The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-03-30
INTERNATIONAL SUNDAY SCHOOL
 LESSON
First Quarter. Lesson xiii. March 31, 1907, Easter Lesson. II Cor
 inthfans XIV, i2-21, 55-5S.
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The doctrine of the resurrection of the mortal body Is on the face of 1t one of secondary importance. The doc- i, Urine of prime importance is that Of the immortality of the soul. The survival of spirit and continuity or life. as an intuitive conception of the universal consciousness, is in the ascendant to-day current thought repudiates materialism. That the spirit of man is other than. superior to and independent of his material body, is the joyous creed of the people in and out of the Churches. That the spirit, maintaining its tndentity body is the correlate to that. Tnat the spirit, maintaining It's indenity and conscious of 1t, reasoning ana remembering, 4freighted with all the treasures of its mortal existence sails out into the sea of eteSnal life, Is the first article of faith as it relates to the world beyond.
 The problem as to how and when this spirit of man, which persists m it's existence and survives the incioent of death, is to be clothed is relevantlv unimportant. The spirit will retain its characteristics, and these VIII m turn dominate any body with which that spirit Is ultimately clothed so that a practical sameness will be pre- served and recognition be made pos-
 AS to the nature of the body with which the spirit is to be clothed, the apostle is suggestive rather than ex- plicit He says there is one flesh or birds The very buoyant construction of the bird, It's balloon-like bones nag ouills indicate that it's home is to De in aerial regions. There is another kind of flesh of fishes. The very construction of the fish's body, its prow-shaped head. its. overlapping scales. it's propelling fins and rudder- tail all mark 1t for residence in the fluid world still another kind of flesh of beasts. Its ponderous body differentiates 1t. It needs terra firma So will be the body which lt will please God to cloth the spirit. It will be one suited to the sphere in which the spirit is to abide--as bird to air, fish to water, and beast to earth so shall it be in the resurrec- ton The body will be one adapted like the body with which Christ arose Certainly one's superlative ambition will be satisfied when he awakes In such a likeness.
 Review.
 The successive paragraphs are es- sentially pictorial It is all a radiant panorama Any attempt to literalize it spells the fine spirit of 1t all. The hook has A motive. It is to reveal the personality and power of God; to show the material universe as an expression of his mind and a creation of his VIII; to make plain to him mans own con stitution and his relation to God and earth. The form is singulariy ef- fective.
 Michael Angelo dipped his pencils into the Book of Genesis when he over laid the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel with it's priceless frescoes. Any other cosmogany would have marred that ceiItng with incogruous shapes Of mans wild fancy or wilder fear. In place of that one sees the ineffaole face and form of the Eternal Father bending to his creative activity. Each successive panel matches its respective paragraph.
 whether the story of mans sin be accented as literal history or a vivid pictorial and postical description, Of mans early struggle with evil, is of little practical importance. To all intents results are the same whether man Is a fallen being or one strug- gling up though evolution to an ethical and spiritual life.
 The story of Cain and Able is the mans first essay at worship; success and failure in 1t. The vivid picture of the Ark and Flood rivets the most careless eye. Ark spells salvation. Flood spells retribution.
 A great face greets one on the next page of this album of the Bible. Abraham. Exalted Father" First emigrant impelIed by religious motives undertaking a journey for conscience sake. Over against this benignant countenance appears the face of sell fish. luxurious Lot. One goes to ob- livion and the other becomes the "father ofnations" and friend of God" Abraham's disinterested and skillful intercession for Sodom Is such a dls- play of early altruistic spirit as to cause pleasant surprise.
 The entrance of the guileless Isaac upon this eldest and sweetest of all pastorals makes one of It's pleasantest features. Meditatiye and placid his spiritual life reached a higher level than that of his father. and his ethical progress is further marked by hts strict monogamy.
 Next comes the repulsive picture Of the unbrotherly conduct of brothers The stolen blessing follows the birth right bought by a trick and for song. The deadly wages of sin has no more ..,-a S,Lta v.lok,tva than in fhta fncidani