Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1903-02-07
TAL~Iv1AGE
SERMON
BY Row.
FRANK De WITT TALMAGE. DID,.
Pastor Of Jefferson Park PreBby-
terian Church, Chicago

terian Cnuroh, Chicago
Chicago, Feb. /. - In this sermon
Pastor Talmage, while not excuslnl
the prodigal. throws Il new and search
ing light upon the character and con
duct of the elder brother Of the famous
parable. The text is Luke XIV. 2S. "And
he was angry" :.
Who was the prodigal's elder brotlt
or? 81 know who he is" answers sons
one. 81 see him almost every day Of
my life. He is the honest, upright sol
who stays at home and gets no credii
for being good; lie is the respectable
plodder of the family who does mos
of the hard work in the office, In ths
store and on the farm and then has the
extreme pleasure Of seeing all the
Young girls run after his dissolutf
Younger brother merely because thai
brother is driving fast horses and sow
ing his wild oats The elder brother
is the son who is always sober and ye'
receives he not one extra dollar from
his parents as n reward, while tho
drunken son of the family is continual
ly receiving extra money to get MS
clothes out of pawn, so that be may
have another start in life. The elder
is the good boy upon whom the moth
or depends to help give his sisters new
dresses for the winter parties. yet ne
never has n party given for him. lie
never had fatted c"lf killed that he
might entertain his friends, though FOL
years he has cared for the cattle by
dav and has seen that they were prop
erly MIXED at night. He is the 'gooC
boy who never had fine ring put OF
his finger The folks laughed at his
horny fingers. which were knotted from
handling the plow and welding the
hoe and the ak. His feet were never
for dancing slippers because
his sandals were always soiled anC
dirt begrinled. He was always work
ing I'm the fields. The drunkards. the
proAlgates. the midnight carousers, the
libertlnes and the associates Of lewC
are the ones who, wheI
they reform. have the smiles and th'
dancing parties given to them, not th'
older brothers who have never done
any wrong"
Some years ago young college
said to ne: "It never pays
to be good. When am good and stal
at home. then father and mother mere
ly take my goodness as a matter Of
course. but If only go off on Ions
carousal then nothing is too good To-
me when 1 come back home. Theret
lots of fun In being Il repentant prod
igal There is no fun in always beinl
O goody. goody boy. who never gets tn
fatted calf killed for his benefit" IN.
svmpathies have always been with TIN
elder brother in the parable" onc'
wrote John K. Paxton. the great New
York preacher. and the popular sym
pathv of the world from time imme
morial has been with the elder brothe
OF my text and rot with the repentan
herder Of the swine. who returned il
rags and as a besgar to his father
house
Two KfudH of Faults.
But neither Ct the brothers is por
trayed rs an example. Both wer'
bad. though in different ways. We cas-
lily see the faults Of the younger broth
er: they were open and scandalous: bu
the faults OF the elder brother, bein;
covered UP by dutiful con
duct. are not so easily recognized. IL
character on Gods lines w
have to AS, not only what man ha
done. hrt what he is Meanness ant
unlr0tlcr'ncsS aud cruelty in the hear
deface mans character as indelibl.
as open iuiquity. They make men, a
Christ said. Ike "whited sepulchers
which ind ocA appear beautiful outward
hut are within full of dead mems bone
and OF all uncleannpss. Therefore
place my chief emphasis upon the sin
ful life OF the elder brother, to shOv
that the 81 called respectable sins o
self righteousness are Of all sins tn
most to bp dreaded and that it is tn
duty of the preacher to warn his hear
ers against them.
The elder brother is the modern Phal
isee. who thanks God that he is not a
other men. lie cOmplacently look
upon the druukard and the social out
cast and the pauper and says to hi
friends: Just look at me. | never ha
any more advantages than those pee
pie have had was of high strung
impetuous nature. yet | never woul
let my evil desires get the better o
me. | have never been drunk. hav
never run up Il bill | was unable I
pay. never was a frequenter Of th
clubs. nor q convivial associate Of mic
night carousers. Indeed. to be fran
with you, have just about as goo
opinion of my moral attainments a
Prince Bismarck had Of his skill i
craftsmanship. When some one aske
the Iron Chancellor who he though
was the brainiest statesman in a
Europe. Bismarck replied: Modest
forbids my stating who is the brainies
because then might have to mentio
my own name. But am perfect
willing to state that Benjamin Di:
raeli is without doubt the secon
ablest statesman in all Europe Othe
saints" remarks the pharisalcal eide
brother. "mny be my equal in mora
attainments. but | am sure there is n
superior in ali the world to my humbl
self"
But my pharisacal friend, thOug
in one sense you may never have brC
ken the criminal code of your state. yt
there are more ways than one Of breal
ing the moral and the spiritual laws
Shylock. the outraged Jew. may hav
been legally an honorable man. but
the sight OF God and Of the communit
In which he lived Shylock was fen
and a murderer at heart. Like a paI