The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1890-04-17
SUNDAY MEDITATION.


Practical Duties Taught by a Study of the Inter-
national Sunday school Lesson Appointed for
April "a. 81. Luke, S:4-15.
Zone reading these notes should first carefully
study the paragraph from tho Holy Scriptures as
indicated above.l
SUBJECT: The PARABLE OF THE SOwEB.
l. Data.
We have three accounts of this parable: St
Matt, 13 10 1928; st. Mark, 4: 10; 1920;
ST. Luke, 8 :4-9. 11-l5. 1t is great mistake
to conine ones self to a single report, for each
writer adds some fact not mentioned by the
Others. st. Matthew doubtless heard Christ
utter the parable. He wrote at Rome St.
Mark wrote at Rome, and may have met st.
Matthew. st. Luke wrote Mt Aehaia, in Greece.
All issued Gospels Mt not far from the same
date. st. Luke sent his forth A. ID. 81. 1t is well
to compare tho three accounts. All Bible stu
dents should have some good Harmony OF the
Gospels While one must keep close to the
Bible, he yet needs various aids-a good COM
mentary, Bible geography, sacred chronology,
etc.
9. Time
The parable of the sower was uttered In
probably October, A. ID. 81. The words the
same day" (St. Matt, Is: ii show certain things
were done and said on that day before Christ
left the house. We may hence suppose the adj
dress of Jesus was spoken in perhaps the alter
noon. Wo see, too, there was an interval boz
tween the utterance of the parable and its
explanation. October was the sowing month
i'll Palestine.
IA sower went forth" (st. Matt, 10: 81
This had happened many time. A parable
must be true to the facts generally. Very
likely as Christ spoke he saw more than one
man of on the hill-sides scattering seed. The
reference is fguratively to tho incarnation OF
Christ. Jesus went forth, as a Sewer, from
L., ta hafnrn hn nttnFaH
the parable He sowed the good seed all over
Palestine.
3. Place.
The parable was spoken near Capernaum.
Jesus, the speaker, was sitting in boat on the
Sea of Galilee while the multitude stood along
the beach. The boat anchored out q little
from the shore. Christ looked toward the west,
while his audience looked toward the east.
| These facts favor the afternoon as the time,
| since it would have been painful to gaze out
| upon tho lake mirrored by sunlight The house
referred to was doubtless that OF st. Peter. (St.
| Matt, IT "a, 25.) 1t seems Christ did not
| explain the parable until he returned to st.
| Peters house (St. Matt, 10: 10, SO; st. Mark,
4: l0.)
4. Speaker.
! He who spoke was our authoritative reli-
| gious Teacher. What he said must BIO weghty
/ and important. We do we'll TO study his words
! We shall find in this lesson many q suggestion
| of service all through life.
5. Hearers.
The audience was from every one OF the neigh
| boring cities We DO not know the number o
| hearers but the words " the whole multitude
| in St Matthew's account imply large congre
| CATION The Twelve were present, and possibly
the women mentioned in st. Luke, SO, 3.
/ 9. style Of Composition.
Christ often spoke in 1guratiye. illustrative
| way. In the address of which the parable o.
the sower is part we have series of beanti
ful parallels.
The idea of parable is that we throw mp by
the side of fact which We want TO make plair
some simple admitted truth. We call tho proc
ess illustration. When the two lie side by sid'
We examine them looking for tho points o
similarity. The rhetorical definition OF par
able Is this: that species Of the genus allegorl
which consists Of continued narration OF Tea
or fictitious events applied by way OF simil
TO the illustration Of moral truth. In religion
SENSE we understand parable to DO some nat
nral well / uown fact, used 10 illuminate or de
velop n spiritual So the idea OF the little CIR
was accurate who said. a parable is earthi!
story with a heavenly meaning" Hannal
More said of this style of teaching: IL !
naturally adapted to engage the attention, ant
is level with the capacity of all (; and convey
moral and religious truths in a more viyit
! and impressive manner than the dry, didacti
mode aud by laying hold of the imagination
nsinuatcs itself into the understanding ant
affections aud while IL opens the doctrine
Processes 20 conceal it gives no alarm to man
prriudices,"
The special object of this parable Is to teacl
the necessity OF preparation for hearing God
word explained, and attention during It's dc
livery Ii presupposes ministry; also th
declaration OF religious truth by authorize
teachers or ministers. The soil is the hear
or mind Ones mind should be relieved G
all pressing care when he is about to receiv
} spiritual instruction. Truth should take sue
deep root that a triling trouble wall not brec
inGdclity such hold that the heat OF persecu
ton will not scorch it. One entering the ten
pie should drive out from his thoughts sheer
oxen, merchandise. moucy-changing.
-Four classes OF hearers are enumerated
waysldc. stony ground, thorny, and goo
, ground.