The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1905-05-25

dent Importance, the narrative of it is
surprisingly condensed. There is no
spinning out of details, no obtrusiOn
of the personal opinions and senti-
ments of the narrators. Here IS n
suggestion of how we ourselves should
approach Calvary. 1t is not a theme
for volubility. There should be no
striving 10 magnify its painful hor-
rors, or to compare the physical sufT-
ering of its victim with those of others
4 spiritual interpretation is the thing
desirable \ personal appropriation
by faith is great riches.
We first have the numbering Of
Jesus with transgressors. He was
crucified between the malefactors, the
insurgent robbers and murderers. He
who could challenge the world to i'm
peach his sinlessness, was made sin"
He was put to the extremity of a con
victed felon. With the shedding of
His blood begins His mediatorial
prayer, Father, forgive them" The
l1N 0lllNtuCSS vi ltNt Hlluo ii pam
ating circumstance in,their ignora nee
They know not what they do The
prayer sweeps out to include, not the
coarse eXecutiOners alone, but the
cunning conspirators who use them
as their tools. 1t is enough to brand
it with infamY that destroying vice
of gambling, that it obtruded itself
at the crucifixion. The soldiers threw
dice to determine which should have
the most valuable garment Of the suf-
ferer. They 'chanced Off the seam
Jess robe.
He saved Others" Uncons cious,
undersigned encomium. Let Him
save Himself.' Last recurrence Of
the wilderness temptation? That
which is a literal possibility is a NOR
al possibility. Except He stay up.
on the cross He can not be a Savior.
IL He remains not, he can not utter
that ineffabe cry, 1T is finished"
the work the Father gave Me to do"
Keener than mortal pangs are the
brutal gibes of rulers, populace, and
soIdiery. That triple inscription may
signify that the story of the cross is
destined to go into all languages, as
it there appeared in the tongues of
conquest, culture, and cOlloquy.
The third word" Il Jesus from
His cross is a lustrous example of iilial
affection Even shame and agony
of His crncifxion was not sufficient to
divert His thought from His mother
or to confuse His Judgment as to
what would be the best provision for
her. In touching and significant
terms He commended her to the care
of His dearest friend.
The sovereign power Of redeeming
loYe has a splendid complication
even in the deepening gloom Of Cal
vary. AS the hours wear away, the
innocence, the Divinity OF his fellow
sufferer dawns upon the mind of the
malefactor. 1t pains him to hear the
continued railing of his cOmrade in
crime. He chides him, reminding him
of the business of their condemnation,
and affirming the guiltlessness of
Jesus. To eye of faith there opens
to him blissful vista beyond the
chasm of death. He recognizes the
sufferer, spite of His marred visage as
monarch of that realm. In the
strength of belief that prompts to
action, he Joins his fortunes irrevo-
cably with those of the crucified MAJ
arene, and entreats recognition when
He comes to the regal splendors Of
His coronation. What Jesus did then,
He has been doing ever since He
opened paradise to a penitent. But
His obedience unto death, even the
death of the cross, was the key, and
the only one, to unlock that paradise
Nature, as if become sentient on
account of the Incompatible tragedy
now enacting, Grapes herself in a veil
of impenetrable blackness. In that
darkness, the seventh word from the
cross is heard. The Son having drunk
to its dregs the cup the Father had
given Him, now, in the very hour and
article of death, confidently commeds
His soul to that Father.
The Teachers Lantern.
Pilates ironical inscription had a
germ of truth in it. Jesus is King.
His dominion is wider than the most
ambitious Caesar ever dreamed Of
= = = =
What was taunt to the Jews was a
tribute to Jesus PLATE would fain
acknowledge HimTa kingly spirit, of
whom the Jews were not worthy. To
this covered eulogy of the procurator
the dying thief added his "Thy king
dom"
= = :;
The Cross is ever divisive-once
separated a believer from an unbe-
lever. 1t does so yet wherever it is
preached. People range themselves