Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1915-04-11

'r0yai master with the charm Of mu-
sic, becoming u iaVoritc at court and
The sworn bosom friend and COmpan-
ION of the crown prince jonathan, a
friendship that even the strenuous
days Of the subsequent bitterness he.
tween Saul ana David could not im-
pair.
The Transition Period.
Conditions IN Israel at this tim"
were ripe for It general readjustmsnt.
religious evolution. Samuel had
taken hold when the priesthood had
become corrupt, when paganism was
strong in the land. when even the
aIk of the covenant had in popular
estimation degenerated into mas
cot" lie had performed wonders Of
reformation, but the king had failed
to carry out the spiritual Intent OF
Gods dominion and shown himself
unworthy of the trust. The time was
ripe for materialism 90 yield to spirs
ituality, a conflict which we see later
cxemplified in David's difficulties
with his kinsmen, Joab and Amasa;
who stood as relics of the old order
of things and tied the hands Of the
Ging when he aspired to nobler ideals,
Samuel himself appears to us not 80
much as priest, but as a living repe
resentative of the force of moral law,
abiding and permanent, 90 which king
and priest must alike yield obedience.
He stood as no man before or for q
long time after, as the sponsor of
education, and from him sprang the
schools of the prophets, an institution
whose influence was q powerful fac
tor in the subsequent history of the
nation, and furnished the inspiration
for the system which has produced
the schools and colleges of the pres
cnt day
Wrong Conception of Religion.
Saurs failure was principally his in
ability to comprehend that religions
essential value was in its power as a
guide and sanCtlher of life, the inner
motive that should dominate every
word and deed. He valued religion as
a holy performance, matter of ad-
hcrence to ritualistic forms, instead
Of an inspiration to determine the
practical bent Of the whole life and
point the direction of its purposes. II
was his impatience at the restrictive
orders and apparent delay of Samuel
that led him into presumptiye sin and
called forth the first warning Of the
prophet, and 1t was the spectacular
grandeur of a triumphant public sac
riice that lured him to pervert the
ancient purpose OF Jehovah with
Amalek, and which conclusively
brought on his rejection. More and
more as time passed Saul showed a
tendency to put God farther in the
background and put forth more the
personal glory and prowess Of the
man Saul. rho erstwhile humble ser
wont Of Jehovah developed into a will
full, self-seeking autocrat. over
against his fondness for public dis
play of religious performance Is set
forth his painful lack of plain obe-
dience to the word of God. And his
mistake is repeated by many thou
sands today. who seek to make
amends for the sinfulness of their
hearts by extraordinary zeal in the
observance Of religious performances
The religion of Jesus is essentially a
possessor of the motives of the man
first, and consequently the prompter
Of acts in harmony with those mo-
tives. Al 1.-The good works that
man can crowd into n lifetime can
not avail him in the final accounting
unless those works were prompted
by a heart permeated with love and
devotion Of Cod ITO obey is better
than sacrifice. and to hearken than
tho fat of lambs"
Difficulties In the Way,
Samuel cried all night over the
wrecked hopes Of Saurs fidelity and
honor. but the time was ripe for ac-
ton rather than sorrow for past fall.
ures. 1t. Is well that we deeply re-
gret the mistakes of the past, insofar
as they enable us to lay out the fu-
ture more wisely: but It is very wrong
for .us TO allow these regrets to blind
us TO the necessity to be up and do
ing. Samuels fears were we'll
founded as to what Saul might do
IL II was known that he went to
Bethlehem for the purpose of choos-
ing successor and a rival to the
throne; yet tho outcome shows that
II is always safe to 80 where God