The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1902-01-24
TALMAGES SERMON.
MIRACLE or THE Ak HEAD WHICH
FLoATED At ElISHAs COMMAND.
Natures Laws Suspended to show tho
Power OF ood--Exampies OF Notable
Conversions strange as the TsEs "rhe
Iron Did swim"

Copyright 1907. by Louis Kiopsch. n. ~
Washington. Jan. l9.-In this dis
course DIR. Talmags makes practical
use OF an occurrence In tho orient
which has seldom attracted particular
attention: text. ii Kings. vi. q. The
iron did swim"
theological seminary In the vciley
OF palms. near the river Jordan, had
become so popular In the time OF
Elisha. the prophet, that more accom-
modntions were needed for the stu
dents. The classrooms and the dor
mitortes must be enlarged or an en-
tirely new building constructed. What
will they do? VIII they send up 10
Jerusalem and solicit contributions for
this undertaking. Having raised the
money. will they send for cedars Of
Lebanon and marble from the quar-
ries where Ahab got the stone for the
pillars and walls OF his palace? No;
the students propose TO build II them
selves. All they ask Is that Elisha.
their professor and prophet. go along
WIN hhNAH W AnU anu hgsn Ahf
job. They start for the work. Elisha
and his students. Plenty OF lumber
In those regions along the Jordan.
The sycamores are attacked by Eli
sha's students. for they must have
lumber for the new theological sem
mary. Crash goes one OF the trees
and another and another. But some
thing now happens so wonderful that
the occurrence will tax the credulity
OF the ages. so wonderful that many
still think Il never happened at all.
One OF the students. not able TO own
IN ax. had borrowed one. You must
remember that while the Ak OF the
olden time was much like our modern
AK. Il differed in the fact that instead
OF the hclve or handle being thrust
into a socket In the iron head the head
OF tho ax was fastened on the handle
by leathern thong. and so II might
slip the helvc. a student OF the sem
mary was swinging his AK against one
OF those trees. and the AK head and the
handle parted. Being near the river
side. the AK head dropped into the
river and sank TO the muddy bottom
Great was the students dsmay. II IL
had been his own AK. IL would have
been bad enough. but the AK did not
belong TO him. He had no means 20
buy another for the kind man who
had loaned IL 10 him. but God helps
the helpless. and he generally helps
through some good and sympathetic
soul. and In this case K vas Elisha,
who ~ss "a tse wcS,;s and on the rlv-
c. s=nk NJ the time. lie did not see
the Ak head hy on and so he asked
the student where II dropped lie was
shown the place where Il went down
into the river Then Elisha broke OF
n branch OF tree and threw Il into
the water. and the AK head rose from
tho depths OF the river aud hoated 20
the bank. so that the student had Just
90 stoop down and take up the re-
stored property. Now you see the
meaning OF my text. The iron did
swim"
Suppose a hundred years ago some
one had told people that the time
would come when hundreds OF thou
sands OF tons OF iron would float on
the Atlantic and Pacinc-lron ships
from New York TO Southampton. from
London Co Calcutta. from San Fran
cisco to Canton. The maa making
such prophecy would have been sent
20 an asylum or carefully watched as
incompetent TO go alone. We have all
in our day seen iron swim. Now. II
man can make hundreds OF tons OF
metal float. | am disposed 10 think
that the Almighty could make an AK
head float.
what" says some one. would be
the use OF such a mIracle?" or vast,
OF Infinite. of eternal Importance
Those students were preparing for the
ministry. They had Joined the theolog.
teal seminary 90 get all It's advantages.
They needed TO have their faith
strengthened; they needed 10 DO per-
sua led that God can do everything;
they needed to learn that God takes
notice OF little things; that there Is no
emergency OF life where he Is not will
ing 20 help.
hear from different sources tina,
there Is a great deal OF infidelity In
some OF the theological semInsrles OF
our day We think that most OF the
so-called miracles OF the Old and the
New Testaments were wrought by nat
ural causes. when those lniidels grad
uate from the theological seminary
and take the pulpits OF America as
expounders OF the Holy Scriptures.
what advocates they will be OF that
gospel Cor the truth OF which the mar
tyrs died Would 20 Cod that some
great revival OF religion might sweep
through all the theological seminaries
OF this land. confirming the faith OF
the coming oxpounders OF an entire
Biblel
Furthermore. In that scene OF tho
text God sanctions borrowing ana sets
forth the importance 81 returning
There are times when we have not
only a right 20 borrow. bat n Is a duty
TO borrow. There are times when we
ouphf IN Land for fshrfaf Ia hg. ..a..,.,,,.