IillililllliilUIIltlllllllll iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiiitiiniiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniitiiiiiiiiiiiinuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiii . illiJIIililllltillltitllltlllllllilllftlllilllllllilllllltllililllliiilfllillllillllllltiilillilililifllilliJIIIIIIillillllill LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. ETbOS. i bap, Shelf^ASS l Mill) STATES OF AMERICA. ABBIE C. MORROW. The Old, Old Story OF THE HOLY CHILD, I TOLD AGAIN FOR THE CHILDREN. BY ABBIE C. MORROW, Editor of The Illustrator, and Word and Work. Author of "Bible Morning Glories," " The Work of Faith," "Muller's Life," " Sweet-smelling Myrrh, "' Christian Science, Falsely So-called," Etc., Etc. I write unto you, little children." — I John II: 13. " Blessed is he that readeth" — Rev. 1:3. M. W. KNAPP, Publisher of Gospel Literature. Office of the Revivalist, Cincinnati, Ohio. Copyright, 1900, by M. W. Knapp. 1 24^ r« HtaivED JAN 2 1901 Co^n^t entry SECOND COPY l}etiv«r«d to 0H0ER 0IVISI0N 1-N ^ 1901 .TV** THIS BOOK IS LOVINGLY DEDICATED TO OUR LITTLE TEN-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER, MELVA ABBIE MORROW, WHO IS DAILY TEACHING US THE MEANING OF THE SAVIOR'S WORDS, "OF SUCH IS THE KINGDOM." — Matt, xix : 14. Contents. PAGE. I. Jesus the Babe, 7 II. The Boy Jesus, 19 III. Jesus and John the Baptist, 34 IV. The Temptation of Jesus, 48 V. Jesus Healing the Lunatic, 57 VI. The Barren Fig-Tree, 64 VII. Jesus Raising Jairus' Daughter, 82 VIII. Feeding the Multitude, 90 IX. The Transfiguration, 104 X. The Prodigal Son, 115 XI. The Raising of Lazarus, 124 XII. The Foolish Virgins, 134 XIII. The Betrayal of Judas, 144 XIV. The Crucifixion, 160 XV. The Resurrection, 173 XVI. The Ascension, 180 XVII. Peter in Prison, 187 5 Illustrations. Page ( \ Morrow, Frontispiece. Sim ink Madonna, 7 Tin 1 i 4 8 HEALING 1: \nc, 57 'I Hi , 64 . I DAUGHTER OF Jairus, «, 82 Christ Feeding hie Multitude, 90 Tin. Iran nON, 104 'in Prodigal Son, 115 Tiii ig of Lazarus, 124 Thk Foolish \ 134 I'm \ 160 Ihk Resurrection, 173 1 uf. Ascension, 180 187 l Hi , 192 6 SISTINE MADONNA. The Old, Old Story of the Holy Child. Chapter I. JESUS THE BABE. THE story of Jesus is the sweetest that ever was told. The more we hear it, the better we love it. Though it is two thousand years since He came, the people who love Him to-day are as glad to hear about Him as were the shepherds, who were the first ones, after Joseph and Mary, to look into the little, new, sweet, baby face, and know that it was Jesus. An angel of the Lord came to Joseph one night and said that a little baby boy was to be born to Mary, and they must call His name Jesus, because Jesus means Savior, and He who was coming was to grow up and become the Savior of the world. Jesus' parents lived in Nazareth; but, years before, God had told the Prophet Micah that when Jesus came He would be born in Bethlehem. So one day the great Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus, guided by God, but not understanding what he was doing, ordered all the Jews to go to the town 7 8 Story ok Jesus. where they were horn, and enroll their names for the pa] menl of a tax. This is how it came to pass that Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem when Jesus was born. They went there to enroll their names at the command of the em- peror, in the town of their ancestors; for Joseph and Mary were descendants of the great King David. When they reached Bethlehem, weary with the long journey, they found the inn filled with strangers, so were forced to go to the rude manger, where horses, mules, and camels were housed, and where the poorest peasants found shelter. Here, far from home, in the midst of strangers, in the chill of a winter night, in a place that was without comfort or privacy, the holy babe - born. All the way from the cradle to the cross there were those who rejected Jesus. Tie came unto His own, and His own received Him not. There was no room for Him in the inn. There was no room for Him in Bethlehem. Herod hunted Him out of it. There was no room for Him in Jerusalem. Even His parents did not understand His longing to be a temple student, and so, as a submissive lad, He went down to Nazareth with them. There was no room for Him in Nazareth. They thrust Him out of the city, and would have flung Him Jksus thr Babk. 9 over the brow of the hill on to the sharp stones, only His hour to die had not come, so He escaped from them and went His way. There was no room for Him in the homes of those He served. Alone He slept under the stars in the Mount of Olives. There was no room for Him in the world. They crucified Him between two thieves, as if He had been the worst of the three. Make room in your home for Jesus. Do not force Him to the stable. Make room in your heart for Jesus. Do not let anything crowd Him out. How long the mother and the Holy Child Jesus were in the ill-smelling, uncomfortable manger we do not know, but it would seem that some one was human enough to give up their place to the young mother with her newborn babe, because we read of them afterward in "the house" at Bethlehem. (Matt, ii, n.) The night Jesus was born there were, in an open pasture field, about a mile from Bethlehem, some shep- herds watching their flock of sheep as usaul. The shepherds, wrapped in a cloak, slept on the ground on beds made of soft branches of trees, and guarded the sheep and lambs from danger. From this flock were taken the animals daily sacri- ficed in the temple at Jerusalem five miles away. Near this place, years before, Ruth, the wife of Boaz, had gleaned the sheaves, and near here David had led io Story tie over the trestle', her way ,; edited by (lashes of lightning. Crossing the bridge, she Thk Temptation o* Jksi hastened along the rails to the station, told her and fell in a dead faint at the station agent's feet. Help went quickly to the poor engineer's rescue, and telegrams flew up and down the line, saying the bridge was gone. While' Kate Shelly lay unconscious the express train rushed into the depot. When the passengers learned that they had escaped a horrible death, they gathered about the brave girl of sixteen, looked gratefully into her pale, unconscious face, and upon her torn, bleeding form. They lifted her tenderly, and washed away the blood and brought her back to consciousness. With many loving words of gratitude they gave her a purse of money as a loving expression of appreciation. In striking contrast to this heroic act is the follow- ing incident taken from a daily paper: "A party of men, women, and children returning from church at Eagle Furnace, Ohio, started to cross a long trestle on the railroad. When about midway they heard the' whistle of the evening mail train bearing down upon them at a high rate of speed. Some jumped, others were pushed into the waters of the swollen stream below. One woman became bewildered, was struck by the locomotive and killed. The others of the party were rescued after much exposure and many in- juries. " Kate Shelly, risking her life to rescue others, was 54 Story of Jesus. heroic; the party risking life uncalled for, were pre- sumptuous. One trusted God, the others tempted him. Third, Jesus was tempted to shun the cross. Upon some exceeding high mountain, Jesus stood gazing out upon the world which was in the devil's keeping. Satan offered to give back all that Adam sold him when he sinned. Jesus had no army, no po- litical power, and at this time not a single disciple. Was there a short, easy, painless way to save men? Could He be the Redeemer, yet the accepted Messiah? By one act could He have the hearts of all men through all the ages ? Could He buy the world back from Satan without opposition, rejection, persecution, ignominy, sin-bearing, soul agony, and death? It w r as a most awful moment in the history of the world. But the Word of God conquered. The deceiver was exposed, and with a power that sent the devil from Him, Jesus said, "Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." The temptation often comes to shun the cross, to choose Satan's way of plenty and pleasure, rather than God's way of poverty and pain. After Jesus had resisted all Satan's temptations, the devil left Him, and angels came and ministered unto Him. Did they bring Him clean water, fresh linen, W clothing, and nourishing food? or did they only revive His fainting body, and cheer His anguished soul, and comfort His drooping spirit, and set His face stead- The Temptation of jBSua 55 fastly toward Calvary? We do not know. But we do know that the Son of God came that He might destr the' works of the devil, and that He was tempted in all points like as we are, that He might help us when we are tempted. To be tempted is to be tried and proved. It is no sin to be tempted ; it is a sin to enter into temptation. The sin is in yielding instead of enduring. One in school, Meg had a nice piece of candy, and two or three times took a taste when she thought her teacher was n't looking. But just as Meg was taking a big bite, the teacher looked straight at her, and instead of making her throw away the candy, said: "It is a great temptation, I know; but you don't have to." All the boys and girls looked around, and Meg felt so uncomfortable, and the words kept ringing in her ears, "You do n't have to," and she did not want an- other bite. We are tempted to do many things that are not always right ; but we do n't have to, because Jesus will help us not to, if we ask Him. One day, Lucy's mamma went for a ride, without taking her. Was n't the little girl tried? Mamma said, "Lucy, you can not go to-day; you must stay at home and be a good girl." What do you think Lucy did? Yoa say, perhaps 56 Story of Jesus. she cried and said naughty words, or was saucy. No she had learned such things would do no good. When her mamma said anything, she meant it, and would not give up to her because of any naughty ways; so Lucy was sweet outside, but angry and unswcet in- side. When mamma had been gone some time, a little voice in her heart called her to be sorry. She felt a hurt in her heart because of her angry feelings toward her mamma. At night, she said, screamed in my heart, and then I was sorry." Then she threw her arms around her mamma, and cried, "Mamma, what can I do to be good inside?" Perhaps the one who is reading this is asking the same question that Lucy asked. I do not know what her mother told her, but I do know that if you open your heart, and let the' Holy Spirit come in, and then, if you trust Him, He will keep you good inside as well as quiet outside. HEALING THE LUNATIC. (DORE.) L Chapter V. JESUS HEALING THE LUNATIC. JESUS came to save men. One day He stood in the synagogue in Nazareth that He used to at- tend when He was a boy, and said : "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.'' Peter, preaching a sermon about Jesus, long after- ward, told the people, "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him. ,, Read the eighth chapter of Matthew, and see the different diseases spoken of there, and how it tells why Jesus healed. Some ladies were talking before a little girl as though it were strange for us to expect Jesus to heal us now. The little one looked up in surprise, and said, "Why, I thought that was what Jesus was for." Yes, that is why He lived and loved and suffered 57 58 Story of Jesus. and died, to make us well and keep us well in spirit, soul, and body. Jesus wrought many miracles. He restored the deaf, the dumb, the blind, the lame. He healed people of fevers and paralysis and leprosy and all manners of diseases. One of the most beautiful instances of His healing is that of a lunatic boy. This insane boy lost all control of himself, so that he used to fall down anywhere'. His disease was like what w r e call epilepsy. One day he fell into the fire, and would have burned to death if some one had not rescued him. Another time he fell into the water, and would have been drowned if he had not quickly been taken out. It was not safe to leave him alone a moment. He was a constant care and grief to his parents, as they feared he would surely one day be killed in some dread- ful way. His father heard of Jesus, and went to Him, and told Him about his boy. And Jesus rebuked the de- mon, and he departed out of him, and the child was cured from that very hour. How happy the little fellow was to be able to go to school, and to read the Bible, and to play with the other children ; and how he must have loved Jesus ! And I am so glad that Jesus is just as willing to Jbsus Heading thb Lunatic heal the sick today as He was when He lived on the earth. We know He is, because the Bible says, u Je$U8 Christ the same, yesterday and to-day and forever," and because there are many, many people being healed in these days. In a paper called World-wide Missions is the story of a Japanese girl, eighteen years of age, who was beautifully healed in answer to the prayers of some missionaries. During the great distress early in the summer of 1890, the missionaries were distributing rice in Japan to two or three hundred of the poor at their station. One mother who came for food told them that she had a mad daughter at home, who had been insane for a year. The missionaries w r ent to call upon the mother. It was a wretched, pagan home; one dark, miserable room — all the home they had for the mother, two sons, and this poor, mad girl ! The lunatic was kept in a cage, a sort of closet with bars. The spectacle was pitiful in the extreme. Yet the girl's face, notwith- standing its wildness, had something sweet and pa- thetic in its expression. She went from side to side of her cage, like a poor, wild animal, throwing herself, from time to time, against the bars, or trying to climb up on them. She was without clothing; for she would keep nothing about her, but occasionally a piece of matting, which she would draw around herself. 60 Story ok Jksus. Sometimes she would become so violent that the police would have to be called in. The missionaries visited her at regular intervals during the day. What could be done? That one question pressed on them. They could not leave that poor, caged child — for she was little more — to a life in that dark, stifling closet. But this case brought out the fact that there were no asylums for the insane poor in Japan. The girl at last grew so violent she was taken to a hospital, where she became so much worse that they were obliged to tie her hands and feet. This caused her great suffer^ ing. She refused to eat, and was in danger of starva- tion. They took her back to her cage worse than when she left it. The missionaries had been praying for her all along but now felt that they must unitedly, in a definite way, commit her case to God; and so several of them went, one evening, to the wretched home, and joined in spe- cial prayer for the poor girl. Her condition was apparently hopeless. There was her miserable abode, her mother ignorant of God— with a vacant, wild look in her eye' — and her crazed daughter peering through the bars, throwing at the missionaries all she could find in her cage. Yet, hope- less as it all seemed, that strange, beautiful love of Christ seemed welling up in their hearts for that girl, as though He were yearning over her, wanting to bless her, wanting to show how He loved her. At Jksts Hkaun(; thk Lunatic. 61 length it seemed that she read their loving thoughts in some undefined way ; for she looked at them a few moments inquiringly, wonderingly. Then she let one of them stroke her arm and speak soothingly to her. Then, suddenly, the wild look came back again. She seized the lady's hand with a grasp of iron, so that with difficulty she drew it away. Then they sat down, and read to the mother from the New Testament, how Jesus healed those possessed with evil spirits, and told her that He had the same power now, and would hear if they prayed for her daughter. The missionaries did this in very simple words, which she could understand. Before leaving, they sang, "Jesus, Lover of my soul, Let me to thy bosom fly." At once the mad girl became quiet. She stood still, listening. They felt sure that she could be helped with the right treatment, such as is now given to the insane. Her response to the little' they could do to soothe and win her proved it. The next day the mother came to the relief sta- tion, and said that her daughter had slept nearly all night. The week following she continued to improve, and wished to knit. She talked about the "Jesus people," and wished them to come again. They went again to her. Then she sent her love to Miss R , and said she would come to see her, 62 Story of Jesus. but the lady "must put her name on the door," so she might know it. The mother ceased receiving aid; for her son was now able to support her. However, favorable ac- counts were heard from the family from time to time, till one day word came to the missionaries, "The crazy girl is well!" They visited her, and returned rejoicing, having seen her clothed and in her right mind. They found her at the door in exhuberant health, with a brilliant color and expression. They thought she was a stranger. They were surprised ; for they did not recognize her. No trace remained of that poor, wan face and suffering eyes. It was hard to believe that she was the once caged lunatic. As soon as she caught sight of them, such a look of love and pleas- ure came over her face ! She arose at once', and pros- trated herself to the floor again and again. She poured forth her thanks, and then her mother and brother came forward and joined with her in thanksgiving, and said that it was God who had healed her; for she began to recover after that prayer and song. The missionary told them it was to God they owed their thanks. It was a joy to use this experience' as an appeal to them to make Him their God. It was this girl's case that made Dr. Thwing, of Brooklyn, see the need of free asylums for the insane! in Japan, and led him to give a lecture on the sub- Jesus Healing the Lunatic, 63 ject at Tokio, July 1, 1890, which resulted in the set- ting on foot a movement for that end. While the mis- sionaries were waiting and hoping for such an asylum for one poor child, the merciful Lord undertook her case Himself, and set her free. Thk Barren Fig-Trek. 65 Whatever be thy longing or thy need, That do thou give : So shall thy soul be fed, and thou, indeed, Shalt truly live." The Bible says a good deal about fruit. It tells us that the fruit of our lips is praise; that the fruit of our substance is gifts ; that the fruit of our serv- ice is souls born into the kingdom; that "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." Love is the fruit, and there are eight varieties. 1. Joy. — Joy is Love Rejoicing. One day, in a Paris court, a pretty girl, poorly but neatly clad, was brought up on a charge of vagrancy. "Does any one claim you?" asked the magistrate. "Ah, my good sir," said she; "I have no longer friends. My father and mother are dead. I have only one brother, James ; but he is almost as young as I am. O sir, what can he do for me?" "The court must send you to the house of correc- tion." "Here I am, sister — here I am. Do not fear !" cried a childish voice from the other end of the court. And, at the same instant, a little boy with a lovely face started from amid the' crowd, and stood before the judge. "Who are you?" said he. "James Rome, the brother of this little girl." 5 66 Story of Jksus. "Your age?" "Thirteen." "What do you want?" "I come to claim my sister Lucille. " "But have you the means of taking care of her?" "Yesterday I had not, but now I have. Do n't be afraid, Lucille." "O, how good you are, James !" "Well, let us see, boy," said the magistrate. "The court is disposed to do all it can for your sister; but you must give us some explanation." "About a fortnight ago," said the boy, "my mother died of a bad cough. We were in great trouble. Then I said to myself, 'I will learn a trade; I will support my sister/ I went to a brushmaker. Every day I used to carry her half of my dinner, and at night I took her to my room, and she slept in my bed while I slept on the floor. But it appears she had not enough to eat. One day she begged on the street, and was taken up. When I heard that, I said to myself: " 'Come, my boy, things can't last so. You must find something better/ "I found a place where I am lodged, fed, and clothed, and have twenty francs a month. I have also found a good woman who, for these twenty francs, will take care of Lucille, and teach her needlework. I claim my sister." "My boy," said the judge, "your conduct is very The Barrkn Fk;-Trkk. 67 honorable. However, your sister can not be set at liberty till to-morrow/' "Never mind, Lucille," said the boy; "I will come and fetch you to-morrow." Then, turning to the magis- trate, he said, "I may kiss her, may I not, sir?" He threw himself into the arms of his sister, and both were filled with joy as they thought of being to- gether once more. 2. Peace. — Peace is Love Reposing. An express train was rushing on one day at frightful speed, carrying war dispatches. It hurried round the curves with a velocity that threatened to hurl it from the track. The passengers were frightened, all of them, but one little girl, who sat all alone in perfect peace. At last the train stopped. A gentleman, the engi- neer, came through the cars, and bent over the child, and said, "Were not you afraid?" "O no, papa ; I was not afraid when you were run- ning the train," she said. The Bible tells us perfect love casts out all fear. Surely the story of this sweet child teaches us that peace is love reposing. 3. Longsuffering. — Longsuffering is Love Tried and True. In the Woodward Garden, at San Francisco, was a lion so wild and fierce that it was dangerous to go near him ; but the superintendent, by persistent kindness, won the love of the noble beast, so that he could go into 68 Story of Jesus. his cage, and drop down beside him, and the lion would raise his head to give him a soft place on which to lie. One day, a drunken sailor struck at the superintend- ent. The lion roared so fearfully, and dashed so fran- tically against his cage, that the man ran away fright- ened. At length, the lion had a tumor. A difficult opera- tion had to be performed, but no one dared even to approach the lion except the superintendent. The phy- sicians drew a diagram of the operation, showing him where to cut. With fear he entered the cage with his implements; for the lion was restless with pain. He followed the medical directions, talking soothingly to the noble beast. The lion let him cut, and bore the knife bravely, and licked his hand gratefully when it was over. But the operation only afforded temporary relief, and the lion suffered so much it was decided he must be killed. The superintendent took his revolver, and, after petting the animal, put the muzzle close to his head, and fired one shot. The lion made no resistance, but gave his keeper a pathetic look, in which there was no anger, only surprise and reproach. Three times the man was obliged to fire, but the poor beast only looked at him with a sad, beseeching, perplexed look, and so he died. Tiik Rarrkn Fic.-Trkk. 69 As we read how a love which was only human could so tame and quiet and absorb a beast of the field, let us resolve that infinite love shall fill our hearts and lives, so that, when we are tried, we may be true. 4. Gentleness. — Gentleness is Love Yielding. There is a story of a little girl whom they called the Princess be- cause she was so loving and sunny about the house. One day she was going to have a party, and she said to her sister: "I do n't want Mamie Price at my party, an' I ain't going to have her." "But you must, Princess, dear; for Mamie is our cousin, and it would never do to have a party without asking her." "But it 's my party, an' I ought to have a right to Vite anybody I like." Lulu glanced up from the new book she was read- ing, and, placing her hand upon her little sister's shoul- der, said, "Mamie does n't always act naughty, and I 'm sure she would never dream of leaving you out if she was to have a party." "But I never did horrid things to her dolls !" per- sisted Princess. "And that 's just why you ought to be good to her," said Lulu ; "for do n't you remember what mamma read to us last Sunday, that we should love our ene- mies, and do good even to those who were bad to us? /o Story of Jesus. This is just what it meant, I guess, and I think she would say it 's just a nice chance to do what the Bible tells us to." "Well, then, she '11 make eight, and Minnie Lee and Flossie Bates will be ten. That 's all I want," said Princess, as she ran across the room in answer to mamma's call. She had resolved to do what was right. She yielded, and instantly she became the same loving, sunny little girl that had won from her friends the title of Princess. Whenever we think of the Princess, let us remem- ber that gentleness is love yielding. 5. Goodness. — Goodness is Love Holy. Somebody has written a story of a poor dressmaker who had this love. Here is the story : A little orphan girl lived with her grandmother. They were very poor, but neat and tidy. Perhaps I should say they were' rich in one thing: they had a Bible; and in the Bible they found God a tried Friend; they found Jesus Christ a precious Savior; they found a beautiful garment, holiness ; a beautiful ornament, a meek and quiet spirit ; a house not made with hands, heaven. So the old grandmother and the little girl were not so poor after all. They were richer by far than people with plenty of money who had not found these. The little girl's name was Sarah Martin. When Sarah was old enough, she had to earn her living. As she was too delicate to do hard work, her Thk Barren Fic-Tkkk. 71 grandmother thought she had better learn dressmak- ing. For this purpose she had to go to Yarmouth, a town three miles from the village where they lived. She used to walk in to town in the morning, and out home at night. Was n't she afraid ? Sarah was so sweet- tempered and good, I am sure nobody would harm her ; and, then, she put her trust in God, and knew He would take care of her. By and by she began to earn a shill- ing a day by pretty diligent sewing, and was thankful for it. The court used to hold its sittings at Yarmouth. One day a woman was going to be tried for cruelly beating her little child. Awful stories were told about her, and everybody's blood curdled at hearing them. She was lodged in the jail. Sarah used to pass the jail going to and from her work. She, as well as every- body else, looked up to it as they passed, thinking of the cruel creature in it. Did Sarah hate her? Almost everybody did, judg- ing by their talk. Did she despise her, call her "hor- rid," "awful," and all the hard names she could think of? No. Sarah loved her. "That is strange," you will say. Well, she did. I think she was the* only person in all Yarmouth that had a spark of love for her. If Sarah did love her, what then? You know love well enough, perhaps, to know that it always wants to be doing something. Love is very industrious. But what could poor Sarah Martin's love do? She 72 Story of Jesus. thought she should like to go and see the woman. But that great, black, ugly-looking jail, who would have the heart to go there? It seemed to her even to smell wicked. She, however, stopped one morning at the 1 porch and knocked, and when the jail-keeper came to the door, she asked leave to visit the poor creature who beat her child so. "No," said the jail-keeper, eye- ing her, "you can't go." This looked as if her love was n't of much use ; so she turned, and walked sorrowfully away to her work. A few days after, she stopped at the porch again. She knocked. The jail-keeper came, and again he saw modest little Sarah Martin at the door. She asked what she asked before. This time he said, "Yes," and let her in, and told the turnkey to show her to the right cell. "Curiosity," I dare say he thought ; yet he would not say "No" a second time. Sarah followed the turnkey through the long, dark, damp passages of the big jail, with their small, high, grated windows, which we should think the cheerful sun would hardly condescend to look into, only that the sun is not at all proud; it visits the lowly just as much as the high, and always the poor prisoners, when it can get in, as Sarah Martin has ; for by this time she is directly opposite the cell, the turnkey is rattling his huge keys, unlocking the big lock, the iron door is swinging open, Sarah is face to face with the' bad Tin-: Barren Kk;-Trkk. 73 woman. I wonder if she minds the straw bed, the dirty coverlet, the miserable, comfortless look every- thing has. The woman — she has a horrid expression — stares at her unexpected visitor. "What do you come here for?'' she asked Sarah in a harsh voice. "1 come," answered Sarah, meekly, "because I love you. You are guilty and miserable. I come to tell you of God's mercy, the comfort you can find in the grace of His dear Son." O, that kind tone, that pitying eye ! The woman knew in a minute she had a friend; and the poor sin- ner burst out crying, and thanked her for coming. What the law, the officers of justice, the jail, and jail- keeper could not do, Sarah Martin's Christian love did — it softened her hard heart, and paved the way for her amendment. It was a good visit ; the first, but not the last. She went again and again. The other prisoners, hearing of her, wanted her to come and see them. She always carried her little Bible (she called it the pris- oner's friend), read to them, and instructed them in its precious truths. Old, gray-headed criminals wept as they listened to her; thieves, pickpockets, wicked sailors, and bad boys respected her. As she read, prayed, and felt for them by turns, it seemed as if an angel had come. They saw how blessed it was to be good, and for the first time in their lives longed to be 74 Story of Jesus. good themselves. Their wicked ways never seemed so wicked ! Sarah found a great many of them could neither read nor write, and she felt she must have the privilege of teaching them. Where was she to get the time? "I thought it right," she says, "to give up a day in the week from dressmaking to serve, the prisoners/' Poor as she was, nobody ever paid her for the time; yet she said, "It was a pecuniary loss, but it was ever followed with abundant satisfaction ; for the blessing of God was on ine." O yes, God paid her! She found such delight in His service as nothing in this world could give. The Holy Spirit helped her every step of the way; other- wise it would have been a very hard task. A poor dresssmaker giving up one-sixth part of her working-time to do good among the worst of society in a common jail must make a good many of us ashamed. How backward we are even to make one visit to the needy ; how loath even to try to save a poor soul from ruin ! How unbelieving about the Holy Spirit helping us, or the Lord Jesus receiving poor sinners, if we do try ! At last the old grandmother died, leaving Sarah an income of ten pounds a year. She then moved into Yarmouth, and took two small rooms in a poor part of the town. But her dressmaking began to fall off — The Barren Pig-Trkk. 75 it quite fell off. ( )ught she not to give up the poor prisoners, and try to get back her business? Prudent people told her she ought. "No," she said, with quiet firmness; "I have counted the cost, my mind is made up. If, while instructing others in God's good truth, I am exposed to temporal want, so momentary a privation is nothing in compari- son with following the Lord in thus ministering to others. ,, She enlarged her labors, and finally gave her whole time to them, refused all pay, went home every night to her poor little lodgings, tired, hungry, and cold, kindled her own fire, made her own tea, and went to bed all alone. God blessed and prospered her work, and filled her bosom with sweet peace and contentment. Is not this enough to kindle in you a desire to have the goodness which is love holy? 6. Faith. — Faith is Love Overcoming. Two men were sinking a shaft in a coal-mine. It was a dangerous busi- ness; for it was necessary to blast the rock . It was their custom to cut the fuse with a sharp knife. One man then entered the bucket, and made a signal to be hauled up. When the bucket again descended, the other man entered it, and, with one hand on the signal- rope, the other holding the fire, he touched the fuse, made the signal, and was rapidly drawn up before the explosion took place. One day they left the knife 76 Story ok Jksus. above; and, rather than ascend to procure it, they cut the fuse with a sharp stone. It took fire. "The fuse is on fire!" Both men leaped into the bucket, and made the signal ; but the windlass would haul up but one man at a time : only one could escape. One of the men instantly leaped out, and said to the other, "Up wT ye; I '11 be in heaven in a minute. " With lightning speed the bucket was drawn up, and one man was saved. The explosion took place. Men descended, expecting to find the mangled body of the other miner ; but the blast had loosened a mass of rock, and it lay across him in such a way that it left him in a kind of cave, and did not fall on him and crush him. With the exception of a few bruises and a little scorch- ing he was unhurt. They asked him : "Why did you insist on this other man's ascending ?" In his quaint dialect he replied: "Because I knowed my soul was safe ; for I have' gie it in the hands of Him of whom it is said that 'faithfulness is the girdle of His reins;' and I knowed that what I gied Him He'd never gie up. But t'other chap was an awful wicked lad, and I wanted to gie him another chance." 7. Meekness. — Meekness is Love Hiding. There is a little tract called "A Mother's Love," which will help us to understand how meekness is love hiding. In a beautiful Italian village a bad plague broke The Barren FioTreb. 77 out, which took ofif the whole of the family it first at- tacked. On the opposite side of the way lived the family of a poor laborer, who was absent during the whole week, only coming on Saturday nights to bring his scanty earnings. One evening his wife was attacked by the plague. In the morning she was much wor and before night the plague spot showed itself. She thought of the terrible fate of her neighbors if they took the plague from her. She knew she must die ; but as she looked upon her dear little boys, she resolved not to communicate death to them. She therefore locked the children in the room, and snatched her bed-clothes, lest they should keep the contagion behind her, and left the house. She even denied herself the sad pleasure of a last embrace. Think of the heroism that enabled her to conquer her feelings, and leave home and all she loved to die ! Her eldest child saw her from the window. "Good-bye, mother/' said he, in tenderest tones; for he wondered why his mother left him so strangely. "Good-bye, mother," repeated the youngest child, stretching his little hand out of the window. The mother paused. Her heart was drawing back. She struggled hard, while the tears rolled down her cheeks at the sight of her helpless babes. But she turned from them. The children continued to cry, "Good-bye, mother," 78 Story of Jesus. The sounds sent a thrill of anguish to her heart; but she hid it away, and never let the little ones know how her heart was aching. She pressed on to the house of those who were to bury her, and in two days she died. 8. Temperance. — Temperance is Love Denying Self. Here is a beautiful story of two little street waifs, which shows how love is willing to deny itself to be a comfort to others. "See here, Andy," said Jim to his chum, "my ticket is for two weeks ; a big orchard, sheep, cows, and milk by the bucket, old boy. I tell you what we '11 do ; we' '11 go halves ; you jes' take my ticket, and 'low you are Jim Benner, and get shipped off right to the country. Now, let 's say you been there a week ; you up 's and tells you ain't Jim Benner; what then? Why, they packs you back to town, and they has me out 'stead of you." "You go first, Jim," Andy said; "then you let on you ain't Jim, and send back for me ; and I '11 keep your box and black shoe's." Jim saw the weak point in this scheme, and doubted whether he could disprove his identity ; but Andy could not be trusted to carry out the first plan, so the next thing was the second. Neither boy shrank from the' falsehood. They did not know of Him who hateth a lie. Thk Barren Pig Tree. 79 So Jim went to the country, while Andy took stand, and did his best to "shine" Jim's customers, and watched eagerly round the corner for Jim to come back and let him take a turn at the orchard and the sheep. Meanwhile the poor city waif at Farmer Stone's was treated to the best of everything. "Jim Benner," said Farmer Stone, "you are wel- come to all you can get, and the only return I ask is that you never tell a lie while you are here." Jim promised, saying to himself: "Andy's chance is up, 'cause I can't say I ain't Jim Benner 'thout tell- ing a lie ; and I promised not to tell a lie." But as the days went on, and Jim watched the ways of the God-serving family, he longed for his little mate to share his new view of life ; and one day he made a clean breast of the promise he' had made Andy to change names with him. The next day, Andy came to Clover Hill. "I 've made up my mind," said the farmer's wife, "that them two boys is not to go back to the city. You step around lively, father, and get a place for the little chap, and we '11 have work enough for Jim." "Seems likely that 's what the Lord sent them out here for. They was busy keeping some of His com- mandments — 'bout loving one another and preferring one another — and now He 's passed 'em on to us to teach them the rest." 80 Story of Jesus. And they are teaching us too, these poor little waifs, that temperance is love denying self. "This beautiful world has much of care And sorrow and pain and strife, And burdens indeed would be hard to bear If love did not sweeten life. The tenderest joy we shall ever know On earth or in heaven above Is the fairest light that will ever glow, And its beautiful name is love. O what should we do in the time of joy, And what in the time of tears, If tenderest hearts did not beat with ours, Nor sympathy bless our years ? And what should we do in our failing powers If love were not true and fond To brighten the wearisome days and hours Till we come to the gates beyond? O love is the beautiful light of home, Whatever of grief betides — And heaven is there with its shining dome In the heart where love abides. O ! love is the meaning of God himself And love is the magic key To open the door of the hardest heart, The glory of God to see. God pity the lives that are dark and lone, Where the love-light does not fall, And send to them some who shall make Him known That His dear love may bless them all. The tenderest joy we shall ever know On earth or in heaven above, Is the fairest light that will ever glow, And its beautiful name is love." Tin-: Bakki-n Pio-T 8i Those wlio have all the eight varieties of the fruit of the Spirit in their lives will never be like the bai fig-tree, will they? Let US Stop a moment, and pray Jesus that we may constantly bear the fruit of the Spirit — love, joy, pe; longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, m< temperance. 6 Chapter VII. JESUS RAISING JA1RUS' DAUGHTER. IN his beautiful home among the hills lived a rich ruler of the synagogue, named Jairus. Tie had an only daughter, twelve years old, whom he loved dearly. One day she was taken very ill. Her father and mother watched over her, and did all they could for her, but she grew worse. At last she lay so white and still they thought she was dying. Their hearts were breaking, and there was no more that they could do; for all their wealth could not make their little one well. Perhaps then they prayed to the Heavenly Father, and suddenly thought of Jesus, and how, one day, He was walking out near the gate of the city of Nain, and saw a dead man carried out to be buried, the only son of his mother, and she a widow, and remem- bered how Jesus had compassion on her, and went right to the bier, and touched it, and said, ''Young man, T say unto thee, Arise." And the dead son sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. 82 raising daughter of jairus. Jesus Raising Jairus' I >augh per. And T think Jairus must have said something like this to his wife : "If Jesus could raise that mother's d< «, He can make our little girl well. 1 heard them sav He was going to dine at Matthew's house to -day. I am going to see if I can not hud Ilim." And almost before the wife could answer, he went away to Matthew's house, and there was Jesus sitting at the table, and all the people listening to his words. Jairus crowded in, and fell down at Jesus' feet, and worshiped Him, and said, "My little daughter lieth at the point of death : but I pray Thee, Come and lay Thy hands on her, that she may be healed, and she shall live." And Jesus arose, and went with him, and so did His disciples. But as He went, the crowd that followed Him was so great it was hard for them to get on. In the throng was a poor, sick woman, who had had an issue of blood twelve years, as many years as the little girl was old. She had spent all her money to be healed, and had suffered much from many doctors, but grew worse instead of better. Some one told her about Jesus, and she came in the crowd behind Him, and touched the hem of His robe ; for she said to herself, "If I may but touch His clothes, I shall be whole/' And the woman was made well from that hour, 84 Story of Jesus. and the disease of blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her plague. Jesus knew that virtue had gone out of Him to heal some one ; so He turned and said to the crowd, "Who touched Me?" They all said: "It was not I! It was not II" Then Peter and the other disciples thought Jesus had asked a queer question, and they said, "Master, the crowd throng Thee and press Thee; why dost Thou say, 'Who touched Me?'" And Jesus said, kindly, "Some one has touched me'; for I know that virtue has gone out of me." And He looked round about to see who had touched Him. And when the woman saw that she could not be hid, she came with fear and trembling, and threw herself at His feet, and told Him all the truth, how she' touched Him, and was instantly made whole. Jesus looked at her so tenderly, and said : "Daughter, be of good comfort ; thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace, and be whole of thy plague. " All this time Jairus stood there, waiting and think- ing of his dear, sick daughter. It was hard to have the throng hinder and the poor woman stop Him when his case was so much more urgent. But think of all the beautiful lessons for Jairus and for us out of the delay. Jesus Raising Jairus 1 Daughter. S5 Nothing is too hard for Jesus. There is no limit to God's power. God has no need to hurry. Jesus loves the poor as much as the rich. Delay tests faith to strengthen it. But delay is not denial. Because God does not seem to hear prayer to-day is no sign we shall not know to-morrow that He has heard. There are other needy ones beside ourselves to whom our waiting may prove a blessing. Selfish impatience must be checked. Delay pre- pares our hearts for richer blessings. Nothing Jesus does for others will hinder His doing for us. While Jairus stood there, sorrowful over the delay, a friend of his, another ruler of the synagogue, came to him, and said: "Thy daughter is dead. Why troublest thou the Master any further ?" Poor Jairus ! He must have said to himself, "Is there, then, no hope?" But Jesus looked right at him so kindly, and said, "Be not afraid; only believe, and she shall be made whole." As some one suggests, it was as if He had said : "Do not be afraid. Persevere in the faith you have 86 Story of Jesus. shown thus far. My power is equal to My love. I can raise the little one from the dead as easily as from the sick-bed. Rest in My word, just believe Me, and your child shall live." And Jesus came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue. In the East, where Jesus lived, as soon as any one died, their friends hired mourners to come and weep for them. When Jesus and Jairus came to the house, the hired mourners and some friends and neighbors were there, weeping, and beating their breasts, tearing their hair, and making a great noise. Jesus said to them : "Why make ye this ado and weep? Weep not; give place ; for the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth." When God's children die, they are said to sleep. That means that they will rise again ; and there' is something very different in their dying from the dying of the wicked. And they laughed Him to scorn, knowing that to them she was dead. The wicked make' fun of what they do not understand. Jesus put them all out of the house. They did not believe I Tim, and they could not stay with Him. Then He took the three chosen disciples and the father and mother, and went into the child's room, and took the little girl by the hand, and said unto her, "Little darling, I say unto thee, Arise." Jesus Raising J urus j Daughter. 87 And straightway the little girl's spirit came into her body, and she- arose and walked. Her parents were so astonished and delighted th forgot that the little girl had been so ill, and had not eaten anything, and was faint; but Jesus did not forget He said: "Give her something to eat." Jesus charged them that they should tell no man what was done. Jesus did not care for fame, and to have the miracle noised abroad would not be pleasant for the little girl. But they did not obey Him, and told the story, and His fame went abroad in all the land. Some one relates a beautiful incident of a little Jewish girl named Deborah, who lived in Russia. She learned many verses of the New Testament from a Christian boy who had committed them to memory. Among the verses was this story of the raising of Jairus' daughter. One day, on the arrival of Deborah's father, who had been gone from home a long time, she ran to meet him, and said, "I do love Jesus; he loved little chil- dren." This made the father angry; for the Jews do not believe that Jesus really was the Son of God. They believe that Jesus is yet to come. So the father told his child never to speak of Jesus again. Soon the child was stricken with scarlet fever, and the doctor gave no hope. A Gentile woman was called to nurse the child, as the Jews feared the fever. 88 Story of Jesus. As the little one lay there unconscious, the woman quoted a verse of a hymn, and the father of little Deb- orah offered the death-bed prayer of the Jews. Then the child opened her eyes, and repeated, word for word, the story of Jairus' daughter. When she finished, her head fell back, and to all appearance she was gone. In an agony of mind the father fell down at the feet of Jesus, and besought Him, saying, "O Jesus, Thou who didst raise up the daughter of Jairus, raise up my little Deborah, and I will believe in Thee as Israel's Messiah!" That cry of agony was heard, and the child lived, and her father kept his promise, and believed on Jesus, and all his house was saved. Not often does any one have faith to ask Jesus to give their friends back to them from the dead; but the day is surely coming when all the dead that are in their graves shall hear His voice, and they that hear shall live. A little girl, not four years old, prattled constantly of a beloved uncle who was daily expected to arrive in a steamer from the South. But at last news came that he had died at sea, and been buried under the waves, and the child was heartbroken. She could not be comforted until some one told her of the" blessed hope of the Lord's coming and the resurrection. Then she went to her play, subdued and satisfied. Some time after, seeing one of the family in tears, she said, "Uncle will not always stay clown there in the" deep, Jgsus Raising J urus' 1 ) iugh i deep water; for Jesus is coming, and He will bring him up again all bright and new." Yes, dear (Mies, Jesus 19 coming agai.n, and those you have "loved and lost awhile" will come up out of their graves and meet those who shall he living when He comes, and together they shall be caught up meet the Lord in the air, and so shall they ever be with the Lord, (i Thess, iv, 14-18.) J Chapter VIII. FEEDING THE MULTITUDE. ONE day when Jesus heard that His faithful fore- runner, John the Baptist, had been beheaded by Herod, He said to His twelve apostles, "Come ye apart into a desert place and rest awhile. " For ther were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat. And Jesus took them, and they departed thence and went aside by ship, privately, over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias, into a desert place apart belonging to the city called Bethsaida. And the people had heard thereof, and saw them departing, and many knew Him, and a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His miracles which He did on them that were diseased, and they ran afoot thither out of all the cities, and outwent Him and His disciples, and came together unto them. And Jesus, when He came out, went up into a mountain, and there He sat with His disciples. And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. When Jesus then lifted up His eyes, and saw much people come unto Him, He was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having 90 n x ± H Feeding the Multitudk. 91 a shepherd; and lie received them, and began to teach them many tilings of the kingdom of Cud, and healed them that had need of healing. And when the day began to wear away, and was now far spent, lie saith unto Philip, "Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?" And this He said to prove him; for He Himself knew what He would do. Philip answered Him, "Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little." Then His disciples came to Him, and said unto Him, "This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed ; send the multitude aw\ay, that they may go into the country round about, and into the towns and villages, and lodge and buy themselves bread and victuals, for they have nothing to eat, and we are in a desert place." But Jesus answered, and said unto them, "They need not depart ; give ye them to eat." And they say unto Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?" He saith unto them, "How many loaves have ye? go and see." And when they knew, one of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto Him, "There is a lad here which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes : but what are they among so many? We have here no more but five loaves and two fishes : except we should go and buy meat for all this people." 92 Story of Jesus, He said, "Bring them hither to Me." And He com- manded His disciples to make all the multitude to sit down by companies, by fifties in a company, upon the green grass. (Now, there was much grass in the place.) And they did so, and made them sit down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, He looked up to heaven and He blessed, and when He had given thanks, He brake the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them, and the disciples distributed and gave them to the multitude that were sitting down ; and likewise the two fishes divided He among them all, as much as they would. And they did all eat, and were all filled. When they were filled, He said unto His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost." Therefore, they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves and of the fishes, that remained over and above unto them that had eaten. And they that had eaten of the loaves were in number about five thousand men, beside women and children. Then these men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, "This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. And when Jesus therefore perceived that they would Feeding tut Multitude. 93 come and take Him by I take Him a king, He straightway constrained His dis and to go before Him to the other side, unto Bethsal while lie sent the multitudes away. And His dis went down unto the sea, and entered h nd went over the sea toward Capernaum. And when He had sent the multitudes away. He par md went up again into a mountain apart ay; and when the evening was come, and it was now dark, Jesus Himself was there alone on the land, not having come to them. But the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew, and the ship was now in ; midst of the sea, tossed with waves ; for the wind v i contrary unto them; and He saw them toiling in rowing. And about the fourth watch of the night, when they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty furlongs, Jesus went unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them. And when the disciples saw Him walking upon the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship, they supposed it had been a spirit: for they all saw Him, and were troubled, saying, "It is a spirit." And they were afraid, and cried out for fear. But immediately, Jesus spake unto them, saying, "Be of good cheer; it is I ; be not afraid. " And Peter answered Ilim, and said, "Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water." 94 Story of Jesus. And He said, "Come." And when Peter was come out of the ship, he walked on the -water to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and, beginning to sink, he cried, saying, "Lord, save me!" And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto him, "O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" Then they went up into the ship, and they that were in the ship willingly received them into it. And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased. Then they that were in the ship were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered. For they considered not the miracle of the loaves ; for their hearts were hard. And they came and worshiped Him, saying, "Of a truth Thou art the Son of God." And immediately the ship was at the land whither they went, and drew to the shore. And when they were gone over, they came to the land of Gennesaret. And when they were come out of the ship, straightway the men of that place had knowl- edge of Him, and they ran through that whole region, and sent out into all that country round about, and began to carry about in beds, all that were sick, and brought unto Him all that were diseased, where they hea-rd He was, and besought Him that they might Feeding tin: Multitude. 95 only touch the hem of His garment, and as many as touched were made perfectly whole. And whithersoever He entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the Stri Ittd besought Him that they might touch if it were but the border of His garment; ami as many as touched Him were made whole. The day following, when the people had found Him on the other side of the sea, they said unto Him, "Rabbi, when earnest Thou hither ?" Jesus answered them, and said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek Me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves and were filled. Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you : for him hath God the Father sealed." Then said they unto Him, "What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?" Jesus said unto them, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent." They said therefore unto Him, "What sign shewest Thou then, that we may see, and believe Thee? What dost Thou work? Our fathers did eat manna in the desert ; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' " Then Jesus said unto them : "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven. 9 6 Story o* Jesus. But My Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world/' Then said they unto Him, "Lord, evermore give us this bread." And Jesus said unto them, "I am the Bread of Life." It will help us to understand how Jesus is the Bread of Life if we see that what bread is to the body, Jesus is to the soul. Like bread, Christ is needed by the poorest and the richest, the youngest and the oldest, the weakest and the strongest. As nothing is so nourishing and necessary to bodily health as bread, so Christ is indispensable to the soul. As day by day we eat bread and never tire of it, so Christ constantly satisfies every want of our spiritual nature. As bread gives life to the body, so Jesus gives life to the soul. As bread is to be eaten, so Christ is to be appreciated. As through eating the forbidden fruit Eve died, so through eating heavenly food we live. Seven times in one chapter Jesus speaks of eating His flesh, which stands for appreciating and appropriat- ing His life and His death. A poor soldier lay dying in a Swiss hospital. His father coming to him, found him with the stupor of death gathering over his senses. Fkkding tiif v Multitude. 97 "You must not die," said the old man. "I have brought money. You shall have medicines, deli* everything; and, as soon as you are strong enough, I will take you home." The sick man shook his head. He did not wain medicine nor tempting morsels. He felt that he v past help. The father's heart sank, and he turned away to hide his tears. Presently he opened his traveling-sack, and took out a loaf of bread. Breaking off a piece, he gently placed a crumb in his son's mouth. After a moment, the sick man swallowed it, and soon he opened his eyes and whispered, "More." "Your mother made that," said the father. "I know it," the sick man replied, "it is so good." The father laid the little loaf on the bed, and the poor soldier took it up in his hands and began to eat, with tears rolling down his face. From that hour he grew better, and in a few weeks was restored to health. Just as eating the bread his mother made restored the sick man to life, so eating the bread of God by faith brings life to the soul. Faith is not feeling something in you telling you that you are saved ; it is believing something outside of you; it is resting on God's sure, eternal Word, which 7 98 Story o* Jesus. shall never pass away. To believe in Christ prepares the way to enjoy Him. A minister sat beside a wealthy man who had lost all interest in business in his intense longing to learn the way of salvation. But in vain the man of God sought to bring him out into the sunlight. He was about to go away in despair, when the rich man's little daughter came into the room, and, throwing her arms about her father's neck, said, "Papa, my teacher says I must have a slate to- morrow ; may I have a slate ?" "Certainly, my darling." The little child kissed him and thanked him, and went away singing. Then the minister said, "The same faith in God which your little child has in you would bring you the gift of salvation." A radiant light broke over the rich man's face. "O I see !" he exclaimed. "I never knew it was so simple." Bread is the gift of God to men, and so is Jesus. A little girl and her mother were thinking about the things they had to thank God for. The little one thought her mother made the bread, and God did not give her that, so she said, "You give me bread, mother." "But," said her mother, "the flour we got from the shop, and the shopkeeper bought it from the miller, and the miller took the wheat from the farmer, and Feeding the Multitude. 99 the farmer had it from the ground, and the ground grew it all itself." "No/ 1 cried Helen. "God grew it. The sun and the rain, the wind and the air, are His, and He sent them to the wheat-field. The earth is His, too. And so God is at the bottom of everything, is n't He, mother?" "Yes," said mother; "God is the origin of every good and perfect gift which we enjoy." The little girl looked serious. She sat a little while, thinking. Then she said, "Mamma, I can't make a prayer long enough to thank God for everything." Helen was right ; but it is hard for some people to understand how Jesus is God's gift to the world. A gentleman, walking along a railroad track, looked down upon a poorly-built cottage, where the daylight showed through the tiles on the roof. Going down to the front of the cheerless cottage, he saw that a mother and daughter lived there, and thought he would make them more comfortable before the win- ter, and hurried away. But he entirely forgot them, until one snowy morn- ing, weeks afterward, as he was about to pass the same way. His heart smote him, and he bought a pair of warm blankets, and thought he would have the pleasure of taking them himself. As he passed the window, the old woman was looking out, and he held up the parcel, LJC. IO o Story of Jesus. thinking she would understand that he was bringing her something. But she only frowned angrily, and shook her head. He opened the door, but she said, "Be gone, I do not want to buy any goods/' and slammed the door. He said, "She thinks I want to sell them! No won- der she is vexed, needing them so badly. I must make her understand that it is a gift." He opened the door again. More fiercely she bade him be gone. He saw that she was deaf, and her daughter not at home. "I will show her what it is," he thought, "may be she will understand then," and he untied the parcel. But the sight of the warm blankets only made her more conscious of her poverty, and she turned away indignantly, and said: "Why don't you go? I have told you I do not want them." What could he do? He took one out and held it up, and smiled and nodded his head, but the action seemed like the act of some resolute peddler, and she said, "Why don't you go away when I tell you?" Then he took the blanket and threw it around her, and burst into a hearty laugh. At last it flashed upon her. Looking up, almost afraid, she asked, "For me?" He nodded, and smiled. "A gift?" she said. Feeding thk Mri/rmni:. mi Again he nodded. "A gift for met" she repeated. She stroked it, and felt the warmth of it, then laughed, and cried, and grasped his hands, and than). him, while the tears ran down her wrinkled cl Jesus is God's gift to men. Here is another true story that will help us to understand this : An evangelist had been preaching among the poor in the most dangerous district in London. As he star; toward home, feeling his mission a failure, an old woman said, "I want to speak to you." "What is it?" "I am seventy-three, but I can earn my living by needle-work as well as ever I could/' "Why do you tell me this?" "I want you to know T , I did n't come here to beg." "What do you want from me?" "I am seventy-three," she repeated, "I can't live much longer, I have n't got this gift of God you told about, and I make bold to ask you to tell me more. Remem- ber, I am an old woman of seventy-three ; make it ay plain as you can." The evangelist saw that the woman was famished for want of food, and, taking a shilling from his pocket, said, "Mother, have you had any tea?" "I did n't come here to beg," she replied. "No one said you did, but answer my question." io2 Story of Jesus. "No, T ain't/ 1 she said, shortly. "Mother, have you any supper at home?" "I did n't come here to beg," she again repeated. "Mother, have you any supper at home?" "No, I ain't," angrily. "Well, here is a shilling; it will buy you bread, sugar, tea, milk, butter, wood, and a candle. It will give you food, light, and warmth." But she only repeated, "I did n't come here to beg." "You have not been accused of begging; but take the money. It has been given me for any who need it. You are cold and hungry, your need is sore ; take it." Still she said, "I did n't come here to beg, I only want you to tell me the way to heaven." "That shall surely come after, but you must take the money first." Slowly, reluctantly, she stretched out her thin, bony hand, until her fingers closed over the coin. "Now, mother," he said, "you want the gift of God, which is eternal life. And just as the wants of your body are all met in the shilling, so God has met the wants of your soul in the gift of Jesus Christ, His Son. In Him, God has provided all we need for time and eternity. But we must take Jesus as God's free, un- deserved gift. This we are unwilling to do. We want to earn Him, we want to deserve Jesus and heaven, but we never ran. Just as you were so unwilling to accept Feeding thk Multitude. the shilling, so thousands are unwilling to rec on the only terms that they can receive Him." "I thought 1 had to earn heaven," she said; "must I not repent?" "That will come by faith in Jesus, just as food and warmth and light were all in the shilling. Only believe in Jesus. M "Is that all?" "That is all. Repentance, joy, peace, heaven, are all in Jesus Christ." "Then I am a saved woman | M she cried, clapping her drawn, withered hands together, with the shilling between them, "for I bow to Jesus now." A few more words of counsel, another prayer, and the evangelist looked for the last time into the aged face, and saw hope, peace, and forgiveness resting there. Going 0*1 his dark, dangerous way, it seemed bright with a light from heaven. Chapter IX. THE TRANSFIGURATION. SOME time after the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus went out, and His disciples, into the towns of Caesarea Philippi. And it came to pass, when Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, as He was alone by the way, praying, His disciples were with Him ; and He asked them, saying unto them, "Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am?" And they answered, and said, "Some say that Thou art John the Baptist: but some say Elijah: and others say Jeremiah, or that one of the old prophets is risen again." And He saith unto them, "But whom say ye that I am?" And Simon Peter answered, and said unto him : "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered, and said unto him : "Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church ; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; 104 THE TRANSFIGURATION. (RAPHAEL.) Tin; Transfiguration. 105 and whatsoever thou shah hind on earth shall be hound in heaven; and whatsoever fchotl shah luu.se uii earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then straitlv charged He His disciples, and com- manded them that they should tell nu man that He was Jesus the Christ. And from that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples and to teach them, saying, how that lie, the Son of man, must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day: and He spake that say: eiily. Then Peter took Him, and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Be it far from Thee, Lord: this shall not be unto Thee. ,, But when He had turned about and looked upon His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying unto him, "Get thee behind me, Satan : thou art an offense unto me: for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men." And when He had called the people unto Him, with His disciples also, He said unto them all : "Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny him- self, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, and the gospel's, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he s gain the whole world and lose his own .^uul ? or lose him- 106 Story of Jesus. self and be cast away? or what shall a man give' in ex- change for his soul? For the Son of man shall conic in the glory of His Father with His angels ; and then He shall reward every man according to his works. Whosoever, therefore, shall be ashamed of Me and My words in this sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when He shall come in His own glory, and in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." And He said unto them, "Verily, I say unto you, That there shall be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power, and see the Son of man coming in His kingdom." And it came to pass about eight days after these sayings, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and went up into a high moun- tain apart by themselves to pray. And as He prayed, He was transfigurel before them ; and the fashion of His countenance was altered, and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment became shining, exceeding white and glistering as the light, so as no fuller on earth can white them. And behold, there appeared unto them in glory, two men, which were Moses and Elijah : who, talking with Him, spake of His decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem. But Peter and they that were with him The Transfiguration. 107 were heavy with sleep ; and when they were awake, they saw His glory, and the two men that stood with Him. And it came to pass, as they departed from Him, Peter answered, and said unto Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here : and if Thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles : one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah," not knowing what he said : for he wist not what to say, for they were sore afraid. While he thus spake, behold, there came a bright cloud, and overshadowed them : and they feared as they entered into the cloud. And behold, there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased ; hear ye Him." And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. And Jesus came and touched them, and said, "Arise, and be not afraid." And suddenly, when the voice was passed, and they lifted up their eyes, and looked about, they saw no man any more, save Jesus only with themselves. And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, "Tell the vision to no man, nor what things ye have seen, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead." io8 Story of Jssus. And they kept that saying with themselves, ques- tioning one another what the rising from the dead should mean. And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Why, then, say the scribes that Elijah must first come?" And Jesus answered, and said unto them : "Elijah verily cometh first, and restoreth all things ; and it is written of the Son of man, that He must suflfer many things, and be set at nought. But I say unto you, That Elijah is indeed come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. ,, Then the disciples understood that He spake unto them of John the Baptist. And they kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen. This wonderful story o-f the transfiguration of Jesus has some beautiful lessons. It was while Jesus prayed that the glory came. When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, where he had been forty days with God, his face shone so that the people could not look upon it. While Daniel prayed, the angel Gabriel touched him, and comforted him with the words, "I am come to give thee skill and understanding, for thou art greatly beloved." TllK TRANSFIGUB \TI<>.\\ 109 When Stephen, the first Christian martyr, "looked Up," he "saw the glory of the Lord." Prayer in the Spirit always brings joy, or peace, or rest, or comfort, or strength, or glory. No prayer ever ascended to God that did not come back answered. We may ask and receive not, because we ask amiss, that we may spend it upon our pleasures; but that is not prayer. The Bible tells us the prayer of the upright is God's delight, and He heareth the prayer of the righteous. Our Heavenly Father would have us talk with Him continually about everything we do and all that inter- ests us ; about the things we can not understand and the secret thoughts that trouble us ; the need we can not meet; the injury we find it hard to forgive; the books we would read ; the friends we would like to have ; the money we would spend ; and the work we would do for Him. One of the names of Jesus is the Counselor. Coun- sel with Him the last moment before you sleep and the first moment as you wake. All the day in the spare spaces lift up your thought to Him. The instant any care or trial comes, whisper to Him, "Take it, dear Lord, and carry it, for I can not." As He sends pleasure or comfort, look up to Him and thank Him as you would a friend who had granted you a favor. no Story of Jesus. One day as I was coming home from a meeting, a procession was passing, and the children were in the windows and on the street and up on the fences. As I came on toward home, I noticed a little girl perched on a big gatepost. As I came near her, she accidently dropped her handkerchief right at my feet. As I stooped and picked it up and handed it to her, she said, so sweetly, "Thank you, ma'am." As I went on I kept thinking of the gentle little face, and over and over there came to me the words so sweetly spoken, "Thank you, ma'am." And as I saw how pleased I was with the little stranger's thanks, I thought, "That is the way with our Heavenly Father; He loves to have us thank Him for all He does for us." So now, when I lose anything, and ask Him to let me find it, and immediately He shows me where it is, I look up and say, "Thank you, Father." And when he grants me any favor, I like to say, "Thank you, Lord." This is a little what Paul meant when he said, "Pray without ceasing." And the more we pray, the more we love to pray. A dear Christian boy was asked by his pastor, "Jimmie, do you never get tired praying?" "No, sir, I think not," the boy modestly replied. The Transfiguration. hi "But," said the minister, wishing to try him, "per- haps you do n't pray enough to make yourself tired." "Ah ! sir," replied Jimmie, earnestly, "the less I pray the more tired I become." The second lesson we learn from the transfigura- tion of Jesus is, that we are not to be afraid. When God's voice came from the cloud telling the disciples to hear Jesus, they were afraid. But Jesus came and touched them, and said, "Be not afraid." Jesus means those three little words for us. We should fear nothing but to do evil. We should never be afraid of God or what He sends. He takes care of His own, and nothing shall harm them. Papa and mamma and Sam had been sitting out on the grass, enjoying the cool breezes. At last papa said, "Time to go to bed, my little man." "Are you going with me, papa ?" asked Sam. "You aren't afraid, are you?" "'Course I ain't 'fraid/' said Sam in surprise, "only it 's kind o' lonesome up there." "You can open the shutters," said papa, "and I will call good-night to you." So Sam went upstairs. Soon he called : "Papa, you would n't be afraid for me to sleep out- doors, would you ? God would take care of me, would n't he, papa?" ii2 Story or Jesus. "Why, of course/ 1 "Well, then, said the little boy, triumphantly, "I want to sleep out in the hammock to-night; there wouldn't be anybody out there but God and me." He put on his gown, said his prayers, and came down hugging a pillow. Mamma wrapped 'him in a big shawl, and soon he was fast asleep. After watching him a long time, papa and mamma went upstairs. In the night some dogs went through the yard, growl- ing and fighting, but there was no sound from the ham- mock. "Did you hear the dogs, Sammy ?" asked mamma in the morning. "Yes, I heard 'em," answered the little man of faith, "but 'course I knew God was n't 'fraid of dogs." God and His angels are always near us ; so we need never be afraid. But the great lesson of the transfiguration is that Jesus is coming again some day, and those who love Him are going to be like Him. A beautiful, white, marble statue of a Greek slave girl stood in a market-place. A ragged, forlorn child passed that way, and stood looking up at the figure in rapt admiration. Going home, she washed her hands and combed her untidy hair. Again she stood by the statue, and returning, washed and mended her soiled, torn garments. Thk Transfiguration. 113 Each time sihc looked at the form that held such a strange attraction it suggested some change in her life, until she grew to be pure and good. We become like those we live with and look at and love. A wild, wicked sailor boy went to see the beautiful painting, "Christ before Pilate. " He did not really want 'to go, but went to please his mother, so he acted as badly as possible ; threw his money in at the ticket-window, and went in to look at the picture with his hat on. He sat down, and looked up at the face of Jesus, so pure and patient ; and as 'he looked, he took ofT his hat. Soon he moved nearer, and at last tears came into his eyes, and he bowed his head and prayed to the Heavenly Father to forgive all his sins and make him His child. Then he went home and told his mother he loved the Savior and was going to serve Him. How beautiful to think that even gazing at a pic- ture of Jesus could change a wicked sailor lad and make him believe on Him and love Him ! Do you not love Him? Do you not wish to be like Him? Then learn this little prayer, and say it every night : "God, make my life a little light, Within the world to glow ; A little flame that burneth bright, Wherever I may go. ii4 Story of Jesus. God, make my life a little song, That comforteth the sad ; That helpeth others to be strong, And makes the singer glad. God, make my life a little staff, Whereon the weak may rest ; That so what health and strength I have May serve my neighbor best. God, make my life a little hymn Of tenderness and praise — Of faith that never waxeth dim In all his wondrous ways.'' Chapter X. THE PRODIGAL SON. GOD'S love is the heart of the gospel. Many of the sweet, little stories Jesus told to the people were to reveal the love of the Father for a lost world. Perhaps the sweetest of them all was this story of the prodigal son. A rich father had two boys, whom he loved dearly, and gave them all their heart could wish. One day, after the younger was of age, he said to his father, "Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me." He w r anted his own willful way instead of being willing to walk in his father's way. And the father knew the boy needed to learn some lessons, so he gave the young man his part of his estate. Not long after, the young fellow took all his money, and ran away without even saying good-bye. He took a long journey into a far country, and there he wasted his money in wild, wanton, wicked pleasures, until it was all gone. And when he had spent it all, a mighty famine arose in the land, and he was hungry, and it was hard to get work. "5 1 16 Story o* Ji'.srs. At last he found a farmer who would let him go out into the fields, and take care of his pigs, the lowest, meanest occupation for this young man; for he was a Jew, and God had forbidden the Jews to keep swine or eat pork. All the lad had to eat were the long, slender pods of the carob-tree, with which he fed the pigs. These did not satisfy him, and he begged for food, and no man gave unto him ; for no one loved him or cared for him. He was utterly lonely. He had not one friend. All those who had shared his wealth and his sin had left him, now he was poor. He who had been his father's favored son became the servant of a swineherd, and a beggar. So low down sin brings us. He who will not be a son to the Heavenly Father will come to be a slave of the devil. If men will go away from God, they must suffer from the hands of Satan. In this sad state the young man came to himself. He began to think. His memory went back to the dear old home and the kind father and the school friends and the many comforts of the place he had left. Then he said to himself, "How many of the hired servants of my father have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!" He saw what a foolish boy he had been; he saw that to stay was to slowly starve. Perhaps his father Thk Prodigal Son. 117 would forgive him and take him back, and let him be a servant, and work for him. So he said to himself, "I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son; make me as one of thy hired servants/ " So he turned his back on all his sin, shame, and sorrow, and his face toward his father's house. His father had been longing for him and looking for him. Love is far-sighted; so when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the boy said unto him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son." But the father stopped him, perhaps with kisses again. He would not let his boy go on and ask to take the servant's place. He forgave him freely and fully. One day, when I was a young girl, I sold some of my old school-books to get missionary money. I was not sure my parents would like it, so I hid it from them. But one night in a meeting I was very unhappy. My heart was not light. I knew I had not done right. I went to the altar, but it did no good. I kept thinking of the books I had sold without giving the money to my parents. I asked God to forgive me and give me „8 Story of Jesus. peace, and promised Him to tell my parents when I went home. God forgave me, and gave me his peace ; and when T went to my father and said, "Papa, I have come to tell you a wrong thing that I have done," he drew my little face down to his, kissed me and said, "My child, I do not want you to tell me; I forgive you without the telling." And 1 lav down to sleep so happy. I know a little how the prodigal felt when his father kissed him and forgave him and stopped him right in the middle of his story, and would not let him say to "make me one of thy hired servants," but turned to his servants, and said, "Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet, and bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." So the servants brought all these marks of the father's favor, and put them on the son, and they had a feast together, the father and the newly- found son. This parable is to teach us how God loves the sinner, and seeks the lost ones. In an English town, a band of young men, dressed in funny costumes, and with hands and faces black- ened, stood at Mr. Carr's door. After they had sung Tin: Prodigal Son. 119 comic songs, with strange gestures and grimaces, a young man stepped to the door, tambourine in hand, to ask for pennies. Mr. Carr, taking a Bible out of the shop-window, said, "See here, young man; I will give you a shilling and this book if you will read a portion to your com- rades." "Here's a shilling for an easy job!" he called to his mates ; "I 'm going to give you a public reading." Mr. Carr opened to the first verse of our lesson, and told the young man to read it. "Now, Jim, speak up," said one, "and earn your shilling like a man." Jim read: "And He said, A certain man had two sons: and the younger of them said to his father, Fa- ther give me the' portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living." There was something in the voice of the reader and the strangeness of the circumstances that lulled all to silence, while an air of seriousness took possession of the youth. He read on : "And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living." "That 's you, Jim," cried one. "It 's just what you told me of yourself and your father." He read on : "And when he had spent all, there 120 Story o* Jesus. arose a mighty famine in that land, and he began to be in want/ 1 "Why, that 's you again, Jim !" said the voice. "Goon!" "And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat; and no man gave unto him. ,, "That '& like us all ! We 're all beggars. Go on ! Let us hear what came of it." The young man read on, and his voice trembled: "And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father." At this point he broke down, and could read no more. All were moved. In the story of the gospel a ray of hope dawned. His father's house, and the love bestowed on him there, the hired servants all having enough, and then himself, his father's son, his present slate, companions, intemperate' habits, sins, poverty, outcast condition — all came climbing into the citadel of his mind, and overcame him. That day proved the turning-point in his life. The long-lost, yet dearly- loved, son returned to his home and to his Heavenly Father. Dear little one, if you arc trying to come to Christ, The Prodigal Son, 121 and the way seems dark and the path steep and difficult, take courage. He is looking for you too; and if you only persevere, you are sure to meet Him in the way, and to hear His gracious voice saying, "Come unto Me." A rough man driving along a country road in a wagon, called out to a little fellow beside the road, "Hello, little stranger, what is the matter ?" He softened his voice in speaking, for the child in the road was crying. "I am lost ; I can't find my father," sobbed the child. "Is he a big man with a long white beard?" "Yes, that 's my father." "It 's all right, then, because he is looking for you. Keep right along, and if you do n't find him, he '11 find you." The child dried his tears and sprang up into the road again; for if his father was looking for him, of course he could not fail to be in his arms again after a while. Here is another true story of a lad whose father found him. He was a soldier boy in the Civil War of i860. His name was John Thomas. He was a great, overgrown lad of fourteen, was wild to enter the army ; but his parents were not willing to let such a mere lad go into the dangers and temptations of army life. So he ran away, and enlisted in a strange company. His parents' grief was intense, for they searched for him in vain. The summer came on, and the army in 122 Story of Jesus. the South felt the heat. Way down in Louisiana army life lost its glamour, and many homesick boys pined away. At Morganza's Bend, a division of the Northern army was in camp. There was no fighting during the' summer, and a weary life it was. The fare was far from good, and the monotony w T as unendurable. Occasion- ally there w T as fatigue work in the w r ay of unloading boats that came with supplies, heavy work in the intense heat. One day a soldier, helping to carry the boxes up the steep bank, heard a familiar voice say, "O, I wish I was at home !" A neighbor's son heard John Thomas speak, and knew his voice. The boy was slowly dying. The dis- ease of the climate was on him, and a deadly homesick- ness. This old friend found out that John Thomas had not yet let his parents know what part of the South he was in. He was too proud to write home. The boy grew worse. One day as he went to dinner he fell. They lifted him and carried him to the hos- pital, and the doctors said the lad had only a few hours to live. His cry for home was pitiful. That afternoon a strange' sound was heard. A dis- tant cry came nearer and nearer. The first words the listeners caught were, "Wants you !" Soon other words were heard, till clear the call came, "John Thomas, your father wants you; John Thomas, your father wants you r Tiik Prodigal Son. 123 Xcarcr and nearer came the cry, till it penetrated the hospital. The old man was in the street outside. His voice thrilled every heart, as it called, "John Thomas, your father wants you; John Thomas, your father wants you I" The boy had been unconscious ; but suddenly he half rose, his face flushed with joy, and shouted, "Here, father! here, father !" and fainted dead away. "O, the joy of the meeting when the boy came to himself and looked into his father's face ! The boy lived long enough for his father to talk with him, to bring the mother's forgiveness with his own, and point the lad to the merciful Father above. John's father had gone up and down our armies, through regiments and companies and divisions, till he found his boy. His love and persistence is a beautiful type of the great Father seeking the lost. Chapter XI. THE RAISING OF LAZARUS. A CERTAIN man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore Lazarus' sisters sent unto Jesus, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick." When Jesus heard that, he said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby." Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. When he heard therefore that he was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was. Jesus' life was in danger in the region of Bethany, for the Pharisees were trying to find Him to put Him to death, and so He had gone away into Peraea. But Mary and Martha knew that no fear of danger would keep Jesus for one moment from their side, so they sent for Him. They believed that if Jesus would only come to them Lazarus would not die. There their faith stopped. Jesus sent back the comforting promise, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God." 124 THE RAISING Ob LAZARUS. (SCHEFFER.) Tm: Raising o* Lazari i 25 If they had believed as did the nobleman when Jesus said, "Thy son liveth," Lazarus would have lived. If they had exercised faith, Lazarus would have been healed in the self-same hour as the centurion's servant was when his master believed that Jesus could say a word and his servant would be well. But they doubted, and Lazarus died. Therefore, that Jesus might develop their faith and glorify God, He did not go directly to them, but staid two days still in the same place where He was. God permits pain because it perfects us. Christ kept aw r ay from Bethany because He loved the sisters. He let them suffer that He might teach them to be strong. The leaves of the fragrant plant are crushed to get their sweet odor. The ore must pass through the hot furnace before we can get the gold. The marble must be cut w f ith the sharp chisel before it is a thing of beauty. The precious stone is polished on the harsh wheel before we can see its bright colors. " This leaf, this stone, . . . it is thy heart It must be crushed by pain and smart, It must be cleansed by sorrow's art, Ere it will yield a fragrance sweet ; Ere it will shine a jewel meet, To lay before the Savior's feet." Then God permits pain because 1 it draws us to Him. A great man says : "While Lazarus was in health, no messenger went to bring the Savior. When death hov- i2f Jesus. gins! How many think there is no hurry about pre- paring to meet Christ, the Bridegroom! How many say, u 'There is plenty of time to be a true, watching, zealous Christian when I am older.' ''Ah ! my child, you do not know that you will ever be a day older. While you are asleep to-night the Bride- groom may come, and the lamp be found empty, and the door be shut. "Louise was a good girl, kind, gentle, and loving. Her mother left her in charge of the house one day, giving her special directions to go downstairs in half an hour and shut the damper to the stove. " 'Yes, mamma/ she said, very willingly. "The mother went. The half hour passed. Louise was having a delightful time playing dolls, dressing them to play go out, and she said, " 'I '11 just finish putting on the cloak and hat, and then I '11 go ; it will only take a minute.' "How long those minutes are, sometimes! You know, girls, one can't always arrange dolly's hat and cloak to suit them in a s'hort, real minute. "Louise fussed till roused by the strike of the clock again. " 'O, dear, I must go,' she said, and ran down in a great hurry, to meet a cloud of smoke at the basement stairs. What could be the matter! Matter? why, the stove 'had been left till it was so hot that it had caught the wood near it, and the kitchen was burning. 'Phi-: Foolish Virgin 137 "Ah! do you not think poor Louise regretted this trouble brought on by her putting off? "Of course she did. She did n't mean to have all that trouble come. The foolish virgins didn't mean not to be ready when the Bridegroom came. "The foolish virgins did n't mean to be shut out. So many of the boys and girls do not mean to be shut out of the kingdom of heaven ; no indeed, they mean to be the most earnest and true Christians ; they mean to be good, but they think 'there 's no great hurry about it.' "Yes there is ; if there is one thing on earth that there is hurry about, it is coming to Christ, for you may only have one minute to do it in. He only gives us one short minute at a time. If you do not get ready now for His coming, if you sleep and are indifferent, your lamp will be empty, the door will be shut. You will be on the outside." Look at the picture and see the poor, foolish virgins shut out from the wedding supper. One is knocking in agony at the gate; another, in despair, is looking down at her lamp ; another, in a frenzy of grief, has thrown herself down on the steps; another sits wringing her hands ; and one has not yet awakened to know the awful loss that is hers because she did not have her lamp trimmed and burning. Lamps in the Bible stand for people, and the oil is the Holy Spirit; so those who are not filled with the 138 Story of Jesus. Holy Spirit in spirit, soul, and body will not go in to the wedding when Jesus comes. A minister who had never taught his people about the Lord's coming, nor given them an invitation to the wedding supper, read one night at prayers the fourth chapter of first Thessalonians. He sat down in the easy-chair, and began to think of what he had been reading— the Lord's coming. He fell asleep and dreamed. This is his dream f I thought I wakened in the morning, and was sur- prised to find that my wife was not beside me. Sup- posing she had stepped into another room, I waited ; but, after a long time, as she did not come, I rose and dressed. Her clothing was where she had placed it on the chair, and I felt that she was about the house. I went to daughter Julia's room, but after knocking several times without response, I entered, and found that she also was missing. "Strange, passing strange," said I ; "where can they both be?" Then I went to our son Frank. He said he had passed a restless night. I told him of the absence of his mother and sister, and asked him to see if he could not find them. Soon he came back, and said the missing ones were not to be found, and that every door was locked as on the evening before. What to make of this strange thing we did not know. On again visiting Julia's room, we found her well- The Foolish Virgins. 139 marked, open Bible. One verse particularly attracted my attention, "Be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." This passage, my wife had always declared, referred to the coming of Christ, while I said it meant only preparation for death. Frank and I concluded that we should each take a different route, and visit some of our intimate friends in quest of our dear ones. I called on my wife's sister, Mrs. E . She and her husband w r ere good people, members of a Christian Church, though worldly-minded. After I had rung the bell several times she appeared and apologized, saying that she had to prepare breakfast, for the colored servant, whom she had considered a Christian, had played her a mean trick. She had gone off somewhere, without even putting the kettle on the range or saying a word. "But what puzzles us is how r she got out of the house, for the doors are all locked and the keys inside, just as we left them last evening on our return from the progressive euchre party." "Indeed," said I, "it is exceedingly strange," and I explained the object of my morning visit. When she heard of the mysterious absence of my wife and Julia, she became so nervous I was glad to 140 Story o* Jfisus. change the subject by saying that, as I had not yet breakfasted, 1 would join them. Her husband heard my story with a good deal of levity, and declared that my wife was playing me a prac- tical joke. He was sure the missing ones had secreted them- selves about the house, and, when I returned, I would find them all right. At the table, Mrs. E said we would have to take coffee without milk, as her milkman had failed to make his appearance. Presently the bell rang, and Frank entered in great excitement, saying he had been all over inquiring for his mother, and that in every house he found trouble similar to our own. Almost every one was searching for missing ones. The streets were thronged with excited people hurrying to and fro, many of them weeping bitterly. As the morning advanced, it was suggested that we go to our business places. Frank had already gone, and I, with a heavy heart, wended my way along the avenue among an unusual throng of men and women whose faces wore a look of intense sorrow. Many stores were closed, and those that were open did not appear to be doing any business. When I reached my own store, I found that my bookkeeper and the faithful old porter, who had served me so many years, had not been there. The Foolish Virgins* 141 My other two clerks were on hand, doing nothing, nor did I feel like asking them to do anything. I went to the Chamber of Commerce, and found the largest gathering of merchants that I had seen in months. Instead of the lively, noisy bustle, a solemn gloom per- vaded the assembly. They all agreed that the visitation was a strange one, and that in same way we who were left were to blame. In the evening nearly every church in the city was open, with overflowing congregations. Everybody was anxious to know the cause and meaning of the "great visitation." Many of the pastors 'had gone, but some were present in their churches. In my own church the pastor was present, with scores of persons whom I had but rarely seen at meetings. Audible groans and deep-drawn sighs were heard from various parts of the room. Some were moaning the loss of children, others of husbands, of wives, of fathers and mothers. The pastor was speaking when I entered, en- treating the audience to allay their feelings. He said : "None of you can realize the keen disappointment I experience at this result of my labors. I am accused of having preached too much about the affairs of this life, and too little about the things to come, and of having kept you in ignorance of the imminence of this awful visitation. I can only say that I have taught you the same theology that was taught in the college: to 142 Story of Jesus. treat the Bible as a Book of spiritual symbols and alle- gories. But I confess that I was sadly mistaken, fcr, after what has occurred, I can not help believing that God's Word means just what it says." Here the electric light suddenly went out, and there arose such fearful screams that I sprang to my feet in terror — and awoke. My wife came from the adjoining room to see what was the matter. O, how glad I was to see her, and to realize that the terrible experience was only a dream ! But the more I thought of it, the more solemn seemed the Scripture truths which it contained, and the more was I impressed with the importance of being ready for the coming of the Lord. Little ones, are you ready for Jesus ? Have you the oil in your lamps ? Have you the love of Jesus in your heart? Do you trust Him for everything? Little Alice looked up into her mother's face, and said, "Mamma, what can I do for Jesus?" "You can love Him," her mother said. "I do that. I love Him, and that 's what makes me ask." "How do you know you love Him?" asked her mother. "Because I feel a cry in my eyes when I think of Him, like as I do for my papa off in India." Thk Foolish Virgins. 143 The child loved her father, and when they talked about him her eyes would grow moist, and she would lay her head upon her mother s bosom and go to sleep. If we are ''ready" there is a cry in our eyes when the name of our Lord is mentioned. We love His will, His Word, His work, Himself, better than all else. We "love His appearing" and long for His presence, and pray often, "Come, Lord Jesus." " It may be at morn when the day is awakening, When sunlight through darkness and shadow is breaking, That Jesus will come in the fullness of glory, To receive from the world * His own.' It may be at midday, it may be at twilight. It may be, perchance, that the blackness of midnight Will burst into light in the blaze of His glory, When Jesus receives * His own.' While its hosts cry Hosanna, from heaven descending With glorified saints and the angels attending, With grace on His brow like a halo of glory, Will Jesus receive ' His own.' O joy ! O delight ! should we go without dying : No sickness, no sadness, no dread and no crying ! Caught up through the clouds, with our Lord, into glory, When Jesus receives ' His own.' " Chapter XIII. THE BETRAYAL OF JUDAS. SOON after Jesus had finished the parable of the fool- ish virgins, He said unto His disciples, "Ye know that after two days is the Feast of the Fassover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be cruci- fied/ 1 Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, and consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty and kill Him. But they said, "Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people/' For they feared the people. Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, they made Him a supper, and Martha served : but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with Him. Then there came unto Him Mary, having an alabaster box of very precious ointment of spikenard, of a pound weight, and she brake the box, and poured it on His head and anointed His feet, as He sat at meat, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the odor of the oint- ment. But when His disciples saw it, there were some that 144 Tin-: Betrayal o* Judas. 145 had indignation within themselves. Then saitli one His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray Him : "Why was this waste of the ointment made? To what purpose is this waste? for this ointment might have been sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor." This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but be- cause he w r as a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein. And they murmured against her. When Jesus under- stood it, He said unto them, "Let her alone; why trouble ye the woman? For she hath wrought a good work upon Me. For ye have the poor always with you, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good; but Me ye have not always. For in that she hath poured this ointment on My body, she did it for My burial. She hath done what she could : she is come aforehand to anoint My body to the bury- ing; and against the day of my burying hath she kept this. Verily, I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her/' Then entered Satan into Judas Iscariot, and he went his way unto the chief priests and captains to betray Him unto them, and said unto them, "What will ye give me, and I will betray Him unto you?" 10 146 St< >ky oi- Jesus. And when they heard it they were glad, and they covenanted with him to give him thirty pieces of silver, and he communed with them how he might betray Him unto them. And lie promised ; and from that time sought oppor- tunity to betray Him unto them, conveniently, in the absence of the multitude. Then came the first day of the feast of unleavened bread, when the passover must be killed : and the dis- ciples came to Jesus. And He sent two of His dis- ciples, Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare us the passover, that we may eat." And they said unto Him, "Where wilt Thou that we go and prepare for Thee to eat the passover ?" And He said unto them : "Go ye into the city, and, behold, when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he entereth in. And ye shall say unto the good man of the house : " 'The Master saith unto thee, My time is at band ; I will keep the passover at thy house. Where is the guest chamber where I shall eat the passover with My disciples?' And he shall show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared: there make ready for us." And they did as Jesus had appointed them, and went forth, and came into the city, and found as He had said unto them : and they made ready the passover. And Thk Betrayal ok Judas. 147 in the evening when l the hour was come, He came and sat down and the twelve apostles with Him. And He said unto them, "With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer : for I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God." And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves : for I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come." And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. And He said unto them : "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them ; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But ye shall not be so : but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth. Ye are they which have continued with Me in My tempta- tions. And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as My Father hath appointed unto Me: that ye may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. " Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come that He should depart 148 Story of Jgsus. out of this world unto the Father, having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end. And at the supper, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him ; Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He was come from God, and went to God ; He rose from supper, and laid aside His gar- ments ; and took a towel, and girded Himself. After that He poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded. Then cometh He to Simon Peter : and Peter said unto Him, ''Lord, dost Thou wash my feet?" Jesus answered, and said unto him, "What I do thou knowest not now ; but thou shalt know hereafter. " Peter saith unto Him, "Thou shalt never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me." Simon Peter saith unto Him, "Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head." Jesus saith unto him, "He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit; and ye arc clean, but not all." For He knew who should betray Him ; therefore said He, "Ye are not all clean." So after He had washed their feet, and had taken The Betrayal o* Judas, 149 His garments, and was sat down again, He said unto them : "Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call Me 'Master' and 'Lord:' and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord ; neither he that is sent greater than He that sent Him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. I speak not of you all : I know 'whom I have chosen : but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, " 'He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me/ "Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am He. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth Me; and he that receiveth Me receiveth Him that sent Me." When Jesus had thus said, as they sat and did eat, He was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you which eateth with Me, shall betray Me. Behold, the hand of Him that betrayeth Me is with Me on the table." Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom He spake. And they began to be exceeding sorrowful, and to inquire among themselves which of I5 o Story of Jesus. them it was who should do this thing; and to say unto Him every one of them, ne by one, "Lord, is it I ?" And another said, "Is it I?" And He answered and said unto them, "It is one of the twelve that dippeth his hand with Me in the dish ; the same shall betray Me. And truly the Son of man goeth, as it was determined, and as it is written of Him ; but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! It had been good for that man if he had never been born." Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should ask who it should be of whom He spake. He then lying on Jesus' breast saith unto Him, "Lord, who is it ?" Jesus answered, "He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it." And when He had dipped the sop, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then Judas, which betrayed Him, answered and said, "Master, is it I ?" He said unto him, "Thou hast said." Then Jesus said unto him, "That thou doest, do quickly." Now no man at the table knew for what intent He Tin*. r.KTk w \i. oi- Judas. 151 spake this unto him. For some of them thought be- cause Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, "Buy those things that we have need of against the feast/' or that he should give something to the poor. He then, having received the sop, went immediately out : and it was night. When therefore Judas was gone out, Jesus said : "Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glori- fied in Him. If God be glorified in Him, God shall also glorify Him in Himself and shall straightway glorify Him. Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall ask me: and as I said unto the Jews, 'Whither I go, ye can not come :' so now I say to you. A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one an- other; as I have loved you, that ye also love one an- other. By this shall all men know that ye are my dis- ciples, if ye have love one to another." Simon Peter said unto Him, "Lord, whither goest Thou?" Jesus answered him, "Whither I go, thou canst not follow Me now 7 ; but thou shalt follow Me afterwards." Peter said unto Him, "Lord, why can not I follow Thee now ? I will lay down my life for Thy sake." Then said Jesus unto them : "All ye shall be offended because of Me this night ; for it is written, 'I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.' But after that I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee." 152 Story or Jesi But Peter answered and said unto Him, "Though all men should be offended because of Thee, yet will I never be offended/ 1 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have thee that he may sift thee as wheat : but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. " And he said unto Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with Thee, both into prison, and to death." And Jesus saith unto him, "Wilt thou lay down thy life for My sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Peter, that this day, even this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest Me." But Peter spake the more vehemently, "Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee in any wise." Likewise also said all the disciples. And He said unto them, "When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye anything?" And they said, "Nothing." Then said He unto them : "But now he that hath a rse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip : and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in Me, 'And He was reckoned among the transgressors :' for the things concerning Me have an end." And the} said, "Lord, behold, here are two swords." Tin; BETRAV \i. i >r J in \s. 153 And (when Jesus saw that the}- did not understand that He meant not a real steel sword, but t! »rd of the Spirit, which is the Word of God) He said unto them, "It is enough." And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and gave thanks, and when He had given thanks, He brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat : this is My body which is given for you : this do in remembrance of Me." And He took likewise also the cup after supper, and gave thanks, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying unto them : "Drink ye all of it ; for this is My blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins : this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of Me. But verily I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's king- dom." And they all drank of it. Then Jesus talked a long time with His disciples, speaking to them the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth chapters of John. Then He prayed for them the beauti- ful prayer in the seventeenth of John. And when Jesus had spoken these words, and they had sung an hymn, He came out with His disciples, and went, as He was wont, over the brook Cedron into 154 Story of Jesus. the Mount of Olives ; and His disciples also followed Him. And they came to a garden which was named Gethsemane, into which He entered, and His disciples. And when He was at the place, He saith unto His dis- ciples, 'Tray that ye enter not into temptation. Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder." And He took with Him Peter, and James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful, and to be very heavy. Then saith He unto them, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with Me." And He went forward a little, and was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down on the ground, and fell on His face, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him, And He said, "O My Father, if it be possible (and all things are possible unto Thee), and if Thou be will- ing, remove this cup from Me : nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt; not My will, but Thine, be done." And there appeared an angel unto Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly : and His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when He rose up from prayer, and was come to His disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow, and said unto Peter : "Simon, sleepest thou? Why sleep ye? What, could The Betrayal o* Judas. 155 ye not watch with Me one hour? Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is will- ing, but the flesh is weak/' And He went away again the second time, and prayed, and spake the same words, saying, "O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy will be done." And He came and found them asleep again ; for their eyes were heavy, neither wist they what to answer Him. And He left them and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. Then cometh He to His disciples the third time, and saith unto them : ''Sleep on now, and take your rest; behold, it is enough, the hour is come, and the Son of man is be- trayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray Me." And Judas also, which betrayeth Him, knew the place ; for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither with His dis- ciples. Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. And immediately while Jesus yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes, and the elders of the people : and Judas went before them. 156 Story <>f Jesus. Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon Him, went forth, and said unto them, "Whom seek ye?" They answered Him, "JestlS of Nazareth." Jesus saith unto them, "I am He." And Judas also, which betrayed Him, stood with them. As soon then as He said unto them, "I am He," they went backward, and fell to the ground. Then asked He them again, "Whom seek ye?" And they said, "Jesus °'f Nazareth." Jesus answered, "I have told you that I am He : if therefore ye seek Me, let these go their way:" that the saying might be fulfilled, which He spake, "Of them which Thou gavest Me have I lost none." Now he that betrayed Him had given them a sign, saying, "Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is He ; take Him, and hold Him fast and lead Him away safely." And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to Jesus to kiss Him, and said, "Hail, Master;" and kissed Him. And Jesus said unto him : "Friend, wherefore art thou come? Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?" Then came they and laid their hands on Jesus, and took Him. Thk Betrayal of Judas, 157 Judas was the one bad man among the twelve dis- ciples of Jesus. He was not frank and outspoken like Peter; or loving like John; or honest and true like the others; he was wicked from the first. But he was smart, and the dis- ciples made him their treasurer, and he often stole from the treasury for himself. He loved money, and he did not love Jesus. So we see that "Judas was n't a real disciple. He was only a make-believe disciple. He only went with the others because he was the treasurer, and carried the money, and could sometimes steal some for himself. "Little children who are like Jesus, and have given their hearts to Him, go to Sunday-school because they love Him, and not for the pretty paper, or the nice music, or even because they love the teacher." A poor little boy, invited to a meeting, asked, "Is there anything to stuff ?" He was like Judas; he would go if there was anything to eat, anything to be gained by going. A boy was once sent on an errand by his mother, and was told not to go by a certain way, so as to meet a com- panion whom she wished to keep from his company. The boy was disobedient, and did the very thing against which his mother had warned him. On his return, he clung round his mother's neck, and kissed her with special lovingness. 158 Story <>i ; Jesus. This led her to think that he had been obedient against his own wishes, and was feeling the reward of obedience in an increased love for his mother. Whereas he was, in this way, trying to cover up his disobedience and to assure his mother that he had com- plied with her commands. This boy was on the way to the sin of Judas, betraying Jesus with a kiss. As my sister, Mrs. L. M. Pate, says: "People never get to be thieves and murderers like Judas all in a minute. They grow wicked little by little. "I do n't doubt Judas began by taking money from his mother's purse, or staying out nights when she wanted him at home, or tormenting the dog and teas- ing his little brothers, or being angry when he was pun- ished. "I am sure Judas was a bad boy ; for the good boy is almost sure to be a good man. The boy who sometimes goes without his candy to save the money for the missionaries, that is always loving to his baby sister, that would not be cruel even to a fly, will never be a Judas. "The girl who darns mamma's stocking at a penny a hole to earn some money to send to the Indians, who always obeys her father, who is gentle and patient and loving, will never get to be like Judas. "We want to be careful about the little sins, and then we shall never have to repent of any big ones. Tin-: BETRAYAL ok Judas. 159 "A little boy five years old was converted. He had been used to take a little sugar out of the bowl in the morning" after his mother had left the dining-room. "When he had given his heart to Jesus, he did not want to do it, and as the thought came to him, and he was afraid he would, he called to his mother, 'Mamma, come quickly/ "She ran to the room, fearing he was hurt. Then he said, Tut the sugar-bowl up high where I can 't get it/ "When she had done so, he said, 'Now, mamma, let us pray, Lead us not into temptation/ "If all little children would be as quick to resist evil as little Willie was they would never betray Jesus/' Judas or Jesus, which will you be like, little one? I am sure you are saying, "Jesus." Tm: Crucifixion. 161 crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had i done unto them. But Pilate answered them, saying, "Ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the passover. Whom will ye therefore that I release unto you? Barabbas or Jesus which is called Christ, the King of the Jews?" For he knew that the chief priests had delivered Him for envy. And they cried out all at once, saying, "Not this man, but Barabbas. Away with this Man, and release unto us Sambas/* Pilate therefore, willing to release Jesus, answered and said again unto them, "What will ye then that I shall do with Jesus which is called Christ, the King of the Jews?" But they all cried out and said unto him again, "Let Him be crucified. Crucify Him, crucify Him !" Then Pilate said unto them again : "Why, what evil hath He done? I have found no cause of death in Him: I will therefore chastise Him, and let Him go." But they cried out the more exceedingly, saying, "Let Him be crucified. Crucify Him." Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged Him, and delivered Him to be crucified. Then the soldiers of the governor led Jesus away into the common hall called Prsetorium ; and gathered unto Him the whole band of soldiers. And they stripped Him, and put on Him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown ii 162 Story of Jesus. of thorns, they put it upon His head, and a reed in His right hand, and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!" And they did spit upon Him, and bowing their knees worshiped Him, and took the reed, and smote Him on the head with the reed, and with their hands. And after that they had mocked Jesus, they took the robe off from Him, and put His own raiment on Him, and took Him and led Him away to crucify Him. And as they came out, and led Him away, He bearing His cross, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus : and they laid hold upon him and on him they laid the cross and compelled him that he might bear it after Jesus. And there followed Him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented Him. But Jesus turning unto them, said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for Me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children." And there were also two others, malefactors, led with Him to be put to death. And they brought Him unto the place which is called Calvary, or in the Hebrew, Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, "The place of a skull. ,, And when they came to the place, they gave Him to drink vinegar mingled with gall : but when He had tasted thereof, He would not drink. The Crucifixion. 163 And it was the third hour, and there they crucified Him. And with Him were crucified the two thieves ; the one on His right hand, and the other on His left ; on either side one, and Jesus in the midst. And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith, "And lie was numbered with the transgressors/' Then said Jesus, "Father, forgive them ; for they know not what they do." Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to every soldier a part ; and also His coat ; now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, "Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be:" that the Scripture might be fulfilled which saith, "They parted My raiment among them, and for My vesture they did cast lots." These things therefore the soldiers did, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. And sitting down they watched Him there. And Pilate wrote a title, and put it up over His head on the cross, His accusation. And the superscription of his accusation was written in letters of Hebrew and Greek and Latin. And the writing was, " THIS IS JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS." 164 Story of Jesus. This title then read many of the Jews : for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, "Write not, 'The King of the Jews ;' but that He said, 'I am King of the Jews/ " Pilate answered, "What I have written I have writ- ten." And they that passed by reviled Jesus, wagging their heads and saying: "Ah, Thou that destroyeth the temple, and buildest it in three days, save Thyself. If Thou be the Son of God, come clown from the cross." And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided Him ; likewise also the chief priests mocking Him, with the scribes and elders, said among themselves, "He saved others ; Himself He can not save. If He be Christ, the King of Israel, and the chosen of God, let Him now come down from the cross : let Him save Himself, that we may see, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God ; let Him deliver Him now, if He will have Him : for He said, 'I am the Son of God/ " And the soldiers also mocked Him, coming to Him, and offering Him vinegar, and saying, "If Thou be the King of the Jews, save Thyself." And one of the malefactors which were crucified with Him, cast the same in his teeth, and reviled Him, and railed on I Km, saying, "If Thou be Christ, save Thyself and us." Tin: Cki viiixi. .\. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, "Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man hath done nothing amiss. " And he said unto Jesus, "Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom/' And Jesus said unto him, "Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with Me in paradise. " Now there stood by the cross of Jesus, His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, "Woman, behold thy Son I" Then saith He unto the disciple, " Behold thy mother ! " And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home. And when the sixth hour was come, there was a darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, and the sun was darkened. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani !" (which is, being in- terpreted, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?") And some of them that stood by when they heard it, said, "Behold, He calleth for Elijah." i66 Story of Jesus. After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, saith, "I thirst." Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and straightway one of them ran, and took a sponge, and filled it full of vinegar, and put it on a reed upon hyssop, and gave Him to drink. The rest said, "Let alone ; let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down, and save Rim." When Jesus there- fore had received the vinegar, He said, "It is finished." And when He had cried again with a loud voice, He said, "Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit I" And having said thus, He bowed His head, and gave up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain in the midst, from the top to the bottom ; and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent ; and the graves were opened ; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now, when the centurion which stood over against Him, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw t hat He so cried out, and gave up the ghost; and saw the earth quake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly : and the centurion glorified God, saying, "Certainly this was a righteous Man. Truly this man was the Son of God." Tin: Crucifixion. 167 This story of Jesus on the CTOSS dying for our sins was told one day to a poor little Indian girl who came to the mission. Her tears fell fast, and looking up into her teacher's face she said, "Me never want to be naughty any more/' Touched by the story of love, she resolved never to grieve such a Lover, and after that she was always her teacher's best helper and a great blessing to the mission. She grew up to be a good woman and a blessed worker among her own sex in the Indian mission. No man or martyr ever suffered as Jesus did on the night of His betrayal and in the midday darkness of His crucifixion. Think of the awful agony in the garden when as it were great drops of blood fell down to the ground. Think of the merciless Roman scourge, not just the Jewish scourge of thirty-nine stripes, but the pitiless lashing of perhaps a hundred stripes, that tore all the flesh from His back and breast and arms, and with the cruel thorns, and mocking blows, left His face more marred than any man's. Think of the thirst and torture and fever and faint- ness of the cross, without the soothing drink the thieves beside Him had, which dulled their pain and helped them to bear it. But this was not the greatest suffering Jesus bore. We can not understand it, but the Bible says that 168 Story of Jesus. He was made a curse for us, that the Lord laid on Him the sins of the whole world, and He was punished for them. Think of the hiding of the Father's face, the loss of the consciousness of that Father's love, for God's pure eyes could not look with favor upon Jesus while He was bearing our sins. They taunted Jesus on the cross, saying, "He saved others, Himself He can not save." In one way they told the truth. We can not keep what we give. He could not save Himself and save sinners. Man sold himself to Satan in< the Garden of Eden. Satan is the author of death. The wages of sin is death. God offered to buy man back from Satan. Satan's price was the life of the Son of God. So nothing could save us but the sacrifice of Jesus. One dark, stormy night Geordie Wilson was awak- ened by a cry of distress. Going down to the beach, he heard, above the sound of the roaring waters, "Help ! help ! we perish ! O save us." He wakened his neigh- bors, but seeing the mountain of water, and foreseeing danger and death, they said, "We dare not venture." But through the raging storm came the piteous cry, "Save us! save us !" Then Wilson cried out : "Men, brethren, dare you in TiiK CrI CItflXION. 169 God's sight say that you can not, that yon will not, make the attempt to save those perishing ones, after all God has done for yon? Were not yon and I once like that ill-fated vessel yonder? Wrecked, body and soul, lost through sin, and rapidly sinking into the bottomless sea of an awful eternity ? And did not God hear our cry for help, and in our utter helplessness and despair stretch forth His own arm and save us with a mighty salva- tion that cost the blood of the only Son of His bosom? Did He not freely give Him up for us? 'Hereby per- ceive we the love of God because He laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren/ This is His own Word. He not only risked His life, but gave it, to rescue and save you and me. And shall we now refuse to risk our lives to save others ?" Then there came surging up from that awed crowd a chorus of voices, Trying : "No! no! We will! we will! God helping us, we '11 brave the storm. Christ died for us, and we will risk our lives to save them." The lifeboat, manned by a sturdy band of godly fishermen, made its perilous way over the raging billows, and Geordie Wilson, w T ith a sailor's daring, swung him- self on board the sinking ship. The whole crew and their rescuers were safe in the lifeboat, all except Geordie and one other seaman, when the terrible cry came from the crowded boat, "Only room for one, or we shall all perish I" 170 Story of Jesus. Looking at the seaman, whose face Wilson had never seen before, and would never see again, until they met in eternity, he said, calmly but firmly, "Quick, friend! jump this moment, and you'll be saved ! I am safe, and shall soon land on the golden shore ; meet me again there." As the lifeboat moved off with its living freight, Geordie shouted through the storm, "Tell my wife to be comforted, for I shall be safe in Calvary's lifeboat, " and they heard him singing: " Jesus, Lover of my soul, Let me to Thy bosom fly, While the nearer waters roll, While the tempest still is high ; Hide me, O my Savior, hide, Till the storm of life is past ; Safe into the haven guide, O receive my soul at last ! ' ' Geordie Wilson had saved others. He could not save himself. Jesus did not die because He could not help Him- self, but because He loved us. Twelve legions of angels were all about Him, ready to take Him away from those that hated Him, if He would only speak the word. But He loved us a thousand times more than He loved His life, so He gave His life for us. A little infant scholar listened one Lord's-day to the story of Jesus on the cross. The child understood some- The Crucifixion. 171 thing of the suffering of the Savior, and that it was for her, but the only words she remembered were, "He bowed His head and died." That night in her dreams her mother heard her sob as she repeated, "He bowed His head and died." The child had a strong will, and when she once re- fused to do anything, they could not move her. One Lord's-day her teacher told her to do something, but she refused. "Will you not do it because you love me?" she asked the little one. The child shook her head. "Will you not do it because it is right?" Again she stubbornly refused. "Will you not do it for Jesus?" The child's lip quivered, she threw herself on her face at her teacher's feet, and sobbed out, "O, I will do it for Jesus, because He bowed His head and died." It always helps us to do right when we think of the cross and how our Savior suffered on it. All that was necessary for our salvation God and Christ and the Holy Spirit have done. God gave Jesus, His only beloved Son ; then Jesus died and rose and ascended, and sent the Holy Spirit to whisper to our heiarts that God loves us and Jesus died for us. THE RESURRECTION. Jesus is risen, let mortals adore Him, Risen in power, Almighty to save; Enemies falter and perish before Him, Conqueror of Satan, of Sin, and the Grave. M W. K.NAPP Chapter XV. THE RESURRECTION. A CHRISTIAN gentleman stood before an art store, looking at a picture of the crucifixion. A poor boy approached, and gazed also at the picture. The gentle- man turned to the boy, and said, pointing to the picture, "Do you know who it is?" "Yes," was the quick reply, "that 's our Savior." Then with a mingled look of pity and surprise that the man did not know what the picture represented, and a desire to enlighten him further, he continued, "Them 's the soldiers, the Roman soldiers," and, with a deep sigh, "that woman crying is His mother." He waited a moment for further questioning, then thrust his hand in his pockets, and with a reverent, sub- dued voice, added, "They killed Him, Mister. Yes, sir, they killed Him !" The gentleman looked at the dirty, ragged, little fel- low, and asked, "Where did you learn this?" "At the mission school." The gentleman resumed his walk, leaving the boy looking at the picture. He had not gone a block when he heard a childish voice crying, "Mister! say, Mis-ter!" i73 174 Story of Jesus. He turned. The boy raised his little hand, and, in a triumphant tone, shouted, "I wanted to tell you He rose again! Yes, Mister, He rose again." His message delivered, he smiled, waved his hand, and went his way. The boy was right. Only three days and three nights the Lord Jesus lay in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. Then the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: and for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And in the end of the Sabbath, very early in the morning on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came into the sepulcher as it began to dawn, but when it was yet dark, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. And they said among themselves, "Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher ?" (for it was very great.) And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away from the sepulcher. And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. Then Mary Magdalene ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulcher, and we know not where they have laid Him." L Tiik Resurrection. 175 And they that remained at the sepulcher were much perplexed, and entering again into the sepulcher, they saw two young men sitting on the right side clothed in long white shining garments : and they were afraid : and as the women bowed down their faces to the earth, the men answered and said unto them : "Be not ye affrighted ; for we know that ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified. Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but He is risen, as He said. Remember how He spake unto you when He was yet in Galilee, saying, 'The Son of man must be delivered unto the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.' Come see the place where they laid Him. And go your way quickly, and tell His disciples and Peter, that He is risen from the dead, and that He goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see Him as He said unto you : lo, we have told you." In Egypt, they tell us, is a beautiful plant called "the resurrection flower." Those who have seen it say that it is a little ball hanging on a fragile stem, in color and shape like a shrunken poppy head. Sleeping, but not dead, the flower is aroused by being put in water, and then supported in an upright position. Soon the fibers begin to stir. Slowly they open, until, with petals thrown back, it becomes a beautiful starry flower, like an aster. Resting a moment, it throws its very heart to the day- light, and curving back its petals, discloses beauties un- 176 Story of Jesus. dreamed of in the loveliness of its first awakening. If a wee, fragile flower be capable of disclosing such rare beauty, bow glorious must have been the resurrection body of our Lord Jesus ! And His resurrection teaches us that, though the body be destroyed, the spirit does not die. God put life into the body, and when it dies the life goes back to Him. The body may crumble to dust, but the spirit is safe with Him. You have seen how the dry, brown, apparently dead bulb is placed in the earth and covered with the dark soil. After a time tiny green shoots appear, the first sign of a new life. Then these little shoots begin to grow, increasing in size and strength until they form a beautiful plant, which bears a sweet, pure, white flower. The little bulb was only sleeping after all, as one dear little girl thought, who, dropping a lily bulb into the ground, and carefully covering it, said, "I 've put it to bed, and tucked it up ; I '11 come some morning and find its eyes open." So the dead bodies of our friends laid in the dark grave will not remain there. When Jesus comes He will break the bands of death, and they will rise in the beauty and splendor of His resurrection life. And the thought of the resurrection is one comfort for those whose friends have died. Some one tells a beautiful story of how the sunshine, Tin-: Resurrection. 177 for the first time in months, one Easter morning touched the ragged walks and garbage-boxes of Pearl Alley, in a wicked city. As the sun went on its bright way, it reached a narrow, dingy-paned window where bloomed one poor, pale, little rose. The rose belonged to the Mulligans. This morning Mrs. Mulligan kept stopping to I at and turn it round and round. At last she said, finger- ing the stem with her brown fingers, "Do you think you could give up the rose, Patsy ?" Patsy was her little, sick boy, who loved the rose dearly. The child looked up with a startled air. "Give up the rose, mother? What for?" "For the dead baby upstairs. Its poor mother is heartbroken because she has no money to pay for the burial. I thought the rose would look pretty in its little hand." "O, yes, mother, give it to her." But a look of pain swept the pale little face as the stem snapped. "Will it kill the bush, mother? Will there ever be another?" "I do n't know. What 's done is done ;" and Mrs. Mulligan climbed the stairs, and placed the rose in the little, white hand. The mother's aching heart was com- forted. Patsy tried not to miss the rose, and when his mother 12 i7 8 Story ok Jksus. came down, they began talking about Margaret, Patsy's sister, who played a tambourine on the street for monev. While Patsy and his mother were talking about Margaret, she was resting on the steps of a great, stone church. As she listened to the organ, she fell asleep. When she awoke, there stood before her a little girl with pink cheeks, shining brown eyes, and hair tied with crisp ribbons. "We're going to have Sunday-school now. Won't you come?" Margaret shook her head. She did not know what Sunday-school meant. "Then wait a minute/' said the pretty stranger. Before Margaret could answer, she was back, carrying a potted hyacinth, whose drooping, white bells shook out rare fragrance. "It is for you," she said. "There are flowers for all the children to-day." Margaret took it, half afraid, then ran home, and burst into the room, her cheeks glowing and her eyes shining. "O Patsy, did you ever see anything like this? It's to set beside the rose — why—" and she looked blankly at the shorn bush. "Mither sent it away, the dead baby upstairs," ex- plained Patsy. "But this is a thousand times better. And here's a beautiful card, Marget, stiekin' in among the leaves." The Resurrection. 179 The mother took the card, and read: "I am the resurrection and the life : he thait believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." "It's somethin' out of the Bible," she said; "I be- lieve I '11 take it up to that poor woman upstairs. Mebbe it '11 comfort her heart a little that 's so sore about her baby." So she took the beautiful Bible word about the resur- rection up to the heartbroken mother, and she was com- forted. Chapter XVI. THE ASCENSION. IMMEDIATELY after Jesus rose He spoke to Mary Magdalene in the garden, then He went away to His heavenly home; but He came back to earth many times, and appeared to His friends during the forty days be- fore His final ascension. Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene, who loved Him very much because He had cast out of her seven demons. She saw Him first because she was in the garden when He arose. (Mark xvi, 9; John xx, 11-18.) Jesus appeared next to the other women who went to the tomb to embalm Him, and said to them, "All hail !" And when they fell down at His feet and worshiped Him, he said, kindly and tenderly, "Be not afraid : go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see Me." Matt, xxviii, 9, 10.) Jesus appeared to two disciples, on the way to Em- maus, and walked and talked with them. (Mark vi, 12, 13; Luke xxiv, 13-35.) Jesus appeared to Simon Peter all alone, to give him a chance to put his arms around Him, and tell Him how sorry he was that he had denied Him, and ask His for- giveness. (Luke x, 34; 1 Cor. xv, 5.) 180 THE ASCENSION. (DORE.) Tiik Ascension. 181 Jesus appeared to the disciples gathered in an upper room with the door locked for fear of the Jews. (Mark xvi, 14-18; Luke iv, 36-49; John xx, 19-23.) Jesus appeared to eleven of the disciples one week- later in the same upper room, Thomas being with them this time. (John xx, 24-29.) Jesus appeared to seven of His disciples who were fishing on the Sea of Galilee, and prepared a breakfast for them. Here it was that Jesus said three times to Peter, who had denied Him three times, "Lovest thou Me?" and three times Peter said, "Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee ! w And Jesus said, "Feed My sheep." Jesus appeared to over five hundred brethren in a mountain in Galilee. (Matt, xxviii, 16-20; 1 Cor. xv, 6.) Jesus appeared all alone to James, perhaps because he was to be the first martyr of the twelve, and Jesus wished to prepare him for his great trial. (1 Cor. xv, 7.) Jesus appeared to the eleven in Jerusalem, and com- manded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, "which/' saith He, "ye have heard of Me. For John truly baptized with water ; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence." When the disciples and Jesus were together at Jeru- salem, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the king- dom of Israel?" 182 Story of Jesus. And He said unto them, "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in His own power. But, be- hold, I send the promise of My Father upon you : and ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon vou : and ye shall witness unto Me both in Jerusa- lem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and into the utter- most part of the earth. But tarry ye in the city of Jeru- salem, until ye be endued with the power from on high." After the Lord had spoken these things unto them, He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass while He blessed them, He was parted from them ; and while they beheld, He was carried up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold two men stood by them in white apparel ; which also said, "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven. ,, Then they worshiped Him, and with great joy re- turned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a Sabbath-day's journey; and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Tin: Ascension. 183 Lord working with them, confirming the word with signs following. Though in His body Jesus is up in heaven at the right hand of God, on His Father's throne, yet He is as truly with us as if our bodily eyes could behold Him, because He can see us and sympathize with us all the time. When Charles the Pretender was in Scotland with his highland clans, a sore battle was waged at Preston- pans. During the conflict, at a most critical point, the chief of the noble house of MacGregor fell, wounded by two balls. Seeing their beloved leader fall, the clan wavered, and the battle was well-nigh lost. The brave old chieftain, seeing the effect of his dis- aster, raised himself up on his elbow, the blood gushing in streams from his side, and cried out in the old voice they had been wont to obey, "I am not dead, my children; I am looking at you to see you do your duty." These words revived the courage of the brave High- landers, and inspired them to put forth their mightiest energies. With wonderful valor they met the tide of battle, and turned it into a victory. Christ is living, not dead. From heaven He watches our conflict with sin and Satan. "How many brothers have you?" asked a gentleman of a little boy. 184 Story o* Jesi "Three, sir, and one in heaven. " "No, my son," said his mother, "you have no brother in heaven." But the lad said : "Did you not tell me that God was my Father, and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God? Then He must be my Brother in heaven." The boy had caught a glimpse of the wonderful truth of a living, loving Jesus, our Elder Brother. One of Jesus' last words was, "Preach the gospel." And one way to do it is to tell others about Jesus. One Christmas morning, in a dark, little attic in New York City, a young girl lay dying. A few years before she had run away from -her beau- tiful home in a fit of passion. There were days of gayety and excitement; then months of heart-breaking sorrow and awful remorse, and now pitiless disease. A few times she had been in a mission, and heard a lady tell that Christ could save to the uttermost, but she could not believe it meant one so low as she. As she lay there all alone that Christmas morning, with her puny baby in her arms, crying or moaning, no words can describe her wretchedness. Presently the one who had spoken the cheering words at the mission came into the room, and stood beside her. A look of joy came into the white, shrunken face, as and said, "O, I 'm glad you Ve come ; I Ve seen you before. Tm-: Ascension. 185 I have n't much time, and O, I want to ask you a qiu tion. Is it all true what you Ye said, that Jesus Christ can save to the uttermost? And does that mean every- body?" "O, yes," promptly came the answer, as her little hand was tenderly pressed ; "it 's all true, and He died to save you/ 1 "But," she interrupted, "is it really so, He would be glad to save me ?" O, how earnest was the gaze she fastened on the face bending over her, as again she said : "What ! glad, did yo j H^V*V; ^fit* 1 iTJa C"W s ^^^B In : ''** i p Jk^l !\_^V^^BB jBk ^m . „ 1 Ws 1 •AC'S . ,._.. *"* -^ ^l^k For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.— John i t \7. PETER IN Prison. "Were your father and mother ever put in prison because they loved Jesus ?" I asked. "No." "Did you ever have thumbscrews pull your fingers all out of joint ?" "No." "Did you ever have lighted matches put between your fingers ?" "No, but I had the mumps once." "What did you do?" "They hurt me, and I prayed to the Lord, and the next day I could eat." "Perhaps the Lord sent His angel to take the pain away." "I guess He did ; I guess he came in the night when I could n't see him." No doubt the angels do come and protect us many times when we do not see them and do not know it. The Bible says that the angels are ministering spirits sent to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation. (Heb. i, 14.) When I was a little girl the children used to sing, "I want to be an angel;" but they do- not sing it now, for we have learned that to be born again and be a child of God is better than to be an angel. But we can all imitate Jesus and the angels in doing good to others. A poor, tired mother took her three little children 13 r 94 Sr< >ry of Jksus. into a parlor-car by mistake, and was rudely driven into another car in a way that brought smiles to some faces, but a great pity into the tender heart of one of the passengers. This was a little boy, who showed his sympathy by taking some fruit and luncheon to the frightened little group in the common car. So sweet and gentle was his ministry, that one of the children, watching as he went back to the parlor-car, said, "Was he an angel, mamma?" "No, dear; but he was doing an angel's work, bless him!" said the mother. Dear children, let us remember the words of the mother, and look every day for bits of "angel's work" to make other people happy. Let us pray, day by day : Heavenly Father, make me Thine own true, good child. Help me to be like Jesus and the angels. Help me every day to do something that will make the world better and brighter. A Beautifully Bound Companion to '• Bible Morning Glories." BIBLE B'S FOR BEAUTIFUL LIVING By ABBIE C. MORROW, Editor of the S. S. Lesson Illustrator, and one of the Editors of Arnold's Practical Commentary. h*?^ BIBLE P^ These are the "Bible B's" it Contains SAVED FAITHFUL CHEERFUL STRONG OBEDIENT KIND CONTENT A LIGHT AFFECTIONATE SOBER B WITNESSES JOYFUL WATCHFUL COURTEOUS THANKFUL PATIENT HEALTHY TRUE STEADFAST B PITIFUL TRANSFORMED A BLESSING SUBJECT READY MINDFUL QUIET DILIGENT FOLLOWERS PERFECT A BOOK FOR CHILDREN 2VERYWHERE. PRICE, 75 CENTS, POST-PAID. WHAT THE PRESS SAYS. The Christian Upi^ook: "Each *B' is aptly illustrated, and the whole volume is full of practical truth." Central Christian Advocate : " . . . She arrays helpful passages from the Word, and illuminates them with apt inci- dents and wmolesome reflections." Methodist Protestant: "One of the best and most helpful books for young readers we have ever seen." M. W. KNAPP, Revivalist Office, Cincinnati, Ohia BY THE SAME AUTHOR. SWEET SMELLING MYRRH. (GUYON.) 60c. WORK OF FAITH. (MXJLLER.) 5Q