The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1900-05-18

Lesson In the International SERIES re-
May 10. tou0-Pnrabie Of
the Sower.
Prepared by II. G.. Lenington-l
THE LESSON TEXT.

"a,
Together unto Him. so that lie went into
ship. and sat; and the whole multitude
stood on the shore.
q And He spake many things unto them
n parallels. saying Behold. sower went
forth to sow: ,
4. And when he sowcd. some seeds fell
BY the way side. and the fowls came ana
dcvoured them up,
6. Some fell upon stony places. wnere
they had not much earth: and forthwith
they sprung up. because they had no
deepness of earth:
g. And when the sun was up. they were
scorchcd. and because they had no root.
they withercd away.
Z And some fell among thorns. ana inc
thorns sprung up. and choked them'
g. But other fen into good ground, and
brought forth fruit. some an hundreuioiu'
some sixtyfold. some thirtyfold.
Is. Hear ye. therefore. the parable OF the
ID. when anyone heareth the Word OF
the Kingdom and understandetn II hot'
then cometh the wicked one. and catch'th
away that which was sown In MS heart
This Is he which received seed by the
way side. 49,.
stony places, the same IL he that heareth
the word. and anon with JOY receve.h IL.
2 Yet hath he not root In himself. put
dureth for awhile: for when tribulation
Word, BY and by he Is offended.
% He also that rccciveth seed among
the thorns is he that heareth the Word.
and the care Of this world. ano the ue
celtfulness OF riches. choke the Word, ana
he becometh unfruitful. 49, 49,
"a Hut he that received seed into tho
good ground Is he that hcarcth the Word.
and Understandable It. which also oeareth
fruit. and bringeth forth. some an num-
drcdfold. some 90. some 10
GOLDEN TExT.--The seed 10 the wore
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
In the short period that intsrvenes
between the events OF last lesson ana
those OF the present lesson Jesus had
made with His disciples tour OF Cali
lee.
Shortly after His return 10 Caper-
naum Jesus began preaching by the
seaside. A great multitude soon gath
cred. so great that Jesus used boat
q little out from the shore for pulpit.
The ground rising directly from the
water formed n vast amphitheater,
and here the people listened TO the
words of the Master.
The Sewer and the Sowing.-Jesns
in His explanation does not tell us who
the sower was. All who teach Divine
truths may be considered as sewers,
but probably for this parable the SOW
err was Jesus. " no sowed the good seed
in the hearts OF men by His life on
earth and teaching. The sowing was
broadcast. Some Of the seed fell by
the wayside. some upon stony places
some among thorns. and some into
good ground We sometimes hear OF
people who complain that they have
had no chance in life" This can
hardly be true of anyone who has
heard the teaching OF Jesus. The good
seed has fallen in the promising places
rs well as the unpromising. Two
things Jesus evidently meant 10 teach:
n) That lie had sowed the good seed
in His possession among all classes and
conditions OF men; and (2) that those
who wished to be sewers Of this seed
should not choose their field OF work.
We can tell what is good ground for
wheat growing. but the hearts Of mer
are hidden from our sight. and there
nav he good soil where we least ex-
pcct IL.
The Seed and the Soil.-The seed. We
are told. was good seed. II it does not
grow. then we can safely conclude that
the fault is not in the seed. but in the
soil. The hearts Of men form the soil.
md our own heart is part of that
| soil. We can change that soil and make
| il what we viii. The doctrine Of this
e., ~,ft 10 ID 10 ay,t
! OF human choice comes in right here.
| The seed that has been sown was good
seed, and it has fallen into our hearts.
Nurture Of the plant will do little
good. We must have depth Of soil,
and the soil must he free from other
useless growths that will crowd out
what e.wish TO have grow.
Good Seed by the Waysidc.
refers TO those who have deliberately
hardened their hearts. The seed can
not abide there. so Is 500, taken away,
Another thought is suggested. The
beaten paths Of men are not the places
for cultivating the good 4, ed. Nrdi.
tation and prayer can be had ~ their
best only in solitude; Therefore we
| EnONlu give OuTSrlSFS SuCU UpIls''ltH
as we can.
Good Seed on Stony Ground
refers 10 shallow" people. people OF
no depth OF character. who have not as
siduously cultivated what soil thcy
have, who have no aim in life.
Good cscd Among Thorns.- This r.
fers to the cultivation rather than t.
the soil. After the seed is sown. care
must Re saken that the hurtful things
do not crowd out that which has
sprung up from the good seed. Per
haps we cannot help the weeds start
ing, nut we can pull them out ms soor
ms they begin to show themselves.
Good Secd in Good und.-How re-
freshing IL is to turn from the barrier
and uncul:ivated places TO a field thai
II well taken care Of. This field is on,
that Il all that the others we have con
siocrcd are not. II is away from th'
highway, there is depth OF soil. and III,
cultivation Is complete. Even here
some Of the seed has done better thar