The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-12-22
INTERNATIONAL SUNDAY SCHOOL
 LESSON
FamHHE aITauHEHE EHarEaITa aIMaImnm amanl
The Aseenslon.--that pole star of our

The Ascension--that pole star of our night.--Edward Irving.
 Only by matching Scripture to Scripture win we have complete .dii- ineation of this transcendent scene Take, for example, the closing verses of the gospels of Mark and Luke, the opening paragraph of the Book or Acts and Psalm xviii, l7-ls.
 I On a certain day, conspicuous and memorable. last of the forty mystic days since his resurrection Jesus led His disciples to 'weii-remetnoered olivet. Together they went down mo l the deep chasm and across the Brook Kedron, past Gethsemane, place or agony and betrayal along the os-trod- l den road the very way by which, strewn with garments and ollVe
 in triumph. and so on toward Betn- in triumph. and son on toward Seth- lany.
 The text in Acts reads, "And being assembled together with them:' tho margin reads, Eating together with them" This was the real iast supper.
 Under some grateful shade. beside
 some briming fountain, they sat. I The ten recorded appearances, ana Ithe many not recorded had helped to
 wear away in good part the preterna- Itural character of the risen saNor , iassociations with His disciples. So that
 
 was pre-eminently natural social ana
 Under these favorable conditions, Jesus last commands, which are mex lpressible importance. are now com munlcated. Personal safety would have suggested to the disciples immed- late flight from Jerusalem. Two days would have taken them to happy Cali lee, with it's comparative saeurity--taF from the melancholy scenes of the Say ior's betrayal. humiliation, and death. But Jesus offsets the dictates of heart and flesh with His direct command that they should not depart from Jerusalem.
 He promises the effusionMof the spirit | ere inveterate racial preJudice intrudes me question whether this is the time when the Kingdom will be restored tn Israel. Jesus patience is unfailing, He shows how an exclusive pride O. race can havc no place In the worldwide dimensions of His coming kingdom
 Frederick W. Robertson has spoken discriminating words rpon progress by
 oblivion of the Past" But there is al- so a helpful oblivion of the FutureT- there ts a blessedness in not knowing times and seasons" with absolute pre- cision. The disciples are encouraged by the affirmation that the kingdom is near. They are not told how near ln order that they may be alert.
 It Is surprising to notice that the ieommentators magnify the resIrTes- tion of the Lord at the exI ense O. His ascension. Among all the lives of Jesus. scarcely one devotes more than a single paragraph to the latter scene This Is philosophically wrong. The whole life of Jesus was an ascending scale. IL was progressive and cumu- llative. The last scene on Owe br.w
 was a splendid golden climax and triumph of the inspiration of whian
 the Church ought not 10 be robbed. l The last attitude tn winch Jes4s ap- lpeared on earth was that of hands out stretched in beneditiou And He fitted lup His hands and blessed them. and
 wl&le He blessed them--' Could alS- thing be more significant? The waoie
 tenor and purpose of stis life was to
 bless. What mute significance in this
 last act and attitude,
 ] While In this very act He was parted l from them--l.tterally. "He stood as.ds apart from his congregation in plain
 est view of ell. Every discip-e had an equally favorable opportunity to W t. ness the spectacle Every eye beneld Him. While His lands were stlI eS-
 tended in benedictioh He was "taNen up"-possibly by convoy of Rnge4s.
 The ehariots of God are twenty thou
  Again, a cloud received Him out of their sight No ordinary cloud, this! A royal chariot of fire awaited Him who makes the clouds His chariot. This was the shekina, the effulgent fame or the Divine Presence The glory Of God the Father covered the retreating form of God the Son. This was a spectacle,
 the majesty Of which shall only he equaIled by the second appearing of the great God and our Sa, iOF."
 No wonder that as the apostles gag
 ea upon the ineHable scene they wor- shiped they burst forth into ado. alton and praise. Thus they stood Ions af-
 ter the radiant spectacle Lad vanished
 They were riveted tu the spot They Eazed wistfully Into the heavens Us # ] they longed to follow their ascending | | ord or to see him return.
 Jesus. even in the midst of His
 triumph, was tenderly mindful or Ills disciples. He detached two of the
 angels from Ills train and dispatched
 them to break the spell which held the
 disciples as if ia chains, How tenderly
 these ministsrlng spirits, in their fes. live garments. accomplished thair task! eranflnas y,esnafhfa rae