Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-04-20
THE WORLDS SPRING OF HOPE.
The International Sunday School Les
son for April 20. is 1.-THE Risen
Christi. Cor. IS: 1928.
(By William T. Ellis.)


What an excitement the worlds
keeping of Easter makes! New
clothes, new gardens, new house clean
ing, new decorations, new music;
streets and churches and holiday re-
sorts thronged; high tide of business,
new spirit in the very air-verily,
Easter is no inconsiderable factor In
the worlds modern life. .-r
Anybody who pauses long enough
in the hustle Of Easter activity for
anyj-serious thought is likely to ask
himself what is, the real meaning Of
Easter, the Christian meaning. l- Sup
pose we decide that we, shall not go
through the great festival without
definitely, getting hold of the serious
purpoStgand significance. Of 1t all.
Let JUS seek out the fullest and most
authoritative statement Of the Easter
message that Is accessible anywhere.
That brings us straight to the pres
ent8 Sunday. school lesson the noble
fifteenth chapter, of First Corinthians,
Pauls matchless summary of the facts
and meaning of the resurrection. Let
me quote it,. using one of the modern
translations for it's touch of freshness:
+. L.. A Famous Argument.
But let me recall to you, brethren,
the good news which brought you,
which you accepted, and on which you
are standing, through which also you
are obtaining salvation. If you bear In
mind the words in which proclaimed
it-unless, indeed, your faith has been
unreal lrom the very first.
For repeated to you the all i'm
portant fact which also had been
taught, that Christ died for our sins
in accordance with the scriptures;
that he was buried that he rose to
life again on the third day In &C
cordance with the scriptures, and
was seen by Peter, and then by the
twelve. Afterwards he was seen by
more than five hundred brethren at
once, most Of whom are still alive.
although some of them have now fal-
len asleep. Afterwards he was seen
by James, and then by all the apos-
ties. And last of all, as. to one OF
untimely birth, he appeared to me
also. b. ..s . t-a.... ..-.,r. ...-..
For am the least of the apostles,
and am not fit to be called an apostle
because prosecuted the church OF
God. But what am / am by the
grace of God, and his grace bestowed
upon me did not prove Intellectual. But
L labored more strenuously than all
the rest-yet 1t was not l, but Gods
grace working with me. But wether
1t is I or they, this is the way we
preach and the way that you came to
believe.
But if Christ is preached as hav.
ing risen from the dead, how is it
that some Of you say that there is no
such thing as a resurrection of the
dead? If there is no such thing as
resurrection of the dead, then
Christ himself has not risen to life.
And If Christ has not risen, 1t fol-
lows that what we preach is a delu-
sion, and that your faith also is a
delusion. Nay more, we are actually
being discovered to be bearing false
witness against God, because we have
testified that God raises Christ to
life, whom he did not raise, If in
reality none of the dead are raised.
For if none OF the dead are raised to
life, then Christ has not risen: and
If Christ has not risen, your faith is
a vain thing-yous are still in your
sins. It follows also that those who
have fallen asleep in Christ have
persisted. If in this present life we
have a hope resting on Christ, and
nothing more, we are more to be
pitied than all the rest Of the world.