The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1912-07-06
81 WILLIAA z. ELLIS.

-.
The East still has its professional
story teilers 4 have seen them late
At night. under the village tree OF an
Indian community, while wide ed
listeners gathered round 10 hear their
tales Of the gods and OF Indian heroes
and Of fairy lore, In remote Japan
have watched the story teller gather
great throngs about him. as with real
dramatic ability he recited the story
or famous Japanese heroes, his COM
banlons striking In OPPORTUNITY with
the music Of the samtsen. So 20 this
day Christian preachers often make
their advent into an eastern ccmmun-
"a as teIiers OF story. Bishop Warne
once told me OF q gwonderful native
evangelist in a Methodist mission OF
india. who, by following the Indian
story telling usages. kept his hearers
iarEer part Cf a night There is need
to place ones self I'm an oriental atmos-
phere to percefve the appropriateness
and power OF Jesus method OF clothing
truth in stories as He did on this occa-
sIoyi. when lie talked from a beat 20 a
multitude on the shore at the northern
end OF the Lake OF Galilee-
The young preacher. fresh from SEM
ipary breaches se T SpSs sasOS asd w Herr
cules, or walk with phiiosophic meln
Socrates and Plato, and Homer twang-
ing his Tyre. AS the young men grow
older in wisdom not learned iron
sermons with Illustrations from the
everyday life about them--from the
fields and the little children, the ouI-
dcned labOreT, the wireless tsaesrap plL
the fashion OF the best Teacher, wno
knew no other theological school than
riusc fellowship with His Father. lie
smrIoyed the Pgot99IahI, IPS bITc Used in.
| eycryday environment. There are
4 atoneues iu trees, books In the rum
n'ng brooks, sermons IN Stones anu
GOOD in everything. AS MIS-. Brown
aFssrth,s crammed with heaven.
l And every common bush afre with
Tn. Pe.rIes. parable.
The most vivid bits OF LITERATURE
! which the world possesses today arS
! the little stories from everyday liit
told 1000 years ago TO groups OF open open,
from Galllee. Jesus invested the com.
mon and material incidents OF life VIII
AN uncommon and spiritual signlhcance
He made the world or ordinary thinss
10 glow with divine truth. One OF the
hest known OF these parallels as they
larp called "a that of the Sower. Phrases
from IL abound In our daily newspaper
and common speech and the BOOKS we
read ..# a,
/ needed 20 make clear this parable o.
| the sower. / recall one evening on Mt
I carmel when ] saw, In one OF the Ter,
/ tile valleys of that famous spot, al
4 four OF the conditions indicated IN ths
! para bic The farmers In the Holy Lane
i live In -EIllages and not amid thelI
| fields. There are nc fecses, but heater
paths. or ''wRysides," as they are call
/ 81 in the story between the fields,
] Underneath the soil OF Palestine lie'
tire great sub-stratum OF rock whlct
80 often outcrops. The language Q,
the parable does not convey meaning
lof A heid with occasional stones IN ~
hut Of one that r. but thin overlap
OF soil above the rock
i Encroachlng upon the Held and way
side are the thorns thick aud rank.
1 notwithstanding thnSe handicaps
There IL good soil plenty-and ina,
Is the point OF the lesson. The sowe'
goes forth to SOW. not primarily on tn,
way side or. 'on the stony soil or amid
tho thorns but IN the productive sol
that brings forth fruit many fold.
Assuming equality OF weather condi
lions. the product r. all a matter Of
soil There Is no fault IN the seed
The story assumes that the seed vii
bring forth after It's kind. GIVE the
word Of God a chance and II will pro
duce the results which have followed u
lthroughout history.
The Meaning Explained.
Asked for meaning OF this story OF
; the Sewer, Jesus said that the seed I.
thr word" The sower is anybody VIII
spreads abroad the word--you. l. tht
man IN Africa, the teacher IN the VII.
ltaee school The soil a the human
lheart. and the four kinds OF hearino
mat the word gets are Illustrated b.