Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1918-01-06
SUNDAY SCHOOL.
%a4lESSON ~
By BXT 1FRWJOrE

Lesson January ~, Marx 1890.
Tho first act Of Jesus after res
celvinR the formal approval 81 the
HoIy spirit at the jordan was TO 70
tire TO the wilderness to meet the
dcyil iu preliminary confliSt |Rnd
measure up the extent OF his hsk OF
living as "A man without sin. Mark
| does not specify the details Of the
temptations which the enemy OF
souls put In the path OF the Re
deemer, but We learn them elsewhere.
AH in everything else. the devil'H aim
| iH to get one TO look at all things
! from II selfish viewpoint. The prop
osiuons which he made TO the Savior
| can hardly be condemned from "A
moral viewpoint lie did not ask
| him "a commit a breach OF divine
| law outright. but to reduce all his
aspirations as Messiah to selfish
basis First he appealed 10 his ply
| sicHl distresa and suggested that he
might rclieve his hunger by eNrrI
cislng hia possession Of miraculous
power, an act not In Itself sinful. but
"A reduction OF spiritual motives TO
| the slavery OF appetite. Then he
| wanted him TO make sensational
| showing OF his power by "A needless
display OF the same lie appealed
to the human love of display and
the hunger FOR public approval It
| would have dehaAed the high pur-
pose Of the Savior to have made him
| cater to the love OF popularity.
East and most important OF all.
the dcvll offered 10 withdraw all
opposition 10 Chrsts conquest OF
the world ifohe would for just one
moment acknowledge that the devil
wuH In possession OF the earth and
had IA right to give him deed to
the same II goes without saying that
the deyil would not have lived up to.
his contract but even supposing that
he had. what claim would Jesus have
had 10 our reverence as a divine be
ing and supreme Lord Of all had he
even tncitly given the devil credit
for greater powerl But this is
the way sin approaches IN ana claims
oar Indulgence. Our sins qg-a usually
tho pcryrrsions OF righteousness.
rather than defiance OF divine law.
Temptations appeal is usually 10
bad use OF good faculties -ud high
purposes. Most OF our failinEs come
thru u bad use of tho things that
God Intended FOR our good And
always ut the bottom OF all sin is
the selfish motive. 80 man who can
abuse SELF. and elevate the desire to
h"ueft his fellow men makes good
subject Tor the down TO work upon.
1t may he urged boy some that there
was no necessity OF Jesus having to
submit To these tests II he was
, God In human form he had supreme
power and the result OF the deVil's
1 attempts to trap him were fore
gone conclusion. IT ne was Commis-
stoned by the Holy Spirit 10 carry
! out the purpose uf rcdCcmiug man
Kind from the curse OF sin, he could
! not hv otherwise than perfect and
{ there was no reason TO Try his IL
delty. II hc came into this world
} purposcy tu die for man that man
4 might thus be saved from the pen
Iulty of uansEIcssion. IL would be
foolish to auppuso that amy Influence
could divert him from the task n
hc was really 90 divine being why
should hc have even stopped TO listen
90 temptation and given the evil one
any chance to- annoy him when by
! a word he could have driven him
away forever Right here Is whore.
iu our estimate OF Jesus We often
leave out an important feature Christ
| was God iu human form. IL us true.
| hut while he was God ,r~~must not
| forget that 'hC had assumed human
| iV with an its conditions While
| we adore the divine side of Christ.
we must not forget that he had a
human side
So. instead Of making prompt
assertion ut divine power. ne be
| comes a ptrtakcr of the lot of man
| kind subject TO an the temptations
that bcset man, even to the dcspcr-
| 'atc attack Of the prince of evil him
| stlf all fhIHtr- ha d
| even IA we are. Vet he showed us
| the possibility Of a human being be
| ing without - and putting tompta-
| tion behind him Not only this hut
he showed us that the continued und
| Ipersistcut attacks OF the tcmpter
| must he met and overcome The
| evil ono not only played every note
| Of his seductive song In the wilder
| ness, but he pursued the savior nll
thru life ana sought to trip him up
! Look Tor instance, whore he nut il
! into the hearts OF the pcople 10 pro-
| claim Jesus king and march upon
| Jerusalem Tor conquest Look again
| at the garden Ot Gcthscmauc. where
| the human that was i'm I.sps
| shrank from the terrible ordeal for
| which he specifically cait4e into the
| world, and be prayed that the cum
| might pass from him We. who
think we have such a hard time "a
| resist the prompting Of sin may take
| courage when We remember that no
| trial comes to us that did not nj
some time assail the Redeemer and
| that he oNercame them every one
| and stands ready 10 not only sym.
| pathlEe with our struggles hut TO
render that help which defeats the
/ evil one every time
! with the test over he goes TO work