The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1910-05-06
Sermon by
CHARLES r.
RUSSELL,
Pastor Brooklyn
Tabernacle.

meet today for the worship OF God In
additionally one of the most renowned
meeting places In the whole earth.
Tradition has It that this Is the same
upper room" which was owned by one
friendly to our Lord and his disciples
and who granted 1t as their meeting
place on several occasions most intt
mately associated with the inaugura
ton Of Christianity, Tradition also
has II that this is the room mentioned
by St Mark In our text, where the
disciples with the Lord partook Of
the last Jewish Passover Supper, after
which Jesus instituted the Eucharist
or Lords Supper as an antityplcal me-
mortal. taking the place Of the Pass
over to all who accept Jesus as the
Passover Lamb-"The Lamb Of God
which taketh away the sin of the
world" John |, 29,; Christ our Pass.
over is slain. therefore let US keep the
feast" Il Corinthians v, I, 81.
Tradition assures us that this is the
same room mentioned in the Book Of
Acts q, 49, as the place where the
Apostles resided and assembled for
worship during the ten days following
the Lords ascension--thc same upper
ROOM" therefore, In which was mani
tested the acceptance Of all the con
secrated followers of Jesus into Cove
nant relationship with God rs mem
bers OF the Body Of Christ, which is
the Church" OF course. our permits
sion to use this room for public serv-
ice today was obtained only by pre-
arrangement with those having 1t in
charge. True. traditions are not al
ways reliable. Surely, in almost every
other part of the world II would be
absurd to think Of the preservation of
the identity of house like this for
more than eighteen centuries But
here we have most peculiar condi
tons The inhabitants Of this land
seem to have been content to leave
!, things just as they found them from
generation to generation, merely max
ing such slight repairs as were from
time to time found necessary. Here
visitors come look and depart, filled
with Il sacred awe, and have done sc
for centuries, and the inhabitants
each intent upon his own business
have ignored this in manner hardly
imaginable by Europeans. 1t is posi-
BILE therefore that tradition in this cast
and in other instances here0bouts, ha:
located correctly, just as in Rome thu
prison in which Paul was confined Il
Indicated by tradition with apparen
accuracy,
n Christ Our Passover.
We are favored not only in respec
TO the use of the room but additional
ly In respc to the time of our visi
and our use of it. This, according t
Jewish reckoning, is the first day o
Passover Week-it began last evening
at 6 o'clock. The three hours preced
ing that marked the time of our Lord
death and the begging by Joseph o
Arimathea for the privilege of bury
ing his body in his new tomb and tn
hasty taking Of our Lord from tn
cross and getting him only PARTIAL
embalmed and the tomb closed an
sealed before 6 o'clock-this day bt
ginning at o'clock being amongs
the Jews, as the Apostle declared. a
high day" Sabbath day Of speci'
sacredness as the beginning Of tn
Passover Feast-Week.
AS we look back to that memorial
occasion we can sympathize with II
Apostles and early believers in II
blighting of all Of their hopes by II
apparent failure of Jesus to make GOO
his claim Of Messiahship. We can II
agine better than we can describe the
detection. their disappointment. {
Sshe next day. corresponding to to-mo
row, the two with whom Jesus met
the way to Emmaus said sadly, "N
had trusted that it had been he wi
should have redeemed Israel" uul
xiv, 21.
They had hoped that his miracle
corroborating his teaching. when
''spake as never man spake." we
evidences that he was the Me
siah They had built their hopes
Jews. that now. finally Gods promis
10 their nation would be fulhlled-th
Israel should be exalted in the ear
IN name aud fame and power and a
thority TO bless and TO instruct "all I
families OF the earth" They n
hoped that Messiah would be the gre
King under whose benetcent reign
the great Mediator between God a
men, the long-promised blessing wor
come TO the earth. They had hop
also for a personal share with him
the glories Of his Kingdom, Accord
to his own words-"Ye shall sit w
me on twelve thrones, judging rulir
t,tbns nf ISraal" lMntthl