The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-02-26
DIR. TALMACE'S SERMON.
ex rHg Rgv. FRANk Dg wITT TALMAeE, ?. ..

, image" He crowned him with honor and glory aud made him to have dominion over the works of his hands, of which the moon and stars were only the works of Gods fingers. Thus we find that all the worlds were in one sense created for the great climax of all earthly creations, the advent of man. Is 1t incredible that, in order to work out his purposes for the human race, God should use these lower creations at his will?
 Mans Importance In Universe. If man is not more important than the stars, how can you account for the fact that Jesus Christ came to thls world to die for man? There are billions upon bil- lions of worlds. There worius above worlds. There are constellations upon consultations. These worlds are born; these worlds die. Every night the tele- scopic eye of the astronomer can see their funeral pyres burning. Yet is was not to reanimate perishing worlds that Jesus left heaven and suffered upon the cross. Our earth is but speek in the un- iverse, one of the smallest of the mill lions of worlds that are visible in the winters sky. yet it was for the redemp- ton of It's inhabitants that Jesus gave himself to suffer and die Does this not prove the importance of man? If a man is not more important than the stars, how can you account for the fact that weeks perhaps months before Jesus was born in the manager at Bethlehem God sent a stellar messenger to guide the wise men from the east? Would a star step out of it's course and with finger of light become guide to man? Does not the fact that a star was a messenger to man at the first Christmas morn prove to you that God has enrolled among the astronomical hosts mighty forces which, If necessary are ready to serve us and our interests? How this '.star of the east" was able to slip It's chains and run down the boulevards of the heavens we know not Some of the astronomers de- clare the star of the east' was not a single star at all. but in order to lead | those wise men God wheeled into line two three, perhaps fifty, a thousand, stars and focused all their lights upon the stony crib. But whether the star , in the east was a single star or twenty or a hundred stars, one fact we know God made the heavens, with their con- stellations, and they are at his command; !; they are his servants, and they do his will.
 But we are not compelled to put our world in harmony with worlds of mil- i lions and billions of miles away to find some of the mighty forces God Is able and willing to command for mans life and service, for mans safety temporal and safety spiritual We can .aear God speaking to man in the voice of the storm. We can see him smiling in the i laughing eyed sunbeams. Furthermore we may learn that this voice and this smile In answer to believing prayer will come for mans blessing if we only ask him for an atmospheric blessing. When one of the Princeton students once asked Dr. Alexander, Professor do you ever lose you faith in God?' he replied, "Nev- CT except when the wind is from the east" Yet we should know that God s greatest blessings can come to rescue man sometimes when the wind is from the east" Therefore you and as believing Christians have a right to pray for clear weather during a freshet l at times of drought we have a right to pray for rain. Thus if 1t is best for us God will answer our prayers atmos- pheric.
 That Strong East Wind.
 Gods power extendes to all meterolo- gical phenomena. Not yet have the wonders of the storm been reduced to a system. The weather bureaus prognosti- cations frequently fail As with Wash ington, as with Joshua, as with Moses, Gods hand is outstretched for the rescue of his people. What incident in history is so astonishing as that of the passage | of the Red Sea? The children of Israel, fleeing from Egyptian enslavement, were caught in a trap. In front of them was the sea. Behind the earth was shaken l with the revolving chariot wheels and the thunder of cavalry hoofs of the pur- ! suing soldiers of Pharaoh. What hap penod? Moses said: Fear not my child ren. fear not. God will rescue us" Moses then stretched out his hand over the sea and the Lord caused the sea to go back by "a strong east wind" In other words in answer to Moses prayer God sent a strong east wind, which blew back the waters so that the Israeltes might flee away from their masters. And to show 1 what the power of this east wind was Major General Tullock of the British army few years ago before the London Geograp phical society read paper ir which he declared that he stood a few years before in exactly the same place where those Isrealites were to have | crossed One night he felt a strong east wind blow. It blew so hard that in one night 1t blew back the waters anu Jeff the ships which were once riding at an chor stranded on dry land. God answer ed Moses prayer. He answered Il through the agency of the east wind.
 God exercises the same control over his I animate creation that he has over the winds, and With tnlS LOO, ne operates Ioi the benefit of his people. After the child ren of Israel had for months been living upon the mama in the wilderness they began to crave meat. They cried unto Moses: Give us flesh to eati Give 1s iesh!" What happened? The Bible says
 There went forth wind from the Lord and brought quails from the sea and lei them fall by the camp as 1t were two cubits high upon the face of the earth" This does not mean as MT. Hast ings declares. that the Lord by an east wind piled up dead quails against theil will straight toward the Isrealites The wind was so powerful that the birds heavy of body and short of wing. had tc fly low on account of the tornado. And as they flew low the men killed them God answered the prayers of Moses. He answered 1t in the shrieking of winds.
 Some Modern Miracles.
 But why go back in Biblical history tt find how God has aided his children ir the voice of the winds? What about thu Spanish armada under the "golder duke' Admiral Sidona, with its 129 ships defeated from invading British harbor' not by the English cannon, but by tho tornado which swept the English channe in 1888? What about the storm whicf