The Detroit times., 1915-08-06
The international sunday School
Lesson for August 9 10 1.-THE King
dom Torn Asundsr.-I kIngs r.:
LEA.
ny WILLIAM T. ELlis.)

(eY WILLIAM 7. Ellis.)
This Is a day for looking back
ward. In order to be able to look for
ward intelligsntly. Wise folk are
studying history, and especially the
history Of great crises. Even the
man with half q brain knows that
today the world II at q crossroads.
confronting the most momentous
choice Of all time. Therefore the
light OF the past Is needed upon the
present. What men have done in
times gone may help US In the
time now here. This Is humanity's
decision day.
In lesser degree. the Jews OF old
had Come to the same sort OF crisis.
Though they knew 1t not, their ma
tional destiny hung in the balance.
Either they could 60 forward as a
united people. growing In power and
prosperity. and rivalling Assyria
and Babylonia and Egypt, thus pro-
foundly shaping the future course Of
mankind. and perhaps dominating
the world by their peculiar religious
teaching Of the One True God; or
else they might give way to teal-
ousies and pride and local ambition
and split up a. q nation, and finally
be wiped out Of national existence
by their more powerful neighbors.
Alas. they chose the way that has
spelled thousands Of years of misery
for their descendants. Solomon's
son had not solomon's sense; and
the people. too. were partisans be-
fore they were patriots. So Reho-
beam 10 known only as the foolish
young king who tried to sweep back
the tides Of democracy, and who
went down under the nag Of absolute
autocracy. Given . choice between
serving the people and seeking his
own selfish course. he chose the lat
ter.
The World.lssue Today.
Boiled down to elementals, that
10 identically the issue which the
great war has put UP to our coun.
try; and to every other. Shall this
country accept a world mission OF
service and Of human welfare: or
shall 1t seek self-aggrandixement!
On the choice now made hangs our
future fate. Unless q noble vision
of world ministry be given our
leaders at this time-and by leaders
mean our editors and public speak
ers and teachers and preachers, Is
we'll as oflceholders-we may fall
into the terrible mistake Of utilizing
the condition Of world chaos and
world-nux for our own selfish en-
rlchment. to our eternal disaster a.
a nation. Only noble purpose to
be a ministering nation, at all costs,
can save us no~. Lacking this, we
too shall go, along with Israel. into
the great scrap-heap Of tragic ma
tional might have beens."
No Sunday school class Is too
young or too obscure to have driven
into it's consciousness the parallel
between the present times and those
Of Rehoboam. New forces Of democ.
racy and observation-disclosures
have been released among the
people. Old ideas and institutions
which most men thought TO be per
manent are in the melting pot.
Whatever and whenever the end of
the present war. human rights are
going to emerge more claimant than
ever. Vast social changes are newt
able. Ancient isolations have been
engulfed. Challenging questions,
far greater than those which con-
fronted Rehoboam, will be put to
every nation and ruler and system.
What shall the answer be? Short
sighted and selfish. like Rehoboam's !;
or far-visioned and fraternal? That
day marked the apex Of Israers his
tory; by an unwise choice, she made
1t so, and entered upon a decline,
when she might have gone on from
strength to strength.
The Fathers Fault.
Although he was the wisest of
men, Solomon was not altogether
wise. Nobody Is wholly perfect, so
We may not expect too much. even
Of Solomon. Still. knowing as
much as he did. he should have
known too much TO do many Of the
things that, marred his reign. There
we're the seven hundred wives and
three hundred concubines. for in.
rtance. Even worse were those idol
atrous affairs set up to please his
heather wives; for even King Solo
mon could be swayed by his wife.
There was the extravaganza in per-
sonal expenditure; and the royal
.magnifcence which was not match
ed by the improvement in the condi-
ton OF the people. This idleness
and luxury of the court begot q
psmpered selAshness in the princes.
Forced labor, an evil OF which we
know nothing. drove the iron Of bit