Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1914-11-29
ITIHlE SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
BY BEN NEWsOME

7 sirrueth tor months past, Allotted and
encouraged hy the religious dictators
I at Jerusalem, made lbs final uttark.
tie whom many hoped should have
been "a King of the Jews was nailed
to tho cross as a hereto to tho faith
ana % traitor 10 the government IN
the death of Jesus was concentrated
the ultimate effort uf AN sin ana uu.
righteousness throughout the ages
the supreme climax Of the war Of
evil 20 defeat an that was good ana
true and leave mankind securely
bound 10 the powers of spiritual
death. When Jesus was nailed 10
the cross, evil had done It's worst
GolEotha was seemingly the triumph
Of death and sin over life and right
eousness, yet, In the matchless pruvi-
dence Of Almighty God, this one su-
preme effort Of eyll became the fun
damental event In the divine program
for human regeneration. Thus does
our God make the wTath-nOt only
Of man, but of the powers Of dark
ness-to serve his purposes for the
good of man and the glory Of the
Godhead.
The Appeal OF sorrow.
1t seems strange. In a world where
sorrow Is all too common and glad
ness is at a premium, yet the most
effective appeal TO the human heart
comes through sorrow and grief We
delight I'm JOY and lau~htcr, In smiles
and good nature, and those OF us
who have ClCansed our garments IN
the stream that flowed from Calvary
cannot do otherwise than he filled
with joyful hOsannas; yet to all men
hA snrff md a gf "a Co
vior is the most ripping and soul
compelling story ever told. In all
the masterful works Of man, from
Homer on down-in all the wonders
Of science, the fascinations Of art.
music, literature ana history-there Is
nothing TO which humanity has been
so drawn as this simple story which
tells of the greatest sorrow the world
has ever known. We might suppose
that the tale Of a life OF JOY would
most attract us; that laughter would
interest us more than tears; that a
comedy would be more engaging
than tragedy But, even among the
most stoical or the most careless OF
u.s. such Is not the case. our hearts
delight in the chapters that tell OF
the Man of Sorrows who was ac-
quainted with grief If our teachers
nothing but Christ and him cruci-
fled, those who listen would still be
rayished by the beauty Of the story,
and men would still find in the per
petual mOnotony Of the gospel
greater and sweeteT variety than in
all the other stories OF the world put
together II our preachers would
unite on this campaign, laying aside
all their ornamental and distracting
hobbies and sensational tricks, there
would soon be an end to the COM
plaint Of empty pews, OF decaying
Influence, Of church debts and OF
unpaid preachers. The simple story
of the cross still has the greatest
power to capture the hearts Of men
as no other story ever has done
The Spectators.
We are all familiar with the out
line of the events of this eventful
day. We know how Christ tainted
under the load of his cross and
stranger was impressed to relieve him
Of the burden; how he was crucified
between two highway robbers, one Of
whom rallied at him, while the other
asked forgiveness how the mob scof-
fed at and derided him, while the
Roman soldiers gambled for his cloth
lHs' ibN lIlt NttplllB NbllltH uItW
near, how the sky was darkened, the
earth trembled, and the Veil OF the
temple was torn in two by unseen
hands; how he cried out in anguish
'Why hast Thou forsaken me?' and
finally the triumphant, 1T is fin
ished.' There is material in these
happenings for unlimited exposition,
but there are few outstanding points
that we cannot afford to overlook.
one is the three different attitudes
OF the spectators who malic-
iously came to mock, as the scribes
and Pharisees, and the unthinkinR
rabhle that followed their lead; the
uncOncCrned sOldlery, who pursued
their usual program without any real
i2atiOn Of the momentOus scene in
which they were acting a part; and
the sorrowing relatives and believers, |
with their faith almost crushed by
the great disaster, but their love
drawing them irresistably on to the /
close of the great tragedy. We may
perhaps except the centurion to /.
whom the mysterious display of nat |
ural forces gave proof that this des-
pissed king of the Jews was some |
thing more than mortal man, as
we'll as the thief on the cross who |
found pardon for the asking.
forsakcn of God.
Many minds have puzzled over the