, 1935-04-19

LESSON
Text: Luke 24:1-12; John 14:l-6.
The international Uniform Sun
day School Lesson for April FL.
By WIN. Y. GILRoY, ID. ID.


Recently I read a lecture on i'm
mortality. by a great scholar In one
OF one our foremost universities. in
which he stated quite frankly that
whether there was a future life or
not was TO him personally quite an
indifferent matter. He was deeply
interested only In discovering what
men believed concerning immortali-
". and in studying the psychology
cal effect OF that belief upon their
lives and upon masses OF people re-
liqiously and racially.
Some time ago. also. ! received o
letter from whom life had buff
feted very severely. Loss and suf-
fering had made the outlook on life
50 dark and 70 full OF terror that for
this soul IN distress the thought that
there might be an ending 70 It was
in itself a relief.
PaSsionately the writer OF this
letter expressed the hope that there
was no such thing as life beyond
death.
Few people viii be able 10 take
either OF these attitudes. even as
suming that IL were desirable. Deep
down in human life there is this
feeling for immortality. his demand
Of man for some hope and some EVIL
dence that the grave Is not the end
all. Deeper and higher still In the
reasoned thought OF mar rs a similar
demand.
II life Is but a small span. n speck
In eternity, In which mans highest
aspirations are Knocked, In which his
struggles and sufferings have no
meaning. and In which all moral
and spiritual demands are those OF q
world where death and decay are the
surest and most certain OF all facts.
manifestly there Ia little place for
light or Joy.
Paul was speaking as a clear
visioned realist when ne said. IF
in this life only We have hope in
Christ Jesus. We are Of all men most
miserable"
Deeply imbedded IN the Christian
facts and in the Christian message
Is a clear declaration concerning the
eternal nature OF the good life. NO
thing Is so certain in the Christians
faith ms that goodness cannot 3e
destroyed. The essential place OF
this faith In immortality in the
Christian religion and the witness 70
1t are emphasized In many ways.
First, in the story Of the resur-
rection OF Jesus. upon which a part
OF our lesson Is based. The evidence
from the resurrection Of Jesus is not
that merely OF ancient records.
Fortunately the resurrection
stories are sufficiently different to
destroy al suggestion that they
were invented BY the disciples or
that any collision existed in claim
ing that Jesus had risen. The evil
dence OF the truth OF these stories
lies deeper in the reviving faith OF
the disciples when they had lost all
heart and hope.
II was at this darkest hour that
they became convinced that they had
een their Lord, and that He was a
living. and not q dead Savior. The
reality of their faith and their wit
ness are written into the whole his
tory OF Christianity. and they cannot
be shaken, no matter what interpre-
tation one misht put upon the re-
cord OF outward events.
The Christian evidence goes fur
ther in the nature Of the Christian
life itself. II is well evidenced In
history that the blood OF martyrs
Is the seed Of the church, that truth
crushed TO earth shall rise again. that
IN losing life men find II, and that
in sacrifice is the way Of new life
and attainment.
III one doubted the reality OF i'm
mortality. he might find great hope
in this, II there were nothing else.
But there liz q further witness to
faith in immortality in the words OF
Jesus himself and in the experience
that Christians firmly believe they
have found Of Christ IN their wn
hearts. To Jesus himself this in
dwelling presence OF the Father was
50 real that He looked forward 70
the future with the clearness OF
faith that took the eternal life for
granted.
II It we're not so" He said. to his
AmAm~NM- mw --~m 49, 49, 1913