Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1890-11-20
TIE SUNDAY SCHOOL
AN INTERESTING AND INsTRUC-
TIVE LESSON.

Il
Wholesome Food for Thought = Study
and Probably.
The lesson for Sunday, Nov. 90, may be
| found In Luke 23: 33-47.
INTRODUCTORY.
In the lesson before us the things con-
| corning Jesus even as he said TO his dis
ciples. have an end. The cruelty and
savagery of man reaches its elimination.
the humiliation OF Christ touches Its lower
most depths. At last he Is lifted up. And
now comes his supremest exaltation and
his crown. Now does he become, in very
deed, "King OF the Jewsn-spiritual king
| for all the race OF Adam. This was Christs
glory, and now let teacher and preacher
say each for himself. aGod forbid that L
should glory save in the cross OF our Lord
Jesus Christie
WHAT THE LESSON SAYS. -,,. -
| And when. Christs enemies lost no time.
They led him straight from Pilates court
| TO the cross.-They were come. DIR. Co
nant renders IL, perhaps more closely, had
| gone away, Pilates court being considered
| the center of the scene.--Calvary; liter
ally skull (cranicu), from which our crani-
| um. IL was but mound or knoll on tho
| edge of the city.-The malefactoIs. There
would probably have been three malefac-
tors'here, had not Barabbas been released.
Then said Jesus etc. Omitted by Sim
| fully prepared text, as being found in other
parchments. What they do. More graph
| ically, what they are doing.-Partcd.
Better divided, with the idea OF sharing.
Cast lots. Putting the portions i'm sep
| arate piles, they cast lots for the better
share, including the seamless robe. John
| 10: 24.)
stood, beholding. or gazing. 1t was a
sight to awaken strange emotions. 1t was,
however, with the most OF them but heart
less curiosity, in itself contemptuous.-----
Derided. From word signifying TO toss up
the nose The same word is used of the
Pharisees. Luke i6: 14.-He saved Others.
The Greek order, preserved I'm the Bible
Union Version, gives a stronger impression;
"Others he saved;n let him save himself.
Voice. The last of the seven voices OF
the cross My spirit His last word
| quotation fIom the Scripture. Ps. 81 s.
Save up. Suggestive of his voluntary
sacrifice.
Centurion. Formally in charge.--A
righteous man. His word 10 be trusted.
WHAT THE LESSON TEACHES.
They were come to the place. Atlast. It
Is the parting of the ways, the meeting
place OF all the lines OF history, the reckon
ing point OF the centuries. Prophets looked
forward To It, Priestly fingers pointed to-
ward IL. Even the signboards of Cyrus
and Caesar lead up toward IL. Away back
there In Eden the first glance was taken.
And now they have come TO the place Men
look and see but tired sufferer climbing
hillock, with hateful cross upon his back.
Angels summoned from all the universe
troop near and gaze transfxed upon the
lifting up Of king.
Let him save himself. Then would he
save himself alone; then were we all lost
Never were truer words spoken: aHlmself
he cannot save" Jesus, our Lord, must
needs be @obedient unto death, even the
9sAtAb at the erqssi1n = ssT9eEe are tyQ peg
which form. when rightly viewed, strong
protestations to the same One of them is,
"ho saved others" Aye, verify, and hence
he cannot save himself. IL Is the just dying
for the unjust; and without the death OF
"One,r there is no life for the @others.n The
other argument IL, "If hen (or "thou,n the
thief directly says, bettering the yillainy
ne has been taught) abe Christ the chosen
of God" He is the Christ, the anolnted
one, and just for this was he anolnted,
even as he said at Nazareth. '"Chosen OF
Godn is he; and why? ale humblod him
self" yea, In the very losing OF himself, he
saves himself and his @Wherefore God
also hath highly exalted him and given him
a name above every name.n What Is that
manner @Thou shalt call his name Jesus;
for he shall save his people from their
SINS"
This is the King of the Jews There was
fearful sarcasm In the superscription. IL
must have cut the Jews TO the quick.
"Shall l cruelty your king?" Plate had
said from his chair OF state in tone of half
reproof, half mocking awe have no king
but Casar,n was the inSfncere response.
And Plate knows It TO be such. and there Is
something almost sardonic in the grim
title TO the cross: Urhis is the 1nng~ Br 'tfie.
Jews.n AS much as 10 say, see the weakling
Jew at his best; see, too, how the deceitfui
Jew treats his king, And there he hung
king rejected OF his own, king ON crossl
Verify this was his mission; and this his
exaltation. They thought to debase him,
and 10, they, unwttlngly, crowned him. It
was he who 1prevailed.n This is Jesus the
king Of the Jews!
To-day thou shalt be with me In paradise.
A window is here opened into heaven. What
blessing 1t has proven to many be-
nighted soull II tells us two things In par
ticular: C) That there is hope for the low
liest, and (2) that heaven, ablessed heaven,
Is not far away. 1Remember me,n was all
the penitent thief needed to say. There be,
those who, following the doctrine OF the
worl<-righteousness, have tried to lay worth
OF some sort on the me, rather than the i'm
piled Thou and so they have coined the
legend of the thief saving the holy family
from his comrades on their journey down,
fnto Egypt. But no. He was doubtless but
| an ordinary sinner, a bandit OF the way.
| Take him, indeed, as type of the lowest,
and let no portion OF the hope here held out
to the fallen be snatched away. And them,
| do you mark, he had only said (see Reyts-
| ion), aRemember me when thou comest In
| thy kingdom presumably long way
| ahead. Quick comes the answer, "To-day
| thou shalt be with me in paradiseln With
| Christ in paradise. Verify, though the
| glory waits, it is well with our dead who die
| in the Lord-blssfuly well, even to-day.
Certainly this was righteous man. Aye,
| certainly, without shadow OF doubt There
| was Pilates thrice-uttered acquittal, fol-
| lowing as IL did upon the perjured and
| empty trial of the Jews. Here also we have
| Just been reading the testimony OF one with
| him in the same condemnation, fellow
| prisoner and fellow-sufferer. That "he
| hath done nothing amiss,n from cuiprlt's
| lIps, would weigh nightly with a court OF
| Justice. And now, from tho centurion,
| disnterested, nay, an interested observer
| careful, we might suppose, 10 have his exr
| ecution blameless- comes the soulful con-
| fession, As live, ais man was inEocentl
| We might long TO know what became OF the
| centurion. Did he put his confession into
| act? Was he of the multitude at Pente-
/ cost? OF, better of the waiting company In
! the upper room? Rather let the inquiry be,
/ what is your testimony and minc to-day
| In a multitude OF gatherings Christ cruel
| fed shall be lifted up. Can any one. look
/ ing. say else than that "this was righteous
man?n Righteous, yes, but IL So WHAT
| then art thou2
Next week-aJesus Risen.n Luke "a; liz
4