Loading...
The Blyth Standard, 1930-05-22, Page 6Sunday School Lesson May 25. Lesson VIII—Jesus Describes A,, the Future of the Kingdom—Mat. thew 25, 1-13, Golden Text—Take ye heed, watch and pray: for yo know not when the time Ie,—Mark 13: 33, ANALYSIS 1, THE PERIOD OF WAITING, VS. 1-5. TI, THE SUDDEN CALL, V. 6. XII. THE FINAL RESULT, vs. 7-13. INTRODUCTION— The twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth chapters are directed to the disciples of Jesus, and to the whole Christian church, and are meant to give solemn warning to all believers concerning the approaching return of Jesus, who will come to judge and rule the world. This truth of the imminent return of the Lord runs through the gospel of Matthew, This section in- cludes three parables of warning: (1) 24: 45-51, the Faithful and Wise Serv- ant; (2) 25: 113, the Ten Virgins; 1(3) 25: 14-30, the Ten Talents, Here we notice how Jesus makes use of these parables to drive home simple yet severe lessons on the problems of life and religion. There is nothing in all the range of religious literature Ito be compared with the parables of Jesus. 1. THE PERIOD 00 WAITING, vs. 1-5. Some ono has said that WC may di. vide the parables ,into two groups. The first consists of those that deal with the kingdom and can be distin- guished by the formula which intro- duces them, "the kingdom of heaven is likened unto." The second group consists of those that deal with the individual. Here we have one of the glr.rables of the kingdom, but it con- cerns only one aspect of this doctrine, Sonethnes Jesus treats of the present kingdom, as if it were riready formed on the earth, and revealed itself in a new condition of life and society. The seed parables refer to this present kingdom. However, there is also the future aspect of the kingdom, which will be manifest when Chr'st returns on the clouds of glory. V. 2. In Jewish marriages the usual custom was for the friends of the bridegroom to co ;uct the bride to the house of her husband who canoe forth to sleet the procession and wel- come the bride. But in this case the imagery is changed, since the groom now goes into a far country to meet the bride, while the friends remain behind to be in readiness to welcome him on his return, V, 3. The .lumber ten was the sym- bol of completeness and here repre- sents the membership of the kingdom. The division into two equal parts is significant, The Mash virgins had taken enough oil in their lamps for their immediate use, but had made no provision for the future. Religion had made no deep and lasting effect upon this class of follower, The oil nay be regarded as the presence of a genu- ine love for God and desire to do his will. V. 5. During the period of waiting for the bridegroom they all slumber. There is no appae„ t difference be- tween the wise and foolish. No sug- szestion of rebuke is made in the fact that they slept. "It intimates the nee- eessity that lies on ell of going down into the ordinary affairs of this life. Disciples in the body cannot be occu- pied always and only with the expec- tation of their Lord's appearing." II. THE SUDDEN CALL, V. 6. V, 0. Two facts about the second conning are very clearly stated in the New Testament: (1) There is the cer- tainty of the return, This we hear from the life of Jesus, and from all the apostles. The Book of Revelation is filled with this prediction of the certainty of the return of the Lord, Behold I cone quickly, (2) Tho sec- ond fact is the uncertainty concerning the exact time. Jesus told his dis- ciples that no mar knew of the day and hour when the Son of man would return Hence we hear so much of the suddenness of the return, He will cone like a thief in the night. III. TIIE FINAL RESULT, vs. 7-13. V. 7. Everything comes to an end, even the delay of the Lord, and now every one is full of activity. "When life is closing behind, and eternity opening before us, we are all aroused," V. 8. Tho foolish virgins represent those who have not taken advantage of the long days of grace to listen to the call of the Saviour, and to follow his commands. V. 9. At first it might seem strange that the wise virgins refused to give a little of their oil to help out their companions, Why would they not share their possessions? But the par- able makes it clear that this is nn - possible. If the wise give their oil there will not be enough for both, and the Lord will have none to sleet him. The meaning is that there are certain things we can never give to others We cannot impart grace to those who will not take it, V. 10. The wise virgins enter and enjoy the blessings of the feast along with the bridegroom, and the door is shut as if all further chances of enter- ing were now excluded, There is al- ways this serious tone in the teaching of Jesus. Notice that in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus had said, "Nat every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven." V. 13. Here the lesson of the parable is given. Jesus meats to lay stress upon the duty of watchfulnes„ Life is a probation where we have our op- portunities for service and for the learning of divine truth; but the time. is very brief, and when this is over, we shall appear before the judgment seat of Christ. People ask whether Christ has come or not. He cane at the resurrection, and at every great crisis in history. He conies to every one at death, but there still remains the great final day when Christ Will appear to judge the world and to bring Lt the final king- dom of heaven. "United Empire" Melbourne Arugs: This Rothe', brook Empire, as it might be called Portmanteau -wise, after the fashion of Lewis Carroll, is at present impos- sible, if only because of Australian policy. A country which prohibits the export of stud sheep to South Africa and plunders Its own people while selling sugar and butter cheaply to foreigners is a long way Prom be- ing in that etato of grace which. the United Empire requires. Australia will have to be born again to discover that kingdom, 'Nee1ring may be pronounced inno- cent, but it's not spelled that way." 1 Woman in the Home Frances F. O'Donnell in the Forums (New York): Whatever mode of life tends to develop the most perfectly rounded, the most genuinely success- ful, the happiest woman at the head of the Route, is the node that will slake the best mother—and conse- quently the best child, I don't caro where she spends the hours of her day, how much wealth enables her to give her children "advantages," or how hard she tries to be a "good" mother, an unhappy woman is a bad mother. Whether or not she is conscious of the blight she casts upon her child, he will be influenced by her attitude of defeat and disappointment, Mistaken for "Red" Detective Killed London—Au anti-Communist coup went awry In Helsingsfo•s, Finland, au Exchange Telegraph dispatch said recently, To prevent Communists from smug- gling pamphlets into a barracks, authorities posted two plains -clothes army officers outside the building. Without Informing the military, police stationed two plain -clothes detectives at the sante place. The two parties mistook each other for Communists, and in the fight that followed one detective was killed, the other was wounded, and ono efilcer also suffer- ed injury. In the three British Army centres where time -expired soldiers are taught some trade, about 3,000 men are train- ed every year, tho vocations ranging from valeting and waiting at table to electric wiring, building, motor build- ing, anti all forms of painting and decorating, Skull on Side of Rock Commemorates "Soapy" Smith "Soapy" Slltitil was a tough guy. He shot men for the fun of it and rob- bed them when there was nothing belt er to do. He had a trick of appearing to wrap a cake of soap in a five dollar bill and selling it to a gullible cus- tomer for a few cents. Because of that they called hien "soapy" up in Skag- way in the gold rush days of '98, But "Soapy" was too tough and too slippery even for the rough frontier of the north. One day he was a bit slow on the draw. He was shot and killed and buried with his antagonist, whom he had mortally wounded, in the little cemetery adjoining the town. When news of his sudden and long hoped for death arrived the townspeople appar- ently thought something should be done to commemorate the end of a deeper - ate career.. Someone had said that "Soapy" was as hard as rock, So they Painted a skull on a cliff and lettered Soapy's' name on R. To -day tourists to Skagway stand and photograph this relic of a day that Is on more, Alaska and the Yukon are sunny places of green hill sides and flowers, of placid lakes and roaring rivers, of great peaks and deep valleys .when the boats cruise up there in the summer time. This year the service is to be augmented by the S. S. Prince Henry, of the Canadian National Steamships, The CNS "Prince Rupert" and the "Prince George," of the same line aro al- ready known for their comfort and seaworthy qualities to the thousands of tourists who each year stake tine voyage up the well-known Inside Passage to Prince Rupert and Skagway. Two other new steamers now being built for the Canadian National Pacific Coast Service, the Prince Robert and the Prince David, will ply between Vancouver, Victoria and Seattle, TWO OR THREE DOLLARS No Iran `can sit In misery's mental rocking -chair and wish himself Into success. Success owes you nothing. You ewe success every faculty you possess. IP you want success, the only way to win it Is by intelligent industry. Until you get these truths firmly fixed in your head, your services are worth two or three dollars a day, no more. "0, doctor. I have sent for you, car• taiuly; still I Hurst confess that 1 have not the slightest faith in 111030111 Medical science." "Well," said the doctor, "that doesn't matter in the least. You see, a mule Inas no faith in the veterinary Burgeon, and yet he cures hint just the same," ALMOST ANYBODY Right where you are now, do the very hest you can with what you've got and do the thing now. Almost anybody can accomplish al- most anything If they have all the tools and all the time they think is necessary, YOUR SECOND SET 13011001 11 the surface of the skull, just above your collar button is a brain that you seldom use, and all be. cause you must do some tall thinking before that brain win'. work, Ise: "Something seems to be wrong with this engine, it--" She: "Don't be foolish; wait until we get off this main road." A Ruthless War "1 detest Lieutenant Junger's pltb loss Nietzschesn philosophy; but I pay tribute lo itis (honesty, his cour- age and his extraordinary power of eloquent and yet exact description, free from sentimentality and exclaim- atien marks."—A Reviewer in the Daily News. Most readers who got Cops° 125, by Lieutenant Ernest Slinger, will agree with the foregoing, for the au. Ihor's views are typical of the extreme section et the German military ma- chine, ruthless in war and making everything subservient to "tire will to win." Isere is a characteristic pas- sage which speaks for itself:— "Time works with heavy tools, and In the battle for some slag -Heap of horror, over those wreathed smoke rival conceptions of the world's fut• ore are locked In demoniac strife, it is not a question of the few thousand urea who may perhaps be rescued from destruction, but of the dozen or two survivors who are there in the nick of time to tura the scales with their machine-guns or their bombs. That is a view of the world's destiny which few have the iron nerve and masculine force to hear, and yet one may be proud to live In a time when such a spirit has shaped events to its mould of tempered steel. "Though few may emerge front these flaming plains that offer no shel- ter but the mettle in a man's own heart, and though these few resolute In atm and act, may still find fate turn against them and deny tltent their goal yet I feel as surely as I feel any- thing at all that a gait will bo scored that can never be scored out. "For they who can conte through tbls—old, as I say, there can only be a few—what can there he that they could not come through? And so 1 see 1p old Europe a new and com- manding breed rising up, fearless and fabulous, unsparing of blood and spar- ing of pity inured to suffering the worst and to Inflicting it 0113 ready to stake all to attain their ends—a race that builds machines and trusts to machines, to whom machines are not soulless iron, but engines of night which it controls with cold reason and hot blood." , • "Say, this novel Is all boand wrong, It starts with the last chapter and ends with the first." "ICs all right, only you've gotten hold of a copy of the 'Woman's Edo tion'." Summer Days Lake and river travel remain to Canadians the complete and perfect holiday, prom Niagara, Toronto and Kingston the holiday ships move to the lower St. Lawrence and Saguenay rivers, Tide glimpse of the Laurentlans and the lower St, Lawrence Is typical of the summer days or these famous trips. (Photo by Canada Steamship Lines.) "Red Claws" In China How can Russia and China be friends? Aro "Moscow's red claws". again grabbing at China. Russia's duplicity with China has gone far enough, they say. Their concern is the more acute be. cause of an approaching Russian. Chinese conference, Those simpleminded people who think that China's grievances against Soviet Russia aro to be remedied, de- clares the Canton China Truth, must have received a rude shock when they learned that Moscow has all the time been conducting "a nen-stop intrigue" against China. This weekly goes on: "This state of affairs has reached an alarming stage In view of the fact that the two countries are running tlm Chinese Eastern Railway as a joint enterprise, "We aro not alarmists or Jingoists, for at this very moment Soviet agents are excavating the foundation of the country with a view to the eventual collapse of the social and economic superstructure, "According to ICoo Rio News Agency, the Commissary of Finance of the Soviet Government has decided upon the appropriation of six million rubles for the economic exploitation of Northern Manchuria, "A committee to be headed by tate Soviet Consul in Harbin, and com- posed of representatives of various Soviet commercial organizations in Manchuria, will be appointed to attend to the carrying out of the details of Moscow's new program in China. 'This is a rather mild statement, brit the sante agency went on to say that Soviet forces stationed near Man- cltull total two battalions of infantry and cavalry troops, 120 field guns, 80 machine-guns, 11 armored cars, and 6 armored trains. "Friends of Soviet Russia may argue that this has so far not done any harm to China, But lot us read another story from the North China Daily News of Shanghai, "That Shanghai daily has just pub- lished a report from Indo-China stat- ing that Southwest ICwangsl has gone Bolshevik. The towns Pooh and Lungchow have been in control of the Reds for three months." The Communists spread terror throughout those districts, we aro told, and foreign ntisoionarigs and o10i.t.ers were stripped of tTieir possessions, even to the shoes on their feet. It is related in the same dispatch that "a Russian emissary and a Shang - hat paid agitator appeared on the scene and set tho place in flames." We read then: "Those who live in Shanghai, Han- kow, Tteutsin, etc., may have no idea ,how the Communists behave when they capture a town, but the Canton- ese know very well what the Reds did when they were in control of Can- ton on December 11, 1927. "The most densely populated part ot: the city was reduced to ashes, and thousands of innocent people were killed, Besides, there were the usual loothngs and outrages by ruffians and thugs who joined the Communists on the spot. "0f course no Comnuuntst coup d'etat was complete without the pre- sence of Red agents from Moscow. "In view of the sinister designs and intrigue of Soviet Russia on China, how can the two nations maintain friendly relations?" Are You So Important If you ever feel very important and think you are indispensable, here is something that will take you down a peg. Every twenty-four hours ninety-six thousand ]human beings leave this life and still the world gees on, If the world can continue to go on losing four thousand people every hour ,it may' not miss me mucic and it might not amiss you very much, TEN SHORT LAWS There are ten short laws to govern mankind and they all sum up like this —Play Fair, BEWARE OF CAR STRAIN When the car is now do not seek to force speed as such aotion often. places an undue strain which will prove injurious to the engine. MUTT AND JEFF— By BUD FISHER YotiR 4Ne,, A4AI T.,Itho 1UNJUir' SEtuTE(uCm"O ' A YEAR iN JAIL "AND ri TY/' GRANA PINE: WANT.THe CASE ReOPCNED: i1gs olyt ( whit Kt: ti€Nee, GA$IS RE. h1 11d 2 Now.Fii.1G'ME PRtsoNIIR 1'' ` fRS,,IN JAIL' AND A ttUREFReb,THoeJsAND 'Dot,LARs. CAse CLOSED!: You wad ABI e HELP -PI twee JEFF} You HELPED M6 Luce A FoRi( HELPS AN OYSTER'. A Green Lawyer Makes a Fat Jailyard.