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LESSON II. , JANUARY 8.
( : nh1)1.N 'l'gX'j'-Dchuhl the I.alnh of JOlT whIch tnltclh away the sIn or the
\\'o/Icl-Juhn m:2t : ! ( I.
Connuctloll.-n [ our lust lesson ! we
tw/ell [ / tile IUII10llnCement of the roni
fug at the Holleel11or. 'I'hun pasHlug
over' ! the birth tied ( : hlIlhoOlI [ of .JeHU .
the hidden [ rears ut Nazareth , the
hlt'lh null hllllluu years of .Iohn In the
wilderness , as made familiar by the
other Gospels [ , we enter upon the beginning .
glnnng [ or .Jesus' mlultr ! as the
l\lessluh.
.Iolm the Baptist was horn in [ the
summer af H. C. G , six month before
Jesus , IIl'olmhy [ at Hehron. His pal"
ents' names were Zacharlaa and Eliza'
hoth , hath of priestly descent fl'om
Aal'on. .John waR n. relative of .JSUJ
( Luke 1:36) : : ! ) . I ; 'or thirty yours ho
lived a retired , ascetic life In the wild
of his native hUIII. Doubtless , durIng
these silent years , ho had been studying .
Ing the ancient prophecies mill watch'
, hug the tendencies of the times , theIr
slntI and their danger : and , In coni
munlon with God , had seen the only
way of safety. Suddenly , 111\0 Elijah
or old , with an abruptness almost like
1\ flash of lightning from n clear sky
he appeared "a burning and shining
light among the hills of Jmlen. "
Ills work WU to bear witness to
Christ ! , and prepare the way for his
mlsalon of redemption. .John' life
from beginning to end was heroic.
lily very willingness to seem a failure
In order to ho a success , and to do
his work , was heroic. Scorning fall-
tlrO Is often the greatest success. His.
tory has made Immortal not only the
men who have achieved great success ! ,
hut those who have been worldly failures .
ures while achieving the success of
faith , of courage , of righteousness ,
and self ' sncrlflce.
1. The Witness ! to Christ of John's
Mission , as the 1.'uUlIIment of Pr ph- !
ecr.-Centurles before his coming ,
the prophets I had foretold the Christ ,
the Redeemer . With divinely Illum.
fined vision they had Been him , and
pictured , In wondrous colors , the
glories of his reign. For ages these
visions has bean spread out before the
.Jowlsh people , and wrought Into all
their thoughts and hope But the
beginnings were so small , so feeble ,
so different from their expectations ,
dazzled by the glories of the final outcome -
come , that they were in danger of not
recognizing the Redeemer when he
did , come , as the stars cannot bo seen
when the IBm is hh1Ing.
But two prophets foretold a sign
which would bear witness to his com
Ing. Isaiah (40:3) ( : ) pictured the work
of one who should immediately precede -
cello the Messiah , preparing the way
before him. And Malachi showed thb
forerunner coming III the spirit and
power of Elijah.
John tine Baptist exactly realized
the portrait , and did the very things
the forerunner was expected to do ,
and thus bore witness that the prom-
ised Messiah was at hand , as the
morning star Is the forerunner of the
sun.
II. The Witness of .John's Prench.
Ing.-Sceno : 'rho Wilderness of
. .11(1 en. John preaching. Great crowds
of all classes of men flocking , to hear
him. Multitudes baptized confessing
their sins. Indications of great expectancy .
ectnncr and excitement.
John's preaching was well adapted
to awaken a consciousness of guilt ,
danger , and need. lie denounced the
sin or men to their fnces. Ills [ preach.
ling was of the "Thou : rt the man"
order.
How did this bear witness to Christ ?
Jesus Christ was nt hand with help !
for every ono of these needs-for. !
gl\'eness for the guilty , victory for the '
tempted , safety for those in danger ,
food for the spiritually hungry , the
water of life for the thirsty , guidance
for the erring , comfort for the sorrow-
ISng , healing for the sick , new life for .
the dying , hOl1O for the hopeless , satis
faction for every need , "Ioye divine all
love excelling ) ) , , " for all. And just so
far as .10hn rondo them feel their
needs , so far ho trade effective his
witness to time Savior who could meet
their needs with inexhaustible sup'
plies. )
III. 'fhe Witness to the Delegation
from .Jol'Uslllem-Vs. HJ.24. Scene :
At Dethnha1'l1. Ou the Banles of the
.10I'tlnn. here begins the hlsto 'lcl11
story of the manifestation of the
Word 111fldo flush , as recorded by
ohl1. The Baptist lead herm preaching .
Ing some nionUis lie hud baptized
Jesus , ns recorded In 1\1nlt. 3:13.17 : ,
anti seen the signs ; hy which ho recog
nlzed Jesus ns the Messiah ( vs. 32.34) ) .
Jesus had Imsed ! through his testing
by the temptations In the wilderness
( Malt. :1.11) ) . Time statements fol.
lowing the words 'fho next day" In
v. 29 make this artIer certain.
19. 'j'hls Is the record ( the wit.
ness ) of Jolm" on thre" successive
tlnys. It was a time of excitement
and ferment respecting the Messiah.
'fhe thoughts of the new dispensation
were In the air , hut with n confusion
of definite expectations. John's appearance .
peal'anco and preaching and great success .
cess had aroused even the rulers to In-
qulro what It meant "Tho .Jews "
Probably the Sanhedrim , as the source I
or authorltr. It was composed of
priests , elders , and scribes [ , but they
"sent priests anti Levltes , " probably
because John's father was n priest.
"To ask him , Who art thou ? " Not
his mtanie but whom do you claim to
bo ? For the questions of time people
as to whether this reformer was the
Messiah or not had reached their
cars.
20. "He [ confessed , ana denied not. "
As If he had been tempted to claim
time honor the people might easily
have been Induced to bestow upon
him , hut "with earnestness , almost
horror , he disclaimed" It. "He was
not time Light , but was sent to bear
witness of the Light" ( v. 8) ) . 'fhe
Christ. " 'fho Anointed one : Hebrew ,
"tho Messiah , " whom they were ex-
pecting.
21. "Art thou Elias ? " Elijah , the
forerunner of time Messiah ( Matt. 17 :
10 : Mal. 4:5 : , 6) ) . "I am not. " Corn-
pare Matt. 11:14 : , where Christ says
that John Is Elijah. Christ speaks
figuratively , John answers literally ,
and humbly , and in reply to the expectations -
Ilectations of the people at a literal
return of Elijah. "Art thou that ( the )
prophet ? "
23. "I nm the voice of one crying
In the wilderness. " Hc was the fulfillment .
ment of a prophecy well .lmown to
them. "Maleo straight the way of the I
Lord. " Ho prepared the way for
Christ ns In the Orient with Its shifting -
Ing sands and Imperfect roads , there
was anciently a straightening and repairing -
pairing of the roads when the king
was to travel over them.
The Witness. Not only was John's
testimony a witness , but also his
whole work of preparing for Christ
'rho preparation of the roadbed wit-
nesses to the fact that time railway
and its trains are coming
Preparing the wires witnesses to :
bllng of stones and lumber , witness '
to time coming building.
Preparing the 'Irest witnesses to
time coming of the electric light , or of
cars or telegraph or telephone
IV. The Witness of John's Dap.
tlsm.-Vs. 2G.28 , 31. 25. "Wh ' bup
tlzest thou then ? " "They expected a
general purification before the coming
of time Messiah" ( Zech. 13 : 1 : Ezole.
3G:2G ) . If John was not the Messiah ,
nor the divinely promised Elijah and
prophet , what right bad he to call
men to repentance , and asle them , the
Jews , to Join the kingdom of God by
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a rite used for tjroselytes In becoming
members or the Jewish religion and
nation.
.John's Answer. 26. "I 1 ( emphatic )
baptize with wnter. " The sign and
symbol of the real purifIcation , time
preparation for the Messiah. "But
there standeth one among you. " At
this very time , though you do not
recognize him. lie has been standing
011 Ules" brnlw , , mingled with the
crowd , baptized In these waters , the
one of whom 1 testified (27) ( ) IIwho
coming after mo Is preferred before
me , " and who Is so much greater than
I that his "shoe's latchet I am . not
worthy to unloose. " The latchet was
the leather thong or string by which
the shoe or sandal : ; was bound to the
foot , and the untying It was one of
the most menial services one could do
for another.
28. "In Beth11. ara" ( house of the
ferryboat ) .
V. Witness of John Pointing out
Jesus to Ills Dlsclples.-Vs. 9.34. .
Scene : On the Banks of the Jordan ,
at the Bethllhara Fortls. Great
Crowds. Jesus among Them , Approaching .
preaching John. The Second of the
Three Successive Da 's. 29. "Dehold
the Lamb of God. " Jesus was so
named by John ) , because the lamb was
used as 3. symbol of the deliverance
which Jesus brought. Ill is ! ' ! well worth
noting that Jesus died for our sins at
the Passover feast , and at the hour
of the dally sacrifice. "Which taketh
away the sIn of the world. " "To bear
away sin is to remove the guilt and
punishment of sin by expiation , or to
cause that sin be neither Imputed
nor l1unlshed.-'I'nayer's Greek En.
gush Lox. The work of Christ Is to
do this for the whole world , till all
Its sin is removed , and this sinful
world Is changed Into the sinless Para
disc Regalued
30. "This is he of whom I said. "
See last lesson.
31. "And I knew him not. " Or , I
also knew him not. I , like you , did
not at first know him to bo the 1\1es.
slah. He now proceeds te tell them
how ho learned who he was. "But
that he should be made manifest to
Israel , therefore am I come baptizing
with ( In ) water. "
32. "And John hare record. " 'Vlt
ness. "I 3aw. " Have seen , fort . .two
or more days before , when he baptized .
tlzed Jesus. The story Is recorded In
, .Matt 3 : 1G , 17 : Mark 1 : 9.11. "The
Spirit descending from heaven. " Upon
Jesus as soon as he had come upon
time bank of the river after his bap-
. "Like a do\'e. " ( R. V. , "as n
dove out of heaven. " ) "And it abode
upon him. " Pointing him out , and ex
pressing the permanence of the pres ,
once of the Holy Spirit.
33. "And I knew him not. " Did
not recognize fully that he was the
Messiah till this promised sign was
given. Only by a divine revelation
did he learn. "Ho that sent me. "
John was conscious of his divine mis-
siomi Ho was sent by God. "The
same Is ho which bapllzeth with the
Holy Ghost , " and , therefore ( v. 34) ) ,
"this Is the Son of God. " God's own
peculiar ulIly.begoilen son.
'fhe Witness was (1) ( ) John's testi
many entirely disinterested and self.
sacrlflclng. Ho gave his whole life to
bearing his witness to Christ , resisting
every temptation to gain notoriety ,
and to make friends or the influential
Phnrlsees. (2) ) It was the wItness of
facts that entirely convinced John
himself. (3) ( ) It was the witness ot a
voice from heaven. (4) ) It was the witness .
ness ot the baptism or the Holy Spirit.
"It was the token that In Jesus are
fulfilled the prophecies or the Old
Testament with regard to the pouring
out or the Spirit In the Messianic age ,
and especially to the Impartation of
the Spirit to the l\Ieslah himself
( lsa. 61:1 : : Luke 4:18) : ) , prophecies :
which describe time crowning glory of !
the latter days.-Westcott.
A man's business Is just to do his
duty : God takes upon Himself the
feeding and time clothlng.-George
MacDonald.
You know what a man lives for
when you know what he looks at
when alone.
Y
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HAD UNIQUE DEVICE
BANK WATCHMAN'S SCHEME OF
ROBBERY REALLY CLEVER.
3
Mysterious Disappearance , of $100 Bills " - .
I
Remained Unsolved ' Until Death of ,
Highly Esteemed Employe-Was .
Never in Life Caught Napping. 1 r
The cashier of a bank In a western
lawn discovered one day at balancing
time that his cash was an even $100
short. He went over his notes of that
denomInation , after trying to account
for it In varIous ways without success ,
and found one of them was missing. _
A minute search failed to find It ,
and the loss had to he charged up In 'i
the way such things aro.
Some weeks later the same amounl
wns missing again in the same mysterious -
terlous wn ' , , }
#
When It happened a third tlme-
this after a long Intervnl-the cashier
was replaced br another man : not
that the officers distrusted him , but
they wanted to see If the presence or
the new cashIer would make a differ- '
ence.
It didn't. The $100 bills disappeared
one at a time at Irregular Intervals ,
and no one could ever account lor
their loss In any way.
After this had been going on for a
couple of years the night watchman ,
who was also the janitor of the bank ,
died. No one ever thought of connectIng . t
Ing minis ] with the disappearance of the
bills , and the day after his death the ,
local papers printed short obituary
notices of his career ns a servant ot ' ,
the bank , telling In how high esteem " .
ho was held oy Its officers.
Curiously enough , with his death " '
came an end of the strange disappear. j
ante of the bills. No one In the bank ,
. . . .
however , connected the two things. ;
Several months after the janitor's t
death the bank was fitted out with
new office furniture . and when the ' '
workmen ripped a'waj' the woodwork ' -
of the cashier's desk the reason for
time disappearance at the money was
explained.
Under the slopingi top of the desk
was a teel plate suspended tram Its
center br a piece or stout twine that
ran through a ring and then led down
between the framework ot the parti-
tion to the cellar , where It ended at
another ring caught on a nail In one
of the joists.
A few moments of experimenting
showed how the janitor had worked
hIs highly original "graft. " When he
needed motley he would open the
empty cash drawer at night , lower the
plate and cover Its under surface with
paste. Then he would haul It up
under the sloping desk top.
\ The next day when the cashier was '
I
away from the desk at luncheon ,
which ho always ate at a table near. . . \
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his window , the janitor would go
down In the cellar , unhook the cord
and let the plate , which was suspend.
ed directly over the compartment con'
taming time $100 bills , drop down on
the top or one. The paste would
male It adhere firmly to the plate , .
and then ho would haul It up under z ;
the desk top. At night he could re
move It from the plate at his leisure.
Of course , he ran the risk of hav :
ing the cashier go to the drawer while
he was working ! his device. But the 5
janitor had studIed the officer's habits
80 closely that ho never was caught
napplng.-New York Pl'ess.
Giant Horse.
Oregon Queen Is reputed to be the '
largest three- 'ear.old filly in the
world. She is nineteen hands high ,
weighs 2,2GO pounds , Is perfectly
formed , a chestnut sorrel dth silver
mane and tall. She was bred and
raised by Sol King of Cornwa11ls , and
wag three years old on May 20 last.
She is now owned 0) C. " ' . Todd , of
Albany , who will exhibit her at the
Lewis : : and falr1905.-PorUand
Ol'egonlan.
