The Yale expositor., 1902-04-04
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
CHRISTIAN DEATH AS THE EN-
TRANCE TO FULLER LIFE.
EIoquent Easter Discourse Preached from
Corinthians, Death Il swallowed Up
In vietory''-wby should We Doubt
That Col Can Raise Is from Deathg

Washington. March 3O.-The Chris
tlan view Of death as the entrance to
n fuller life Is presented In this Eas-
ter discourse by DR.. Talmage from the
text / Cor xv. 81. Death is swallowed
mp In victory"
About 1.S7O Easter mornings have
wakened the earth. The royal court
OF the Sabbaths Is made up OF fifty-
two. Flfty-one are princes in the
royal household. but Easter Is queen.
She wears richer dladsm, she sways "a
moro jeweled scupter. and in her
smile nations are irradiated. How
welcome she IS when. after a harsh
winter aad late spring. she seems to
step out OF the snow bank rather than
the conservatory. 10 como out Of the
north instead OF the south. out OF the
arctic rather than the tropics. dis
mounting from the icy equinox. but
welcome this quecnly day. holding
high In her right hand the wrenchei
of bolt OF Christs sepulcher and hold
ing high In her left hand the key 10
all the cemeteries In Christendom.
My text Is an ejaculation. II Is spun
out OF halleluahs. Paul wrcte on In
his argument about the resurrection
and observed all the laws OF logic. but
when he came To write the words u
the text his fingers and his pen and
the parchment on watch he wrote took
fire. and he cried out. Death is swal-
lowed mp in victory" IL Is an eXcii-
ing thing TO see an army routed and
nying. You have read OF the French
failing back from Sedan. OF Napoleon 3
track OF $4,000 corpses In the snow
banks OF Russia. OF the retreat OF our
armies from Manassas or Of the hyc
kings tumbliug over the rocks OF Beth
hOrGn with their armies while the hail
storms OF heaven and the swords OF
Joshua's host struck them with their
fury.
In my text IS a worse discontinue.
10 seems that a black giant proposed
20 conquer the earth lie gathered for
his hosts all tho aches and pains and
malarias and cancers and distomper5
and epidemics OF the ages. lie march
ed them down. drilling them in the
northwest wind and amid the slush OF
tempcsts. lie threw up barricades Of
grave mound. lie pitched .ent OF char
nal house. Some OF the troops march
ed with slow tread commanded by
consumptions. some in double quick
command OF pneumonlas. Some he
took by long besiegement OF evil habit
and some by one stroke Of the battleax
OF casualty. With bony hand he
pounded at the door OF hospitals and
sickrooms. and won al the victories In
all the great battlefelds OF all of the
hvc continents. Forward. march
ordered the conqueror OF conqueroys,
and all the generals aud commanders
IN chief and all the presidents and
lNlugs and suitans and cZgrs dropped
under the feet OF his war charger. But
one Christmas night his antasonis,
was born.
As most OF the plaques and sick
ncsges and despot.sms como out of the
cast. (. was appropriate that the new
conqucror should come out OF the sme
quarter Power Is given him % awak-
en- all the fallen OF all the centuries
and OF all lands and marshal them
against the black giant Fields have
already been won. but the last day
OF the worlds existence will sec the
decisive battle when Christ shall
lead forth his two brlgadcs. the bTi-
gade OF the risen dead and the brigade
OF the celestial host. the black giant
will fall back. and ,he brigade from
the riyen sepulchers will take him
from beneath. and the brigade OF des-
conding immortals VIII take him
from above. and death shall be swal-
lowed up In victory.
The old antagonist Is driven back
into mythology with all the lore about
Stygian ferry and Charon with oar
and boat. Mclrose abbey and Kenil-
worth castle are no more In ruins than
Is the sepulcher. We shall have no
moro 10 do with death than We have
with the cloakroom at governors or
a presidents levee We stop at such
cloakroom and leave In charge OF n
servant our overcoat. our overshoes.
our outward apparel. that we may not
be impeded In the brilliant round Of
the drawing room. Well. my friends.
when we go out OF this world we are
going 20 a Kings banquet and 20 re-
ception OF monarchs. and nt tho door
OF the tomb We leave the cloak OF flesh
and the wrappings with which we
meet the storms OF this world. At the
close OF an earthly reception. under
the brush and broom OF the porter, the
coat or hat may be handed 20 us bet
ter than when We resigned u. and the
cloak OF humanity will finally be ro-
turned 70 us improved aud frightened
and purified and glorlaed.
You and DO not want our bodies re-
turned as they are now. We want 70
get rid Of all their woakness.s end al
their sugceptlbilitIes 20 fatigue and all
their siowncss OF locomouJ2. We
want .hem put through a chemistry o!
soil ana leat ard cold and changing
seasons. out OF which God will recon
rtruct thCm "a much better than thCy