The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1890-01-30
SUNDAY MEDITATION.

national Sunday school Lesson Appointed for
| Feb. o. st. Luke, 2:41-52.
| Zone reading these notes should first carefully
study the paragraph from the Holy Scriptures as
| Indicated abovel
SUBJECT: CHRfsT's FIRST PASSOVER.
| /. INTRODUCTORY.
| /. PreLimnaries
! We now study heaccount of our Ssvior's FIRST
/ attendance ut % passover feast as participant.
| The last lesson related to the Presentation of
the Child Jesus at the Temple and the Canticle
| OF Simeon The parents fingered in the Tenn
| pie for u short time. Simeon had no sooner
| ceased speaking than Anna took up the praises
of the Infant. (2: 63S.) So. Luke passes on
Mt once to our lesson, emitting account Of the
| Visit of the Wise Men the Flight into Egypt
the Staying OF tho Innocents, and the Return
| to Palestine and final settlement at Nazareth.
| tSt Matt, e. st. Luke's account, leaving the
| Infant in tho arms Of Simeon, finds Him after n
| dozen years again in the Temple; but now
| with tho doctors of jewish divinity. All we
know of the interval is supplied in the 10th,
| tho DIST, and the SD verses of st. Luke's Cos
pei, chapter 2.
2. Verses 40, 81 aud 81
Tho account of Jesus being lost at Jerusalem
| and being found in the Temple is rs parenthe-
| sis between 40 and 81, So That beautiful incl
dent is an oasis in desert with no cultivatable
| land for IS miles to the east and 10 miles
| to the west It is all we know of Christ from
| the time he was two years old until he was H.
and from then on till the end Of his 30th year
ofage. lt Is the choice valuable crystal within
the huge geodo
All we know for % years Of Christ's life out
| side of that parenthetic oasis reads: "The
child grew and waxed strong in spirit filed
| with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon
| him. And he went down with them
| tSts Mary and Joseph aud came to Nazareth,
and was subject unto them: but his mother
Kept ali these sayings in her heart. And Jesus
increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor
with God and man" The Incarnation could
have been in immediate adult form as Minerva
sprang into existence full fedged. But child
| hood would have missed much in Jesus which
now charms the young, and our Holy religion
would not have been characterized by that
beautiful simplicity which causes many of its
adult adherents to exhibit certain OF those
qualities which We admire so much in chill
drcn, as. c. O., faith, trust, dependence on the
Heavenly Father.
We may suppose Verse 40 refers to Christ
until he was II years old, ". IL, and verses 81
and 30 relate to him from 12 TO 80 years of age.
Thus we have wonderful summarizing of
history and fine illustration of st. John, 81:
%.
Becoming incarnatc, Christ subjected himself
to all the laws which relate to the physical
to growth. to hunger to call for sleep, etc He
not only became limited by q human body,
but by u human mind and his mind was sub
ject to all the mental laws. Said mind needed
education, and was capable of daily develop
ment. He grew i'm body and mind As capacity
enlarged, knowledge increased There is evil
dent allusion in the word wisdom to the re-
ltgions culture of Christ in childhood. There
IL peculiar biblical significance to the word
wisdom. prov, 1:7; IT,, IL 9, 81 He in
creased in stature. We think he had a good
physique He shared Gods grace or favor.
a. 4 II.
opment into manhood. God blessed him. lie
was model of all the iucarRated virtues. and
would thus approve himself to ali good men,
His destined mission required saueuess of
mind in soundness of body We presume he
availed himselfo all the means for education
Mt hand for Jewish children of his rank in So
cety. We remember in his adult years he as.
founded people By his peculiarly good iudg-
ment. (St Matt, 10 81, SIS; st. Mark, 8 Q, 8;
ST. John 7:I51
Z" He was subject unto them."i He was flial,
obedient Child. lie restrained impulses (if he
had any 10 leave homo and take part in relig-
ious discussion in public way, "a he had done
ia the Temple But His Blessed Mother never
forgot the peculiar incidents attending His
birth and His interview Mt the Temple wi the
Rabbi. She apprehended some deep but mex
picabIe significance in such supernatural man
ifestations.
3. Suggestions.
/. Seek religious wisdom. One considering
the facts Of life notices that amid the temporary
huctuating, changing. there Is the stationary,
reliable. True wisdom consists in fixing on the
firm. Trusting in the strong. investing in the
staid. stable, permanent
2 Grow. BE not satisfied with present at
taiuments
g. Approve yourselves: l. to God; 9. TO
men.
t. Seek Gods grace.
n In Il
Jesus devoted 30 years to preparation for his
life mission.
q. Honor father and mother. Children
should learn to be subject 20 parents
2. Mothers must be mindful OF their off
spr'ng,-keep the interests of their children at
hoart,-watch the course of Providence aud
prognosticate tho probable future of sons and
daughters with special reference 20 helping the
children prepare for their life missions
D. We see the utility of the home Saws ST
Paul, Learn FIRST To show piety at home"
Il IT,. 5; ~ For 30 years Jesus was subject 10
his parents. ". 81 He exempliied the 18th
commandment. After years OF piety at home
one can begin to teach piety in public,
II. JESUS AND THE DocroRs IN THE TEMPLE.
/. Data.
Again we see our Indebtedness to st. Luke
His Gospel alone gives account of the Child
Jesus conversiug with the Rabbi. He wrote at
Rome A. ID. 81 He passes from Anna q: 36l
to 81. John Baptist, g: g. mentioning only the
incident OF this lesson and emitting the Wise
Men, the Flight into Egypt aud Return to Pal
estine. St. Matthew, OH the other hand, mem
tons those three facts, but passes over the
Temple incident, which we now study St
Mark omits NIL these childhood circumstances
and begins with the ministry of St. John Bap-
tist And st. John also omits any notice of the |
nativity and early incidents in Christs life and
commences his Gospel with account of the ban |
thing by st. John, son of Zacharias 1t is sim
gular that in Il biography covering a life of
only IS years, 80 years are practically blotted |
out and unknown. But. after ALL we are inter |
ested in Christ mainly as our Savior
st. Luke. 24l-50. tells the story of thu
Child, Jesus, and the Rabbi in the Temple.
2. Tims
The Passover in A. d. 8 began on April O. II
continued seven days. (Lev, % 5, 81 Say
IL closed on tho 10th. The party may have left
for their homes in the latter part Of the 10th
day. They returned, and on the third day
found tho child. Or they may have left the |
city on the 18th. Thus they found the Child
on tho 10Th or.20th of April. IL was probable |
Jesus was ~ years old on, we may say. Dec.
% before His age, was therefore, about ~ and
one-fourth years. That was to a Jewish youth |
period of great moment. Ii was the time
when the Hebrew father took his son to the |
synagogue aud had him recognized or duly en-
rolled n son of the law" Then the bow be |
gan to wear ph ylacteres At tha first onnortu |