Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1904-01-18
TALMAGE
SERMON
BY Rev.
FRANK DE WITT TALMAGE, DID,.
- Pastor Of Jefferson Park Presby-
terrain Church. Chicago

Los Angeles, Cal, Jan. 17.-How TO
kindle and keep alive in the heart the
divine flame which energies and spir-
atualizes the whole life is the preachers
theme in this discourse, which deals
with a practical religion for everyday
people. The text is | Thessalonians ',
xix, "QuencR not the Spirit"
The mighty phrase maker Paul Is a
coiner OF many superlatives, He is no
stupid platitudinarian. Everyday, com
monplace, insipid, tasteless comparisons
have for him no attraction. He never
harnesses duh eyed and spawned axi-
oms 10 his verbal chariot His forge is
always redhot; his arms are cranes,
his hammers pile drivers, his doors
floodgates; his streams are fathomless,
onrushing rivers of molten iron; his
sparks are stars, and his seconds mil
lenniums,
We would, for our present lesson, use
one Of PauTs impressive, significant
words His ~quench" has a superla-
tive meaning. 1t is one Of those sharp
pointed verbal chisels which can open
adamantine rock and in cutting power
outdiamopd the diamond. 1t is one Of
those intense lurid words which pic
ture their thoughts in cofors Of blood.
ITO Quench" means 10 smother, as
mother would extinguish the flames
consuming the dress of her burning
child by wrapping about the fiimsy
garments heavy, wet blanket, jerked
from off the clothesline. ITO quench"
means to deluge, to submerge, as the
Johnstown fires were put out when
the Conemaugh dam broke In that
word -'quench" Paul s1artlingly warns
all believing Christians against the
sin OF extinguishfng the power of the
Holy Spirit, which is now burning
within them as living flame. "Quench
not the Spirit is the command to the
Thessalonians. Smother not the di-
vine flames.
A Practical Question.
Now come the practical questions:
How do many believing Christians
open the 60odgafes of sin and drown
cut their spiritual fires? How do many
Of our new converts chill their holy en-
1husiasm and dry their cheeks, wet
with penitent tears and harden again
their hearts in sin? First and fore
most, by neglectfDg Gods place of pub
lie worship. By turning their backs
upon the Sunday church services. By
claiming that they can pray to God
just as well at home as in the week
night prayer meetings By asserting
that the communion of the saints in
n building which has been dedicated
to God as ~house of prayer is not
essential for tTne spiritual life. No
true convert should ever be guilty of
casting a slur upon the public altar Of
Jesus Christ. 1t is hard work for q
live coal to keep warm and to remain
a live coal outside of the CRATE. 1t is
hard work for a warm hearted, loving
Christian to remain a spiritual live
coaT' unless he continually lives in
close contact with other loving Chris
tianS 1t is by the commingling of
prayers that the best layer is pro-
dueed 1t is by the commingling of
testimonies that the Lest testimony
springs from our lips It is by 1.-The
foOlishness'' Of preaching that sinners
are saved. Yest And also by the fool
ishness of preaching that they are
brought nearer week by week to the
personality of Jesus Christ.
II public worship is not essential fol-
spiritual life. why did God decree tha-
Moses should build a tabernacle a:
soon as the hosts of Pharaoh had found
a watery grave in the depths of The
Red sea? At that tabernacle the He
brews were compelled TO worship. Il
not essential, why did Christ during
his earthly ministry again and agaiI
go up TO Jerusalem to attend
the feasts and again and again 81
into the sYnagOgues to worship anC
TO pray? If not essential. why die
Christ command his disciples to as
semble in one place in Jerusalem anC
await the coming of the Holy Ghost
If not essential. why did the Puritan
and the pilgrim fathers place such EN-
phasis upon the attendance of thei
church members at the house of God
We can laugh at these stern faced set
tiers of New England. We can polk
fun at their blue laws" and theil
plain ways We can say that Cotton
Mather, their natural outgrowth. wa:
the instigator of the Salem witchcraf
prosecutions. But, laugh at the New
England PuritanS as we will, we know
they produced the highest type OF
spiritual men then known. We know
that for spiritual truth they were ready
TO die. We know that in order TO get
that truth in the public meeting house
they turned their backs upon the ole
world and faced the new. 1t was II
4sublic worship that the Puritan gospe
ths-ived. 1t is in public worship thai
the new convert should catch the glow
of the spiritual fires, which will make
ais heart warm toward God and his
fellow man.
Pablo worship Essential
= Public worship is absolutely essen
tfaI for the spiritual life of the average
man. Some years ago country boy
xroa Pfdin0 in the cars toward Phila