Milford chronicle., 1904-08-26
Calmaqe
Sermon
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmaae, D. D.

the larger freedom of the spiritual
world are picturesquely contrasted.
The text is John viii, 81, THE truth
shall make you free"
The word freedom has a charming
sound. Like unto a xylophone, each
one of its letters seems to be a golden
bar. Like unto a silver thrOated trum-
pet. its voice sounds just as enchant-
ing I'm the rich mans palace as in
the peasants hut Like unto the pleas
ants call for his mate, it seems to rec
Ognize no government save the scepter
of love. Like unto the aeolian harp,
which emits its most thrilling notes
when the wintry storms throb through
its strings, this word freedom never
has a more plaintive melody than when
it is uttered by beings who pine for it
while they cringe under the lash Of the
taskmaster and spend their lives in
the bondage of tyrants at whose word
they may have to die.
There have been orators whose tones
were so penetrating and impressive
that the words they uttered took new
and deeper meaning. 1t was said of
George Whitefeld, the famous evan
eelist, that his voice was of such COM
pass and pathos that he could melt an
audience into tears by the intonation
he could throw into the word Meso-
potamia. But 1t is not by melodiOus
tones that the word freedom reaches
tile heart most powerfully, but by the
heroic deeds of men who have suffered
and died TO win the blessing for their
people It was thus uttered by Spar
tacus. the Roman slave and gladiator,
when he led the insurTection against
the throne of the Caesars and offered
as a lbation for that word his own
blood, which was shed upon the battle
field of Silarus i'm Il Is. c. We can
hear it thus spoken i'm the clarion calls
of n Bernardo O'Higgins, the great lib
orator of Chile or of a Toussaint Lou
vertme fighting for the liberty of Haiti,
OF of q Maceo dying for Cuba, or of u
Garibaldi struggling for the liberation
of his beloved Italy.
o freedom. thou art more than a
mere word, Thou art a strong armed
angel Of light. breaking the shackles Of
the slave, unmuzzlng the lips Of the
patriot. lifting the shadow from the
home. Under this benignant rule every
mans abode is his castle, surrounded,
like the ancient fortresses of the old
world. with the moat whose waters
were impassable to the minions of a
king Thou art the messenger of God,
who would place the coronation robes
around every human shoulder. Thou
wouldst put the crown of gold upon ev-
cry manly or womanly brow as thou
dost say: Man, lift high thy forehead,
for thou art king! Woman, God has
made thy head the resting place for a
diadem which is the equal Of the crown
that l have placed upon thy husbands
brow" Yes, yes; no word in all the
English language has more potent
sound than that of freedom, for, as God
gave TO King Solomon everything a
prince could want because the young
king had asked of him wisdom so
every good thing in life is accessible to
the earnest aspiring soul when free
dom removes the barriers to its flight.
What Is FreedOms
But as l began to study my text
asked myself this important question:
"What is freedom?" Is it unbridled IL
cense? Does it practically say, Man,
you are free; therefore you can do as
you win, no matter what your desire
may beT" Does it mean an emancipa-
tion proclamation which liberates from
obedience to all law? When, on Jan. 1,
1868. Abraham Lincoln in the White
House signed his name to the famous
state paper which declared that all
black men and black women under the
stars and stripes ARE and henceforth
shall be free" it did not mean that the
negro was set free to follow his own
unbridled inclinations but that he
passed from under the control Of his
owner to be under the control Of the
same law that his owner himself has to
obey.
Freedom has its limitations. We
find those limitations in the physical,
the mental and the social as well as
in the spiritual world. Biologists find
them in the dumb brutes and in the
vegetable and mineral kingdoms as
well as in human society. Thus my
subject today, THE Limitations Of
Liberty" offers a wide scope for natu-
raj and spiritual investigation. and
shall endeavor to show that the only
true freedom that the spiritual man
can enjoy is in the surrender Of him
self to the service of Christ. In be
coming servant of Christ, in taking
his viii as the law of our lives. we are
set free from the dominion of sin and
enjoy the glorious liberty Of the chill
drca Of God
The physical man is surrounded by
limitations which, like impossible bars,
restrict him to a certain kind Of life.
If he tries to break out of the inclosure
he bruises and batters his body against
those bars l am not now alluding to
the penalties suffered by the gluttOn
and the drunkard, which are only too
obvious. There are penalties against
Overindulgence in legitimate courses.
A man may so devote himself to his
husiness or profession as to neglect the