Newark post. (Newark, Del.) 1910-1969, 1916-03-08
A Lenten Talk
BY The Rev. w. G.. Haupt

after the Baptism OF Jesus, tile
Spirit driveth Him into the will
derness and He was tempted" He
was driven by an inner necessity.
The years of meditation and 81
lence and growth were ended. A
movement was in the air. The
startling news Of prophet
preaching by Jordan's banks had
reached the quiet village of Naz-
areth. The soul of nation was be-
ing awakened by a new prophet,
and in the answering tread of
hurrying feet" to hear his mes
sage, came Jesus of Nazareth.
Into this movement, which was
rising like a flood around John the
Baptist, Jesus was baptized. 1t is
after this baptism into His ma
tons awakening to a new sense
of it's ancient mission, that He is
driven into the wilderness. He is
driven from the movement by His
attraction to it. The first effect
of a great attraction is repulsion.
Dedication involves reflection. He
must think the thing through. He
must be alone. What is it to be
Messiah? What are the principles
that are to govern the Messiah's
Kingdom? How far is Johns
preaching right? Where does it
need correction? What are the
false ideas, lying so close to the
true, that deceive the very elect
as to the mission Of the nation?
These questionings, these weigh
ings of one view point against an
other, involving decisions that are
to govern both His public preach
ing and His public life:-all this
is what drives Him like storm to
that wrestling which His follow
ers afterwards speak of as the
great temptation.
What makes Jesus the Saviour
of the world? 1t was not that He
chose to be the Messiah, but it
was that He decided that, under
God, He must be this kind of a
Messiah. He himself said that
there were plenty of false Christs,
false Messiahs; it was open to
anyone to try to be that person, if
one wanted to try. It is a fair
field open to all corners as any
other opportunity in life. There
on the lonely mountain, Jesus
says, What kind?" We mediate,
then, during this season, upon the
Christ, as thinking out, with the
kind of thought that racks the
brain, with the kind of prayer
that rives the soul; thinking out
and praying out the Messiahship.
And as He thinks and prays, one
and another spectre, suggestion,
comes up for consideration,-the
Devil tempts Him. Jesus weighs
considers, rejects, sets the dark
over against the light, searches
His deeper consciousness, where
His sense Of Righteousness and
union with the Father abides,
searches History where God has
spoken and man has achieved, and
says: "It is written, Man is a soul
and needs more than bread. 1t is
written, Man shall not prove by
sensational appeal that God will
care for him, since every common
duty involves adventure and wit
nesses Gods care. 1t is written,
Man shall worship and submit his
life absolutely to holy and moral
God, whatever the temporal sacri-
flee may be-" So Jesus, in the SOL
itude, alone, facing the sublime
fact of human Saviourhood,
searches out, through prayer, the
eternal principles of His personal
Kingdom; and coming back to
everyday endeavor, says, "On
these lines | shall live and fight
and work" And after the storm
of conflict, there is a great calm;
the angels come, deep peaceful
thoughts overshadow Him with
their wings; a sense of present
spiritual companionship wooes
Him to sleep.
Driven. We are all driven, but
blessed are they who come to
grips with Life and its purposes,
who, in some great conflict, on its
threshold, determine that Life
shall mean this and not that; by
Gods help it must mean this and
not that! The boy decides he will
be a doctor, a lawyer, a civil en-
gineer, a mechanic, what you will.
The times comes when he must
decide what kind of man as law
yer, doctor, and so forth, he will
be. Religion exists to compel this
conflict. It's mission is to drive