Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1905-08-31
Calnnage
Sermon
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talma6e, D. d.

religion and shows the evil results OF
their example In social and business
life. The text Ia Revelation III, 10, IL
would that thou vert cold or hot"
God Is love- The Bible declares It.
Whether the divine Fathers children
are saints OF sinners they are still en-.
shrined in his parental affections.
Gods love Is like unto that Of the
earthly parent who one day overheard
his little girl saying to her brother,
Now. Charley, be good boy or papa
will not love you" With that, the
father answered: mo, Nellie, you
must not tell your brother that. do
not love you children because you are
good or hate you because you are bad.
! love you. whether you are good or
bad, because you are my children.
When you are good. then you make
me very happy. When you are bad.
then you make mo very sad. But
still love you just the same" God
loves his prodigals. though they are
rrodigals, but he loves his saints with
delighted Joy.
But, though God loves all hts chill
drcn. there Is one class about whom
he is especially concerned. As the wor-
ricd mother four or five times during
the night lights her lamp and goes
to look at the little sick patient and
to feel the brow Of the fevercd child
God again and again turns his anxious
eyes toward certain Of his hayward
ones. And where do you think these
divine eyes are most pleadingly look
ing! Toward the social outcasts? Oh,
no. ToVard the drunkards who are
staggering and hiccoughing toward
their filthy tenemcnts? No. Toward
the murdcrers in the criminal dock
about to he tried for their lives? No.
Toward the thief who in the evening
hours knocks down the pedestrian or
toward the safe breaker who with his
dark lantern * making his way
through the cellars of the bank he in
tends to rob? No. no. no. These sin
ncrs by the very enormity Of their
crimes may be led TO the mercy seat
~ WV WIZ SD al W. III llle' IIEiL
way. Gods mos yearning looks are
not turned toward those who are in
open rebellion against his name, but
toward those who are chronically and
Systematically Indifferent. Those who
are simply negative to the divine call
Of love are harder to reach than those
who deridc God OF curse him. Can
you make any other deduction than
this from Christs message to the
church members at Laodicea: OF all
the seven churches in Asia there was
not one more eAcOriated in Revelation
than was this church. OF all the east
ern churches there was not one from
outside appearance whose transgres-
sions were not more heinous.
Modern LaOdiceans.
Modern Iaodiccans. these sinners of
lukcwarm Christianity and telid mo.
rality at distance can be likened to n
beautifully polished mahogany or rose
wood table. TO the casual observer ii
seems to be worth almost its weight
in gold, but when you closely examine
Wv wa iiii't IL 10 oiHIpIS NcllttTttl
with rosewood or mahogany, cut as
thin as paper. They are like contrary
winds. tantaizing the sea captain be.
Gained near the equator. Here 1t Is
a little puff Of wind, yonder it is a
little puff, off 10 the west is another
little puff. All these little pufrs come
from different directions. But before
the ships sail can be trimmed and
filed, like the checks OF schoolboy
blowing soap bubbles, these puffs of
wind die away and the ships keel
moves not. They are like people of
shallow Christian experience whom
Christ describes under the figure of
grain growing or stony ground which.
on account OF the scarcity of soil COW
ering the roots, dies before the mcrid-
ian has been reached by the sun in the
heavens. Now, the purpose Of this
sermon Is To describe some of the
causes Of the languid condition Of
these modern Laodiceans. am not
today going to preach to the great sin
ners or to the great saints, but to
those who are simply lukrwarm or
negative or appallingly Indifferent to
Gods love and Gods commandments.
May God help me to move some out of
their sinful lethnrgy. May he fire with
holy zeal the lukcwarm hearts Of our
modern Laodiceans, whom Christ de
nounces with Gods bitterest contempt
and scOrn and opprobrium.
The appalling negativeness Of my
text can well be applied. In the first
place. to those of weak kneed theology.
1t can be applied to those who cannot
quite make up their minds whether
Christ Is God or very good man.
whether Christ is the only begotten
Son Of the Father" or merely one of
many different manifestations of Gods
love Of whom Mohammed and Confu-
cius and Buddha and Vishnu are other
manifestat and almost as good.
With the old southern mammy's ideas
of Christ they are in heartiest SYM
pathy. When her young mistress. lit.
tie child died and the frantic mother
Thought her daughter was lost forever,
The old slave said: Honey, darlin'. ye
amt right. Oars drefful mistake
somewhar. Why, de Lord amt like
what We think. He loves ye. honey.
Why. 5es' see how loves ye. an
amt bettern him as made mo. Oar
jes' ain't but one ting to come to, an
dat ars Jesus. Jes' come right down
to whar dis pore old darky has to stay
alters. It's good place, darlin'. Look
right at Jesus. Oars a God ye can
love." Oh. yes, these mon OF weak