Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1900-01-17
TIE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson I'm the international Series 70
January 81. 10OO-PreachinE of
John the Baptist.
GOLDEN TEXT.-Prepare ye the ~.ay o
the LorG.-Luke ga

|
came forth TO be baptized Of him. o genera.
t!cn OF vipers. who hath warned you tc
| flee from the wrath 70 come?
s. Bring forth therefore fruits worthy o.:
repentance. and begin not 70 say within
| yourselves. We have Abraham to cur
father: for say unto you. that God Is able
] ct these stores to raise UP children unto
| Abraham.
9. Ard row also the ak IS laid unto tn,
| root OF the trees: every tree therefore
which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewr
down. and cast into the fire.
10. And the people asked him, saying
What shall we do then?
IL He answereth and saith unto them
lie that hath two coats. let him mpart &c
him that hath none: and he that hath
meat, let him Go likewise
y Then came also publcans TO be bap-
Tied and said unto him. Master. what shall
- And He said unto them. Exact no
more than that which is appointed YOU
IL And the soldiers likewise demanded
OF him. saying. And what shall We do?
And He said unto them: Do violence to
no man, neither accuse any falsely: and
be content with your wages.
-. And as the peopi. were in expecta-
ton, and all men nuoed IN their hearts OF
John. whether he We're the Christ or rot;
10 John answered, saying unto them all.
/ indeed bapt!Ze you with water; but one
mlghtieI, than l cometh. the latchet OF
whose shoes 1 am not worthy to unloose:
lie she'll baptize you with the Holy Ghost
and with fire:
10. ]
throuSh!y purge His floor ard wiz Sather
the wheat into His gamers: but the chaff
lie Will burn with fire UGQuenchable.
NOTES AND SUGG ESTIONS.
Training of John the Baptist.-Of the
early life and training of John the Bap-
fist, we know only that he was lin the
deserts" duke l:SO). At what age he
became a hermit, or whether indeed
the word means more than that he lived
Il 81 Ill
country of Judea where he was born
duke 1:39, +Ol we do not know. But
We should note how plain was Johns
mode of lie. All four Gospels quote
more or less fully the words al the
opening Of Isaiah 40 as applying 10
John, and the reason for this fact APP
pears in John 1923.
Johns ng-Repentance, as
John preached il, was n turning away
from sin TO righteousness. 1t demand
ed a willingness TO give up all practices
which were inconsistent with the pres
ence of Gods kingdom. Baptism was
an ancient rite, used in certain cases of
cleansing NUN. 49,, and was applied
10 proSe,ytes who entered the Jewish
| fold. II was therefore Il natural sym Dol
! of cleansing IN preparation for living a
clean life after repentance. John seems
TO have met first the deeply intrenched
Jewish idea that for them no repent
ancc was necessary. They regarded
their descent from Abraham as suffi-
cient guaranty of salvation. Johns
words on this point Uuke $3.50 were
| therefore very radical. According TO
! Matthew Matt. SD, they were direct
| Il 81
Jews. These leaders were the repre-
| scntatives OF the two chief sects, the
pharisees and the Sadducees. The
former were the Puritans Of the time.
in profession though not in practice.
! They took great pains to observe the
law and the traditions. going beyond
the literal command in their endenvor
| 10 render perfect obedience. The Sad
! ducecs professed equal regard for the
! Jaw, but were by no means so strict
| in their compliance with either its let
ter or what they regarded as it's spirit.
johns Testimouy.-Theg great sensa-
ton that ,Lohn had created, his refer
ences to the Kingdom Of heaven n at
! hand, and the nature of his teaching
combined to lead many of the Jews
! 10 believe him TO be the Messiah. To
those who questioned him. however.
! John made it evident that he thought
of his own work as merely preparatory.
! His words, lead us 20 suppose that he
expected the work of Jesus TO be vastly
more sudden and sweeping than it
! actually was. The same idea finds sup
! port in the message which John after
wards sent 10 Jesus Matt. l1:2. 81.
/ ri
| preparing, or of repairing. these roads
! in advance Of the coming OF a royal
! parsonage is continued to the present
! time. ut Hebron, as our party entered
the Holy Land from the desert below,
wn were told that the crown prince OF
Austria was just before us. and that the
word had gone out from the Turkish
authorities 20 prepare his way i'm adj
vance. Vt this our dragoman was de-
! lighted, as he was sure that we would
find the road, in excellent condition all
tire way rurthvard. Again and again
re SAIL gratefully: This road has
been prepared for the prince. wish
/. there WAS always prince before MS"
-Trum5uu's Oriental Studies.
Fleeing from Wrath.-Dr. George
.~\auw Smith. in his "Historiaal &C.
cgraphy OF the Holy Land" gives n
vivid picture OF a fire in the Jud,an
wilderness. The rain. during The short
wet season, induces a rank growth OF
oTaWbies and grasses. Ir the bot
. month, that ToUow these become very
dry. and fire once kindred spreads
with great rapidity.NIt comes sweeping
down before the wind almost like ire
on ;he American prairies. and before
10 The lizards and serp- ~, Zee from
their hiding places beneat ~ the stones.
D.. Smith remarks that such "a scene
may have suggested to this wilderness
preacher the word in which bcupbraid-
cd The Pharisses and Sadducecs: %
/ generation Of ripors ,vbc Ls.b ,,.,-,,5