, but they will
never get over the cold they caught in
the icehouse. A cannon ball depends
upon the impulse with which it starts
for how far 1t shall go and how swiftly,
and the greater the revival force with
which a soul Is started the more far
reaching and far resounding will be the
execution.
But 1t Is sometimes objected to reviv-
ais that there Is SO much excitement
that people mistake hysteria for reli-
gion. We admit that In every revival
Of religion there Is either a suppressed
or a demonstrated excitement. Indeed,
mn Of OF n 70 Of n
demnation into state of acceptance
with God or see others go without any
agitation of soul he Is in an unhealthy,
morbid state and is as repulsiye and
absurd as a man who should boast he
saw child snatched out from under q
horses hoofs and felt no agitation, or
saw a man rescued from the fourth
story Of house on fire and felt no &C
celebration Of the pulses.
Salvation from sin and death and
hell into life and peace and heaven for
ever Is such tremendous thing that II
= man tells me he can look on 1t with
out any agitation doubt his Christian
ity. The fact Is that sometimes excite.
ment is the most important possible
thing. In case of resuscitation from
drowning or freezing the one idea Is tc
excite animation. Before conversion
we are dead. 1t is the business of the
church to revive. arouse, awaken, re
suscitate, startle into life. Excitement
is bad or good according to what II
makes us do. II 1t make us do thai
which Is bad. 1t Is bad excitement. but
II 1t make US agitated about our eternal
welfare, IL 1t make us pray, If it make
us attend upon Christian service, IL II
make US cry unto God for mercy, then
1t Is a good excitement.
Youthful Christians.
1t Is sometimes said that during re-
vivals Of religion great multitudes OF
children and young people are brought
into the church, and they do not know
what they are about 1t has been my
observation that the earlier people
come into the kingdom of God the more
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