The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1923-03-15
SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
Prepared especially for The Republi.
can by Rev U. S. Wight, D. D.


siOns, he was bruised for our in
EQUITIES; the chastisement of our
peace was upon him; and with his
stripes We are healed.-Isaiah 53:5.
THE ROUGH REDEMPTION
ROAD.
Somebody must suffer if life is to
be redeemed Physical, mental or
soul Wilderness must be paid for with
bleeding feet somewhere as the way
is struggled over toward its sure goal
The way of the cross is the way Of
life and it is the only way. Because
it led higher the pathway Of Jesus
took sharper climbing over greater
obstacles. Out of the shadows Of the
garden, bound and helpless in the
darkness He was led to the house Of
the old couspirator. Annas, Here a
brief examination told that the Man
Of Desire was in their hands and
He was hurried to Caiaphas, perhaps
in the same building. The members
Of the Sanhcdrin who could be gath
cred in the darkness proceeded to try
the case which broke for lack Of
evidence until Jesus affirmed that He
would sit at the right hand Of power.
Then the charge Of "bIasphemy" was
solemnly entered and He was declared
worthy Of death therefor Pande-
monium broke cut and the remaining
hours before dawn saw sorry sport
with the Prisoner. Once more the
sentence was recorded and He was
hurried to PLATE with the charges Of
disorder, sedition and revolution. Pill
ate examined Him and pronounced
Him innocent. Sent to Herod upon
the appeal of the priests He was re-
manded to the Procurator. Barabbas
was chosen for release by the crowd,
PLATE washing his hands of respon-
sibility. Jesus was scourged, Knocked
and beaten, crowned with thorns and
presented to the court Of pity, but
the blood-lust would be content with
nothing less than life. The march to
the cross was begun. Christ falls
and Simon takes the beam instead.
The hill of Calvary is reached. The
blows of the hammer are heard. The
cross falls heavily into place and
Jesus prays: Father, forgive them"
They gamble for His clothing. The
soldiery mock Him With drink held
to the lips but snatched away amidst
the clamor of voices and the sneers
of the priests. The thief gets his
promise of comradeship thru the
gates of death. Darkness wraps the
hill in sable folds. Mary is commit
ted to the care Of John. The cry Of
utter loneliness stirs the wagging
tongues. 81 thirst" at is finished, -
Father, into thy hands I commend
My Spirit" are the words that mark
the closing Of the tragedy of the
cross. The temple veil was torn, the
side was pierced and amid the sunset
splendors of its closing hour that
dark day settled into the drearest
night the world has ever known. But
in the darkness God was awake.
THE RELIGION THAT
FEARED.
That group of religious leaders
were half crazed with fear. They had
built up vast system. They had
imposed limitless authority upon uner
followers. They held both the Of
fees and the spoiIs Of them. Slow
growing thru the centuries their
forms that had once famed with life
had now become what seemed to them
the buttresses Of tire only stable So
ciety. Conservative to the core, OPP
posing any change, they faced Jesus
whose teachings threatened the en-
tire structure in which they lived. If
He succeeded chaos would ensue. The
boy who saw in the circus the man
with his head turned toward his back
said a tremendously true thing when
he muttered: at must be awful not
to see anything til it's gone past
These men We're in that condition.
And they were mad with fear. Civ
ilization would perish if anything
happened to what they were looking
backward upon. My world must not
be endangered is the author Of half
the strife we know today Germany
or France, autocracy or democracy,
plutocracy or Sovietism, special priv
ileges anywhere is holding desper-
ateIy to my world" and forbidding
change. Woe betide him who would
jar out of the frantic clutch. Jesus
was shaking their world and He must
die. And their fear was a religious
one. Jehovah was being guarded by
them. True He had been made into
painted caricature Of God, but He
was theirs. When religious feeling
is stirred there is almost no limit to
be set to its passion, because Of its
depths in human hearts. That was
why the Inquisition smote with such
hercenesS against the diSturbars of