Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1907-10-17
CalnnaSe
Sermon
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmaee, D. D.

Los Angeles, Cal, Oct. 13.-This SER
mon is an answer TO the pessimists
who are gloomiy predicting the de-
cline Of Christian civilization and
shows that the conquering forces of
the faith were never so strong as now.
The text is Soomon's Song vi, 10,
Terrible AS an army with banners"
One of the easiest characteristics to
develop liz a genius for looking upon
the dark side of life. If the human
soul will persist in dwelling in the
dark caverns by day it will not be very
long before It will 60 forth to seek its
food by night. Then it will think that
oil human beings have the depraved
nature Of the bat and the coyote. Then
it will get the awful habit OF looking
for the imperfections in the lives Of
men rather than for their virtues and
their excellcncies.
People who rejoice in the weak
nesses Of their neighbors are apt to
glory in the imperfectlons OF any nota-
BILE movement of the day. They love
TO magnify social troubles. They love
to detect the dark clouds in the poit-
ical, moral and financial horizons.
They love to be eulogistS of the past
and depreciators Of the present. They
contend that all the great men are
dead and that the living men Rre
feeble, puny, worthless race. They
seem to be blinded to the self evident
facts Of the worlds progress on every
side. They are like the foolish man
who stands upon the seashore and
watches the incoming tide. A wave
rears and breaks and filings itself upon
the beach and then reccdcs into the
ocean. There. There he cries,
See. the tide is going" Then another
wave rears and plunges and comes up
little higher upon the beach and
then recedes. There. There he
cries again. "The tide Is going out"
The pessmists seem to be blinded to
the fact that each wave comes up a
little higher and a little higher until
after awhile full tide is reached and
the whole seashore is flooded with the
heaving waters. Now. this is Just
what some pessimists do when they
watch the incoming tides of the
worlds prosperity and progress. They
see here and there n wave break and
60 back They see here and there a
man or an institution fail. Then they
cry: Look. Look, See how the world
Is going to the dogs But though here
and there we nny see a receding wave
the general trend Is higher and better
Critics Of the Church.
Pessimists hurl their structures in all
directions but their favorte target is
the church. "Aha!" they laugh. Did
| you ever see an institution cruinblc in
to pieces like the old church? The
children Of this day are not being
sent to the Sunday schools as they
once were Just look how empty are
its pews-here and there an old wo-
man or a sickly, effeminate man at
| tending the church service, but for the
most part sensible people look upon
Sunday rs a holiday instead Of a holy
day. Once the Bible was the most
| conspicuous book upon the parlor ia
BILE; now the stock quotations Of the
daily newspapers lave taken Its place.
Once the minister was looked upon as
the most important parsonage in q
community: now the actor Is the idol
Of the young people. Once the school
house was coadjutor Of the church
now it has broken its shackles Of bond
age, and the public authorities refuse
! to allow Bible chapter to be read in
the public school. Everywhere we see
the church as public institution re-
ceding and crumbling and disappear
ing" So say the pessimists, who are
hurting their anathemas at tho church
Now. would not have you think
that the church which Christ cstab-
lshed is a dying church. l shall show
you that the church of God Is by Its
nature conQuerng church; that the
gospel is growing stronger and purer
and more powerful every day; that the
prohetic vision which King Solomon
saw 5000 years ago Is being fulfilled
now. The church today. like bride, Is
preparing for the advent Of the Divine
Bridegroom. She is going forth to per
form the work which God has given
her to do, fair as the moon, clear as
the sun and terrible as an army witt
banners"
The prophetic vision Of my text Xix
ened the conquering church to a grea
army in numbers. 1t likened 1t TO /
mighty multitude which marched by
company after company. regiment aft
er regiment. brigade after brigade, Iii
vision after division, host after host
There the army went marching, tramp
Ing. And as they marched and KEEP
step the very earth tremhled ant
shook with the uniform tread Of tn,
myrinds Of feet.
Will Not Break Step.
You know that when soldiers come
to bridge they are ordered to breal
step lest the rhythmic pulsation Of thu
marching bring down the bridge. Blu
In the scene of my text the conquern!
church will never have TO break step
Its myriads Of Christian soldiers will
march until the poundings of thei
many feet will make the earth shak,
with the step Of the advancing hosts
The figure In this metaphor is not tina
Of ''corporal's guard" 1t is not tn
figure of small company. But it j
the figure OF great warlike host upol
the march. "Who is she that looketl
forth as the morning, fair ms tn