The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-08-23
DR. TALMAGE'S SERMON.
BY THE REV. FRANK DE WITT rALMAeE. D. D.

in our gospel faith and in our Christian lives.
 In the fourth chapter of Mark, Christ compares Christian work to a sower going forth to SOW. Some of that seed will sure ly fall upon good ground which will yield some thirty some sixty, some a hundred fold. It must reproduce itself multipo- tently in the human lives of the succeed ing generations. hen Dwight L. Moody died did his work die? Without doubt MT. Moody was the greatest evangelist of the past century His personality not only appealed to sinners. but also to the great Christian workers of his day. His voice and pen raised vast sums of money for Christian work. He was gospel messen- ger who stirred England and America on his ovangelistic tours He built the famous Moody institute at Chicago. He built the famous institutes at Northfield He gath cred among the Massachusetts hills col lege men as well as ministers in annual conference for prayer and communion with God and for the study of the Bible. Suddenly, aye, as a flash, Mir. Moody was struck down by the death angel. One day on his way to hold great evangelstic ser vices in Kansas City, the next day upon his death bed. What was the result of Mir. Moodys death? Has any great evangelist been found to take his place? ''Ah, mo-" you answer, 1iOl ODtf uDl biit. M tils my friend if no one has been able to take MT. Moody's place I can tell you this one truth MT. Moody when living was never as powerful as MT. Moody when dead. The Chicago institute and Moody church have never been great as they are today. The institutions at Northfleld were never doing better work than at the present time. And, what is more the very sum- mer after MT Moody died the mightiest NnrfhGa1d Rno ttta to that time was held, in spite of the fact that the most eloquent tongue and the best poised brain and the biggest heart Northheld ever produced were lying s- lent in the grave. MT. Moody's gospel seed planting yielded forth some thirty, some sixty and sum a hundred fold. It was Gods work, and Gods work alone.
 God VIII Bless Our Work.
 When Charles H. Sturgeon died did his work die? Oh, mo- God is still blessing the mission of the Metropolitan taberna- cle and of the London's Pastors college. He is still blessing the work of Charles H. Sturgeon because 1t was intrinsically inspired by the Holy Writ He Is blessing it through Spurgeon's successors. God will raise us up as modern Joshuas if we only Hive for Him. He will bless in our lives the work of the Christian men and women with whom we have come into contact in the past. He will make us an essential link in a great chain of Christian influences which shall reach through all eternity.
 God will bless the lives of modern Chris tian workers even through the death of His servants. Death is often a spiritual pruning hook It lops off certain branches of the great tree of the human race in or- der that other branches may develop and grow. We are all ready to recognize the usefulness of a pruning hook in a tempor- al sense. Why can we not do this in spiritual sense?
 To the spiritual wealkling the death of the strong Christian is not always a mis- fortune, but blessing. Let me illustrate this truth in a simple way Some years ago there lived in your town noble, true man, who was the father of large fam fly. Suddenly he died. The friends who came Into the bereft home not only sym pathized with the widow because she had lost her husband, but because she seemed to have no visible means of support. Her eldest son was a nothing. He was hotz house plant. He had depended in the past entirely upon his father. Mentally and morally he seemed to be entirely unfitted to assume the responsibilities of the home. But hardly had the father died when a change came over the boy. In- stead of being a clinging vine he stiffened into a stalwart oak. He went to work to supply bread for that family of little ones. He became the staff upon which his moth CT leaned. It was the death of his father that developed him. It was the hillock of a paternal grave by which the son was able to find his stepping stones to throne. God, I believe. often uses the sharp pruning hook of death to spiritually develop his undeveloped children. He takes away his Moses in order to throw the spiritual responsibilities upon his Joshuas. He says to us one and all: Tt is not right for you, oh, young man, to learn to lean upon your fathers and mothers spiritual life! You must learn to lean upon my divine arm, and mine alone. And in the leaning will protect thee and care for thee. as did for your Christian parents"
 The Sweetest Notes of God.
 The sweetest gospel music is more of ten found to be the echo of a dirge than to come from a fantasia or a serenade or a dithyramb Mozart's Last Requiem" composed for his own obsequies, was his masterpiece. A beautiful legend teaches this: Many years ago a German knight wanted to change the towers of his cas- tie into a great aeolian harp. When the strings were first strung from the towers no sound came therefrom. No note was struck because the slender fingers of the spirits of the summer winds were not strong enough to bend the strings all though they were able to lightly touch them. But when winter came. then the blzzards had wrists punched with mus cles. With the strong touch of musical masters they began to run the gamut of every scale. Accompanied by the shriek- ings of the tornadoes, the strings of the castled towers began to vibrate and send forth the sweetest of melodies. God sounds His sweetest notes upon the harp strings of our spiritual hearts when we seem to be the most weak and helpless. He often develops Ills children by the pruning hook of trouble. He makes us lean heaviest upon the divine heart when our own hearts have been gashed open by the gravedigger's spade. and when the dark nights of sorrow have obliterated all consultations save the one star which gleamed over the Bethlehem crib on the night that Jesus was born.
 When Eloquence Meant Silence.
 We can prove this statement by re- counting the history of the famous reviv- al services held among the students of Edinburgh few years ago. Henry Drum- mond of blessed memoryl Henry Drum mond. whose chief mission was given to the redemption for Christ of student life, gave an account of this movement on his last visit to this country A couple of ot1iatas of tho ITnivaraItv nf E1iuhurQ1