The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-10-27

What the Church Folks IRE Thin king
About and Doing. Religious NegUS
From EVeIywhere.
SUNDAY scHOOL LESSON AND YOUNG PEOPLES TOPIC.

.
/ point Of agreement is the Man Of Naz-
areth, whom every other man finds
! close kin to himself. There IS nothing
more wonderful about the character OF
the Saviour than mis- affinity for every
body. He Is stin in complete SYM
pathy with the lowliest ana the high
est. Friend gropes to find q conRenial
nature in friend, but in Jesus one meets
instant and perfect union.
The Lavishness OF Love.
This particular feast, the chief Guest
declared, is to be known wherever the
gospel is preached for one supreme
occurrence there. Mary had brought
with her what had probably been a
I precious household heritage. an ala
baster cruise of pure nard. that most
I fragrant of spices In that simple
community which knew nothing of
modern luxury, its value must have
been enormou for it would have sent
three hundred beggars on their way
| rejoicing, or it would have sustained a
! laborer and his family for more than a
year.
To the establishment Of everybody
and to the horror of Some. Mary pour
ed out without stint. and to the last
drop, this precious ointment upon the
Lord, who had brought back from the
grave her brother. 1t was a woman s
deed-the deed of supreme and self
/ forgetting and matchmaking affection.
True love is always lavish in its Civ
ing. It's best belongs to its beloved.
! When it begins to ponder and weigh
and count the cost, it is no longer love,
for In love there is no Withholding.
And in all this great world, the most
fragrant thing is loves deed done pure
| ~ for loves sake. Well did the Mas
ter crown it with a memorial, declar-
| ing that it would be recorded Wher-
ever his gospel is preached
There are many things in life which
at eVentide we regret, but the lavish
ness of our love is never one OF them
The deeds we do at affections prompt
! ing are when We see most clearly. our
pride and qualification and happiness.
The sorrow which men feel as they
stand beside OF the bier Of a loved one
( is not cor their much giving, but for
their short-sighted Withholding. Love
hes .sssn til 5eufsl "Foolish. .Ex
travagant!'' the thrifty and careful vii
/ layers no doubt exclaimed over Mary 8
act. They were unable to see that
there are better things in life than be
/ ing thrifty and economical. To feed
the spirit is better than to feed the
body and there is many a wife with a
great ache in her heart, who would
gladly surrender the houses and the
/ bank account which her true husband
! had accumulated for her sake We're
/ he but a little more free with words
and tokens of effection. There is not
I enough Of flowers and gifts in life, and
3 TOO IIluEQ OF SOIUlQ CdlCu4at4OfA- As4Aitcl
placed His stamp OF approval upon
( love that shows itself in bounteous tok-
! ems of affection.
+ The Nercenary Spirit.
! This whole proceeding must have
I been heart-breaking to Judas, as he
watched the precious nard flow down
! to the ground while its perfume filled
/ the house. He cared nothing for It's
/ fragrance. and was blind to the light
4 that enkindled his Masters eye as he
beheld this glad Offering of pure devo-
! ton Judas spirit was wholly nerce-
/ nary, and the finer instincts cannot
/ survive sordidness Of soul It IS awful
/ to contemplate how many fair and
/ fragrant srOwths are sttfied by this
I rank weed of meTcenariness. It enters
! the most sacred places and profanes
the most hallowed Institutions and oc-
casions
Consider the death chambers that
4 have been made the scenes of strife.
/ because the thought of an inheritance
was uppermost in the minds Of all
present. When the passion for money
/ enters a life. it feeds all other base
passions, and wages constant war
/ against those whose passions which
are sacred and ennobling- It prevents
a proper sense of values. The man
who loves money can never sec
/ straight. even on questions of politics
and practical morality.
So stirred was Judas that he could
/ not contain himself in silence, and he
cried out: why was not this ointment
sold for three hundred shillngs and
1 given to the poorl'' This was the cum
1 ming of misery man. For a miser
is proverbially cunning. Judas was
shrewd enough to cloak a base motive
under pious pretense. This was not
the first time nor the last, that self
interest paraded as religion. John goes
to the root of the matter when he de-
/ clares; ttNow this he said, not be-
cause he cared for the poor. but be-
cause he was a thief, and having the
bag. took away what was put therein .
Despite daily association with Jesus
and daily instruction from him. one
of the twelve had grown to be a thief
SO stirred was Judas by Mary's deed
and by what he must have considered
the Impractical" views Of Jesus re-
garding the extravaganza. that he
went forth and made his unholy bar
gain with the priests. to sell his Mas
ter for only a small fraction OF the
value Of the amounting fluid which
Mary had poured upon Jesus feet
Judas had olreadv lost his soul Il
had been stifc1 to death by love OF
money.