The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1904-05-29
THE BULLETINS SUNDAY SERMON
BY REV. FRANK DE WITT TALMAoE, D. o.

| ful treasures wh,cn were TO be cOnse.
Grated to the Lord. His first step in
the downward path which ended in his
destruction was taken when he rose
from among his sleeping comrades. and,
slipping past the guards, he wendell his
way among tie shattered walls of the
captured city. 1t was one act for
Achan with sword and spear and Shield
to fight his way into that doomed cap
ltal, swarmlng with enemies, but it
was another act, after the battle was
won for this brave soldier to arise at
night and crawl past the sentinels ana
begin to examine the spoils which were
not his and by right never could be
his. 1t is one act, and Il commemorate
act, for young physician ut the call
of duty to go down TO the place of evil
resort in a large city to help some suf
ferer Frustrated by physical inGrmlty.
Ii Is another act, and a very dangers
Gus act, for a young man or a young
riosity, to join stunning party to
look upon vice ana gloat over it as a
spectacle Sometimes temptations come
to man in the ordinary walks of life,
but in nearly every case, as with
Achan temptations TO sin most sue
cessfully aSsail a man when that man
is ldling in a place where he has no
business TO be.
Let me illustrate my thought from
an old scene In the Bible. How often
has the downfall of David been the
How he eNults over the spectacle of
the shepherd boy who conquered Co
Hath and climbed TO the throne of
Israel, yielding to his infatuation for
woman. Yes, yes he says, men
are all alike; the best of men are vile
at heart Here is the sweet psalmist
of Israel the perfect specimen of noble
manhood, the man after Gods own
heart, so enSlaved by his guilty pas
sion for another mans wife that lie
Stays the husband to get possession of
her. No man is to be trusted
Why David sinncd.
Is that your idea OF men? Then, my
brother and sister, you have not read
human nature Alright All men are not
bad But all men will be bad if they
do not stick scrupulously 10 the work
God has given them to do. The reason
David sinncd was not because he look
ed upon 'BathShcba the wife Of Uriah.
the IIittte." The reason David sinned
was because, like Achau among the
Jericho spollS, he was iGliug ut home
instead of being with his army. In
the first verse of The eleventh chapter
of ii Samuel we read the secret of
the whole sinful story; And it came
TO pass after the year was expired, at
that David sent Joab" That sentence
means simply this: When the time Of
military campaign Cane-the time
when David ought to have taken the
field and led on his own troops to bat
tle-hc sent substitute and stayed ut
home The beginning Of his danger
was not IN looking nj Bathshcba, who
was the wife Of Uriah, the Ilttite, but
in being like Achan, among the Jericho
spols, in a place where he had no
right TO be.
My brother, whom God calls you to 10
work, he will always give you
strength to resist the sinful tempta-
lions incident to that work But when
you 80 to place where You have no
right to go, you are liable to expert
encc that lust Of the eye which may be
the beginning Of long succession Of
other sins.
Young man, beware Of the tempta-
ton to absent yourself from the post
of duty. Beware, when Sabbath day
comes around, if your minister does not
see you in the house Of God. You may
say you are tired. You may say you
will stay at home and read the Bible
and have your deyotions in yo0r room,
but beware. In coming to large city
do not let your new made friends on
flee you into Il saloon. just to look at
the beautiful pictures upon the walls,
and the expensive mosaics on the
floors, and the gorgeous rugs and the
fine set banquets in The gambling balls
1t is doubtful whether the step some
cities have taken Of ordering the re-
moval Of screens from the doors and
the lifting of curtains from the win
dows Of saloons on Sundays has not
its disadvantages. Ii enables the pc
Gicrman 10 sec whether business is' be-
ing done in the prohibited hours, and
is so fac an advantage. but it makes
conspicuous the decorations aud at
fractions Of those places. and so tends
to allure p'ssersby to visit them when
they are open. Sin SO often begins in
the looking on temptation that the
safest course for every one is to avoid
the spectacle of it as far as possible
Achnn's First step.
Achan's eye step" in the next place
was followed by his 'eoyetogs step%
We say that the sin of covetousueSs is
only one step beyond tie first sin. But
the second step Of Achan's sin Is oven
more dangerous than the first stage.
The one may be jhe bare. repulslye
branch. with its sap frozen and con
gealed hy the frosts of winter The
other may be the spring blossoms
1. 4. -,