Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1903-02-12
TALMAGE
SERMON
BY Rev.
FRANK DE WITT TALMACE DID,.
Pastor of Jefferson Park Presby-
terrain Church, Chicago

'ul'dRO, fPD. Oh dis SERMON tle
preacher shows that the pew is no less
responsible for spiritual stagnation
than the pulpit and that n dumb pew
makes q dead church, while Il live. cor
dial, cooperating and Christ confessing
pew makes an effective pulpit and a
triumphant church. The text is John
tx, 16. There was a division among
them"
One day Lepaux. the great French
inidel. came to Napoleon. He said:
"Your majesty. I have evolved a new
religion which I call Tlcophilanthro-
ny. I know that it is a better gospel
than Christianity, hut the French peo-
Pee will not believe or accept it. What
is the matter? What shall | do?" The
great French mpcror turned and
smiled. Then he raised his arm and
placed his hand kindly upon his
friends shoulder as he answered: lie
pauX, there IS n trouble about your
new rcligion-you have no witnesses.
60 and open n few blinded eyes. Tn
stop some deaf ears. Straightcn some
crooked limbs. Raise the dead. BE
crucificd and buried. Rise again from
the grave. On the third day appear
unto them who put you to death. Then
the people will accept your religion
md believe in you as they believe in
Jesus Christ. Icpaux. it is by your
witnesses that your new religion must
win its way into the hearts of the
people, not by your theories" Napo-
leon was right. The gospel of Jesus
Christ is to be carried TO the farther
most parts of the world by the power
of gospel testimony. not by theories.
not by arguments, not by n brilliant
collection of metaphysical or polcmical
dissertations.
An illustration of this statement is
furnished by the scene of my text.
There was great excitement in the &C.
clcsiastical world of Jerusalem. The
pharisccs. the members of the sanhc.
tlrin and the priests had conclusivcly
settled it with themselves that Jesus
Christ was a frand, Il charlatan. an alb
surd pretender. But one day there was
brought into their presence. seeing, 4
man who had been born blind. In all
probability they knew him, for he had
''Nh wv VI tit btESuIN VIII tbph lhtlI
stand ear the temple gate. Every
II who went to the temple knew him.
"Who opened your eyes, one of the
learned doctors asked in surprise. "No
man ever lived before who. having
been born blind, received sight on this
side of the grave" When the young
mar answered Jesus" the priests and
their hirelings were beside themselves
with rage. They threatened him.
They browbcat him. They excommu.
nicatod him. AT last they entirely lost
their reasoning faculties and common
sense. They practically cried aloud:
1--WE do not believe that Jesus opened
those eyes, Away with this fellow
called Jesus, Away with him, Away
with him. But some of these learned
FhariSccS could not be put off by any
such superficial condemnation. Me
thinks | can hcar a learned doctor say
to some Of his friends: 81 do not know
about this. Perhaps we may have been
WRONG. Perhaps this new teacher aft
or all is the promised Messiah. Ger
tainly no other human being could
over work such miracles" And there
was a division among them the
same kind of a division which will oc-
cur among worldly men today if the
hombshcll of consccratcd Christian tes-
timony can only be hurled among them.
Are We Ready to Give Testimony;
A practical application Of this prin-
Cple is now facing us. on" and all.
Are we Christian men and women
ready TO give our gospel testimony
wherever we 90? Arc We ready TO tell
what JESUS Christ has lone for u.s.
Ready, even though it may bring upon
lis sheer and ridiculc? Ready, though
it should involve prosecutions and os-
tracism? Ready as the young man of
old was ready who stood up and wit
messed before the priests and the Phar-
iseeS, when he made n division among
them:
Would that the dumb spirit would
come out of the lay members in the
Christian churches. Everywhere we
hear the question being asked: What
il the matter with our churches? Is it
that the pulpit is losing its powcr?'
oh, no; the pulpit is not losing lis pow.
or. There are more consecrated minis
ters today thar ever before More
brilliant and we'll developed heads and
hearts are yearly being trained in our
theological seminaricS than even he
fore. More eloquent sermons are being
preached from the sacred desk on this
Sabbath than on any Sunday of any
other generation that ever lived. What,
then, is the matter? The pulpit has
not lost its old power, but the pew
has abandoned its duty. The great de.
feet of the church today Is that the
pew has relegated to the pulpit nearly
all its public duties, of preaching as
well as public praying, as it has de.
pended on the choir for its singing.
The result is that when the pew ceases
TO speak the message of the pulpit is
neglected. The pulpit of the Lord Jc-
sus Christ is today grooming under the
weight Of h infinite load which the
pew has piled upon it. No church is
today a consecrated evangelistic church
unless it has in its pews men who by
life and testimony are preaching evan
CYCLISTS as well as gospel ministers who
stand behind the sacred desk. Jesus
Christ is today speaking to the silent
pews in the same way as he spake unto
thc dumb devil Of old that was cursing
the life OF a young child. He said IN