Milford chronicle., 1907-04-12
Calmage
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Talnase, DID.

Los Angeles, Cal, April I'm this
Sermon the preacher teaches the value
Of self denial and the Importance of
restraining ourselves from indulgences
which, whether harmful or not in
themselves. might make our example a
stumbling block to others. The text is
Corinthians viii, 10, 'If meat make
my brother to offend, I will eat no
flesh while the world standeth."
COrinth, beautiful Corinth; CorInth
with thy legends of ancient times;
Corinth the great business ganglia, or
the nerve center of two continents, for
there the merchantmen of Europe and
Asia exchanged their goods; Corinth
with its Acro-Corinthus rising 1900
feet high, crowned with a frowning
fortress aptly called "the Gibraltar of
the east" COrinth with its great am
phitheaters, where men fought with
men and where the gladiators' blood
mingled with the blood of the savage
beasts slain in demoniac struggles;
Corinth with its Posidonium, where the
famous isthmian games took place,
from which arena Paul feathered
many Of his gospel arrows to drive
home his divine message; COrinth with
its most famous temple of the old
world looming above many heather
shrines-oh, Corinth, beautiful Corinth,
opulent COrinth, aesthetic Corinth, no
wonder Paul wanted to go and see
thee and preach Jesus Christ within
thy gates!
been everywhere when Paul first went
to Corinth. They must have been as
multitudinous as are the idols today
in Benares, where temples line the
sacred Ganges for miles. These Cor
inthian idols must have been on every
hilltop and in every valley. They must
have been in every street and in every
home and by every fireside. Idols,
idols, idols, everywhere. Idols must
have been crowding each other in old
COrinth for elbow room, even as they
did in Athens. Truly Corinth was the
home of commerce and literature and
art, but it was more than that. 1t was
one of the great ancient Meccas Of idol
worshipers.
Now, there was very strange COrin-
THAN custom Of idol worship which
any man who has Travelled in the far
east can readily grasp, because there
you have seen food placed upon the al
tars as sacrifice to idols. The COrin-
THAN priests at stated times Of the
week would kill cattle and sheep and
lay certain parts of the dead bodies Of
these animals upon the affairs of their
idols. There they were allowed to stay
for some four or five hours. OF course
that was not long enough time for the
meat to spoil. Then this meat was
taken off the affairs and sold to the
people. Because this meat was placed
upon the shrines of the idols it was
looked upon with prejudice by many
people and had to be sold in the Corin-
Than markets at a very reduced rate.
Now, Paul was a man of great un-
common common sense. He said prac-
ticallv this: Here 1 have to support |
myself by tentmaking. If I buy my |
meat cheaper, l can live cheaper, be- |
cause it will take me less time TO earn |
4 living. and l will be able to have |
more time to preach Jesus Christ"
Then Paul again said: 'Why should l
lot eat this meat which once lay upon |
he heather affairs? 1t Is not tainted |
neat l can buy it for half the price
If other meat Yes, while stay here
n the Corlnthian capital 1 will buy
his meat and eat this meat, because
t is good and wholesome and the
of all meats"
Marrow Minded Christians.
But in that Corinthian capital there
we're a lot Of very narrow minded
Christians. Their minds were so mar
ow and their souls were so bigoted
hat they were always ready to place
he magnifying glass to their eye and
ocus it upon a nOnessential atom ana
make it loom up before them as a huge
nountain of error. These narrow
minded DlgOtS nau BeilAus AOA sPi4I
ing hairs. They could argue for days
nd weeks upon a simple trivial ques-
ion. and they rose up in protest
gainst Paul buying and eating the
leat from off the heather affairs.
Why." 1 can hear them say, Paul
YOU eat that meat you are practical
? an idol worshiper. You are the same
s one who bows in worship at the
brine of the licentious Venus. You
re lust as bad as any Of these idola-
,ous priests" "All right" says Paul;
If YOU look at it in that way, will
ton eating the sacrifcial meat. am
OF going to stop because 1t is wrong
u me to eat it, but am going to stop
ecause some of you Christians believe
to be wrong. 1 will not be a spirit
al stumbling block to any man"
hen Paul writes these words OF my
.xt: 'sWherefore if meat make my
rother to offend will eat no flesh
lille the world standeth, lest I make
oh did Won /