The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1904-01-08
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson In the International sertss
for January no, IOOt-PreachSaE
OF John the baptist.
TIE LESSON TEXT.
(Matt. 3.l-l2)

inc way OF the Lord, make His paths
straight.
4 And the same John had his ralment
OF camels hair. and "A leathcrn girdle
about his loins, and his meat was locusts
and Wild honey.
6 Then went out TO him Jerusalem. and
all Judea, and all the region round about
Jordan.
6 And were baptized Of him in Jordan,
cOnfessing their sins.
4 But when he saw many OF the Phar-
isees and Sadducees come 20 his baptism.
he said unto them. O generation OF vipers,
who hath warned you TO fee from the
wrath TO come?
s Bring forth therefore fruits meet for
repentance.
8. And think not TO gay within YOUR
selves. We have Abraham 10 our father:
Tor l say unto you. that God Is able Of these
stones 10 raise up children unto Abraham.
10 And now also the AK is laid unto the
root or the trees: therefore every tree
which bringeth not forth good fruit Is hewn
Gown. and cast into the fire.
IL Indeed baptize you with water unto
repentance: but He that come;h after me
is mightier thar I. whose shoes ! am not
worthy 10 bear: He shall baptize you with
the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
r. Whose fan is in His hand. and HI will
thoroughly purge His floor, and gather
Ills wheat unto the garner. but lie viii
burn up the chan with unquenchable fire.
GOLDEN TENT.-Repent yet for the
Kingdom OF Heaven H. at hand.-Matt.
3;2.
OUTLINE OF SCRIPTURE SECTION.
Preaching Of John the Baptist. Matt. s:1-1s
Preaching Of John the Baptist. Mark 1.2-S
Preaching Of John the Baptist. Luke s:l-1s
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
Last Sundays lesson practically COW
cred the years from b. c. s (the birth OF
Jesus) to A. ID. &c. The young manhood
Of Jesus was spent at Nazareth. Every
Jewish father was expected to teach his
son a trade. so. as Joseph was a carpen-
ter, we may be sure Jesus spent these
quiet home years at the carpenters bench
with His father. Here He continued to
grow in favor with God and men. - This
is all we know of His life till the time OF
His baptism. Matt. 3:1-4-11 takes UP
the history again and we study this next
as the prelude to the public ministry OF
Jesus.
In those days" the expression Of one
writing Of things hat happened long
ago; Luke gives exact dates duke
3:1-2). John began preaching in the
summer Of A. d. 26. THE wilderness OF
Judea:" the thinly inhabited parts of
Judea along the lower Jordan. RE
pent:" The keynote Of Johns preach
Ing. John said, Repent. Jesus said, Be-
lieye. John warned bad men Of the
wrath to come: Jesus welcomed those
who were willing TO live It, { the noble
life of children of God. For this is He:"
The words Of Matthew, not of John the
Baptist. Spoken Of through Isaiah"
Is. 1913. These verses. in the original,
refer 70 the return Of the Jews from their
~Babylonian captivity. make We ready
the way Of the Lcrd:" The thought was
OF a triumphal procession OF captives re-
turning under the leadership Of Jeho-
yah, before whom the herald and "pio-
neer corps prepared the way. Raj
ment of camel's hair" A garment OF
coarse. rough cloth. Compare the de-
scrlption Of Elijah in 2 Kings rs. To-
Gusts and wild honey" Food still eat
en- by the poor OF the east.
They were baptized confessing
their sins" Johns converts must have
needed his message 20 repent" and the
confession of their Euilt-burdened
souls was natural. The significance of
this rite lay not in itself-the manner of
applying the water. nor even in the man
who oficiated-but in the state Of heart
of which It was a sign and symbol.
"Pharisees:" A sect devoting them
selves TO the study. Interpretation and
observance Of the law Of Moses. They
were the strictly orthodox party. Sad
ducees:" A sect broader in their views
Of the law than the Pharisees. They
constituted something like a political
party and practically controlled the
high priesthood under the Romans. They
found no ground IN the Old Testamentfor
belief I'm immortality and so denied Il.
Fruit worthy OF repentance" Good
ancestors will not save bad men. John
that mel should trust TO nothing
but personal Righteousness.
John plainly says that his work is pre-
paratory and subordinate TO that OF a
Coming One. who was almost at hand.
verses show Johns idea Of what
that One was TO be. The whole bap-
tism OF the Messiah. as John c~onceives
is a baptism Of Judgment."-Bruce.
How different from the reality was
idea! I'm the Holy Spirit and in
fire." Johns baptism was external, a
Of an internal reality. The bap-
tism OF Jesus was not external at all.
He baptized no one in the ordinary
II was a spiritual thing. Whose
Or %winnowing shovel. The in
strument with which the wheat was
into the air that the wind might
get at II and blow out the chafR. John
thought the work that was needed and
therefore the work that the Coming One
would do, was to separate In a summary
way the good from the bad. IL is doubt
ful whether he thought OF his successor
as trying TO make bad men good-giv-
Ing. as II were. the very chat a chsnce
L