The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1891-08-12
THE F,vErHovsAND FED.

THE FIVE THOUSAND FED.
International Sunday school Lesson for,
AuGu,t 10, 1891.
Especially Arranged from 8. g. Quarterly.l
LESSON TExT.--John 6:i-. .8Ni4
GOLDEN TExr.-I am that bread Of life.-John
sag ss.s4- 4 a s.s4..4 s.-.stl u sl
CENTRAL -RurH.-Jesus Christ has power 70
help us in every time of need. fAhi
HELPS OVER HARD Places. "After these
things:". Spo;cn Of in our last lesson The In.
terval was about year. "Over the sea OF Gall.
lee" from the western side. probably near
Capcrnaum. He had just heard that Herod. In
whose dominons he was had beheaded John
the Baptist. Matt. i4:l3) Into mountain"
The mountainous region that bordered the
plain of Betheada on the southeast. 4. "The
Passover" ais year April 10. s. Saw
great company" Five thousand men ". 10Y,
besides women and children Matt. H:eD.
They came by land from all parts. Z. Two
hundred pcnnyworth:'' About thirty dollars.
penny, denarius, is fifteen cents, the price Of
days work. o Barley loayes:" The food
OF the poorest Fishes" Sailed and eaten
as relish. like sardines la. Feather up the
Fragments d The design is to bring out
the preciou Of the food which Jesus had
given. (2) He likewise exhorts His disciples
to frugality, for the increase Of the bounty OF
God ought not to be an excitement to luxury.
God loveth q bountiful. not q wasteful, hand.
(O 1t completes the proof of the miracle, for
more remained thar there was to begin with.
IA. "That Prophet:" The Messiah, or His fore.
runner, whom the Jews were expecting to
come and deliver them.
LESSON COMMENTS.
If last weeks lesson was read, this
weeks is easy. The miracle of the
feeding Of the five thousand made a
deeper impression on the people than
almost any other that the Master
wrought. There were many Of them,
and they were faint and in need Of
food. But where to get food for them
in that place was difficult question.
To the eyes OF the disciples this was an
impossible task. Two hundred penny
worth Of bread was not enough to give
each one little. Now, two hundred
pennyworth Of bread was equivalent
to two hundred days wages, and that
was large sum for men like the apos-
ties. It really seemed to the disciples
that the question of feeding those
masses Of people was one that could not
be solved. Now look at the supply.
There was lad there who had with
him five loaves Of bread and two small
fishes. One hungry man could easily
have made way with that provision,
and yet here were five thousand men
waiting for food. The relation between
those loaves and that crowd wasalmost
enough to provoke laughter. But the
boy seemed willing to give all that he
had and let the Master make such use
of it as He thought best, so the bread
is brought to Jesus and the crowd are
made to sit down in orderly array on
the grass. Now they are all seated,
and their curious and anxious eyes are
turned toward Him Who is the center Of
the assembly.
Now l see that Master take the bread
and look up to Heaven and give thanks.
Then He begins to break it and give to
His disciples. But, wonder of wonders,
as He gives the bread grows no less,
and the supply holds out till the last
person has had all that he wants and
is filed. Fish. too, in like abundance
follows, SO that they had not only that
which was necessary, but something of
luxury besides. ~
Now all are through. Then the Mas
ter commands that the fragments be
gathered up, that nothing be lost, and
when they have carried out this COM
mand, 10! they have more than they had
when they began.
The result Of all this was that the
people began to believe that Jesus was
shat Prophet" More than this: they
were SO filed with enthusiasm that
they tried to force Him to proclaim him.
self King. This He refused to do, fol-
this was not what He had come to
this world for.
We have hunger for food, and God ha:
supplied the means of satisfying thai
want. But the mind as well Us the body
can hunger. What do all the countless
questions Of children mean, If they dc
not show that the mind is hungering fol
something. Now, to offer an inquisitive
child, that is, child with mental hun
ger, bread, is to offer it that which will
not satisfy mental hunger. The body
hungers for food appropriate to it, ant
the mind hungers for that which will
satisfy it, and that is knowledge. Blu
God has provided for the wants Of tn
mind, and all our public and privat'
schools, and all our colleges, are mcrel.
intellectual restaurants, where the mine
of the scholars may feed and be salts
fed. But not all kinds Of food ar
wholesome for the body, and in the SAM
way not all facts are wholesome for tn
mind. We are careful not to eat tha
which shall harm us, and why shoul'
we not be equally careful not to reaC
that which shall do damage to on
minds? Yet many are poisoning thei
minds with evil literature.
We have one more department Of on
natures, however, which also has its ap
petites. The spiritual. That crave
many things. Yet there are peopl
whose bodies are well cared for, ant
whose minds are well stored, but who's
spiritual natures are half starved. Thi
is sad fact which every teacher AM
preacher knows only too well. But tn
spiritual is higher than the intellectual
! Just as the mental is higher than tn
physical. And is there food provides
by God for the two former and not 70
the latter? Nay, there is provision 70
all. The Master Himself said that IL
was the living bread which came dow
from Heaven. and by that He meant tina