In the late 1800s, there were few American preachers who were better-known than De Witt Talmage (who spend most of his ministry at Central Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn, New York). He was known as an orator and was perhaps second only to Henry Ward Beecher when it came to his ability to hold a crowd at rapt attention. Logos recently released a collection of 500 of his sermons and I’ve been enjoying reading my way through them. This excerpt, one of many in which he expresses concern for the souls of his listeners, recently caught my attention:

There are some who gave me a farewell shake of the hand when I went off two months ago who are not here today. Where are they? When in the closing service I opened my hymn-book and found the place, they opened their hymn-book and found the same place. I open my book today; they do not open theirs.
Great God, is life such an uncertain thing? If I bear a little too hard with my right foot on the earth, does it break through into the grave? Is this world which swings at the speed of thousands of miles an hour around about the sun going with tenfold more speed towards the judgment day? Oh, I am overborne with the thought, and in the confusion I cry to one and I cry to the other; “O time! O eternity! O the dead! O the judgment day! O Jesus! O God!”
But catching at the last apostrophe, I feel that I have something to hold on to; for “in God is thy refuge, and underneath thee are the everlasting arms.” And exhausted with my failure to save myself, I throw my whole weight of body, mind, and soul on this Divine promise, as a weary child throws itself into the arms of its mother; as a wounded soldier throws himself on the hospital pillow; as a pursued man throws himself into the refuge: for “in God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.”
I can speak no more for the gladness. Oh for a flood of tears with which to express the joy of this eternal rescue!
Note: If you decide to dabble in Talmage’s sermons, I’d recommend beginning with volume 3 rather than 1 or 2. By my assessment, the collection begins with some of his weakest sermons and only later turns to some of the strongest.

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you today.

Westminster Books has deals on a number of interesting books, including that new one about Tim Keller.
Not a Dinosaur
Mitch Chase: “Among the speakers in the book of Job, the Lord gives the final speech (in chs. 38–41). And the last thing he speaks about is Leviathan. What is Leviathan? Are there clues in the text or outside of the book that help us identify it? Let’s see what we see.” He has an interesting perspective on it.
The Faith Crisis of Francis Schaeffer
This interesting article discusses the existence, cause, and effect of Francis Schaeffer’s crisis of faith.
Not Enough of Me to Go Around
“She stands before me with eager eyes, just wanting her mommy to do one simple thing. Hand extended, she displays the hair tie. But I can’t help her. Not right now. And so I have begun to teach my sweet ones a new saying: ‘My mommy loves me. She will help me when she can.’ A simple truth, but not an easy one.”
Why do Christians address sexuality and gender issues all the time?
“A common refrain among many outside the church is that Christians seem obsessed with talking about sexuality and gender issues. Often, this is mocked or simply dismissed as Christians just seeking to enforce their personal views on other people or to impose our beliefs through government action.” Jason Thacker responds to the charge.
Deliverance Hits the Big Screen
“For those who may not know, a deliverance film will be released next month in two thousand movie theaters across the United States.” “Lovesick Scribe” tells what it’s about and why we should be concerned.
How can we trust the Bible when there are so many contradictions?
“This may be your question. Or the question of someone you know. It’s a good question to ask.However, the question automatically assumes that there are many contradictions in the Bible, and that the Bible isn’t reliable. And so actually before going further, it’s worth asking these three questions…”
Flashback: Should Young Pastors Prefer a Large or Small Church?
In a small church a pastor will be able to get to know—to really know—his people and the value of each and every soul. Where in a big city church he may preach to anonymous masses, in a small country church he will preach to well-known individuals.

There is no point in praying for victory over temptation if we are not willing to make a commitment to say no to it. —Jerry Bridges

My gratitude goes to Children’s Hunger Fund for sponsoring the blog this week. CHF is a nonprofit that serves in 31 countries and seeks to “deliver hope to suffering children by equipping local churches for gospel-centered mercy ministry.”

Westminster Books has lots of deals on books for kids.
Today’s Kindle deals include several good options for collectors. Also, I will have more to say about this next week, but collectors of commentaries will want to know that Eerdmans has all of theirs on sale at an 80% discount in the Kindle editions. That includes the excellent New International Commentary on the Old Testament, New International Commentary on the New Testament, New International Greek Testament Commentary, and the Pillar New Testament Commentary. They have had some trouble getting the prices to change, but most have made the jump. You may need to click on the individual volumes rather than look at the listings to see the price changes. This pricing applies to Kindle US only.
(Yesterday on the blog: You Are Still a Mother)
Why the Post-Christian West Is Eagerly Pursuing ‘Skynet’-Level AI
Akos Balogh asks an important question: “Where is the push for Skynet level AI coming from?” Who is so obsessed with creating that kind of AI and what is the rationale?
A Trial Lawyer Answers the Most Searched Questions About the Criminal Justice System (Video)
In this video, Matthew Martens answers some common questions about the criminal justice system in the US.
Keith Green: A Christian Singer Who Changed My Life
I really appreciated this little tribute to Keith Green whose music made a big impact on my life, too.
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence (Video)
I think you’ll enjoy this new rendition of “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” from the Gettys.
Any Unchecked Sin Is Ruinous
Justin Huffman: “I was thinking this past week about cases where a person who has been a professed believer, maybe even a well-known Christian leader, falls into public sin or even apostasy, walking away from the Christian faith. Sadly, there have been many such cases in the news lately.”
Simple Ways to Encourage Different Cultural Expressions in Church
Stephen offers some helpful ways to encourage different cultural expressions in a local church. “In a multicultural church, it can be easy to let the dominant culture dominate everything. it is especially hard when your elders are drawn from the same culture but are called to care for people from a variety of different cultures. That isn’t always a result of cultural expectations and filters stopping us recognising minority culture leaders so much as there simply not always being – for a variety of reasons – people from minority cultures gifted to the church as elders even though the church might dearly love to appoint some.”
Flashback: Mind Your Christmas Imperatives
The sure path to ruining Christmas is to make it an obligatory holiday or a mark of Christian maturity.

…when we cling to a grudge, we live within a dungeon of our own construction; we are trapped in the bondage of our own unforgiving hearts. —Alistair Begg