The Jamesburg record., 1900-05-19
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson in the International Series for
May 30, 10OO-ParabIe of
the Sower.
Prepared by II. c. Lexington.
THE LESSON TEXT.
Matthew 12.1-Q and 1EO20

Matthew l3I-S and 18-23.)
l. The same day went Jesus out Of the
house, and sat by the sea side.
2. And great multitudes were gathered
together unto Him, so that He went into
a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude
stood on the shore.
3. And He spake many things unto them
IN parallels, saying: Behold, a sower went
forth to SOW;
4. And when he sowed, some seeds fell
by the way side, and the fowls came and
devoured them up;
5. Some fell upon stony places where
they had not much earth; and forthwith
they sprung up, because they had no
Geepness of earth;
6. And when the sun was up, they were
scorched; and because they had no root,
they withered away
I. And some fell among thorns; and the
thorns sprung up. and choked them;
g. But other fell into good ground, and
brought forth fruit some an hundredfold,
some sixtyfold some thirtyfold.
IS. Hear ye, therefore the parable of the
sower
49, When anyone heareth the Word Of
the Kingdom, anC understandeth it not,
then cometh the wicked one and catcheth
away that which was sown in his heart.
This is he which received seed by the
way side.
20. But he that received the seed into
stony places, the same is he that heareth
the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;
q. Yet hath he not root in himself, but
dureth for awhile; for when tribulation
or persecution ariseth because Of the
Word, by and by he is offended.
q. He also that receiveth seed among
the thorns is he that heareth the Word;
and the care of this world, and the de-
ceitfulness of riches, choke the Word, and
he becometh unfruitful.
q. But he that received seed into the
good ground is he that heareth the Word.
aafh IIy0f ph a 1En
fruit and bringeth forth, some an hun
dredfold, some 90, some 30.
GOLDEN TEXT-The seed is the Word
of God.-Luke S:11.
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
In the short period that intervenes
between the events of last lesson and
. those of the present lesson Jesus had
made with His disciples tour of Cali
lee.
Shortly after His return to Caper-
naum Jesus began preaching by the
seaside. A great multitude soon gath
cred, so great that Jesus used boat
a little out from the shore for pulpit.
The ground rising directly from the
water formed a vast amphitheater,
and here the people listened to the
words of the Master.
The Sower and the Sowing.-Jesus
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
er was Jesus, who sowed the good seed
in tie 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 mo 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
as well as the unpromising. Two
things Jesus evidently meant to teach:
Q) That He 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 men
are hidden from our sight, and there
may be good soil where we least ex-
pect it.
The Seed and the Soil.-The seed, we
are told, was good seed. If 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.
and our own heart is a part of that
soil. We can change that soil and make
parable is not fatalistic. The element
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 be free from other
useless growths that will crowd out
what we wish to have grow.
Good Seed by the Wayside.-Jesus
refers to those who have deliberately
hardened their hearts. The seed can
not abide there, so is soon taken away.
Another thought is suggested. The
beaten paths of men are not the places
for cultivating the good seed Medi-
tation and prayer can be had at their
best only in solitude; therefore we
should give ourselves such moments
as we can.
Good Seed on Stony Ground.-This
refers to shallow" people people #
no depth of character, who have not as
siduously cultivated what soil they
have, who have no aim in life.
Good Seed Among Thorns.-This re-
fers to the cultiv ltion rather than to
the soil. After the seed is sown, care
must be taken 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. but we can pull them out as soon
as they begin to show themselves.