Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1901-05-17
CHRISTIAN WORKERS.
DR.. Talmage Talks About Workers for
the Lord Who Are Religious
Rlunderers.
How to Be Skilliul in Spiritual Archery.
More Backbone Needed.
fcopyright 1901


DIR, Talmage urges all Christian workers
TO increased fidelity and shows how much
effort at doing good fails through lack of
adroitness; text, Genesis x, 9, He was
mighty hunter before the Lord
In our day hunting is a sport. but in the
lands and the times infested of wild beasts
1T was matter of life or death with the
people 1t was very different from going
out on sunshiny afternoon with patent
breechloader to shoot reed birds on the
flats when Pollux and Achilles and Do
medes went out to clear the land of hons
and panthers and bears. Xenophon grew
eloquent in regard to the art of hunting.
In the Far East people, elephant mounted
chased the tiger. Francis L. was called the
father OF hunting. And Moses in my text,
sets forth Nimrod as a hero when it pre-
sents hlm with broad shoulders and shaggy
apparel and n-browned face and arm
punched with muscle mighty hunter
before the Lord" | think he used the
bow and the arrows with great success
p-acticing archery.
1 have thought if it is such a grand
thing and such brave thing to clears wild
beasts out of a country If it is not a bet
ter and Drawer thing to hunt down and de
stroy those great evils of society that are
stalking the land with fierce eye and
bloody paw and sharp tusk and quick
spring. l have wondered if there is not
such thing as gospel archery, by which
those who have been flying from the truth
may be captured for God and heaven. The
Lord Jesus Christ in His sermon used the
art OF angling for an illustration when He
said, Il will make you fishers of men,"
And so / think have authority for using
hunting as an illustration of gospel truth,
and l pray God that there may be many a
man enlisted in the work who shall begin
to study gospel archery, of whom 1t may,
after awhile, be said He was mighty
hunter before the Lord"
How much awkward Christian work
there is done in the world! How many
good people there are who drive souls
away from Christ instead OF bringing
them to Him. All their fingers are thumbs
religious blunderers who upset more
than they right. Their gun has crooked
barrel, and kicks as it goes off. They are
like clumsy comrade who goes along with
skillful hunters. At the very moment he
ought to be most quiet he is cracking
alder or falling over a log and frightening
away the game. How few Christian people
have ever learned how the Lord Jesus
Christ at the well went from talking about
cup of water TO the most practical relig-
ious truths, which won the woman's soul
for Cod Jesus in the wilderness was
breaking bread to the people. I think it
was very good bread. 1t was very light
bread, and the yeast had done its work
thoroughly. Christ. after He had broken
the bread, said to the people Beware of
the yeast or of the leaven of the Phari-
sees" So natural transition It was, and
how easily they all understood Him. But
understand how to fasten the truths OF
God and religion to the souls of mem
The archers Of olden time studied their
art. They were very precise IN the mat
ter. The old books gave special directions
as to how an archer should 90 and as to
what an archer should do. He must stand
erect and firm, his left foot little in ad-
vance of the right foot. With his eft hand
he must take hold of the bow in the mid
die and then with the three fingers and
4bf fb,ty,, Nc toht h,pH hfa ehn IL "
hold the arrow and afhX 1t TO the string,
so precise was the direction given. But
how clumsy we are about religious work.
How little skill and care we exercise! How
often arrows mss the mark l am
glad that there are institutions estab-
hshed in many OF the cities of our land
where men may learn The art of doing
good-studyng spiritual archery and be
come known as mighty hunters before
the Lord
In the first place if you want to be ef-
fectual in doing good you must be very
sure OF your weapon. There was some
thing very fascinating about the archery OF
olden times. Perhaps you do not know
what they could 90 with the bow and at
row. Why, the chief battles fought by the
English Plantagenets were with the long
bow. They would take the arrow of pol
ished wood and feather it with the plume
OF bird, and then it would fly from the
boWstring OF plated silk The BLOODY
fields of Agincourt and Solway Moss anc
Neville's Cross heard the loud thrum o.
the archers bowstring. Now, my Chris
tlan friends, we have mightier weapon
than that. 1t Is the arrow OF the gospel
1t Is 4 sharp arrow; 1t is feaUhered from
the wing of the dove of Gods Spirit; i
flies from i bow made out of the wood O
the cross. As far as | can estimate or cal
cuate, 1t has brought down 00O00000 o
souls. Paul knew how to bring the motel
OF that arrow on TO the bowstring, and 1t
whlr was heard through the Cornthial
theatres and through the courtroom unit
the knees OF Felix knocked together.
1t WAS that arrow that stuck IN Luther
heart when he cried out: "Ob. my sins
Oh, my sins!' Ii ii strike man in tn
head 1t kills his skepticism; II it strk
HIM in the heel it will turn his step; if
strike him in the heart he throws up hi
hands, as did one of old when wounded i
IN the battle. crying, 20 Ga!;lean, Tho
hast conquered"
In the armory of the Earl of Penbrok
there are old corSelets which show tina
the arrow of the English used to G
through the breastplate, through the bod
OF the warrior and out through the bacl
plate. What a symbol of that gospel While
Is sharper than a two-edged sword, pier,
ing to the dividing asunder of soul an
body and of the joints and marrow! Woul
TO God we had more faith in that gospel.
The humblest man In the world, If
had enough faith in it, could bring hul
dred souls TO Christ-perhaps 500. Just
proportion as this age seems TO belie1
less and less in it believe more and MOI
in 1t. What are men about that they Wi
net accept their own dehveranceg Thei
Is nothing proposed by men that can Z
anything like this gospel
The religion of Ralph Waldo Emerso
was the philosophy of iccles; the relgic
of Theodore Parker was a sirocco of IL
desert, covering up the soil with dry SAM
the religion of Renan was the romance
believing almost nothing; the religion
the Huxleys and the Spencers is merely
pedestal which human philosophy ST
shivering in the night of the soul loolzil
up to the stars, offering no help to the n
tons that crouch and groan at the has
Tell me where there is one man who h
rejected that gospel for another who
thoroughly satisfied and helped and co
tented In his skepticism. and / viii ia
the car tomorrow and ride 500 miles to 5
him.
The full power of the gospel has not y
been touched. As a sportsman throws
his hand and catches the ball fyi
through the air, Just so easily will this q,