{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_54309/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_54309","id":"gutenberg_54309","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/54309","summary":null,"tags":["Apostles","Category: Children & Young Adult Reading","Category: History - Religious","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Latter Day Saint churches","Latter Day Saints"],"text":"ANCIENT APOSTLES\n\n\nWRITTEN FOR\n\nTHE DESERET SUNDAY SCHOOL UNION\n\n\nBy David O. McKay\n\n_General Superintendent_\n\n\nSecond Edition\n\nPublished by\n\nDeseret Book Company\n\nSalt Lake City, Utah\n\n1921\n\n\n\nPREFACE\n\n\"Ancient Apostles\" is written as one of the series of text books\nprepared for use in the Sunday Schools of the Church of Jesus Christ\nof Latter-day Saints. Its purpose is to give a simple account of\nthe leading incidents in the lives of the chief Apostles of Christ\nin the Holy Land, with the view of developing faith in the hearts\nof the children in the principles of the Gospel, and in the divine\norganization of the Church.\n\nProminent traits of character in the different disciples are pointed\nout as the circumstances in the lessons permit. These should be so\nemphasized in the presentation to the class that the pupils will be\nled not only to appreciate them as commendable and emulative, but to\nrealize that by personal exertion all these good traits may become\ntheirs. Virtuous and honorable actions are the stones by which we build\nthe mansion of character.\n\nEach chapter is planned, also, to emphasize one general aim, which\nshould be correlated with the incident or incidents with which the\npersonality of the Apostle and his companions is associated. Since it\nis difficult, if not impossible to teach morality and doctrine without\npersonality, the wise teachers will ever keep in mind that the persons,\nsettings, actions, and conversations in this little work are only a\nmeans of teaching truths and principles of conduct that will contribute\nto the moulding of God-like character in their boys and girls.\n\nThe suggestive outlines and aims in the appendix are offered as helps\nand guides to teachers. Only a few suggestive _applications_ are\noffered; but no lesson should be given, or even prepared, without the\nteachers attempting, at least, to devise the most efficient means of\nintroducing into the children's daily lives the aims and ideals taught.\n\nThe sincere wish of the author is that at least part of the pleasure\nexperienced in writing these lessons may be realized by those who\nprepare to teach them, and by those who read them, and that their\nstudious efforts through the blessings of the Lord, will bring to them\nthat peace and satisfaction which come with the realization of having\nhelped to make better and more efficient the men and women of tomorrow.\n\n\n\nCONTENTS\n\n\nPART ONE\n\nPeter and His Associates\n\nI. \"Light-Fountains\"\n\nII. Early Life and Surroundings\n\n_John the Baptist, Andrew, John_\n\nIII. A Period of Preparation\n\n_Jesus, James and John, Sons of Zebedec; Andrew_\n\nIV. A Special Witness\n\n_Names of the Twelve_\n\nV. Peter's Faith Tested\n\nVI. Peter's Testimony\n\nVII. A Marvelous Manifestation\n\n_Moses and Elias_\n\nVIII. Lessons in True Leadership\n\nIX. On the Night of the Betrayal\n\nX. Out of Gloom Into Light\n\nXI. A True Leader and Valiant Defender\n\n_Matthias_\n\nXII. Peter and John Arrested\n\nXIII. Persecuted But Undismayed\n\n_Gamaliel_\n\nXIV. A Special Visit to Samaria\n\n_Stephen, Philip_\n\nXV. At Lydda and Joppa\n\n_Eneas, Tabitha_\n\nXVI. The Third Imprisonment\n\nXVII. Closing Scenes of a Righteous Ministry\n\n\nPART TWO\n\nXVIII. James, the Son of Zebedee\n\n_Salome, Mary Magdalene, Mary, mother of Jesus; the first martyr,\nApostle_\n\n\nPART THREE\n\nJohn the Beloved Disciple\n\nXIX. With the Redeemer\n\nXX. With Peter and the Twelve\n\nXXI. Closing Scenes of His Ministry\n\n\nPART FOUR\n\nPaul and His Companions\n\nXXII. Saul of Tarsus\n\n_Gamaliel_\n\nXXIII. Saul's Conversion\n\n_Ananias_\n\nXXIV. In Another School\n\n_Barnabas_\n\nXXV. Special Messengers to Jerusalem\n\n_Agabus, John Mark_...\n\nXXVI. First Missionary Journey\n\nXXVII. First Missionary Journey--_Continued_\n\nAt Lystia and Derbe\n\n_Timothy, Eunice, Lois_\n\nXXVIII. A Great Controversy\n\nXXIX. Paul Begins His Second Missionary Journey\n\n_Silas, Luke_\n\nXXX. At Philippi\n\n_Lydia_\n\nXXXI. At Thessalonica and Berea\n\n_Jason_\n\nXXXII. At Athens and Corinth\n\n_Aquilla and Priscilla, Crispus, Justus_\n\nXXXIII. Third Missionary Journey\n\nFrom Antioch to Ephesus\n\n_Apollos_\n\nXXXIV. Third Missionary Journey--Continued\n\n_Paul's farewell visit to the churches he had established_\n\nXXXV. Exciting Experiences in Jerusalem\n\nXXXVI. Two Years in Prison\n\nXXXVII. The Voyage to Rome\n\nXXXVIII. The World Enriched by a Prisoner Chained\n\n[IMAGE: CHRIST'S CHARGE TO PETER.]\n\n\n\nPART ONE--PETER.\n\n\n\nLESSON 1\n\n\"LIGHT-FOUNTAINS\"\n\n \"No man has come to true greatness who has not felt in some degree that\n his life belongs to his race, and that what God gives him He gives him\n for mankind.\"\n\n \"If any man seek for greatness, let him forget greatness and ask for\n truth, and he will find both.\"\n\n \"Nothing can make a man truly great but being truly good, and partaking\n of God's holiness.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Influence of Great Men.]\n\nEverybody likes to read and to hear about great men. Children, and\ngrown people, too, delight to learn how the leaders of men in the past\nhave made the world better and happier by their noble deeds. And when,\nafter many years have passed, people still see how much good those\nleaders of men did in the world, worthy aspirations are awakened, and\nboys and girls of today desire to emulate the lives of these heroes of\nthe past; for, as the poet Longfellow says:\n\n  \"Lives of great men all remind us\n  We can make our lives sublime;\n  And, departing, leave behind us\n  Footprints on the sands of time.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Boy's Ideals.]\n\nEvery boy has somebody who becomes his ideal. Or perhaps there are more\nthan one who form this ideal--one man, for instance, might be a good\nathlete, and the boy wishes to be just like him; another is a good\nviolinist, and the boy feels that he, too, would some day like to be\na musician; another is an able speaker, and the boy desires some day\nto be a great orator. But, sometimes, boys, and girls, too, for that\nmatter, choose bad men for their ideals. This happens when young folks\nread trashy books or associate with trashy or evil-minded men. How\nunfortunate that little boy is who happens to read or to hear about\nsome highwayman or robber, and has awakened in his young mind a desire\nto be like that bad man! How unfortunate for the boy who chooses for\nhis ideal a man who smokes, and drinks and swaggers through life in\nidleness!\n\n[Sidenote: Sign Posts.]\n\nThus we see that the lives of men become sign posts to us, pointing the\nway along roads that lead either to lives of usefulness and happiness\nor to lives of selfishness and misery. It is important, then, that we\nseek, both in life and in books, the companionship of the best and\nnoblest men and women. Carlyle, a great English writer, says that\n\"Great men taken up in any way are profitable company. We cannot look,\nhowever imperfectly, upon a great man, without gaining something by\nhim. He is the living 'light-fountain,' which it is good and pleasant\nto be near.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Secret of Greatness.]\n\nIf you will study the lives of these great \"light-fountains\" of the\nworld, you will learn of at least one thing that has made their names\nendure. It is this: Each one has given something of his life to make\nthe world better. They did not spend all their time seeking only\npleasure and ease, and a \"good time\" for themselves alone, but found\ntheir greatest joy in making others happy and more comfortable. All\nsuch good deeds live forever, even though the world may never hear of\nthem.\n\n[Sidenote: How Some Have Failed.]\n\nThere is an old, old story that a man from another planet was permitted\nto visit this earth. From a high mountain peak, he looked down upon\nthe busy towns and cities of the world. Millions of men, like ants,\nwere busy building palaces of pleasure, and other things that would not\nlast. As he left to go back, he said, \"All these people are spending\ntheir time in building just birds' nests. No wonder they fail and are\nashamed.\"\n\n[Sidenote: How the Truly Great Have Built.]\n\nAll the truly great men of the world have built something besides\n\"birds' nests.\" Out of the deep longing of their minds and hearts, they\nhave brought forth gems of truth that have made the world richer. They\nhave wrought deeds of love and sacrifice that have inspired millions.\nIn so doing, they might have suffered; many indeed have met untimely\ndeath; but all who thus gave their lives, saved them. That which we\ndo for God and our fellowmen lives forever; that which we do just for\nourselves cannot endure.\n\n  \"To have sown in the souls of men\n  One thought that will not die--\n  To have been a link in the chain of life\n  Shall be immortality.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Lincoln.]\n\nWhen we hear anything about a great man we want to know everything\nabout him--where he was born, who his parents were, where he lived,\nhow he played, with whom he played, in what kind of house he lived,\nwhere he went in swimming, where he fished, etc., etc. Such things\nabout George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, for example, are always\ninteresting. What boy is there who doesn't like to hear about the poor\nboy Lincoln in the little log cabin in the backwoods of Indiana; to\npicture him there among the bears and other wild animals; to picture\nhim sitting by the fireplace learning to cipher by using a piece of\ncharcoal on a wooden shovel because he had no slate, no paper or lead\npencil! Abraham Lincoln was a great and good man, and we want to know\neverything about him even when he was a boy, partly to help us become\nsomewhat like him; for, as Lincoln wrote,\n\n  \"Good boys who to their books apply,\n  Will all be great men by and by.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Little Known of Apostles' Boyhood.]\n\nUnfortunately, we know very little about the boyhood days of the\nAncient Apostles, about whom we shall read in this little book. It is\ntrue we can partly judge of what kind of boys they were by the kind\nof men they became; but the little incidents of childhood and youth,\nwhich tended to mould their character, and in which we now would be\nso interested, though nineteen hundred years have passed, were never\nwritten, and may never be known. They grew to manhood before the\nopportunity came for them to render that service to the world which has\nmade their names immortal.\n\n[Sidenote: Most Favored Men.]\n\nIn one respect, however, they were the most favored men the world has\nknown, because they had the privilege of associating daily--almost\nhourly, for about two and one-half years, with the Savior of the world.\nNo wonder, then, that they became great, when they had such an example\nof true Greatness constantly before them. As soon as they learned\nto love Jesus, they desired to be like Him, and so remembered His\nteachings, and tried to do as He said. Surely it will be good for us to\nget acquainted with such men.\n\n[IMAGE: MAP OF PALESTINE IN THE TIME OF CHRIST, ILLUSTRATING THE FOUR\nGOSPELS.]\n\n[Sidenote: Why Apostles Are Known.]\n\nJust think! The only reason the world knows anything about them is\nbecause having met the Savior, they made Him their guide in life. If\nthey hadn't, nobody now would know that such men had ever lived. They\nwould have lived and died and been forgotten just as thousands of other\nmen in their day lived and died and nobody knows or cares anything\nabout them; just as thousands and thousands are living today, wasting\ntheir time and energy in useless living, choosing the wrong kind of men\nfor their ideals, turning their footsteps into the road of Pleasure and\nIndulgence instead of the road of Service. Soon they will reach the\nend of their journey in life, and nobody can say that the world is any\nbetter for their having lived in it. At the close of each day such men\nleave their pathway as barren as they found it--they plant no trees\nto give shade to others, nor rosebushes to make the world sweeter and\nbrighter to those who follow--no kind deeds, no noble service--just a\nbarren, unfruitful, desert-like pathway, strewn, perhaps, with thorns\nand thistles.\n\nNot so with the disciples who chose Jesus for their Guide. Their lives\nare like gardens of roses from which the world may pluck beautiful\nflowers forever.\n\n\n\nLESSON 2\n\nEarly Life and Surroundings\n\n \"It is with youth as with plants, from the first fruits they bear we\n learn what may be expected in future.\"\n\n[Sidenote: The \"Dead Sea\" of America.]\n\nFlowing north from Utah Lake through part of the Great Basin, and\nemptying into the Great Salt Lake, the Dead Sea of America, is the\nriver Jordan. Utah Lake is fresh water and abounds in fish; Salt Lake,\nas its name suggests, is so briny that no fish can live in its waters.\nTo President Brigham Young and the worthy band of Pioneers, the Salt\nLake Valley with the \"Dead Sea\" reflecting the glorious rays of a July\nsun, was indeed a \"promised land.\"\n\n[Sidenote: The \"Dead Sea\" of the Holy Land.]\n\nAway across the Atlantic Ocean, stretching along the east shore of\nthe Mediterranean Sea is another salt sea, another river Jordan, and\nanother fresh water lake, and the river flows through the \"Promised\nLand,\" or the Land of Canaan. However, if you will refer to a map of\nthat country, you will see that the relative position of this lake,\nriver and sea are just opposite in direction from these in Utah. In the\nHoly Land the fresh water lake is in the north, and the Jordan river\nflows south into the Dead Sea.\n\nThe land that contains these three important marks in history has\nseveral names. As given above, it is called The Holy Land; also\nThe Land of Canaan; also the Land of the Hebrews, or the Land of\nIsrael, because Jacob's children once settled there; also the Land of\nJudah, after one of Jacob's sons; also Palestine, probably after the\nPhilistines, who lived, as you know, in the days of the shepherd boy\nDavid.\n\n[Sidenote: Size of Cannan.]\n\nSalt Lake is eighty miles long and about forty miles wide. The Land of\nCanaan is about twice as long and twice as wide; or in extreme length\nabout one hundred seventy miles, and its width about eighty. The City\nof Dan was in the northern part, and Beersheba in the southern part;\nso when you hear the expression \"from Dan to Beersheba,\" you will know\nthat it once denoted the entire length of the land of Canaan.\n\n[Sidenote: Sea of Galilee.]\n\nThe fresh water lake, of the Holy Land, also has several names. It is\nknown generally as the \"Sea of Galilee;\" but it is also called \"Sea of\nTiberias,\" \"Lake of Gennesareth,\" \"Lake of Tiberias,\" and the \"Sea of\nCenneroth.\" It is about sixteen miles long and six miles wide. \"The\nwaters of this lake lie in a deep basin, surrounded on all sides with\nlofty hills, excepting only the narrow entrance and outlet of the\nJordan at each extreme. * * * The appearance of this sea from the town\nof Capernaum, which is situated near the upper end of the bank on the\nwestern side, is extremely grand; its greatest length runs nearly north\nand south. The barren aspect of the mountains on each side, and the\ntotal absence of wood give, however, a cast of dullness to the picture,\nwhich is increased to melancholy by the dead calm of its waters.\"\n\nOn the west side of this lake was one of the important divisions of\nPalestine, called Galilee. One ancient writer says that at one time\nthis province \"contained two hundred and four cities and towns, the\nleast of which contained fifteen thousand inhabitants.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: Bethsaida.]\n\nSomewhere in this province, probably very near Capernaum, was a little\ntown called Bethsaida. There was another town by this name on the\nnorth-eastern shore, but it is the Bethsaida, near Capernaum, in which\nwe are now most interested. To must have been near the lake, because\nmany of the men who lived there made their living by fishing, not with\npoles and hooks and lines, as the boys fish for trout in our mountain\nstreams, but with nets, which they let down from their boats, and with\nwhich they dragged the lake until they would entangle the fish, which\nthey then hauled to shore.\n\n[Sidenote: Simon.]\n\nIn one of these fishermen's homes, probably a few years before the\nSavior's birth, was born one day, a little baby boy whom his parents\nnamed Simon or Simeon. He had a brother named Andrew. [2] Their\nfather's name was Jonas or Johanna, but very little is known about him,\nand nothing about their mother.\n\n[Sidenote: Simon's Home and Boyhood.]\n\nNothing definite is known about either Simon's childhood or his\nboyhood. However, we are safe to conclude from what we know about\nthe customs, beliefs, and practices of the Jews of his time that he\nlived in a small, flat-roofed house containing very little, if any,\nfurniture; that either at home or at school, perhaps at both, he\nlearned all about the prophets in what is now our Old Testament; that\nhe observed the Sabbath day strictly; and what is most important of\nall, he learned to look forward to the day when the Savior of the world\nwould come to His people.\n\nIn fancy, we can picture Simon and Andrew and their playmates amusing\nthemselves on the shore of Galilee; but it is only in imagination that\nwe can see any of the incidents in Simon's childhood. \"We may think of\nhim,\" writes George L. Weed, \"as a useful boy, helping his mother in\nthe labors of the house--carefully bringing the little red clay lamps\nfor trimming, or the corn to be parched, or the fish his father had\ncaught, or the charcoal on which it was to be cooked, or the bread from\nthe oven, and the oil and honey-cakes to be eaten with it, or water\nfrom the stream that flowed from the hill behind their home into the\nlake, or filling the water-jars at the door. Was he not his mother's\njoy when for the first time he shook the olives from the trees and\nbrought them to her as a part of their frugal meal; or when he spread\nthe maize and hemp to dry on the flat roof in the summer sun? Was he\nnot his father's pride the first time he handled the oar, and dipped it\naright in the wave, and helped to spread the net, and counted the fish\nthey had caught? He watched the flight of the sparrows and gathered the\nflowers--poppies, daisies and anemones--like those from which the Great\nTeacher, whom now he knew not, would teach him lessons of wisdom and\nlove. Childlike, he gathered shells upon the seashore, and dug in the\nwhite sand of the beach with a rude stick, with delight equal to that\nof the boy of today with his finished toy-shovel and little painted\npail.\"\n\nNone of the fishermen who saw Simon with his playmates scampering\naround the nets and boats ever suspected that he would grow up to be\namong the greatest men of the world!\n\nSome writers tell us that the Galileans were generally brave and\nfearless, and loved liberty. The men made good soldiers for they were\n\"bold and intrepid.\" The boy, Simon, as he grew to manhood must have\nadmired the brave, bold men around him, for he, too, became a man of\nstrong character, as we learn from the first recorded instance of his\nlife.\n\nSIMON'S NAME CHANGED\n\n[Sidenote: Simon Hears John the Baptist.]\n\nSoon after Simon had grown to manhood there came a man from the\nwilderness of Jordan, clothed only in camel's hair and a leathern\ngirdle about his loins, but preaching with such mighty power that\npeople from \"Judea and all the regions round about\" came to hear him.\nThis great preacher was John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ.\nAmong those who came to hear him was Simon, who, no doubt, rejoiced to\nhear this preacher of Repentance declare that the Son of Man was about\nto come to the earth. Simon, Andrew and some of their friends believed\nwhat the Baptist taught.\n\nOne day, when, with some of his followers, John was near Bethabara (a\nword which means \"a place of crossing\") he saw Jesus coming toward\nthem, and said:\n\n[Sidenote: \"Behold the Lamb of God.\"]\n\n\"Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world! This is\nHe of whom I said, After me cometh a man who is preferred before me.\"\nAgain, the next day, probably about 10 o'clock in the morning, John was\nstanding talking with two of his disciples. They were Andrew, Simon's\nbrother, and John. Walking a short distance from them was the same\nman whom John had pointed out the day before as the Lamb of God \"And\nlooking upon Jesus as He walked, John saith, Behold the Lamb of God.\nAnd the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.\"\n\n[IMAGE: CHRIST AND JOHN.]\n\n[Sidenote: Simon's Brother Believes in Jesus.]\n\nAccepting the invitation of Jesus to go with Him to the place where He\nstayed, these two men remained with Him, listening to His words all the\nrest of the day. When they left, they believed that Jesus was the King\nof Israel, the Savior of the world. Thus they became, in that day the\nfirst two, beside John the Baptist, to believe in Jesus.\n\nWhenever we have anything which is really good, we always desire to\nshare it with one we love. It was so with these two brothers. They no\nsooner felt the divine influence that radiated from the Savior than\nthey were filled with a desire to bring those whom they loved under\nthat same influence. Andrew went out to find his brother Simon, and\nJohn to find his brother James. Andrew found Simon first, and said:\n\n\"We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Simon is Called \"Cephas.\"]\n\nAnd he brought him to Jesus, and when Jesus beheld him, He said, \"Thou\nare Simon the son of Jonas: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by\ninterpretation, A stone\" (or The Rock).\n\nIn those days the Jews spoke the Hebrew language; but the new Testament\nwas written in the Greek language. Now, in Hebrew \"Cephas\" means\n\"rock;\" but in Greek the word for \"rock\" is \"Petras,\" or \"Peter.\" So\nfrom that time, Simon was known as Simon Peter, or \"Simon, the Rock.\"\n\nWhen we think of this wonderful world in which we live, of its great\ndivision of land called continents; that in the eastern continent\nthere are the countries of Europe, Asia, and Africa; that in one\nlittle corner of Asia, there is a strip of land only about twice as\nlong and twice as wide as our Salt Lake; that in that strip of land\nwas a division, like one of our counties, called Galilee; that in\nthis province were over two hundred cities, and in each city several\nthousand people, among whom one day was born a little baby whose\nparents were unknown; that this baby boy grew to be a man of such\nstrong character that Jesus named him \"a Rock,\" and for nineteen\nhundred years now he has been known and honored by millions and\nmillions of people--when we think of all these things we must surely\nrealize, even in our youth, that a humble birth is no hindrance to\ngreatness.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Josephus.\n\n2. John 1:42-43.\n\n\n\nLESSON 3\n\nA Period of Preparation\n\n\"_Oh, be my friend, and teach me to be thine_.\"\n\n  \"Great souls by instinct to each other turn,\n  Demand alliance, and in friendship burn.\"\n\nHome in Capernaum\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Views of the Messiah.]\n\nFrom the moment Peter met Jesus, his views of life were changed. Up to\nthat time, he had looked for the coming of the King of the Jews as an\nevent the indefinite future. With other Jews, he had anticipated that\nthe Savior's coming would be marked by wonderful manifestations, and\nthat, clad in purple robes, and attended by many angels. He would come\nin mighty power, and in one divine expression of His wrath, strike the\nRoman shackles from the conquered Jewish nation.\n\nBut now, Peter had met the Messiah--a lone man on the banks of the\nJordan! Only about five men knew of His claim to the Messiahship. There\nwere no legions of heavenly hosts accompanying Him! He wore no purple\nrobes! He possessed no visible means at hand with which to break the\nRoman yoke! Was He, indeed, the Messiah that was to come, or should\nPeter look for another?\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus' Influence Over Peter.]\n\nThese and a hundred other thoughts, undoubtedly crowded Peter's\nmind, as he left the wilderness of Jordan to return to his fishing\nin Galilee. Andrew and John, on that memorable visit, seemed to have\nreceived a testimony of the divinity of Jesus' mission, and they bore\nthat testimony to their brothers when they so joyously exclaimed,\n\"We have found the Messiah!\" But Peter--impetuous Peter, who, we\nshall learn, was naturally outspoken, had not yet so far as we know,\nexpressed such assurance. However, he was deeply impressed; for had not\nJesus, at first sight, read his character? Had He not penetrated into\nhis inmost nature? and had He not radiated a spirit that so completely\nenveloped Peter that from its influence the fisherman never more\ndesired to go?\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Home.]\n\nPeter at this time was a married man, and was perhaps the father of a\nlittle boy. He had moved from his old home in Bethsaida, and lived with\nhis wife's mother, or she with him, in Capernaum. With him were also\nAndrew and their two faithful companions and friends, James and John,\nthe sons of Zebedee.\n\nPeter's home became the most distinguished home in all Capernaum,\nand later one of the most memorable spots in all the world. Here,\nundoubtedly, Jesus stayed whenever He was at Capernaum! Indeed after\nJesus had been so ruthlessly rejected by His own townsmen in Nazareth,\nHe made Capernaum His \"own city;\" and it is supposed that much of the\ntime, the honor fell upon Peter to entertain in his home the Savior of\nthe world. How every word, every act on the part of his worthy guest\nmust surely have increased Peter's confidence in Jesus as the Messiah!\n\nA Lesson in Obedience\n\n[Sidenote: On Shores of Galilee.]\n\nOne beautiful morning, several months after the events narrated in\nthe previous lesson, and a short time following His rejection from\nNazareth, Jesus was preaching to a multitude on the shores of Galilee.\nPeter and Andrew were busy near-by washing their nets, after having\nspent all night on the lake in a futile attempt to catch some fish.\n\n\"And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon Jesus to hear\nthe word of God, He stood by the lake of Gennesaret,\n\n\"And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone\nout of them, and were washing their nets.\n\n\"And He entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed\nhim that he would thrust out a little from the land. And He sat down,\nand taught the people out of the ship.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: First Recorded Instance of Peter's Obedience.]\n\nWhen Peter complied with Jesus' request \"to thrust out a little from\nthe land,\" he performed the first recorded instance of his obedience to\nChrist's word. Now, however, followed a command obedience to which was\ndirectly contrary to the fisherman's judgment. When Jesus had finished\nspeaking to the people, He said to Peter,\n\n\"Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for toiled all the\nnight, and have taken nothing.\" As much as from the empty net; it was\ndry, and the broken threads mended. Peter was tired and wanted rest. He\nwas hungry, too, and perhaps discouraged. No wonder, then, that Peter\nanswered and said, \"Master, we have toiled all night, and have taken\nnothing.\" As much as to say, \"What is the use? There are no fish this\nmorning in this part of the lake, nor has there been all night!\" But\nPeter was learning to honor and obey this Man among men; so he quickly\nadded these words: \"Nevertheless at Thy word, I will let down the net.\"\n[2]\n\nAs an experienced fisherman, his _judgment_ said to make a further\nattempt was useless; as a follower of Jesus, his _Faith_ bade him try.\n\n[Sidenote: Result of Obedience.]\n\n\"And when they had this done, they enclosed a great multitude of\nfishes: and their net brake. And they beckoned unto their partners\nwhich were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And\nthey came, and filled both ships so that they began to sink.\"\n\nWe are told that Peter \"was astonished, and all that were with him, at\nthe draught of the fishes which they had taken.\" Peter, the leader of\nthe four as he was afterwards the head of the Twelve, \"fell down at\nJesus' knees, saying. Depart from me: for I am a sinful man, O Lord.\"\n[3]\n\nWas it just the doubt and hesitancy expressed when, a few minutes\nbefore, Jesus had asked him to \"push cut into the deep,\" or was it\nthe realization of many such doubts of Christ's divinity that now\noverwhelmed him, and made him sense his own inferiority and weakness in\nthe presence of this Mighty One? Jesus had manifested His power, and in\nso doing had taught Peter the lesson that he and all the world, sooner\nor later, must learn; viz., that obedience to Christ's words brings\nblessings, temporal as well as spiritual. As the realization of this\ntruth was pouring balm on his awe-struck feelings, Jesus said unto him,\n\"_Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men_.\" [4]\n\n[IMAGE: CHRIST AND THE FISHERMEN. \"From henceforth thou shalt catch men.\"]\n\nA MEMORABLE SABBATH. [5]\n\nAfter Jesus had been rejected from His own city, Nazareth, He \"came\ndown to Capernaum, and taught them on the Sabbath days.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Service in Synagogue.]\n\nThe last part of a service in the synagogue in those days was the\nexpounding of the scriptures, and preaching from them to the people.\nThis was done not always by an officer but by some distinguished person\nwho might be in the congregation. Of course, Jesus was known all around\nby this time as a great teacher, a worker of miracles, and an able\ninterpreter of the law; and, \"they were astonished at His doctrine: for\nHis word was with power.\"\n\n[Sidenote: An Evil Spirit Rebuked.]\n\nOn one particular Sabbath, when Jesus was preaching, Peter and all\npresent were surprised to see a man rise in the audience, and suddenly\ninterrupt by crying out in a loud voice,\n\n\"Let us alone; what have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus of Nazareth?\nArt Thou come to destroy us? I know Thee who Thou art; the Holy One\nof God.\" As this man, who was possessed of an evil spirit, ceased his\nrailing, each person in the congregation must have almost held his\nbreath, as Jesus rebuked the evil one by saying,\n\n\"Hold thy peace and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him\nin the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.\n\n\"And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves saying, What a\nword is this! for with authority and power, He commandeth the unclean\nspirits and they come out.\" [6]\n\nAt the conclusion of this service, Jesus went with Peter to the\nlatter's home, Andrew, and James and John accompanying them. Peter,\nAndrew, James and John--these four who were playmates in boyhood,\npartners as fishermen, companions as disciples of John the Baptist,\nare now becoming inseparable in the loving bonds of the Brotherhood of\nChrist! As they entered the house, they learned that Simon's wife's\nmother was very sick of fever. Undoubtedly, it was Peter who told Jesus\nof his mother-in-law's condition, and pleaded, either by word or look,\nor both, that He would bless her. Jesus \"took her by the hand and\nlifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered\nunto them.\"\n\nYou can imagine that all Capernaum was talking about how Jesus had\nrebuked the evil spirit from the afflicted man in the synagogue! And\nthen, a few minutes after the service, He healed a woman instantly of\na fever! The news spread from house to house, and from group to group\nuntil \"the fame of Him went out into every place of the country round\nabout.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Many Healed.]\n\nAll that afternoon, Peter's house and the streets around it were packed\nwith crowds of people, some out of curiosity but most of them desiring\na blessing. Men possessed of devils were taken through the crowd to\nJesus and were cured; those who had been suffering for days of a\nburning fever, those who were afflicted with various kinds of diseases,\nwere all brought into the presence of this Great Physician, who \"laid\nHis hands on everyone of them, and healed them.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Through the Twilight and Evening.]\n\nThe sun went down, twilight came, and evening shades began to deepen\ninto night, but still the sick and suffering sought that divine healing\nwhich only Christ the Lord could give. \"Never,\" says Eidersheim,\n\"Never, surely, was He more truly the Christ than when, in the\nstillness of that evening, He went through that suffering throng laying\nHis hands in the blessing of healing upon every one of them and casting\nout many devils.\"\n\nIt was probably late that night before Jesus could go to His rest.\nEven later, after the people had gone to their now happier homes,\nPeter and his household would desire to talk to their honored guest\nabout the wonderful miracles of that day. At length, however, all\nretired, and everybody in the house slept as the midnight hours of that\nnever-to-be-forgotten Sabbath passed into the early morning hours of\nSunday.\n\nAnother Week of Preparation\n\n[Sidenote: Sunday Morning.]\n\nBefore daylight came, however, Jesus arose quietly, and walked out into\nthe morning air, sought a quiet, \"solitary\" place, and there prayed.\n\n  \"His pure thoughts were borne\n  Like fumes of sacred incense o'er the clouds,\n  And wafted them on angels' wings, to ways\n  Of light, to the bright source of all.\"\n\nPeter must have been surprised when upon going to greet Jesus with a\nbright \"Good-morning,\" he found the guest-chamber empty. Perhaps he\nguessed where Jesus had gone; for we are told that, \"Simon and they\nthat were with him followed after Him. And when they had found Him,\nthey said unto Him,\n\n\"_All men seek Thee_!\"\n\nWhat a glorious condition will be in this old world when it can be\ntruthfully said to Christ,\n\n\"_All men seek Thee_!\"\n\n[Sidenote: \"All Men Seek Thee.\"]\n\nSelfishness, envy, hatred, lying, stealing, cheating, disobedience to\nparents, cruelty to children and to dumb animals, quarreling among\nneighbors, and fighting among nations--all will be no more when it can\nbe truthfully said to the Redeemer of mankind,\n\n\"_All men seek Thee_!\"\n\n[Sidenote: Around Galilee.]\n\nIt seems that Jesus and His friends left Capernaum that day, and\n\"Preached in synagogues throughout all Gililee, and cast out devils.\"\nWherever they went the sick were healed, and the lepers were cleansed.\nSome days afterwards, they returned to Capernaum. No sooner did the\npeople learn that Jesus was in \"the house\" (undoubtedly Peter's house)\nthan \"Straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was\nno room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and He\npreached the word unto them.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Man Sick of Palsy.]\n\nIt was on this occasion that four men brought a man sick of palsy. The\npoor man lay on his bed, each corner of which was held by one of the\nfour men. Finding it impossible because of the crowd to gain entrance\nto the house by the door, they went on the roof. Here they made an\nopening into the room below, \"And let down the bed wherein the sick of\nthe palsy lay.\"\n\n\"When Jesus saw their faith, He said unto the sick of palsy, Son, thy\nsins be forgiven thee.\n\n\"And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them\nall; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying: We\nnever saw it on this fashion.\" All these glorious manifestations of\ndivine power, and, undoubtedly, many, many more, Jesus had given even\nbefore He chose His Twelve Apostles.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Faith Strengthened.]\n\nPeter, as you see, was a witness of them all. If he had had any doubts\na few months previous, when his brother Andrew said, \"We have found the\nMessiah,\" surely they had long since been banished from his mind; and\nwe can readily understand why, when Jesus said, \"Henceforth thou shalt\ncatch men,\" Peter \"forsook all and followed Him.\"\n\nBut even yet, notwithstanding all his experiences, Simon's faith is not\nthe Rock that Jesus would have it become.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Luke 5:1-3.\n\n2. Luke 5:5.\n\n3. Luke 5:8.\n\n4. Luke 5:10.\n\n5. Luke 4:31-40.\n\n6. Luke 4:36.\n\n\n\nLESSON 4\n\nA Special Witness\n\n\"The Twelve traveling counselors are called to be the Twelve Apostles,\nor special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Night of Prayer.]\n\nProbably several months after the events narrated in the previous\nchapter and a little while before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus went\nout to a mountain near Capernaum. As was usual, now, in His life, a\nlarge crowd followed Him. But He left the crowd, and went to the top of\nthe mountain, so he could be all alone with His Father in Heaven, unto\nwhom He prayed all night.\n\n[Sidenote: Twelve Chosen.]\n\nUndoubtedly, many of his most ardent followers remained at the mountain\nalso all night, for \"When it was day, He called unto Him His disciples,\nand of them He chose twelve, whom also He named apostles.\" [1]\n\nThe word Apostle means an \"Envoy\" or \"one who is sent.\" An apostle is a\n\"Special witness of the name of Christ in all the world.\"\n\nIn all the accounts given of this important event, Peter's name is\nmentioned first, indicating that he was chosen as the chief apostle,\nand was undoubtedly appointed and set apart as the President of the\nCouncil of Twelve. The names of the Twelve whom Jesus ordained at that\ntime were:\n\n(1) Simon Peter, and his brother (2) Andrew; (3) James and (4) John,\nthe two sons of Zebedee; (5) Philip of Bethsaida, and (6) Nathanael,\nalso called Bartholomew; (7) Thomas, also called \"Didymus,\" a name\nwhich means \"a twin;\" (8) Matthew, the publican, or tax gatherer; (9)\nJames, the son of Alphaeus, called \"James the Less;\" (10) Lebbeus,\nwho was also called Thaddeus, and also Judas, but not Judas Iscariot;\n(11) Simon, the \"Canaanite,\" or \"Simon the Zelotes,\" and (12) Judas\nIscariot, who became the traitor.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. MATTHEW.]\n\n[Sidenote: Who the Twelve Were.]\n\nThese twelve men were, for the most part, Galilean fishermen who\nlabored at their trade on the shores of Galilee. Matthew, however, was\na publican, and therefore despised by the Jews; and Judas was a Judean.\nSome of the leaders of the Jews thought that they were \"unlearned and\nignorant men. [2] Unlearned they were; but not ignorant; for by their\nwisdom and preaching, they overthrew the whole edifice of human wisdom,\nand led the world to the light of truth.\"\n\nAs a humble disciple of Jesus, Peter had been a \"witness\" of many\nwonderful things pertaining to the Savior's mission; but it was\ndifficult for him to comprehend the significance of the Gospel plan.\nYou will note as we proceed with his biography that his understanding\nof it unfolded slowly, even though he was almost constantly, for the\nnext year or so, in the presence of his Lord. Here are some of the\nthings which he witnessed immediately after his ordination to the\nApostleship.\n\nAT MATTHEW'S FEAST\n\nOne day Jesus and the Twelve accepted an invitation to Matthew's house,\na circumstance that made the Pharisees much offended because Jesus ate\n\"with publicans and the sinners. While Jesus and the Twelve were still\nat the feast, and Jesus was answering the charge of the Pharisees,\n\n[Sidenote: Jairus]\n\n\"Behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the Synagogue, Jairus,\nby name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, and besought him\ngreatly saying,\n\n\"My little daughter lieth at the point of death; I pray thee, come and\nlay thy hands on her, that she may be healed, and she shall live.\" [3]\n\nJesus immediately left the pleasures of the feast and of the\nentertainment of his friend and brother, Matthew, and followed Jairus\nto the latter's house.\n\nTHE AFFLICTED WOMAN\n\n[Sidenote: Faith of an Afflicted Woman.]\n\n\"And much people followed him, and thronged him.\" [4] In this crowd was\na woman who had been suffering for twelve years from a sore that could\nnot be healed. The blood had wasted for so long a time that she was\nweak, and she was very poor, for \"she had spent all she had\" trying to\nget cured. She had heard of Jesus and of His power to heal the sick,\nand she had such faith that she said to herself, \"If I may touch but\nhis clothes, I shall be made whole.\"\n\nAs Jesus passed, she stretched forth her hand and touched just the hem\nof his garment, \"and straightway the fountain of her blood was dried\nup; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.\"\n\n[Sidenote: \"Who Touched My Clothes?\"]\n\nJesus, too, immediately feeling that \"Virtue\" had gone out of him,\nturned and asked, \"Who touched my clothes?\" Peter answered, \"Master,\nthe multitude throng and press thee and sayest thou. Who touched me?\"\n[5]\n\nWhat an insight must Peter have received into Christ's divine powers\nand susceptibility as he noted the afflicted woman come through the\ncrowd and throw herself at the feet of Jesus, confessing all before\nhim! What satisfaction must have been his, as he heard his Lord say,\n\"Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of\nthy plague.\" [6] But Peter was soon to witness even a greater miracle.\n\nJAIRUS' LITTLE DAUGHTER\n\n[Sidenote: Jairus' Daughter Dead.]\n\nWhile Jesus was yet speaking to the now blessed and happy woman, and\nwhile Peter and his fellow councilmen and the multitude gazed in\nwonder, \"there cometh one from the ruler of the Synagogue's house,\nsaying to him, 'Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master.'\"\n\nPoor Jairus! He had hurried from the bedside of his little girl only a\nhalf hour or so ago to plead with Jesus of Nazareth to come and save\nhis little daughter. The Divine Physician had started immediately, but\nit was too late. The great destroyer, Death, had claimed the little\ngirl. Peter's heart must have ached in sympathy for the sorrowing\nfather. But, listen! Following the gloomy announcement of death, they\nhear the comforting voice of Jesus: \"Fear not; believe only, and she\nshall be made whole.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jairus' Daughter Restored.]\n\nAs they neared the house, they heard the weeping of friends and the\nmoans of the broken-hearted mother. But Peter, and others, too, heard\nthe Master say, \"Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth. And they\nlaughed Him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.\" [7] The Savior then\ntold everybody to leave the room excepting Peter, James, and John, the\nfather and the mother. He then walked up to the bed, took the little\ncold white hand in his, and said,\n\n\"Maid, arise.\n\n\"And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway: and he commanded\nto give her meat.\"\n\nThese incidents in the life of Peter are only a few of the glorious\nexperiences he witnessed even before he went out as \"a special witness\nof the name of Christ.\" Jesus knew that neither Peter nor anybody\nelse could convert others to the truth until he himself first knew\nthat truth. No one can teach others what he himself does not know.\nUndoubtedly by this time Peter believed, with all his heart, that Jesus\nthe Worker of Wonders, was indeed the Messiah who should come; but his\ntestimony was not yet firm as a _rock_.\n\nPETER'S FIRST MISSION\n\nHowever, the time had come when he was sufficiently instructed to be\nable to go on a mission, \"And Jesus called unto Him the Twelve, and\nbegan to send them forth by two and two;\" [8]\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Commission.]\n\n\"And commanded them saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and\ninto any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost\nsheep of the house of Israel, and as ye go preach, saying, The kingdom\nof heaven is at hand Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead,\ncast out devils; freely ye have received, freely give.\" [9]\n\nHe told them to travel without money and without extra coats, and to\ncarry blessings and peace to all who would receive them. He told them\nthey would be persecuted, arrested and tried before governors and\nkings; but He assured them that the Lord would deliver them.\n\nHe further said that, \"Whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your\nwords, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of\nyour feet. Verily I say unto you. It shall be more tolerable for the\nland of Sodom and Gomorra in the day of judgment than for that city.\"\n\n\"He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth\nHim that sent me. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these\nlittle ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily\nI say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.\"\n\nWe do not know who Peter's companion was on this mission; but we are\ntold that they went and preached that men should repent; that they cast\nout many devils, anointed with oil, and healed the sick, and did many\nother wonderful things in the name of Jesus of Nazareth.\n\n[Sidenote: John the Baptist Beheaded.]\n\nWhile they were on this mission, John Baptist the Baptist was beheaded\nby order of the wicked king Herod.\n\n[Sidenote: In a Desert Place Opposite Capernaum.]\n\nUpon their return unto Jesus, \"The Apostles gathered themselves\ntogether (probably at Capernaum) and told Him all things, both what\nthey had done, and what they had taught.\" But there were so many people\n\"coming and going\" that \"they had no leisure so much as to eat;\" so\nJesus desiring to be alone with the Twelve said, \"Come ye yourselves\napart into a desert place, and rest awhile.\" So they entered a ship\nprivately and sailed from the Capernaum side to the northwest coast.\nBut some of the people saw them departing and ran on foot around the\nnorthern coast of the lake. Other people saw these running, and joined\nthem so that when Jesus and the Twelve landed, there were hundreds if\nnot thousands of people there to greet them.\n\nAs evening approached, the disciples asked Jesus to send the multitude\naway, so they could go to their cities and buy something to eat.\n\n[Sidenote: Another Manifestation.]\n\nIt was on this occasion that Peter witnessed another manifestation\nof the power of God, and had repeated the valuable lesson he learned\nover a year before, when he made a miraculous draught of fishes; viz.,\nThat obedience to Christ's words always brings comfort and happiness.\nInstead of sending the multitude away hungry, Jesus said, \"Whence shall\nwe buy bread that these might eat?\"\n\n[Sidenote: The Multitude Fed.]\n\nPhilip answered, \"Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for\nthem, that every one of them may take a little.\" But from five barley\nloaves and two small fishes, Jesus, by some process natural to Him but\nmiraculous to us, fed that vast crowd of people, numbering about five\nthousand.\n\nPeter assisted not only in distributing the bread and fish among the\ncompanies, but also in gathering the twelve baskets full left. No doubt\nhe was one of those who said, \"This is of a truth that Prophet that\nshould come into the world.\" Let us hope, however, that he was not one\nof those who would have taken Jesus by force to make Him king.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Luke 6:13.\n\n2. Acts 4:13.\n\n3. Mark 5:22-23.\n\n4. Mark 5:24.\n\n5. Luke 8:45.\n\n6. Mark 5:34.\n\n7. Luke 8:52, 53.\n\n8. Mark 6.\n\n9. Matt. 10:5-42.\n\n\n\nLESSON 5\n\nPeter's Faith Tested\n\n\"_The steps of faith fall on the seeming void, but find the rock\nbeneath._\"\n\n\"_All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not\nseen._\"\n\n[Sidenote: Genuine Faith.]\n\nWhen Jesus called Simon \"Peter\" or \"The Rock,\" he undoubtedly expressed\nin that name one characteristic which He desired to see in the faith\nof His disciples, and particularly in each of His Apostles. He desired\nthem to possess a faith that was unwavering,--a faith that would\nmake them steadfast in the truth regardless of miracles or the acts\nof men--a faith that would trust the Lord at all times and under\nall circumstances, let those times and circumstances be what they\nmay. Jesus knew that the Jews were easily influenced; that a miracle\nperformed today might awaken a feeling in them that He was the King\nfor whom they had been waiting, and that a truth taught tomorrow might\narouse in them a feeling that He was an impostor. He wanted to lead\nthem to God and to His Gospel. He longed to have them comprehend the\ntruths of life so they would live them after He was gone from their\nmidst.\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus Grieved.]\n\nImagine, then, how grieved He must have been when, after the miracle\nmentioned in the last chapter, the people arose and hailed Him King and\nthought by offering Him the bauble of an empty crown, they were doing\nHim honor! He did not want them to honor Him. His desire was for them\nto see the power of God, and believe in His divine truth.\n\nDesiring to be alone once more with His Father, not wanting the company\neven of the three chief apostles, Peter, James, and John, Jesus\ndismissed the multitude, told the Twelve to get into the ship and sail\nback to Capernaum, and He retired to a solitary place to pray.\n\nA TEMPESTUOUS SEA\n\n[Sidenote: A Storm.]\n\nDuring the night, while Jesus was yet praying, a great storm arose,\nwhich stirred the lake into a seething mass of billows. From the\nmountain Jesus could see His disciples battling with the sea, but\nunable to make much headway, although they could not see Him.\n\nWhen the ship was about thirty furlongs (four miles) from the shore,\nJesus decided to go into it. It was now past midnight, and the\ndisciples were still struggling in the midst of the heaving sea.\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus on the Water.]\n\nImagine their fear when through the darkness they saw an object coming\ntowards them on the waves! And when someone cried out, \"It's a Spirit!\"\nthey were more frightened than ever.\n\n\"But straightway Jesus spoke unto them, saying. Be of good cheer; It is\nI; be not afraid.\"\n\nAt once, Peter spoke out, saying, \"Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come\nunto Thee on the water.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Faith.]\n\n\"Come,\" said Jesus.\n\n\"And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water,\nto go to Jesus.\"\n\nPeter, firm in belief and strong in determination, when your eye sees\nonly the majesty of faith and the perfect manifestation of its power!\nMighty and fearless when your eye sees only the glory of God, and your\nsoul cries out to go to Him!\n\n[Sidenote: His Doubt.]\n\nBut when you see \"the wind boisterous,\" you are afraid; and beginning\nto sink, cry, saying, \"Lord, save me.\"\n\nSo it is in life: when the winds of temptation and the waves of despair\nbeat upon us, the eye of faith is turned more upon these raging\nelements than upon the Light of Life, the power of faith is thus\nweakened, and as Peter, we begin to sink. Too many, ah, too many go\ndown beneath the billows; only a few cry out as he. \"Lord, save us!\"\n\nAnd immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and\nsaid unto him, \"O, thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?\"\n\nANOTHER TEST\n\n[Sidenote: In Capernaum.]\n\nNext morning, the people in Capernaum who knew that Peter and the other\ndisciples had left the opposite shore without Jesus, were very much\nastonished to see Him in their midst, and said, Rabbi, when camest thou\nhither?\n\n\"Ye seek me,\" answered Jesus, \"not because ye saw the miracles, but\nbecause ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.\"\n\n[IMAGE: \"Lord, save me.\"]\n\n\"Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which\nendureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto\nyou.\" [2]\n\n[Sidenote: Sermon on the Bread of Life.]\n\nHe then delivered the famous sermon on the Bread of Life, part of\nwhich, as John remembered it, is recorded in John the sixth chapter.\nThere were so many things spoken which the Jews could not understand,\nbecause of their prejudice, that they first became confused, then\nangry, and finally much offended. Those who had only a little faith,\nbecame influenced by the murmuring crowd, and said, \"We don't believe\nthis man is the Son of God.\" Even some of His disciples turned away\nfrom the Truth, and \"walked no more with Him.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Men Swerved by Doubt.]\n\nThe mass of angry men and women became much like the heaving sea that\ntossed the disciples the evening before. The winds of ridicule and the\nwaves of discontent beat against the wavering disciples. As they looked\nupon these angry elements of human passion, their faith in Christ\nweakened, and they \"began to sink.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus Appeals to the Twelve.]\n\nIn vain, Jesus testified, \"It is I, the Son of man!\" They would not\nlisten to Him, for He was to them only the son of Joseph the carpenter.\nAs group after group turned their backs upon Him. He turned to the\nTwelve and said, \"Will ye also go away?\"\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Answer.]\n\nAgain it was Peter who broke the silence. With the others, he had\nlooked at the noisy crowd, with the others he had listened to the\nangry words hurled at their Master. In the midst of this sea of human\npassion, shall he say, \"Lord, if it be Thee, bid me come unto Thee?\"\n\nAs if he wavered just a little, as if his faith had not yet become as\nfirm as Jesus would have it become, he answered, \"Lord, to whom shall\nwe go? Thou hast the words of eternal life.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Belief Matures into Knowledge.]\n\nThen, as his assurance became stronger and his thoughts turned from\nthe apostate crowd, he added, \"And we _believe_--and are _sure_ that\nthou are the Christ, the Son of the living God.\" Though there came not\nfrom Jesus' lips at this time, the word \"Blessed,\" yet, undoubtedly, He\nwas gratified indeed to see the wavering faith of His disciples become\nsteadfast in the heart of His Apostles, as if they would say,\n\n  \"Then come the wild weather, come sleet or come snow,\n  We will stand by each other, however it blow.\n  Oppression and sickness, and sorrow, and pain\n  Shall be to our true love as links in a chain.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Matt. 14:28.\n\n2. John 6:25-27.\n\n\n\nLESSON 6\n\nPeter's Testimony\n\n[Sidenote: At Tyre and Sidon.]\n\nVery soon after the people of Capernaum rejected the Savior, as\nnarrated in the previous chapter, Jesus took His Twelve disciples\nwestward across Galilee into the land of Tyre and Sidon, near the\nMediterranean Sea. He desired to be alone with the Twelve that He might\nteach them many things pertaining to the kingdom of God, and thus\nprepare them for carrying on the work, after He should leave them.\n\nThere were many things happened on this tour which must have made it\na memorable one to Peter and the other members of the Twelve. First,\nthere was the Gentile woman who sought Jesus, and implored Him to come\nand heal her little daughter.\n\n[Sidenote: A Syro-Phoenician Woman.]\n\nBecause she did not belong to the Jewish race, the disciples said:\n\"Master, send this woman away, for she is a trouble to us, crying out\nafter us.\" Of course, they thought then, and a long time afterwards,\nthat the Gospel was only for the Jews. But Jesus taught them that He\nloved the Gentile woman just as well as He did the Jews. But Peter did\nnot fully understand.\n\n[Sidenote: Other Miracles.]\n\nFrom the coast of Tyre and Sidon, they traveled around Galilee and came\nto the east side of the Sea of Galilee. Here the disciples witnessed\nfurther manifestations of the power of Jesus. A deaf man who could not\nspeak plainly was made to hear and to speak; and when the people heard\nabout it, they followed Jesus and the Twelve out of the village into \"a\ndesert place.\"\n\nAgain Peter saw a multitude of people fed; this time from only seven\nloaves and a few small fishes.\n\nIt would seem that after all these months with the Savior--hearing His\nparables, seeing His miracles, feeling His spirit and receiving His\nteachings daily, the apostles would surely understand the mission of\nthe Redeemer.\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus' Sayings Not Understood.]\n\nBut we read that after these \"four thousand men besides women and\nchildren\" were fed, the disciples entered with Jesus into a boat and\nrowed across to the west side of the lake. Here they met some Pharisees\nand Sadducees who began to oppose Jesus. When He and the Twelve were\nalone again, He said: \"Take heed and beware of the leaven of the\nPharisees and of the Sadducees.\"\n\nYou know what Jesus meant when He said this; but the disciples said to\nthemselves, \"He says this 'because we have brought no bread.'\"\n\nWhen Jesus saw that they did not comprehend Him, He said: \"How is\nit that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning\nbread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the\nSadducees?\"\n\n\"Then understood they how that He bade them not beware of the leaven of\nbread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.\" [1]\n\nUndoubtedly, there were several among them whose testimony was\nbecoming firm and unwavering. At any rate, we learn that just a few\ndays later, the chief apostle gave evidence in words that could not be\nmisunderstood, of his sure conviction that Christ was indeed the Son of\nthe Living God.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Memorable Testimony.]\n\nThey had gone northward to Caesarea Philippi at the foot of Mount\nHermon. Here, Jesus, one day, asked His disciples this question: \"Who\ndo men say that I, the Son of man, am?\"\n\nThey answered, \"Some say thou art John the Baptist. Some say thou art\nElias, and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.\"\n\nThen Jesus said, \"But who say ye that I am?\"\n\nSimon Peter answered,\n\n\"_Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God_.\"\n\nThere is no hesitancy now, no fear, no wavering, no \"we believe and are\nsure;\" but the unqualified and direct expression of a soul convinced of\nthe truth: \"Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God.\"\n\n\"_Blessed_ art thou, Simon Barjona,\" said Jesus, \"for flesh and blood\nhath not revealed this unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.\" [2]\n\nAt last Jesus discovers the assurance in Peter for which He has been\nlaboring many months to develop. He now knows that Peter's spirit\nhas received divine assurance that all these miracles and mighty\nmanifestations have been wrought by the power of God through His only\nBegotten Son. He knows that the testimony borne by Peter comes not from\nmen but from God, and no matter what men may think or do, Peter will\nstand firm as a rock on this testimony.\n\n\"I say unto thee,\" continued Jesus, \"that thou art Peter, and upon this\nrock will I build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail\nagainst it.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Christ's Church Built Upon Revelation.]\n\nBy that He meant that as Simon's name \"Peter\" means rock, so this\ntestimony that comes by revelation shall be the rock upon which\nChrist's Church shall be built. Because when one receives such divine\nassurance in his soul that the gospel is true, no views of men, nor\nwaves of temptation nor \"the power of hell\" can deprive him of it. You\nremember when Jesus first met Simon, He said He should be called \"the\nRock.\" Ever since then it would seem that Jesus has been waiting for\nthe time when Peter's testimony would be like his character--expressive\nand firm. That time has come; and Peter is now prepared to receive a\ngreater responsibility.\n\n[Sidenote: Keys of the Kingdom]\n\n\"And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and\nwhatsoever thou shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and\nwhatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.\"\n\nOne key was to open the door of the gospel to the Gentiles, but it took\nquite a while before Peter knew how to use it.\n\nIt is one thing to know that the gospel is true; it is quite another\nthing to comprehend its purpose and significance.\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus Foretells His Death.]\n\nFrom that time, Jesus began to tell the Apostles that He would suffer\nand die, and that they must carry on the preaching of the gospel. He\ntold them that in a few months He would be taken by the chief priests,\nwould be killed, and would rise again the third day.\n\n[Sidenote: Misguided Zeal.]\n\nWhen Peter heard this, he took the Savior off to one side, and still\nhoping that Jesus would some day be a king, said, \"Far be it from Thee,\nLord; this shall not be unto Thee.\" As much as to say, \"They shall not\ntake you if we can prevent it.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Rebuked Peter.]\n\nBrave but uncomprehending Peter! He does not realize that it is\nnecessary for his Lord to die, before His mission of redemption is\nfulfilled. So he would, in his blinded love, prevent his Master from\ncompleting His work! The Savior perceiving this, turned and said unto\nPeter, \"Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offense unto me; for\nthou savorest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.\"\n[3]\n\nThis was a severe rebuke, and it must have impressed Peter deeply with\nthe thought that his plan was not God's plan; and he no doubt realized\nthat there was yet very much for him to learn before he could carry\nout the great responsibility that the Lord had this day conferred upon\nhim. But in his zeal to save Jesus from death, he erred, though only in\nlove; and we can fancy hearing one of the others saying, in effect, in\ncommendation of Peter's anxiety,\n\n  \"If he be not one that truly loves you,\n  That errs in ignorance, and not in cunning,\n  I have no judgment in an honest man's face.\"\n\nAt any rate, we know that Jesus was pleased with Peter's testimony, and\nwith his love, and would patiently wait the unfolding of his mind in\nthe comprehension of the gospel plan.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Matt. 16:1-12.\n\n2. Matt. 16:13-20.\n\n3. Matt. 16:16-23.\n\n\n\nLESSON 7\n\nA Marvelous Manifestation\n\n[Sidenote: The Holy Mount.]\n\nIn the region of Caesarea Philippi, where Peter gave his testimony and\nreceived a blessing and power from his Master, is a high mountain peak\nof the Lebanon range, known as Mt. Hermon. Peter called it the Holy\nMount. When you learn of what took place there, you will agree that\nPeter gave it a good name.\n\nOne writer who has visited this region tells us that the \"glittering\nsplendor\" of this peak, \"towering like a giant above all other peaks\nof the Lebanon range, its head always covered with snow, is visible\nfrom every direction. It is in clear view as far south as the Dead\nSea. It was probably the highest spot of earth on which our Lord ever\nstood, and from which He had His most extensive view. From it He looked\ndown upon Galilee, where He had taught and wrought, where He had been\nreceived by the few and rejected by the many.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: Self-Denial Necessary.]\n\nSix days, (Luke says eight) had passed since Peter had borne his great\ntestimony--six days, undoubtedly of important instruction to Peter and\nthe other eleven. It was probably during that time that the Twelve\nlearned that to be a true follower of Jesus, one must be able to deny\none's self of many desires and appetites--one must learn to control\nfeelings of anger, jealousy, and other passions. Said the Savior, \"If\nany man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his\ncross, and follow me.\n\n\"For whosoever will save his life, shall lose it:\n\n\"And whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.\n\n\"For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose\nhis own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?\" [2]\n\nThese and many other glorious truths, Peter undoubtedly heard during\nthat memorable week at Caesarea Philippi.\n\nBut he was to see and hear things even more glorious.\n\nStill perplexed over some of the sayings of Jesus, still wondering\nwhy it was necessary for their Lord to \"suffer many things, and be\nrejected\" and even put to death, Peter and James and John one night,\naccompanied Jesus up the side of Mt. Hermon. It appears from the brief\naccounts we have of this incident that they spent several hours in\nsolemn conversation, the apostles \"asking Him many questions concerning\nHis sayings.\"\n\n[Sidenote: The Transfiguration.]\n\nTwilight deepened into darkness, and the shades of night completely hid\nMt. Hermon from the sleeping vales below. Perhaps the three leaders\nbecame drowsy; and as their Lord withdrew a little apart to pray, they\nmay have fallen, for a moment or two, into a sleep--Luke tells us that\nthey were \"heavy with sleep.\" Be that as it may, we know that when\ntheir eyes were turned toward Jesus, \"He was transfigured before them.\nAnd His raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so white as no\nfuller on earth can white them.\"\n\n\"And there appeared unto them Elias and Moses, and they were talking\nwith Jesus.\" [3]\n\n[Sidenote: Death but a Change.]\n\nThese heavenly personages talked, not _to_ Jesus but _with_ him, about\nHis approaching death, and resurrection, one of the vital things in\nChrist's ministry which Peter could not comprehend. Surely after this\nglorious vision of two heavenly beings. Death would lose much if not\nall its terror for Peter, James, and John. They would know that even if\nwicked men did kill their Master, that He would still live and still\nbe their Lord and Savior. Death, to them, after this, would be just a\n\"departure.\" They would realize that \"Death hath nothing terrible in\nit, but what life hath made so.\"\n\n[Sidenote: \"It is Good to be Here.\"]\n\nPeter by inspiration had received assurances that Jesus was indeed the\nChrist; now he witnessed a visible sign of his testimony. Desiring\nto have a monument to this outward sign, something which other eyes\nbeside his might behold, he cried, out of the impulsiveness of his\nheart, \"Master, it is good for us to be here, and let us make three\ntabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.\" But\nsuddenly, as Moses and Elias \"departed,\" a cloud overshadowed them and\na voice came _out of the cloud_ saying, \"_This_ is My beloved Son hear\nHim!\"\n\n[Sidenote: Sources of Testimony.]\n\nPeter's testimony was, by this time, made strong and his faith proved:\n[4]\n\n(1) By the confirmation of miracles; (2) By seeing heavenly beings; (3)\nBy inspiration; (4) By hearing not only the testimony of these angels\nbut the Divine testimony of God Himself!\n\nSurely his faith is now built upon the Rock, and the gates of hell\ncannot prevail against it!\n\nThis is true; and henceforth, we may safely conclude as we follow his\ncareer, that not a shadow of doubt of the divinity of Christ's mission\never crosses Peter's mind.\n\nWhen we think of Peter having been in almost daily contact with the\nSavior of men, we may conclude that his testimony grew very slowly,\nbut if so, like the oak tree that grows slowly to, it was all the more\nenduring.\n\n[Sidenote: Purity and Sincerity Essentials.]\n\nAfter all, Peter's experience is the experience that will come to\nnearly all the boys and girls who read these pages. The knowledge\nof truth, and the testimony of the Gospel may come gradually to most\nof them. The one great lesson for them to learn even in youth is,\nthat _purity of thought_, and a _sincere heart seeking_ the Savior's\n_guidance daily_ will lead to a testimony of the truth of Christ's\nGospel as sure and permanent as that which Peter possessed as he\ndescended Mt. Hermon after seeing the transfiguration of Christ, and\nhearing the voice of God testify to His divinity.\n\nBut _knowing_ that Jesus is the Savior of mankind, did not give Peter\na comprehension of the Gospel plan. In this regard, he had yet much\nto learn. And, it may be, that his strength of character, or shall we\nsay, his judgment, was not yet so sound as it should have been in a man\nwhose whole life should be as firm as a rock.\n\nIn the strength of his testimony, and in a somewhat resigned attitude\nto the fate that sooner or later was to befall his Master, Peter\ncontinued to ask many questions, pertaining to the vital aspects of\nChrist's mission. One of these which the apostles asked themselves as\nthey came down towards the crowd at the foot of the hill, was, What did\nthe Master mean when He said the Son of Man would rise from the dead?\n\nWhile the Savior was answering this question, and explaining prophecies\nrelating to it, they came to the place where, the evening before, they\nhad left the other disciples. A great multitude had gathered about\nthem, and the scribes were questioning them.\n\n[Sidenote: The Afflicted Boy.]\n\nIn the midst of this crowd was a little boy sorely afflicted by an evil\nspirit. When he was \"possessed,\" he fell to the ground, foamed at the\nmouth, gnashed his teeth, and pined away. The father met Jesus, and\nbegged Him to relieve his poor boy, and added that the disciples had\ntried but could not.\n\n\"How long a time is it,\" asked Jesus, \"since this came unto him?\" \"When\na child,\" the father said; \"and ofttimes it hath cast him into fire and\ninto the waters, to destroy him, but if thou canst, I ask thee to have\ncompassion on us, and help us.\"\n\nJesus rebuked the foul spirit, and the little boy was healed.\n\n[Sidenote: A Contrast.]\n\nTo Peter, James, and John what a contrast was this scene to the one\nthey beheld the night before on the Mount! Here was manifest the power\nof the evil one, causing suspicions, pain, agony, death; _there_ was\nmanifest the power of the Holy One, proclaiming happiness, peace,\nglory, and immortality! Such have been the results of these two powers\nas they have influenced the lives of men in all ages. Such is the\nresult today. A vital question for us is, Shall we hover around the\nfoothills of sin where the evil one is triumphant, or shall we at least\nshow a willingness to climb the mount of Holiness and let God transform\nour lives?\n\n  \"'Tis not for man to trifle; life is brief,\n  And sin is here.\n  Our age is but the falling leaf,\n  A dropping tear.\n  We have no time to sport away the hours,\n  All must be earnest in a world like ours.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Weed.\n\n2. Matt. 16:24-26.\n\n3. Matt. 17:1-8; Mark 9:1-6.\n\n4. Peter 1:7.\n\n\n\nLESSON 8\n\nLessons in True Leadership.\n\n\"Character is built out of circumstances. From exactly the same\nmaterials one man builds palaces, while another builds hovels.\"\n\nBetween the Transfiguration and the last eventful week of the Savior's\nlife on earth, there are only a few recorded instances in scripture\nwith which Peter is personally mentioned. It is significant, however,\nthat nearly everyone of these, bears either directly or indirectly\nupon the moulding of Peter's character as an Apostolic leader. Peter\nknows that Jesus is the Christ that should come, but has he strength to\ndefend Him in word and deed? Does he comprehend the divine principles\nof the Gospel sufficiently to manifest them in his daily life and\nconversation and in all his associations with his fellowmen? With the\nprobable exception of the tribute money incident, which emphasized for\nPeter the divine Sonship of his Master, all the lessons following bear\ndirectly upon strength of character and principles of conduct.\n\nTRIBUTE\n\n[Sidenote: An Ancient Law.]\n\nIn those days, there was a tax levied upon every male Jew of twenty\nyears old and upwards for the maintenance of the Temple and its\nservices. This law had been in force ever since the days of the\nchildren of Israel when the great lawgiver, Moses, said a \"half shekel\nshall be the offering of the Lord.\" [1]\n\nMatthew tells us that \"When they were come to Capernaum, they that\nreceived tribute money, came to Peter and said, \"Doth not your Master\npay tribute?\" [2] \"Yes,\" promptly answered Peter.\n\nIf he knew when he was talking to the tax-gatherers, that \"there was\nno money in the bag,\" he must have wondered how the half-shekel due as\ntribute could have been paid that day.\n\n[Sidenote: Children of the Kingdom Free.]\n\nWhen Peter went back into the house, Jesus anticipated what he was\ngoing to say, and asked Him, \"Of whom do the kings of the earth take\ncustom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers?\n\n\"Of strangers,\" answered Peter.\n\n\"Then are the children free,\" said Jesus, meaning that since this\ntribute money was for the maintenance of His Father's house, He, the\nSon, would not have to pay it; but he added:\n\n\"Lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook and\ntake up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his\nmouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take and give unto them\nfor me and thee.\"\n\nThis experience must have impressed Peter with the fact that it is\nbetter to suffer offense than to give offense.\n\nA LESSON IN FORGIVENESS\n\nAbout this same time, Peter asked the question:\n\n\"Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till\nseven times?\" [3]\n\nPerhaps Peter had already been required to settle some difficulty\nbetween angry men, or it may be that he had been provoked during a\ndispute that arose among the disciples as to who was the greatest\namong them. If some one had taunted him several times about his being\nthe greatest, it is quite probable that his patience was exhausted.\nAt any rate, he wanted to know if there is a limit to the number of\ntimes a man should forgive his brother. What a lesson Jesus taught this\nimpetuous apostle when he answered,\n\n\"I say not unto thee, until seven times; but until seventy times\nseven.\" [4]\n\nThen, to make the teaching more impressive, the Lord told them the\nparable of the unmerciful debtor.\n\nA certain king took account of his servants for those who had collected\nhis revenue, and found that one owed him ten thousand talents or about\nfifteen million dollars. This debt the servant could not pay, so the\nking commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children, and all that\nhe had. [5]\n\nThe servant begged for mercy saying, \"Lord, have patience with me, and\nI will pay thee all.\"\n\n\"Then the Lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed\nhim, and forgave him the debt.\" The master not only had pity for the\nunfortunate debtor, but freed him from prison, let him keep his wife\nand children, and cancelled the debt.\n\n[Sidenote: The Ungrateful Servant.]\n\nBut that same servant went out and found one of his fellow-servants who\nowed him a hundred pence, more than ten hundred thousand times less\nthan the first servant had owed his master.\n\nSeizing the fellow-servant by the throat and choking him, he demanded,\n\"Pay me that thou owest.\"\n\nThe fellow-servant fell down at his feet and begged for mercy, \"Have\npatience with me and I will pay thee all.\"\n\nBut the unforgiving, merciless servant refusing to give pity, \"went and\ncast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.\"\n\nSo when the Lord heard how the servant whom he had forgiven had treated\nhis fellow-servant, he called that servant back, and said:\n\n\"O thou wicked servant! I forgave thee all that debt, because thou\ndesiredst me; should not thou also have had compassion on thy\nfellow-servant, even as I had pity on thee?\"\n\nThis unforgiving servant was then told to pay the ten thousand talents,\nand was delivered over to the \"tormentors\" until it was all paid.\n\nThen concluded the Savior: \"So likewise shall my Heavenly Father do\nalso unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother\ntheir trespasses.\"\n\nDo you think Peter would ever forget that lesson?\n\nTHE REWARD OF SACRIFICE\n\n[Sidenote: The Rich Young Ruler]\n\nOne day Peter and others listened to a conversation between their Lord\nand a rich young ruler. He was a young man, rich, and, as painted by\nthe old masters, very handsome. But with all, he had kept himself\nmorally clean, and desired to get eternal life. [6] But his heart was\nset upon his riches; so when the Savior said, \"Sell all thou hast, and\ndistribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and\ncome, follow me,\" the young ruler went away very sorrowful.\n\nThen Peter said, \"Lo, we have left all and followed thee.\" As much as\nto say, Lord we have left everything for Thee, now what shall be our\nreward? Jesus said:\n\n\"There is no man who has left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife,\nor children, for the kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive\nmanifold more in this present time; and in the world to come, life\neverlasting.\"\n\n\"But,\" He added, \"there are many who make themselves first, that shall\nbe last; and the last first.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Humility.]\n\nThis last statement must have contained for Peter, the first among the\nTwelve, an important lesson in Humility.\n\nA LESSON IN FAITH\n\nIt was probably on Tuesday of the last week that Jesus spent with His\napostles, that Peter called attention to the result of a divine curse.\n\n[Sidenote: The Barren Fig Tree.]\n\nA day or so before this, Jesus had gone out of His way to get some figs\nfrom a tree that stood some distance off. When he found that the tree\nbore no fruit He said it should never bear fruit again.\n\nOn this Tuesday morning as the disciples were passing by, \"they saw the\nfig tree dried up from the roots.\"\n\n\"And Peter calling to remembrance said unto Him, Master, behold the fig\ntree which Thou cursedst is withered away.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Power of Faith.]\n\nJesus answered: \"Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, that\nwhosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou\ncast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe\nthat those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have\nwhatsoever he saith.\" [7]\n\nOn that same day, Peter was undoubtedly with the Twelve on the Mount of\nOlives when they asked Jesus \"privately\" about the destruction of the\nTemple. [8]\n\n[Sidenote: Keep Commandments.]\n\nTo Peter and to all He said: \"Watch ye therefore, and pray always, and\nkeep my commandments, that ye may be counted worthy to escape all these\nthings which shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man when\nHe shall come clothed in the glory of His Father.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Ex. 30:13.\n\n2. Matt. 17:24-27.\n\n3. Matt. 18:21.\n\n4. Matt. 18:22\n\n5. See II Kings 4:1; Lev. 25:39.\n\n6. Read Luke 18:18-30.\n\n7. Mark 11:22-28.\n\n8. Mark 13; Matt. 24; Luke 21.\n\n\n\nLESSON 9\n\nON THE NIGHT OF THE BETRAYAL\n\n\"The weakest spot in every man, is where he thinks himself the wisest.\"\n\nIN THE UPPER ROOM\n\nOn Thursday of the Passion Week, Jesus called Peter and John to Him,\nand said: \"Go, and prepare us the passover, that we may eat.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: The Passover.]\n\nThe Passover, you remember, is the name given to the feast established\nto commemorate the time when the destroying angel _passed over_ the\nhouses of the Hebrews, which had been marked by the blood of the lamb.\nAt this festsival, a lamb was killed, and called the Paschal Lamb. It\nwas on the day that \"the passover must be killed\" that Peter and John\nwere requested to make preparation.\n\n\"Where wilt thou that we prepare?\" they asked.\n\n[Sidenote: An Upper Room Prepared.]\n\n\"When ye have entered into the city,\" replied Jesus, \"there shall a man\nmeet you bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he\nentereth in. Ask him, Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the\nPassover with my disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room\nfurnished; there make ready.\" [2]\n\nThe two apostles did as they were directed, found everything just as\nthe Lord had stated, and made the necessary preparations.\n\nAt the appointed hour Jesus and the Twelve gathered in this upper\nroom. Some think it was in Mark's house, some the house of Joseph\nof Arimathea, but we do not know, nor does it much matter. We are\ninterested most in what took place there.\n\n[Sidenote: A Solemn Meeting.]\n\nJesus sat at the head of the feast. On one side, close enough to\nrecline on His Master's breast sat John, and on the other side sat\nPeter. It was, perhaps, the most solemn meeting at which the Twelve had\never gathered; for the Savior said at the beginning:\n\n\"With desire,\" that is with longing earnestness, \"I have desired to eat\nthis passover with you before I suffer: For I say unto you, I will not\nany more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled which is written in the\nprophets concerning me.\"\n\nMeaning that His hour had come when His enemies should take Him and put\nHim to death.\n\nNear the end of the supper, Jesus rose from where He was reclining,\nlaid aside His outer garments, took a towel and tied it around His\nwaist, thus assuming a servant's dress. He then took a basin of water\nand proceeded to wash the disciples' feet.\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus Washeth Disciples' Feet.]\n\nIt may be that the Savior had detected in the minds of some the same\nthought which had caused a dispute among them once before, as to who\nwas the greatest among them. Perhaps this thought arose when they saw\nPeter and John occupying the places of honor. At any rate, their Lord,\nthe greatest among them, assumed the attitude of servant, the least and\nhumblest of them all.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Objects.]\n\nWhen He came to Peter, the latter said: \"Lord, dost _Thou_ wash _my_\nfeet?\" Peter would serve his Master, but his Master must never serve\nhim!\n\n\"What I do thou knowest not now: but thou shalt know hereafter,\"\nanswered Jesus.\n\n\"Thou needst not to wash my feet.\"\n\n\"If I wash thee not,\" continued Jesus, \"thou hast no part with me.\"\n\nWhen Peter thought that his refusal to submit to be served by the Lord,\nwas really putting the Savior away from him, he said,\n\n\"Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.\"\n\n[Sidenote: An Example.]\n\n\"So after He had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was\nset down again. He said unto them: Know ye what I have done to you?\nYe call me Master and Lord; and ye say well, for so I am. If I then,\nyour Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one\nanother's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I\nhave done to you.\"\n\nThus did these twelve men receive in an impressive and practical\nmanner, the divine lesson of service. Thus did they learn that those\nwho were greatest among them were really the servants of all. Indeed,\nin the Church of Christ, there are no masters and no servants, but all\nworking for every one and each one for all.\n\n[Sidenote: \"One of You Shall Betray Me.\"]\n\nImmediately following this impressive and sacred ceremony, the full\nsignificance of which very few understand, the Savior said, \"One of you\nshall betray me.\"\n\nThis announcement cast a gloom over all. To make it caused \"trouble\"\nto come over Christ's \"spirit;\" and to hear it, made all \"exceeding\nsorrowful.\" [3]\n\nThey began to inquire among themselves which one of them should be so\nfaithless; and soon each asked the Master, \"Lord, is it I?\"\n\nJudas, last of all answered and said, \"Lord, is it I?\"\n\nJesus' answer, \"Thou hast said,\" must not have been heard by the\nothers, because Peter beckoned to John to ask the Master \"who it should\nbe of whom he spoke.\"\n\nJesus replied, also in a quiet manner, \"He it is, to whom I shall give\na sop, when I have dipped it.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Judas Iscariot.]\n\nWhen he had dipped the sop, he handed it to Judas Iscariot. Peter and\nJohn, then, knew who the traitor was; but the others probably did not;\nfor they wondered what Jesus meant when He said to Judas: \"That thou\ndoest do quickly.\"\n\nLOYALTY AS PETER FELT IT\n\nAfter the traitor went out into the night--oh such a night for him!\nJesus continued to teach and to comfort the Eleven.\n\n[Sidenote: Love One Another.]\n\n\"A new commandment I give unto you,\" He said, \"That ye love one\nanother; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.\"\n\nAmong other things, He said, referring to His approaching death,\n\"Whither I go ye cannot come.\"\n\nThis stirred Peter's love and he inquired, \"Lord, why cannot I follow\nThee now? I will lay down my life for Thy sake.\" [4]\n\n[Sidenote: Peter to Be Tried.]\n\n\"Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired you that he may sift you as\nwheat. But I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not; and when\nthou art converted, [that is, \"brought back afresh as a penitent\ndisciple\"] strengthen thy brethren.\" [5]\n\nThis grieved Peter very deeply. To think that his Master would even\nsuspect that he, _Peter_, would even weaken in his steadfastness to\nhis Lord! (It is significant that the Lord called him by his old name,\n_Simon_).\n\nPeter protested, saying, \"Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into\nprison, and to death.\" [6]\n\n[Sidenote: A Prophecy.]\n\n\"I tell you, Peter,\" continued the Savior, \"that the cock shall not\ncrow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.\"\n\nBut, he spake the more vehemently. \"Though I should die with thee, yet\nwill I not deny thee. Likewise so said they all.\" [7]\n\nPeter meant every word he said, and he felt deeply the truth of what he\nspake; but his real strength had not come to him yet, and his Master\nknew it. It would come but it would be \"Born in the deep silence of a\nlong-suffering heart.\"\n\nLOYALTY AS PETER ACTED IT\n\n[Sidenote: Gethsemane.]\n\nLater in the night, the company left the upper room, crossed the brook\nKedron, and went to the Garden of Gethsemane, on the west side of the\nMount of Olives.\n\nBidding eight of the Eleven to remain together. He took the other\nthree, Peter, James, and John, apart. His soul \"was exceeding sorrowful\neven unto death.\"\n\nHe said, \"Tarry ye here, and watch with me.\"\n\n[Sidenote: \"Not My Will but Thine be Done.\"]\n\nSoon He withdrew a little from them, and prayed. The Apostles could see\nHim, perhaps could hear Him, as He cried, \"Father, if it be possible\nlet this cup pass; nevertheless not my will, but thine be done.\"\n\nWhen he returned, and found the three sleeping, He said, \"Simon [Simon\nagain] sleepest thou? Couldst not thou watch one hour?\"\n\n\"Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.\"\n\n\"The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.\" [8]\n\n[Sidenote: Peter and His Brethren Drowsy.]\n\nA second time He withdrew; a second time returned; a second time found\nthem sleeping; \"for their eyes were heavy; neither knew they what to\nanswer Him.\"\n\nWhen He returned the third time, He said kindly, \"Sleep on now and take\nyour rest; it is enough, the hour is come; behold the Son of Man is\nbetrayed into the hands of sinners.\"\n\nAfter a little longer sleep, the three were awakened by Jesus, only to\nsee approaching \"a great multitude, with swords and staves, from the\nchief priests, and the scribes and the elders.\" At their head was Judas\nwho approached his Lord, and betrayed Him with a kiss.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Defends His Lord.]\n\nAs soldiers went to lay hands upon Jesus, Peter, who was now thoroughly\naroused, jumped to the rescue of his Master, \"drew his sword, and smote\na servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.\"\n\nThis servant, whose right ear Peter struck off with one blow, was\ncalled Malchus.\n\n[Sidenote: A Lesson.]\n\n\"Put up thy sword into the sheath,\" commanded the Savior, \"the cup\nwhich my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?\" What a lesson to\nPeter! Even though duty led to suffering and death, yet would the Lord\nnot waver in His strength.\n\nThen said Jesus, \"Suffer ye thus far, and He touched his ear and healed\nhim.\" [9]\n\nAs the officers led Jesus away, the disciples \"all forsook Him, and\nfled.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Follows Jesus.]\n\nPeter's strength and loyalty were wavering; but he could not bring\nhimself to flee with the others. Neither could he conclude that it was\nbest to go with Jesus; so he did neither, but \"followed Him afar off,\neven unto the palace of the high priest.\"\n\nAt first, he remained on the outside, but later ventured in where the\nservants were sitting.\n\nWEAKNESS BRINGS MISERY\n\nWhile Peter was standing by the stove warming himself, a girl came in,\nand recognizing him as one who had been with Jesus, said, \"Thou, also\nwast with Jesus of Galilee.\"\n\n[Sidenote: In a Moment of Weakness.]\n\n\"I know not what thou sayest,\" said Peter before them all.\n\nHe then stepped out on the porch, perhaps to cool his burning\nconscience or to try to collect himself to know what best to do.\n\nA man seeing him there cried out, \"This man was also with Jesus of\nNazareth.\"\n\n\"I do not know the man,\" said Simon; and this time he took an oath.\n\nOne of the servants of the high priest, who was related to Malchus\napproached Peter a little later, and said, \"Did I not see thee in the\nGarden with Him?\" [10]\n\nThen began he to curse and to swear, saying, \"Man, I know not what thou\nsayest.\" At that moment, Peter heard the cock crow.\n\n[Sidenote: Sorrow.]\n\nAlmost immediately, too, the Savior passing near him, \"turned and\nlooked upon Peter.\" Then recalling the words of his Lord, \"Before the\ncock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice.\" [11] Peter went out and\nwept bitterly.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Luke 22:8.\n\n2. Luke 22:11-12.\n\n3. Matt. 26:22.\n\n4. John 13:34-37.\n\n5. Luke 22:31, 32.\n\n6. Luke 22:33.\n\n7. Matt. 26:35.\n\n8. Mark 14:38.\n\n9. Luke 22:51.\n\n10. John 18:26.\n\n11. Luke 22:61.\n\n\n\nLESSON 10\n\nOUT OF GLOOM, INTO LIGHT\n\n\"Strength is born in the deep silence of long-suffering hearts, not\namidst joy.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Out of Weakness, Strength.]\n\nIt is said when Peter \"went out speechless from the face of all, * * *\nand filled the silence, weeping bitterly,\" that his grief was so heavy\nthat he remained alone all day during Friday and Saturday following\nthe Savior's crucifixion. If so, his sorrow for what he had done was\nmade all the more acute as he recalled the many kind words the Savior\nhad spoken to him, and the many, many happy moments he had spent in\nthe Lord's company. Every word and act and look associated with his\nMaster would flash upon his mind with a new meaning. Perhaps for the\nfirst time in his life, he now fully realized why the Lord had desired\nhis nature and faith to be as \"The Rock.\" Through the mist of his\nbitter tears, he saw all the true attributes of manhood as they were\npersonified in Jesus--Reverence, Brotherliness, Patience, Sincerity,\nCourage. These and many other noble traits made Jesus appear to him now\nmore holy than ever. But the more clearly Peter saw Christ's strength\nand holiness, the more clearly he realized his own littleness and\nmisery. This last manifestation of his weakness, which led him to deny\nhis Lord, made him see himself in a new light, and it had a decisive\neffect upon him. Out of the \"deep silence\" of his suffering, those two\ndays, there was born that strength which Christ had urged upon him ever\nsince He called him \"Peter.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Sad Meeting.]\n\nIt must have been a sad meeting when John and Peter first came together\nafter the Crucifixion. When it was or where, we are not told; but\nwe are sure that John must have recognized a great change in his\nfellow-apostle. Out of the haggard look and the deep lines of grief\nthere must have shone a humility which John had never before seen\nin Peter's face. We can only imagine what Peter's feelings were as\nhe listened to John tell of all that had happened before Herod and\nPilate, and at the Cross. Mingling with Peter's grief was the keen\ndisappointment that their Messiah, their King, was not to free the Jews\nand rule over them as he had hoped. In doubt as to what to do, they\nprobably decided to visit the place where their Master had been laid,\nand then return to their former vocation as fishermen.\n\n[Sidenote: At the Sepulchre.]\n\nBut there was one whose love and devotion took her to the tomb even\nbefore the Apostles. Mary Magdalene, \"while it was yet dark\" approached\nthe place where she thought Jesus slept in death. But instead of\nseeing her Lord's body in the cold, dark sepulchre, around which\nthere was nothing but gloom and sorrow, she found an empty tomb. In\nalarm, she ran to Peter and John, and breathlessly cried, \"They have\ntaken away the Lord out of the sepulchre.\" \"Peter therefore went\nforth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre.\" At first,\nthey ran together, but Peter already weary with suffering, was soon\nout-distanced by the younger Apostle John, who reached the place first.\n\n\"And stooping down, and looking in, he saw the linen clothes lying; yet\nwent he not in.\"\n\nJust to look in, however, did not satisfy Peter; for as soon as he\ncame, he \"went into the sepulchre.\" John followed him. They noticed\nthe napkin that had been on Jesus' head wrapped and placed by itself;\nthe linen clothes, too, were folded neatly and placed aside with care.\nThey concluded that thieves would not have done this, and so dispelled\nMary's theory that the Lord's body had been stolen. But \"as yet they\nknew not the scripture that He must rise again from the dead.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Mary Beholds Risen Redeemer.]\n\nFilled with wonder and perplexity, the two disciples \"went away again\nto their own home,\" but Mary lingered near the tomb, and as a reward\nfor her faithfulness and devotion, became the first person in the world\nto behold the risen Redeemer.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Sees His Lord.]\n\nOther women who came to the tomb that morning to render, as they\nthought, the last slight service to their Lord, were permitted also to\nsee Him. Later on that same day, it seems that He appeared to Peter;\nbut where, or under what circumstances, or what was said, we do not\nknow. We may rest assured, however, that Peter's repentant soul was\nfilled with joy eternal as he received the divine forgiveness of His\nLord.\n\n[Sidenote: Disciples From Emmans.]\n\nThat evening as the Eleven were assembled in a room talking over the\nevents of the day, and particularly the Lord's appearance to Peter,\nthere entered two disciples from Emmaus. They were no sooner in the\npresence of the Eleven, than they heard the joyous message, \"The Lord\nis risen indeed and hath appeared unto Simon.\" They could readily\nbelieve this, for they said, \"When we were returning from Jerusalem,\ntoday, after having heard of the angels and the empty tomb, Jesus\nHimself drew near and went with us.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jesus Appears to Eleven.]\n\nWhile they were thus assembled, Jesus appeared to them again, \"and\nsaith unto them. Peace be unto you.\" Such scenes as that cannot be\ndescribed, and the evangelists who tell us about it simply state the\nfact and leave us to imagine what their thoughts and feelings were on\nthat glorious occasion. We are sure, though, that we can say of Peter\nas has been written of the Prophet Joseph when he, too, saw the Savior,\n\n  \"O what rapture filled his bosom,\n  For he saw the living God.\"\n\nTHE FISHERMAN BECOMES THE SHEPHERD\n\n[Sidenote: On Sea of Tiberias.]\n\nSeveral days after this, Peter and six other disciples were back on the\nsea of Tiberias, fishing. They were in Galilee, evidently waiting to\nmeet the Lord there as He had promised. One evening, as if Peter had\nalmost despaired of waiting, he said to the others,\n\n\"I'm going a fishing.\"\n\n\"We also go with thee,\" said they.\n\nThey entered into a boat immediately, and let down their nets. They\ntoiled all night, and caught nothing, just as some of them had done on\na memorable occasion several months before.\n\nAs morning dawned, they saw a man standing on the shore, but in the\ndistance, they could not tell who he was. Suddenly the man cried,\n\n\"Sirs, have ye any meat?\"\n\n\"No,\" was their reply.\n\n[Sidenote: Many Fish Caught.]\n\n\"Cast the net on the right side of the ship and ye shall find,\" said\nthe man.\n\nThey did so, and caught so many fish that they could scarcely draw in\nthe net.\n\nJohn, whose loving eyes were made more keen by a loving heart, rushed\nto Peter's side and whispered, \"It is the Lord.\"\n\nInstantly, Peter knew John spoke the truth, and man of action that he\nwas, he put on his fisherman's coat, plunged into the sea, and hastened\nto the feet of his Master. The others came in the little ship, dragging\nthe net of fishes.\n\nJesus had already started a fire, and' was cooking them something to\neat. After the greetings, He said, \"Bring of the fish which ye have now\ncaught.\"\n\nPeter was the leader in going to the net and in drawing it to the\nland. While the fish were cooking, the disciples counted the number\ncaught, and found that in that one draught there were one hundred and\nfifty-three: \"and for all there were so many, yet was the net not\nbroken.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Peter a Shepherd of Christ's Fold.]\n\nJesus had shown them where to catch the fish, He had started the fire\non which to cook them, and now \"He taketh the bread and giveth them and\nthe fish likewise.\" Surely these little incidents would tend to impress\nthem with the truth that if they \"would seek first the Kingdom of God\nand His righteousness all else will be added.\" At any rate, this is\nthe lesson taught on that great occasion: The apostles were not now to\nspend their lives seeking the things which perish, but in searching for\nsouls that will endure throughout all eternity. Many are now together\nin the fold of Christ, and the shepherd is called away. Henceforward\nPeter and his associates must be the keepers of this flock.\n\nWhen they had broken their fast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, \"Simon, son\nof Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?\"\n\n\"Yea, Lord,\" answered Peter, \"Thou knowest that I love Thee.\"\n\n\"Feed my lambs.\" That is, Take care of the little ones in my Church. Do\nnot let them go astray in paths that will lead them to sin and misery.\n\nHe saith unto him again the second time,\n\n\"Simon, son of Jonas lovest thou me?\"\n\n\"Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee.\"\n\n\"Feed my sheep.\" Keep the older ones together and give them the words\nof life as thou hast received them from me.\n\nA third time Jesus said,\n\n\"Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?\"\n\nAnd Peter, somewhat grieved, answered, \"Lord, thou knowest all things;\nThou knowest that I love Thee.\"\n\n\"Feed my sheep.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Duty First.]\n\nAnd then the Savior admonished Peter not always to follow his own\ninclinations, and impulsive nature; but ever to do his duty as the\nShepherd of the Fold. When Peter was young, and did not have the\nknowledge and responsibility he now possessed, he could go fishing, and\nmake money, or study, or do whatever he wished, but now he must attend\nto his duties in the Kingdom of God no matter what might come to him\npersonally in doing so. Even though Peter's duty led to the cross, the\nSavior said, \"Follow me.\"\n\nWhile this conversation was going on, Jesus and Peter were walking\nalone a little ahead of the others. Peter turned, and saw John\nfollowing close to them.\n\n\"Lord,\" said Peter, \"what is John to do?\"\n\n\"If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee, follow thou\nme.\" As much as to say, Just attend faithfully to your duty, Peter,\nteach others to do the same, and all will be well.\n\nThis is the last recorded word of Christ to Peter; but he was present\nof course when the Savior gave His final charge to the Twelve. [1]\n\nFrom this time Peter's zeal in the Work of the Ministry was constant,\nand his boldness unsubdued.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Mark 16:16\n\n\n\nLESSON 11\n\nA TRUE LEADER AND VALIANT DEFENDER\n\n\"The reward of one's duty done is the power to do another.\"\n\nWith a knowledge that Jesus Christ was his Savior, that he was happiest\nwhen he did what his Lord wanted him to do, and that when he did wrong\nor yielded to the influence of evil men, he was miserable, Peter, began\nhis great mission as chief apostle and president of the Twelve.\n\n[Sidenote: In Jerusalem.]\n\nIn accordance with the Savior's command \"that they should not depart\nfrom Jerusalem\" until they received the Holy Ghost, for some time after\nthe Lord's ascension, made his home in the Holy City. Here he and James\nand John, and others of the Eleven, frequently met in an upper room,\nperhaps the same room in which Jesus had eaten the Passover with His\ndisciples. With them were Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and some other\nwomen.\n\nAN APOSTLE CHOSEN\n\n[Sidenote: A New Apostle Chosen.]\n\nOn one of these occasions, there were present one hundred and twenty\npeople, \"all engaged in prayer and supplication.\" Peter arose in their\nmidst and said it was necessary to choose a man who had been faithful\nin following the Savior to take the place of the traitor, Judas, in\nthe Quorum of Twelve Apostles. There were two names suggested, Joseph\ncalled Barsabas, and Matthias. Knowing that the Lord should choose the\nmen who were to be His special witnesses, they prayed, saying, \"Thou,\nLord, who knowest the hearts of all men, show whither of these two Thou\nhast chosen.\" Then they \"gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon\nMatthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.\"\n\nTHE DAY OF PENTECOST\n\n[Sidenote: The Holy Ghost.]\n\nBefore nine o'clock in the morning, ten days after the Saviors'\nascension, and fifty days after the Passover associated with the\ncrucifixion, the apostles held a memorable meeting. As they sat \"with\none acord in one place\" \"suddenly there came a sound from heaven as\nof a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were\nsitting.\" Thus came the baptism by fire and the Holy Ghost as Christ\nhad promised. The Comforter about which their Master had so often\nspoken had at length come to them, to guide and to inspire them as\nJesus had done in person.\n\n[Sidenote: The Gift of Tongues.]\n\nImmediately a wonderful manifestation took place. Though nearly all\nthe apostles were Galileans and spoke the same language, yet when they\nbegan to bear testimony of Christ and His Gospel, they \"began to speak\nwith other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance.\"\n\nThat a remarkable thing had occurred was soon noised about the city,\nand people in great numbers gathered around the apostles. In the crowd\nwere Jews from many nations who had come to Jerusalem to celebrate\nPentecost. These spoke the language of the country from which they\ncame. Imagine their amazement when every one heard the Gospel preached\nin his own tongue!\n\n\"Are not theses men who speak Galileans?\" they asked. \"Yes,\" was the\nanswer.\n\n\"Then how hear we every man in his own tongue, wherein we were born?\"\n\nAs the apostles, one after another, told of the salvation of man\nthrough the Gospel of Jesus Christ, some of the people were amazed, and\nsome amused, but all were perplexed.\n\n\"What does this mean?\" asked some.\n\n\"They act as though they are drunken,\" said others.\n\nThen Peter arose, and, in mighty power, addressed the multitude. \"Ye\nmen of Judea,\" he began, \"and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem; be this\nknown unto you, and hearken to my words:\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Address.]\n\n\"For these are not drunken as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third\nhour of the day.\n\n\"But this is what was spoken by the Prophet Joel.\" [1]\n\nUndoubtedly only a small part of Peter's address is given to us; but\nas we read his inspired words, and partake of the fearlessness with\nwhich he told the Jews that they had crucified the Christ, we readily\nbecome convinced that the weakness he manifested about a month and a\nhalf before, has been replaced by the strength of the man of God. Then\nhe stammered and swore, \"I know not the man;\" _now_, he declared, \"This\nJesus hath God raised up, whereof, we are all witnesses.\"\n\n[Sidenote: His Fearlessness.]\n\nWith all the courage of his convictions, and with the power of the\nHoly Ghost, he added: \"Therefore, let all the house of Israel know\nassuredly, God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both\nLord and Christ.\"\n\nAs they heard of the wickedness in crucifying the Christ and of many\nother sins, they desired to get forgiveness for what they had done, and\ncried out to Peter--and the other apostles,\n\n\"Men and brethren, what shall we do?\"\n\n[Sidenote: \"What Shall We Do?\"]\n\nIn Peter's answer, we see the open door through which all must pass who\ndesire to be saved in the Kingdom of God:\n\n\"Repent and be baptized, everyone of you, in the name of Jesus Christ,\nfor the remission of your sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the\nHoly Ghost.\"\n\nThen those who believed what Peter had said, were baptized; and the\nlittle band of one hundred and twenty grew that day to three thousand\none hundred and twenty. And every day thereafter, many others became\nconverted, and joined the Church.\n\nTHE MAN WHO HAD NEVER WALKED.\n\n[Sidenote: The General Meeting Place.]\n\nAbout three o'clock one afternoon Peter and John were going up to the\nTemple to pray. Here they came every day to meet in one accord with\nthe saints, and then visit \"from house to house; breaking bread.\" Thus\nthe Temple seems to have been the general meeting place for the first\nfollowers of the Redeemer. It was His house, and there they liked\nto gather to worship. The main entrance to the Temple was by way of\n\"Solomon's Porch\" through a gate that was called \"The beautiful Gate.\"\nHere gathered all the poor people--the blind, the lame, the weak, and\nthose who were diseased--who lived by asking alms from those who came\nto the Temple.\n\n[Sidenote: An Appeal.]\n\nOn this particular afternoon, one of these made his piteous appeal to\nPeter and John. He was a man forty years old, but he had never taken\na step in his life. Friends would carry him there in the morning, and\nthen carry him home at night. In answer to his request for money, Peter\nsaid, \"Look on us.\"\n\n[Sidenote: The Answer.]\n\nWhile the man was wondering how much money the apostles would give him,\nPeter added, \"Silver and gold have I none: but such as I have, give I\nthee: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.\"\n\nTaking him by the right hand, Peter lifted him up, and immediately his\nfeet and ankle bones received strength.\n\nThe man was so happy that he went into the Temple leaping and praising\nGod for the great miracle that had come into his life.\n\nAgain the people were \"filled with wonder and amazement,\" and gathered\nin great numbers in \"Solomon's Porch\" staring at Peter and John,\nwondering what kind of men they were.\n\n[Sidenote: Another Powerful Address.]\n\nHere Peter gave another great address in which he said that this man\nwas healed through faith in the name of Jesus Christ \"whom God hath\nglorified, whom ye delivered up and denied Him in the presence of\nPilate, when he was determined to let Him go.\n\n\"But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be\ngranted unto you; and killed the Prince of Life, whom God hath raised\nfrom the dead; whereof we are witnesses.\" [2]\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Read the entire address as recorded in Acts 2:14-37.\n\n2. Read Acts 3:2-26.\n\n\n\nLESSON 12\n\nPETER AND JOHN ARRESTED\n\n\"As no good is done, or spoken, or thought by any man without the\nassistance of God, * * * so there is no evil done, or spoken, or\nthought without the assistance of the devil.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Interrupted.]\n\nWhile Peter was still preaching to the thousands assembled in\n\"Solomon's Porch,\" he saw approaching from the castle near the Temple,\nthe captain of the guard and his band.\n\nThe Jewish priests had become jealous, and suspicious of the apostles,\nand looked with alarm at the thousands of people joining the Church.\nSo they decided to call out the soldiers, disperse the multitude, and\narrest Peter and John as the men responsible for all the excitement.\nHowever, about five thousand of the people were converted that\nafternoon.\n\n[Sidenote: Imprisoned.]\n\nSo the soldiers \"laid hands on them,\" and put them in jail, \"For it was\nnow eventide,\" and, therefore, too late to take them to trial. Though\nthey were shut up in close cells, yet their spirits were free and their\nconsciences clear. They could sleep more peacefully than the priest who\nhad caused their arrest.\n\n[Sidenote: Before the Sanhedrin.]\n\nIn the morning, the prisoners were taken to the Sanhedrin where sat\nAnnas, the high priest and Caiaphas, and John and Alexander, and\nrelatives of the high priest. These men had condemned Jesus, perhaps in\nthis very room, and they were determined that the preaching in the name\nof Jesus of Nazareth must cease.\n\nOthers were present that morning, and among them true friends to the\napostles. One of these was the lame man, who had been healed.\n\n[Sidenote: Curiosity and Amazement.]\n\nAs he was the innocent cause of the multitude's gathering the previous\nevening, everybody seemed to be even more interested in him than in the\nprisoners. He was carried, they knew, only twenty-four hours ago, to\nthe temple gate, and now they see him walking firmly through the crowd\nto get near the apostles.\n\n\"By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?\" demanded one of\nthe judges.\n\n\"Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them. Ye rulers of\nthe people, and elders of Israel,\n\n\"If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man,\nby what means he is made whole;\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Testifies of Christ.]\n\n\"Be it known unto you all, and unto all the people of Israel, that by\nthe name of Jesus of Nazareth whom ye crucified, whom God raised from\nthe dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole.\"\n\nHow those sinful men must have quailed as they beheld Peter's dignity,\nfelt his sincerity, and listened to the flashing words that pierced\ntheir guilty souls!\n\nHe told them further that they could get no salvation unless they, too,\ntook upon themselves the name of Christ: \"for there is none other name\nunder heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.\"\n\nWhat could the priests say? What could they do?\n\nNothing.\n\n[Sidenote: Enemies Confounded.]\n\nThere stood the man sound and whole, who had been helpless for forty\nyears!\n\nThere stood Peter boldly proclaiming that the miracle was wrought in\nthe name of Jesus of Nazareth whom they had condemned to death.\n\nThey considered Peter unlearned, but he had confounded them all.\n\n[Sidenote: Counsel.]\n\nAfter ordering the prisoners to be taken into another room, they said\namong themselves:\n\n\"What shall we do to these men? for that indeed a notable miracle hath\nbeen done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem and\nwe cannot deny it.\"\n\nSo, in order that the doctrine the apostles were preaching would spread\nno further, they concluded to threaten Peter and John, and command them\nnot to speak to any man in \"this name.\"\n\nSo they called the prisoners back and said in effect; \"You must never\nmore speak at all, nor teach in the name of Jesus.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Better to Obey God Than Man.]\n\nSaid the apostles, \"Whether it be right in the sight of God, to hearken\nunto you more than unto God, judge ye.\n\n\"For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.\"\n\nNo doubt these priests would have punished the apostles then, if they\nhad not been afraid of the people, all of whom \"Glorified God for that\nwhich was done.\"\n\nWhen they were let go, Peter and John went \"to their own company,\"\nand told their friends all that had happened. When they heard it, the\nsaints united in a prayer of thanksgiving to God for all His blessings\nunto them. [3]\n\nAt this meeting there was another mighty manifestation of the Holy\nGhost, \"and they spake the word of God with boldness.\"\n\nDANGERS WITHIN THE FOLD\n\n[Sidenote: Unconverted.]\n\nBut these leaders had to contend not only with enemies outside the\nChurch but with the scheming, dishonest people who stole their way into\nthe fold. There were men and women who had not repented of their sins\nbefore they were baptized; so they did not receive the Holy Ghost.\n\nTwo of these were Ananias and his wife Sapphira.\n\nEverybody who joined the Church had everything in common. Those who had\nland and other property sold it and brought the money to the apostles.\nThere were no rich and no poor--all had everything that anybody else\nhad, and everyone possessed what belonged to all.\n\n[Sidenote: Two Deceivers.]\n\nAnanias and Sapphira sold a possession; but they brought only part of\nthe money, and said it was all. Thus they told a falsehood, and showed\nthemselves to be among the worst people in the world; for,\n\n[Sidenote: The Lie Detected.]\n\n  \"Who dares think one thing,\n  And another tell,\n  My soul detests him,\n  As the gates of hell.\"\n\nThrough the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Peter detected the lie, and\nsaid to Ananias,\n\n\"Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to\nkeep back part of the price of the land?\"\n\n\"Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart?\n\n[Sidenote: A Severe Punishment.]\n\n\"Thou hast not lied unto me, but unto God.\"\n\n\"And Ananias hearing these words fell down and gave up the ghost.\"\n\nAbout three hours later, his wife came in, and told the same story as\nher husband. She, too, received a divine rebuke, and paid the penalty\nof her sin by giving up her life.\n\nAfter that, no one dare try to deceive the apostles in giving gifts to\nthe Church.\n\nThis is a good lesson for all to keep in mind today especially when\npaying tithing to the Lord.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. See Acts 4:23-31.\n\n\n\nLESSON 13\n\nPERSECUTED BUT UNDISMAYED\n\n\"Dinna curse him, sir; I have heard it said that a curse was a stone\nflung up to the heavens, and most likely to return on the head of him\nthat sent it.\"\n\nThe earnestness with which Peter and the other Apostles preached the\nGospel of Jesus Christ had a wonderful effect upon the multitudes who\nheard them. At Solomon's Porch, day after day, men and women heard the\nTwelve testify that the Redeemer of the world had indeed come.\n\n[Sidenote: Sick Healed.]\n\nThese testimonies were corroborated, too, by wonderful manifestations;\nfor \"by the hands of the Apostles were many signs and wonders wrought\namong the people.\" So great was the faith in the power of God that\n\"they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds\nand couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might\novershadow some of them.\"\n\nNor were the sick in Jerusalem the only persons blessed; but people\nfrom the villages near Jerusalem who were sick and afflicted with evil\nspirits appealed to the Apostles, and by the power of God, were healed.\n\n[Sidenote: Rejoicing and Unity.]\n\nIt must have given Peter and his fellow Apostles much cause for\nrejoicing to see the interest and the faith of so many thousands in\nthe message of Christ. What rejoicing, too, in the hearts of all those\ninvalids, who, made well, leaped from their couches and joined in the\npraises of the Redeemer!\n\n[IMAGE: PETER. \"They brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them\non beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might\novershadow some of them.\"]\n\nHow the Twelve must have loved each other and their hearts beat as one\nas, day after day, they bore witness to the death and the resurrection\nof their Lord, and received divine assurances that He was still\nmanifesting Himself to them through the Holy Ghost! As this Spirit\npermeated those who joined the Church, no wonder that \"the multitude of\nthem that believed were of one heart and of one soul.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Hatred.]\n\nBut there were some men in Jerusalem who were made very jealous of the\nApostles, and whose hearts were filled, not with rejoicing but envy.\nThese were the men who had been the leaders in crucifying Jesus. It is\nsaid that \"No sooner is a temple built to God, but the devil builds a\nchapel hard by;\" thus while the Lord was pouring out the Spirit of love\nupon those who joined the Church, the devil was pouring hate into the\nhearts of those who were wicked and would not repent.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Imprisoned.]\n\nSo, \"the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, and,\nbeing filled with envy, laid their hands on the Apostles, and put\nthem in the common prison.\" These prejudiced and ignorant rulers were\ndetermined to make the Twelve stop preaching Christ; because if what the\nTwelve said was true, these rulers would be blamed for having put to\ndeath the King of the Jews. But poor, puny man cannot hinder the work\nof the Lord.\n\n[Sidenote: A Miraculous Deliverance.]\n\nSome time during the night while the prisoners were together in the\nprison room--perhaps singing hymns and praying--an angel of the Lord\nappeared to them. He opened the prison doors, brought them out, and\nsaid:\n\n\"Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this\nlife.\"\n\nAbout this command George L. Weed writes:\n\n\"'Go'--the very word they had heard from the Lord before His ascension\nto Heaven, whence He had sent His angel to repeat it in prison.\n'Go'--in spite of threats and commands, of bolts and bars and prison\nguards. In the name of Him who commanded you, 'Go, preach my Gospel,'\ndo ye 'Stand and speak in the Temple'--the very place whence ye have\nbeen driven, Speak to the people, all who will listen, for your Master\nand mine is the Savior of them all. Speak all the words of this\nlife--the promised future life of which the resurrection of Jesus is\nthe first fulfilment.\"\n\nObedient to the angel's command, the Twelve entered into the temple\nearly in the morning, and taught. How their message must have thrilled\nthe eager listeners who had assembled that early to hear the word of\nGod!\n\n[Sidenote: The Jews Perplexed.]\n\nJust as early that same morning another group of men assembled. The\nhigh priest called his council together, \"and all the senate of the\nchildren of Israel.\" When this council was in readiness, the high\npriest sent to the prison for Peter and his brethren. Soon the officers\nreturned and said:\n\n\"The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers\nstanding without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no\nman within.\"\n\nPerplexed by this unexpected anouncement, the high priest and council\nseemed to be unable to decide just what to do. While they were still\nseeking for a satisfactory explanation or for the next definite step to\ntake, some one entered, saying:\n\n\"Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and\nteaching the people.\"\n\nHearing this, the captain of the temple with his officers fetched\nthe Apostles before the council. But the officers took them \"without\nviolence;\" that is, without doing them any injury or without using\nthem roughly; \"for they feared the people, lest they should have been\nstoned.\"\n\nAs soon as the Twelve appeared, the high priest demanded:\n\n[Sidenote: Before the Council.]\n\n\"Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name?\nand behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to\nbring this man's blood upon us.\"\n\nHis prejudiced heart prompts him to speak of Jesus without mentioning\nHis name. But even in his bitterness, he bears a noted testimony of the\nsuccess of the Apostles' preaching. \"Ye have filled Jerusalem with your\ndoctrine,\" said he, \"and now intend to bring this man's blood upon us.\"\nDid the high priest remember, just then, that the Jews cried at the\ntrial of Jesus, \"His blood be upon us, and upon our children?\" If so,\nhe must have felt fearful that the imprecation might be realized.\n\nThen said Peter and the other Apostles:\n\n\"We ought to obey God rather than men.\" Manifesting as much eagerness\nas the high priest had shown reluctance to name Jesus, Peter added:\n\n[Sidenote: A Bold Speech.]\n\n\"The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a\ntree.\n\n\"Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior,\nfor to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. We testify\nto these things and the Holy Ghost also says they are true.\"\n\nThis bold speech cut the wicked judges to the heart. It made them so\nangry that they talked of slaying the Twelve, just as they had killed\nthe Savior.\n\n[Sidenote: Gamaliel's Defense.]\n\nBut there was one able lawyer among them who had justice in his heart.\nHis name was Gamaliel. He stood up among them and said:\n\n\"Put these men out of the hall for a little space.\"\n\nWhen this was done, he continued, in effect:\n\n\"Ye men of Israel, be careful what you do to these men. If what they\nare preaching is of man it will soon pass away, just as Theudas and\nabout four hundred who joined him were scattered and brought to naught;\nand just as Judas of Galilee and those who believed in him were\ndispersed.\n\n\"But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found\neven to fight against God.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: Beaten and Released.]\n\nGamaliel's influence prevailed; and the Apostles' lives were spared;\nbut they were not released until they had been beaten and commanded\nnot to speak in the name of Jesus. If the beating they received was a\nscourging, each man was stripped to the waist, his arms tied to a low\npillar, that he might lean forward, so the whipping could more easily\nstrike him, and he was given thirty-nine lashes.\n\nAs the Twelve, bleeding from the wounds of the lash, left the council\nchamber, their hearts were filled, not with sorrow and regret, but with\nrejoicing \"that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n[1] Read the text: Acts 5:33-39.\n\n\n\nLESSON 14\n\nA SPECIAL VISIT TO SAMARIA\n\n[Sidenote: Deacons.]\n\nAs the membership of the Church increased, men were called and ordained\nto various offices in the work of the ministry. Besides the Apostles,\nthere were Evangelists, Pastors, Teachers, Deacons, etc. Among the\nfirst to be chosen and ordained to a particular office of service in\nthe Church were \"seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and\nwisdom.\" Their names were, Stephen, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon,\nParmenas, and Nicolas. They are called Deacons and one of their chief\nduties was to oversee the distribution of food among the poor.\n\n[Sidenote: Stephen Martyred.]\n\nShortly after their appointment, a bitter and cruel persecution arose\nagainst the Church at Jerusalem during which the Saints were scattered\nabroad throughout the regions of Judea, and Samaria. Stephen, \"a man\nfull of faith and of the Holy Ghost,\" was stoned to death. Philip went\ndown to the city of Samaria, and there continued to preach Christ unto\nthe Samaritans.\n\n[Sidenote: Philip.]\n\nIt seems that great power accompanied Philip's ministry, for \"unclean\nspirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed;\nand many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. And there\nwas great joy in that city.\" The people, \"with one accord,\" heeded\nPhilip's message and were baptized into the Church.\n\n[Sidenote: Authority Limited.]\n\nBut baptism by water is not sufficient. It must be followed by the\nbaptism of the Holy Ghost. It seems, however, that Philip, though he\nhad authority to baptize, did not have the right to confer the Holy\nGhost. He, therefore, probably held the office of Priest.\n\n[Sidenote: Holy Ghost Given.]\n\nWhen the news that Samaria had received the Gospel reached Jerusalem,\n\"Peter and John were sent unto them. Who, when they were come down,\nprayed for them that they might receive the Holy Ghost.\" On the heads\nof these baptized believers, Peter and John then laid their hands and\nconferred upon them the Holy Ghost.\n\n[Sidenote: Pretenders.]\n\nThe Lord does not accept everyone who is baptized into the Church. Only\nthose who sincerely believe in Jesus Christ as the Redeemer of the\nWorld and who repent of their sins receive the Holy Ghost. Those who\nare baptized without faith and repentance are mere pretenders.\n\nOne such joined the Church in England a few years ago. One day a member\nseeing that the young man had no faith, asked him why he had joined the\nChurch.\n\n\"Oh, just to get out to America,\" he replied.\n\nA little later in the conversation, he confessed to having joined the\nCatholic Church, at one time, to get a string of beads! and afterward\njoined the Latter-day Saints to come to Utah. Of course, it was not\nlong before he was excommunicated, and soon after fell into the depths\nof sin and misery.\n\n[Sidenote: Simon the Sorcerer.]\n\nAt the time Philip went to Samaria, there was a man named Simon in the\ncity, who was a great pretender. He claimed to be a sorcerer, and made\na great deal of money by bewitching people with his sorceries. However,\nwhen the people heard the true Gospel, and saw miracles wrought by\nthe power of God, they lost interest in Simon's sorceries, and were\nbaptized by Philip.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. PETER AND ST. JOHN IN SAMARIA. \"On the heads of these baptized\nbelievers, Peter and John then laid their hands, and conferred upon them\nthe Holy Ghost.\"]\n\n\"Then Simon himself believed also; and when he was baptized, he\ncontinued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the signs and great\nmiracles which were done.\" But he was not converted. His only purpose\nof joining the Church was to find out how these miracles were\nperformed, thinking he might use them for gain.\n\n[Sidenote: His Greed.]\n\nWhen Simon saw that through the laying on of the Apostles' hands the\nHoly Ghost was given, he offered them money, saying, \"Give me also this\npower, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.\"\nPoor, greedy man! His lust for gold led him to sacrifice even his honor!\n\n  \"And hence one master passion in the breast,\n  Like Aaron's serpent, swallows up the rest.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Simon Rebuked.]\n\nIf he thought Peter's heart was as avaricious as his own, he soon\nlearned better, for the indignant Apostle, looking straight into the\nsordid soul of this mercenary hypocrite, answered:\n\n\"Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of\nGod may be purchased with money.\n\n\"Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not\nright in the sight of God.\"\n\nOutward show and hypocritical pretenses could not influence Peter\nany more than they could win the favor of God. Only a sincere heart\nwas acceptable. Seeing that Simon's heart was set on making money at\nthe sacrifice of honor, and even the desecration of the word of God,\nPeter told him to repent of his wickedness, and to pray to God for\nforgiveness, \"for\" he added, \"I perceive that thou art in the gall of\nbitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.\"\n\nSuch a scathing rebuke, filled the sorcerer with fear, and he pleaded\nwith Peter to pray to God \"that none of these things which ye have\nspoken come upon me.\"\n\nPeter continued for a short time to preach in other cities in Samaria\nand then returned to Jerusalem.\n\n\n\nLESSON 15\n\nAT LYDDA AND JOPPA\n\n[Sidenote: Church Established.]\n\nThough only a few years had passed since the Apostles had received the\nfinal commission to \"Go into all the world and preach the Gospel,\" yet,\nthrough their earnest and continuous labors, churches were established\nin all Judea, Galilee and Samaria. As it was the duty of the Twelve\nto look after the interests of the whole Church, it became necessary\nfor them to travel throughout all the land of the Jews. Peter visited\nfrom place to place, organizing, ordaining, blessing, and preaching the\nGospel of Christ.\n\n[Sidenote: Eneas the Cripple.]\n\nOn one of these tours, he visited the cities on the plain of Sharon,\nwhich border on the Mediterranean Sea. One of these towns was Lydda,\nin the southern part of the plain. While visiting the saints here, \"he\nfound a certain man named Eneas who had kept his bed eight years, and\nwas sick of the palsy.\" This was a disease which affected the limbs of\nthose afflicted, and made it impossible for them to walk. This poor\ncripple had not taken a step for eight years. Undoubtedly, he had heard\nthat Christ had healed men as sorely afflicted as he, and also, that\nPeter, in the name of Christ, had bade the cripple at the Temple gate\nto arise and walk. At any rate, when Peter found him he appealed to\nPeter to give him the same blessing.\n\n\"And Peter said unto him, Eneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole: arise\nand make thy bed.\" This meant for him to fold the rug on which he was\nlying, and put away for the day. \"He arose immediately. And all that\ndwelt at Lydda and Sharon saw him, and turned to the Lord.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Tabitha.]\n\nNot far distant from Lydda was another city named Joppa. One reason\nwhy we read of Joppa is because it was the home of a very good woman\nwhom everybody loved. Her name in Hebrew was Tabitha, and in Greek was\nDorcas. Both these words mean \"Gazelle,\" the name of a very beautiful\nanimal like a deer. Tabitha seems to have been as beautiful as she was\ngood, and her whole time evidently was spent in giving comfort and\nhappiness to others. She benefited the poor by presenting them with\ncoats and garments that she made with her own hands. But one day she\nwas taken sick, and all her many friends became very anxious about her.\nWhen her sickness grew worse and she died, all their hearts were filled\nwith gloom. Among these sad mourners were some widows to whom Tabitha\nhad given comfort. They were truly bowed in grief, as, indeed, was the\nentire Church at Joppa. After the body was tenderly washed, it was\ncarried to an upper room.\n\nBut there was no funeral service held; for some of the disciples had\nheard that Peter was over at Lydda, and \"They sent unto him two men,\ndesiring him that he would not delay to come unto them.\"\n\nPeter granted their request and went at once to Joppa. \"When he was\ncome, they brought him into the upper chamber: and all the widows stood\nby him weeping;\" and, undoubtedly between their sobs, praising the\nvirtues of their departed sister.\n\nFollowing the example of his Master when the little daughter of Jairus\nwas restored to life, Peter asked everybody in the room to leave. He\nthen knelt down, and prayed. Turning toward the body, he said:\n\n\"Tabitha, arise.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Tabitha Restored.]\n\nAs the first manifestation of life, we are told that \"she opened\nher eyes.\" What her surprise upon seeing the Chief Apostle by her\nside instead of her nearer friends--what exchange of greetings were\nmade--what expressions of gratitude, we cannot tell; but \"he gave her\nhis hand, and lifted her up, and when he had called the saints and\nwidows, presented her alive.\"\n\nAs a result of this miracle, which became known throughout all Joppa,\n\"many believed in the Lord.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Preached Only to Jews.]\n\nUp to this time the Apostles preached only to the Jews because being\nJews themselves, they thought the Messiah was their Savior but not the\nSavior of other nations, especially of those nations who worshiped\nidols. All peoples nor Jews were called Gentiles and were considered by\nthe Jews to be \"common\" or \"unclean.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Cornelius.]\n\nAlthough the Lord had commanded to \"teach all nations,\" yet the\nApostles did not seem to have comprehended their commission, until\nPeter received a special vision.\n\nWhile he was staying in Joppa with a man named Simon who was a\ntanner, there was a Roman officer stationed at Caesarea, thirty\nmiles northward. His name was Cornelius. He was captain of a hundred\nsoldiers, and was therefore called a \"Centurion.\" Although a \"Gentile,\"\nCornelius did not worship idols as did most of the Gentiles.\n\n[Sidenote: A Devout Man.]\n\nUndoubtedly, he had heard of Christ, and knew that many of the Jews\naccepted Him as their Savior; and he wondered why the true Gospel could\nnot save him as well as the Jews. \"He was a devout man, and one that\nfeared God\" and taught all in his house to do likewise. Not only this,\nbut he lived a righteous life, which is best of all, and gave also to\nthe poor.\n\nOne afternoon, he was praying in his house when an angel appeared to\nhim, and said, \"Cornelius.\"\n\nThe suddenness of the angel's appearance filled the Centurion with\nfear; but he answered,\n\n\"What is it, Lord?\"\n\n[Sidenote: His Prayers Answered.]\n\n\"Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God,\"\nsaid the angel; \"and now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon,\nwhose surname is Peter. He is staying with one Simon the tanner, whose\nhouse is by the seaside: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.\"\n\nAs soon as the angel had gone, Cornelius called two servants and a\nsoldier who also worshiped the Lord, and telling them what the angel\nhad said, sent them to Joppa. They followed the seashore southward all\nnight, and reached Joppa about noon the next day.\n\n[Sidenote: A Midday Vision.]\n\nJust about the hour that these messengers entered the city, Peter, as\nwas his custom, went upon the housetop to pray. While there, waiting\nfor the preparation of his noonday meal, he \"fell into a trance,\" in\nwhich he saw coming down from heaven a vessel resembling \"a great sheet\nknit at the four corners, and let down to earth, wherein were all\nmanner of four-footed beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the\nair.\"\n\nWhile Peter beheld these animals, thinking they were unfit to eat, a\nvoice said: \"Rise, Peter; kill and eat.\"\n\n\"Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common and\nunclean.\"\n\n\"What God hath cleansed,\" continued the voice, \"that call not thou\ncommon.\"\n\nThis was repeated three times, and then the sheet was taken up again to\nheaven.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Perplexed.]\n\nPeter was perplexed, and sat wondering what the vision might mean.\nHowever, he was not left long in doubt; for while he was thinking on\nthe vision, \"the Spirit said unto him, Behold three men seek thee.\nArise, therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting\nnothing: for I have sent them.\"\n\nNow it happened that just while Peter was given his vision the three\nmessengers from Cornelius knocked at Simon's door, and were admitted\ninto his house. As Peter entered, and saw them, he said,\n\n\"Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye have\ncome?\"\n\n\"Cornelius, the centurion, * * * was warned from God by an holy angel,\"\nthey answered, \"to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of\nthee.\"\n\nThe messengers stayed that night with Peter in Simon's house; and next\nmorning, conducted him and \"certain brethren from Joppa,\" to Caesarea.\nOn the following day, as they came to the Centurion's house, they found\nCornelius and all his household, kinsmen, and friends gathered to\nreceive them. As Peter neared the door, Cornelius stepped out to meet\nhim, fell, down at his feet, and began to worship him. But Peter raised\nhim up, saying gently:\n\n\"Stand up; I myself also am a man.\"\n\nAs the two men entered the house, Peter, seeing a number of people\npresent, said:\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Communes With Gentiles.]\n\n\"Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to\nkeep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath showed\nme that I should not call any man common or unclean. * * * Now for what\nintent have ye sent for me?\"\n\nCornelius then told all about his fasting and prayer, the visit of the\nangel, and the angel's instructions. [1]\n\nThe prejudice that had prevented Peter from comprehending the full\nmeaning of the command to \"Teach all nations,\" began to lift from his\nsoul, his eyes began to see more clearly the mercy of our Heavenly\nFather; and as Cornelius ceased speaking, he exclaimed:\n\n\"Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of per sons: but\nin every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is\naccepted with him.\" [2]\n\nThen to this first meeting of Gentiles in the early Church, Peter\ntold the story of the Redeemer, testifying of the Savior's death and\nresurrection.\n\n[Sidenote: Holy Ghost Given.]\n\nAs final proof to the chief Apostles that the Lord would accept the\nGentiles as well as the Jews into His Church, \"the Holy Ghost fell on\nall them which heard the word.\"\n\nAccepting this as a direct manifestation from God, Peter declared.\n\n\"Can any man forbid water, that these may be baptized, who have\nreceived the Holy Ghost as well as we?\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. See Acts 10:30-34.\n\n2. See Acts 10:34-43.\n\n\n\nLESSON 16\n\nTHE THIRD IMPRISONMENT\n\n\"They never sought in vain that sought the Lord aright.\"\n\n\"If you cannot pray over a thing, and cannot ask God to bless you in\nit, don't do that thing. A secret that you would keep from God is a\nsecret that you should keep from your own heart.\"\n\nAfter having completed his labors at Lydda, Joppa, and the adjacent\ntowns, Peter returned to Jerusalem and continued his earnest work in\nthe ministry.\n\n[Sidenote: A Wicked King.]\n\nBut there was a wicked king ruling over Judea at that time, named Herod\nAgrippa, who \"stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the Church.\"\nHe was a grandson of Herod the Great, who, you remember, slaughtered\nall the little children in Bethlehem in his effort to kill the little\nbaby Jesus. He was also a nephew of Herod Antipas, the wicked king\nwho had John the Baptist beheaded. Herod Agrippa possessed the same\nwicked passions as his grandfather and his uncle; so, of course, he\nhated and despised the righteous men who, in preaching the Gospel, were\ncondemning sin and wickedness.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Thrust Into Prison.]\n\nThe first apostle to suffer from King Agrippa's wickedness was James\nthe brother of John whom he killed \"with the sword.\" When he found\nthat this murderous act pleased the haughty and stiff-necked Jews, he\nthought he would kill some others of the apostolic band. Accordingly,\nhe arrested Simon Peter; but, fortunately, concluded not to kill him\nuntil after Easter, so thrust him in prison until a more favorable time\nfor a public execution.\n\n[Sidenote: Strongly Guarded.]\n\nAs if to make sure that Peter would not escape this time, he \"delivered\nhim to four quarternions of soldiers to keep him.\" \"This meant four\ndistinct pickets of four guards each, sixteen in all. Each picket was\nto keep watch three hours and then be relieved by another during the\nnight watches. Two officers must guard at the outer gate of the prison,\nand two be in the cell, one on each side of the prisoner, with his arms\nchained to them.\" Thus firmly guarded and chained, Peter lay down to\nsleep \"between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and the keepers\nbefore the door.\" [1]\n\nJames' cruel death and the report of Peter's imprisonment spread\nconsternation among the saints in Judea. Some, perhaps, were fearful;\nall were prayerful.\n\n[Sidenote: Special Assemblies in Prayer.]\n\nIt seems that groups of earnest saints met in different places, and\npleaded in sincere prayer to God to spare their leader's life. Indeed,\n\"prayer was made without ceasing of the Church unto God for him.\" It is\nthought by some historians that among those who were thus supplicating\nthe Lord were Paul and Barnabas who were probably in Jerusalem at that\ntime.\n\n[Sidenote: At Mary's House.]\n\nOne of the principal meetings was held at the house of Mary the mother\nof John Mark, who many years after, wrote the Gospel, according to St.\nMark.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. PETER IN PRISON. \"The angel of the Lord came upon him, and a\nlight shined in the prison.\"]\n\nWhile we leave them in solemn prayer on the night before Peter was to\nbe killed, let us go back to the prison, and see what is happening\nthere.\n\n[Sidenote: An Angel Appears to Peter.]\n\nWhile Peter lay sleeping on his pallet of straw, \"behold, the angel of\nthe Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison.\" Evidently,\nthe guards were asleep, and neither saw nor heard anything for the\nangel touched Peter on the side, and raised him up saying, \"Arise up\nquickly.\"\n\nAs Peter complied, his chains fell off his hands. Then the angel said\nto him: \"Tie your girdle around your waist, and put on your sandals.\"\n\nPeter, scarcely knowing what he was doing, did as he was told. Then the\nangel continued:\n\n\"Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me.\"\n\nStill thinking that he was dreaming, Peter followed the angel.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Delivered From Prison.]\n\nThey left the guards in the cell, passed the first guard of soldiers,\nthen the second; but no one tried to stop them. When they came to the\nbig \"iron gate that leadeth to the city,\" it \"opened to them of its own\naccord.\" The angel continued to direct Peter through one of the streets\nof the city, then left him as suddenly as he had appeared.\n\nBy this time, however, Peter fully realized that he was not dreaming,\nbut was actually out of prison. He said to himself:\n\n[Sidenote: His Life Saved.]\n\n\"Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath\ndelivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of\nthe Jews.\" By this last remark, he referred to the public execution\nthat Herod had promised to have taken place that very day. But faith\nand prayers were more mighty in Peter's behalf than the decree of\nkings, and the demands of the wicked Jews.\n\nWondering just a little where he should go, he turned to the house of\nMary, the mother of John Mark, where, you know, some of the saints were\neven at that moment praying for his deliverance.\n\n[Sidenote: Rhoda.]\n\n\"As Peter knocked at the door of the gate,\" a young girl named Rhoda\ncame, and asked who was there. When she heard Peter's voice, she was so\nglad that she didn't stop to open the gate, but ran immediately into\nthe room saying:\n\n\"Peter is here--standing outside the door.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Friends Astonished.]\n\nSo suddenly interrupted in their prayer, the people would not believe\nher, but said she was beside herself. But Rhoda insisted that she was\nright. She knew Peter's voice, and she knew he was at the door. They\nfinally concluded that \"it was his angel.\"\n\nIn the meantime, Peter kept knocking until he was finally admitted.\nIt seems that the little group hardly expected their prayers to be\nanswered in just that literal way; so \"when they opened the door and\nsaw him, they were astonished.\"\n\nPeter, holding up his hand, and beckoning them to be quiet, told\nthem how the Lord had delivered him from prison. Then he added: \"Go\nexplain all these things to James, and to the brethren.\" This James was\nprobably the brother of Jesus, who seems to have been appointed to take\ncharge of the Church at Jerusalem. [2]\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Gets Away.]\n\nKnowing that as soon as he would be missed in prison the soldiers of\nold Herod would be searching for him, Peter went unto another place.\n\nWhen morning came, there was a great stir among the soldiers because of\nPeter's having escaped. Herod ordered a thorough search in vain.\n\nThen, thinking the keepers of the prison had been careless and\nnegligent, this wicked ruler ordered them put to death.\n\n[Sidenote: Guards Put to Death.]\n\nNot long afterward he, himself, died so suddenly and so miserably,\nthat some said the wrath of God was visited upon him because of his\nwickedness. Luke tells us that the \"angel of the Lord smote him.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Herod's Death.]\n\nBut Peter, whom Herod had sought to kill, was spared, through the\nblessings of the Lord, to bless the Church, and to preach the Gospel\nfor many years afterward.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Acts 12:6.\n\n2. Gal. 1:19.\n\n\n\nLESSON 17\n\nCLOSING SCENES OF A RIGHTEOUS MINISTRY\n\n\"The Gospel is the fulfillment of all hopes, the perfection of all\nphilosophy, the interpreter of all revelations, and a key to all the\nseeming contradictions of truth in the physical and moral world.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Character.]\n\nMany years have passed since Peter met Jesus, and was told that he\nshould be called \"Cephas which is by interpretation, a Stone.\" Little\ndid Peter realize then, why the Lord desired to have this fisherman's\ncharacter become as a rock. Little did he realize what mighty\nresponsibility his Master desired to place upon him. But the years\nthat have intervened have been filled with wonderful experiences, all\nof which tended to make Peter not only the Rock-man Christ had desired\nhim to become, but the great leader and chief apostle in the Church of\nChrist.\n\nFearlessness, faithfulness, prayerfulness, humility, and an untiring\nzeal in his efforts to instruct and to bless the people are traits of\nPeter's character that shine out in his life.\n\nWe should be reminded, however, that this rock character was not formed\nall at once. It grew gradually. You remember how Jesus, watching its\nformation, reproved Peter's weaknesses, commended his strength, and\nencouraged him, time after time, to remain true to the work as a\n\"fisher of men.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A \"Fisher of Men.\"]\n\nWe have now reached that period in his life when this man who at one\ntime pulled nets full of fishes from the sea of Galilee can look back\nover his years of ministry and see numberless nets full of men, women,\nand children drawn from the sea of ignorance and sin and put safely in\nthe Church of Christ.\n\nThere was this difference, however, between the results of his fishing\nfor fish and his fishing for men: The fish he dragged from the element\nof life to physical death; the men he drew from the element of death to\neternal life.\n\nFor five years after his deliverance from the third imprisonment,\nPeter continued his visits from city to city, province to province,\npreaching the Word of the Lord. During many of these travels, he was,\nundoubtedly, accompanied by his faithful wife.\n\n[Sidenote: Opened Door to Gentiles.]\n\nIt had been Peter's duty and privilege to preach the Gospel first to\nthe Gentiles. Please note that when the Lord desired the Gentiles to\nhear His word, He instructed the Chief of the Twelve to turn the key\nthat opened the Gospel door to them. This is one of the special duties\nof the Apostleship.\n\n[Sidenote: Christians.]\n\nSince that time, many Gentiles had become converted; and in some cities\nthey met and worshiped together with the Jews. This was particularly\ntrue in Antioch, an important city of Syria where the followers of\nJesus were first called Christians.\n\nBut there were certain men from Judea who went to Antioch and caused\ntrouble. These were Jews who had accepted the Gospel, but who still\nbelieved that the Gentiles would have to do everything the Jews did\nbefore they could obtain salvation.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter Justifies the Gentiles.]\n\nThe question as to whether the Gentiles might receive the Gospel and be\nsaved, without conforming to every Jewish rite, came before the Twelve\nand other Church leaders in Jerusalem.\n\n\"And when there had been much disputing, Peter arose up, and said unto\nthem:\n\n\"Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice\namong us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the work of the\nGospel and believe.\n\n\"And God, who knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the\nHoly Ghost, even as he did unto us;\n\n\"And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by\nfaith.\"\n\nHe then told them not to provoke God by passing some rule that would\ncompel the Gentiles to do what the Lord does not require of them. For,\nhe added, \"We believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,\nwe shall be saved, even as they.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Upholds the Right.]\n\nThere was a time when Simon, the Jewish fisherman, with all his\nJewish prejudices, would have rather yielded to the Jewish side of\nthis question; but now, it was not Simon, the fisherman, who spoke,\nbut Peter, the chief apostle of the Lord. What were prejudices to him\nin the light of the inspiration of truth! All that was necessary for\nhim to know was, whether the thing was right, and prejudice or no\nprejudice, favor or no favor, he would defend it.\n\nIt is true that once after this council, so Paul says. [1] Peter\nwithdrew from the company of some Gentiles because some of the Jews\ncame down from Jerusalem. Paul says he rebuked Peter for his actions on\nthis occasion; but we have no record of what Peter said or did. Knowing\nPeter as we do, we are safe in concluding that he did not intentionally\nwaver from the right. It seems more probable that Paul misunderstood\nPeter's motives. At any rate, we may rest assured that what Peter said\nand did was intended to help those who were influenced by his actions.\n\n[Sidenote: Visits All Churches.]\n\nFrom that time, we know very little of Peter's travels. By reading his\nepistles, we get a little insight into the nature of his labors and\ntravels during the last years of his life. Undoubtedly, he visited\nevery country where there were organized branches of the Church, even\nto the \"seven churches in Asia.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Thirty-five Years' Service.]\n\nWe do not know just where he died, nor the kind of death he suffered;\nbut it is evident that the end was not far off when he wrote his\nsecond epistle to the churches. That was about thirty-five years after\nhe first met the Savior. He was in the ministry then, approximately\nthirty-five years, perhaps longer.\n\nReferring to the prophecy of the Lord on the shore of Galilee, the\naged apostle, writing to the Saints and urging them to be true to the\nGospel, said:\n\n\"Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our\nLord Jesus Christ hath showed me. Moreover, I will endeavor that ye may\nbe able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.\"\n\nSome of the earliest Christian writers tell us that Peter and Paul were\nboth imprisoned in Rome during the terrible persecutions of the Saints\nunder the wicked King Nero.\n\n[Sidenote: A Legend.]\n\nThere is a story told that before Nero had imprisoned Peter, the\nSaints, perceiving the danger he was in, pleaded with him to leave Rome.\n\nVery reluctantly, he yielded to their entreaties, and escaped from the\ncity, by night. As he was going away, he met the Lord carrying His\ncross, and going toward Rome. \"Master, whither art thou going?\" asked\nPeter. \"To Rome, to be crucified a second time,\" was the reply.\n\nThinking that if his Lord could be crucified a second time for the\nTruth, he too, would be willing to die for in, he returned to Rome, and\nsome time later, was condemned by the Emperor Nero to suffer death by\ncrucifixion. As he neared the place of execution, however, Peter asked\nthat he be permitted to hang on the cross with his head downwards,\nwhich request was granted.\n\nThese circumstances are more or less legendary, and may or may not be\ntrue; but this we know that whatever the manner or time of his death\nSimon Peter died true to every trust that his Lord and Master had given\nhim\n\n  \"He has done the work of a true man,--\n  Crown him, honor him, love him.\n  Weep over him, tears of woman,\n  Stoop manliest brows above him!\n  No duty could overtake him,\n  No need his will outrun;\n  Or ever our lips could ask him.\n  His hands the work had done.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Gal. 2:7.\n\n\n\nPART TWO--JAMES\n\n\n\nLESSON 18\n\nJAMES, THE SON OF ZEBEDEE\n\n  \"Honor and shame from no condition rise;\n  Act well thy part, there all the honor lies.\"\n\n\"Honor is not a matter of any man's calling merely; but rather of his\nown actions in it.\"\n\nAmong the devoted women who followed Jesus in Galilee, who ministered\nunto Him, and watched with anxious care and sorrow the progress of\nthe trials in Jerusalem, was a noble mother named Salome. With Mary\nMagdalene, and Mary the mother of Jesus and Joses, she stood \"beholding\nafar off\" the crucifixion of the Savior.\n\nShe was one who would not forsake her Lord even at the cross. She was\nalso one who, with spices and perfumes, went early to the sepulchre\nSunday morning, to participate in the embalming of Jesus' body. To her\nand others, the Savior appeared, that morning, saying, \"Be not afraid;\ngo tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see\nme.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Tennyson Quoted.]\n\n\"Happy he with such a mother! faith in womankind beats with his blood,\nand trust in all things high comes easy to him, and though he trip and\nfall, he shall not blind his soul with clay.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Proud of Her Boys.]\n\nSuch was the faithful, devoted woman whom James and John, the sons\nof Zebedee called mother. And she was as proud of her boys as they\nwere proud of their mother; for they seemed to have inherited from\ntheir mother, and perhaps their father too, those true and unwavering\nqualities which made them such devoted disciples of Christ.\n\n[Sidenote: A Mother's Request.]\n\nLike most mothers, Salome desired to see her boys honored; and one day\nasked the Savior to grant that her two sons might sit, the one on His\nright hand the other on the left, in His kingdom. Jesus said, \"Are ye\nable to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and be baptized with\nthe baptism that I am baptized with?\"\n\nThey answered, \"We are able.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Boys to Drink of Cup.]\n\n\"Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that\nI am baptized with,\" answered the Lord; \"but to sit on my right hand,\nand on my left, is not mine to give.\"\n\n[Sidenote: True Servants.]\n\nThe mother's eagerness to have her sons thus honored made the other ten\na little jealous; but when Jesus saw their feelings, He told them that\nwhile men who hold offices in the world exercise unrighteous dominion,\nthose who are given offices in His Church are the servants of all.\n\"Whosoever will be chief among you let him be your servant.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Of Bethsaida.]\n\nJames was of Bethsaida, in Galilee, and was a fisherman. He was busy at\nhis trade when Jesus called him to the ministry. When the call came,\nJames and his brother were sitting in a boat mending nets. Their father\nand hired servants were also there. Of course, James had seen Jesus\nbefore this, and had undoubtedly heard Him; for when Andrew had hurried\noff to find Simon Peter, after having met the Lord, John had hurried to\nfind his brother James.\n\n[Sidenote: Accepts Call.]\n\nSo James, too, had found the Messiah, and was already converted to the\nGospel. Therefore when Jesus stopped that morning by the seashore, and\nsaid, \"Come, I will make you fishers of men,\" they immediately left\ntheir father with the hired servants, and followed Christ.\n\n[Sidenote: One of the Twelve.]\n\nWhen the Twelve were chosen, James was chosen next to Peter, and was\none of the three who constituted what we might call the Presidency of\nthe Twelve. In this position, he became closely associated with the\nRedeemer, and was an eyewitness to some of the most sacred incidents in\nHis Lord's ministry. Thus, with Peter and John, he was present in the\nroom when the little daughter of Jairus was restored to life.\n\n[Sidenote: On the Mount.]\n\nHe was also one of the favored three on the Mount of Transfiguration;\nand was one of those chosen to accompany the Master to the secluded\nplace in the Garden of Gethsemane, when Christ suffered those bitter\nagonies preparatory to His betrayal and sufferings on the cross.\n\n[Sidenote: A Son of Thunder.]\n\nJames was called a son of Thunder; and there is one incident in the\nBible which gives us a little insight into a part of his nature which\nprobably called forth that name. When the time came that Jesus was\ndetermined to go to Jerusalem to be offered up as a sacrifice, he \"sent\nmessengers before His face: and they went, and entered into a village\nof the Samaritans, to make ready for him.\" [1]\n\nJames was one of these messengers.\n\nBut the Samaritans, who would have no dealings with the Jews, and\nwho were particularly offended on this occasion because Jesus was\ndetermined to worship in Jerusalem, refused to receive Jesus. Their\nrefusal made James and John so indignant that they turned to their\nMaster and said: \"Lord let us command fire to come down from heaven,\nand consume them, even as Elias did?\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Rebuke.]\n\nBut the Lord was displeased with them for being angry, and said, \"Ye\nknow not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of Man is not\ncome to destroy men's lives but to save them.\"\n\nFor this almost righteous manifestation of fire in their natures, it is\nthought that James and John were called Boanerges, or \"sons of Thunder.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Little Recorded of His Labors.]\n\nBut if he had an impetuous nature or quick temper, he controlled it,\nand through his faithfulness and devotion won the favor of his Lord.\n\nIt is thought that he traveled a great deal, preaching the Gospel, it\nis said, to all the dispersed tribes of Israel. But of his labors,\nthere is scarcely any record.\n\n[Sidenote: The First Martyr.]\n\nAbout forty-two or forty-four years after Christ, Herod Agrippa, as\nyou have already learned, commenced a bitter persecution against the\nSaints. James was among the first to be arrested.\n\n[Sidenote: Officer Converted.]\n\nSentence was passed upon him very soon after he was apprehended, yet,\nso remarkable were his faith and his courage during the trial that the\nofficer who guarded him, (who, some say, was his accuser) repented of\nhis sins, became converted, and declared his faith in Christianity.\n\nAs James was being led to the place of execution, this officer threw\nhimself at the apostle's feet, and humbly begged forgiveness for what\nhe had said against him.\n\nPutting his arm around the penitent man, James answered, \"Peace, my\nson, peace be unto thee, and pardon of thy faults.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Execution.]\n\nBoth were then executed by order of the cruel Herod. Thus James, the\nfirst martyr apostle, partook of the cup of which he had said to his\nLord many years before he was willing to drink.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Luke 9:52.\n\n\n\nPART THREE--JOHN\n\n\n\nLESSON 19\n\nWITH THE REDEEMER\n\n\"Modesty is a shining light; it prepares the mind to receive knowledge,\nand the heart for truth.\"\n\n\"Humility is the solid foundation of all the virtues.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Modesty.]\n\nIn the first chapter of the Gospel according to St. John, we read that\ntwo disciples of John the Baptist heard their master bear witness to\nthe divinity of Jesus. Said the Baptist, referring to Jesus walking\nalone in the distance, \"Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the\nsin of the world.\" One of the two disciples who heard this testimony\nis named; he was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. [1] The other is\nnot named. Indeed throughout the entire book, which undoubtedly, was\nwritten by St. John, himself, the name of John, son of Zebedee, is\nnever once written. In the account of the Last Supper, we read of a\n\"disciple whom Jesus loved,\" who sat so near the Lord that his head\ncould rest on Jesus' bosom.\n\nThese two instances, and others that might be named indicate to us a\nprominent trait in St. John's character; viz., an unassumed modesty\nthat won him the respect and love of all who knew him.\n\n[Sidenote: Fearlessness.]\n\nBut John was the son of Salome and Zebedee, and the younger brother of\nJames, with whim he was called \"Boanerges,\" or son of Thunder. This\ngives us a little insight into another phase of his character. Like\nhis brother James, he was evidently fiery in his zeal in whatever he\nundertook to do, and fearless in doing what he thought was right.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. JOHN AND THE LAMB.]\n\n[Sidenote: Love.]\n\nA modesty that made him shrink ever from praising himself or unduly\npushing himself forward; a _fearlessness_ in defending what is right,\nand a _love_ for his Master that gave him the highest place in the\nSavior's heart--these are three traits of John's character which stand\nout distinctly in the fragmentary accounts of his life.\n\nHe lived, and was probably born in Bethsaida, the home of Peter and\nAndrew and Philip. He was a fisherman by trade, and worked with his\nfather and brother James. His father, Zebedee, owned his own ships, and\nemployed servants; so we conclude that he was well to do financially.\n[2]\n\n[Sidenote: A Seeker After Truth.]\n\nHe was a seeker after true learning, and especially after those things\nwhich would tell him about God and the hereafter. He kept his mind and\nheart pure, so that he could appreciate the truth when he heard it.\n\nWhen, therefore, John the Baptist came out of the wilderness preaching\nrepentance and declaring that the \"Kingdom of Heaven was at hand,\" John\nwas one of the fearless young men who believed the Baptist and followed\nhim. Thus he was prepared to accept John's testimony of Jesus after the\nlatter was baptized in Jordan, and was one of the two who had the first\ninterview with the Savior of the world at the beginning of His ministry.\n\n[Sidenote: Follows Jesus.]\n\nOn the same occasion when Simon Peter and his brother were called\nas disciples of Jesus, \"James the son of Zebedee and John were with\ntheir father mending their nets,\" and when Jesus called them, they\nimmediately left the ship and their father and followed Him. [3]\n\n[Sidenote: A First Lesson.]\n\nLuke tells us [4] that John was present at the miraculous draught of\nfishes, and was very much astonished at what he heard and saw on that\noccasion. It was one of the first lessons if not the first impressive\nlesson that taught him the great truth that obedience to Christ's words\nbring blessings.\n\n[Sidenote: Youngest of the Twelve.]\n\nFrom this time on to the end of his eventful life, he was always in the\nministry. When Jesus chose his disciples, John was chosen one of the\nspecial three, although he was the youngest member of the Twelve.\n\n[Sidenote: Memorable Experiences.]\n\nFrom that time, John was in the close companionship of Jesus, and\nwitnessed some of the most remarkable and divine incidents recorded\nin the history of Christ's ministry. He was one of the three apostles\npermitted to remain in the room when the little daughter of Jairus was\nrestored to life. [5] He was on the mount of Transfiguration when the\nSavior conversed with Moses and Elias and when a voice from heaven said\n\"This is my beloved Son, hear him.\" [6]\n\nWith Peter, James and Andrew, John was present on the Mount of Olives\nwhen Jesus taught them concerning the destrucion of the temple, and\nof Christ's second coming. How the memory of such occasions must have\nfilled his soul in after years, with rejoicing and sweet content!\n\nTo him and Peter was entrusted the duty of making preparations for the\nPassover. [7]\n\n[Sidenote: Close to Jesus.]\n\nAt the solemn moment when the Savior said \"One of you shall betray me,\"\nit was John the \"disciple whom Jesus loved\" who received the answer\nindicating who the traitor was.\n\n[Sidenote: In Gethsemane.]\n\nWhen the gloom of Gethsemane began to weigh heavily upon the spirit\nof Jesus, John was one of the three unto whom He said, \"My soul is\nexceeding sorrowful unto death; tarry ye here and watch.\" [8]\n\n[Sidenote: In the House of the High Priest.]\n\nLater that same night, when the traitor gave the kiss of betrayal, and\nthe soldiers arrested Jesus, and bore Him away a prisoner, all the\nother disciples fled, but John accompanied his Master to the house\nof the high priest and later admitted Peter, who, you remember, had\n\"followed afar off.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Terrible Ordeal.]\n\nThough we are not told, yet we can imagine what this beloved disciple's\nfeelings were as he listened to the false and wicked accusations against\nhis Lord, and how his heart must have ached as he saw Jesus beaten\nand scourged, and a crown of thorns put on His head. If he had wanted\nto call down fire from heaven and consume the Samaritans who refused\nshelter and accommodations to his Lord, what must have been the state\nof his fiery soul when he beheld the Jews and their judges persecuting\nthe Christ to death!\n\n[Sidenote: A Last Request.]\n\nHow his soul must have been rent in agony as he saw his Savior nailed\nto the cross, and yet what peace must have come to him as he received\nfrom the dying lips of his Master one of the dearest commissions ever\ngiven to mortal man! As the three Marys and John stood by the cross,\nJesus looked down upon them and said to his mother, \"Woman, behold thy\nSon!\" and to John, \"Behold thy mother!\"\n\n\"And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.\"\n\nOn the Sunday morning following the crucifixion, John was with Peter\nwhen Mary Magdalene came running to them, saying:\n\n[Sidenote: At the Tomb.]\n\n\"They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not\nwhere they have laid Him.\"\n\nAs soon as the apostles heard this, they ran for the spot where Jesus\nhad been buried. John being the younger outran Peter and was the first\nto see the empty tomb; and \"looking in, saw the linen clothes lying,\nyet went he not in.\" A moment later, however, he followed Peter into\nthe tomb, made a careful examination of the linen clothes and napkin\nthat was about the head; but not yet realizing that Christ was to rise\nthe third day, each returned to his own home.\n\n[Sidenote: His Testimony.]\n\nJohn was with the ten and later with the Eleven when Christ appeared to\nthem in the upper room. Of this and other glorious experiences he bears\ntestimony in his Gospel. \"That ye might believe in Jesus Christ, the\nSon of God, and that believing ye might have life through His name.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. John 1:40.\n\n2. Mark 1:20.\n\n3. Matt. 4:21, 22; Luke 5:1-11.\n\n4. Luke 5:1-11.\n\n5. Luke 8:51.\n\n6. Luke 9:28.\n\n7. Luke 22:8\n\n8. Mark 14:33.\n\n\n\nLESSON 20\n\nWITH PETER AND THE TWELVE\n\n\"Love one human being purely and warmly and you will love all.\"\n\n\"Love gives itself, it is not bought.\"\n\n[Sidenote: At the Sea of Galilee.]\n\nJohn was one of those who, after the death and resurrection of Jesus,\nwhen Simon Peter said, \"I go a fishing\" replied: \"We also go with you.\"\nThey toiled all night, and caught nothing, but when morning came they\nwere told by a man on the shore to \"Cast the net on the right side\nof the ship.\" This they did and caught a multitude of fishes. Almost\nimmediately John recognized Jesus and said to Peter, \"It is the Lord.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Feed My Sheep.]\n\nA little later, on the shore, he heard the Savior's admonition to Peter\nto feed the sheep and the lambs in the fold of Christ, and no doubt\nJohn shared in the feeling of responsibility that was then thrown upon\nthe Twelve.\n\nIt was on this occasion that Peter asked Jesus what would become of\nJohn, to which question Jesus made the significant reply, \"If I will\nthat he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Prophecy.]\n\n\"Then went this saying abroad among the brethren that that disciple\nshould not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but if I\nwill that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?\"\n\nIn this connection we read in the Doctrine and Covenants [1] that John\nhad said to the Lord, \"Give me power over death that I may live and\nbring souls unto Thee.\"\n\nAnd the Lord answered, \"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, because thou\ndesired this, thou shalt tarry until I come in my glory, and shalt\nprophesy before nations, kindred, tongues and people.\"\n\nThe Lord then told Peter that He would make John \"as a flaming fire and\na ministering angel; he shall minister for those who shall be heirs of\nsalvation who dwell on the earth.\"\n\n[Sidenote: True Greatness.]\n\nThus was expressed John's love not only for his Lord and Master but\nfor all the children of men whom he desired to bring to Christ and to\nparticipate in the joys of the everlasting gospel. By this spirit, John\nproved himself to have been one of the greatest men that ever lived;\nfor true greatness consists in losing oneself for the good of others.\n\n[Sidenote: True to Trust.]\n\nFor about fifteen years after the Savior's ascension it is believed\nthat John continued at Jerusalem and remained a true son to the Virgin\nMary. During all that time, however, he was always active in the\nministry.\n\n[Sidenote: The Impotent Man.]\n\nHe was with Peter going to the temple when the lame men at the gate\nBeautiful asked them for alms. With Peter he exercised His faith on\nthat occasion to bless the poor man who had never walked. [2]\n\n[Sidenote: The Impotent Man.]\n\nJohn, undoubtedly, testified to the multitude who assembled at\nSolomon's porch on the day of this miracle; but no historian has told\nus what he said. We infer from what Luke says that John spoke at that\ntime; but only Peter's sermon and only a little of that has been\npreserved.\n\nWhile they were speaking the captain of the temple arrested them and\nput them in prison.\n\n[Sidenote: Before the Council.]\n\nWhen they were brought out before the Council next day and told not\nto preach about Jesus any more, John was just as bold as Peter in\ndeclaring, \"Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you\nmore than God, judge ye, for we cannot but speak the things which we\nhave seen and heard.\" [3]\n\n[Sidenote: Spiritual Minded.]\n\nAfter they were released, they continued preaching to the people\nand praising the Lord for all His wonderful manifestations to them.\nThe great spiritual feast that resulted from their labors must have\nfilled John's soul with a divine peace such as he had never before\nexperienced, for of all the apostles, he was the most spiritual minded.\n\n[Sidenote: A True Servant.]\n\nDuring this period, he was imprisoned several times, but never once\ndid he waver in his determination to let all the people know that\nJesus Christ was the Redeemer of the World. He could suffer and be\nhappy because he loved those whom he served. Thus in the beginning of\nhis ministry his character shone out in true greatness; for he was\n\"willing, patient and strong to endure for others.\"\n\n[Sidenote: In Samaria.]\n\nWhen the Samaritans received the Gospel through the preaching of\nPhilip, John accompanied Peter to Samaria, and conferred the Holy Ghost\nby the laying on of hands, upon those whom Philip had baptized. [4]\n\n[Sidenote: Various Officers.]\n\nNo doubt this was just one of many such visits he made during those\nfifteen years that he remained at Jerusalem. The Twelve, the seventies,\nelders, priests, teachers and deacons were out preaching in all the\ncities round about Jerusalem, and the three chief Apostles, Peter,\nJames and John would be required, and when not required would be\ninvited, to organize the branches and to meet with the new converts and\ngive encouragement in their glorious faith.\n\n[Sidenote: Pillar of the Church.]\n\nWhen the great question arose about what the Gentiles who joined\nthe church should be required to do, John was one who sat in the\ncouncil held at Jerusalem. Paul, writing about this council, mentions\nJames, Cephas and John who \"seemed to be pillars.\" In the light of\nthe organization of the Church today, we know that Peter, James, and\nJohn were the men who presided at that time, although it was James\nwho rendered the decision that was made effective throughout all the\nprovinces.\n\n[Sidenote: Heart Filled With Love.]\n\nAfter that time, we know very little of John's ministry. Part of what\nis known will be given in the next lesson. We learn more about what\nkind of man he was than about what he did. When we read his letters to\nthe church and his Gospel, we can readily understand why Jesus chose\nhim to take care of His mother Mary. John's heart was full of love, and\nhe wanted everybody to love everybody else. He said that anybody who\n\"saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother is in darkness even\nuntil now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light.\n\n\"But he that hateth his brother is in darkness and knoweth not whither\nhe goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.\n\n\"I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you\nfor His name's sake.\" In that same letter he says, \"And now, little\nchildren, abide in Christ, that when He shall appear, we may have\nconfidence and not be ashamed before Him and His coming.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Section 7.\n\n2. Relate the incident. Acts 3:1-12.\n\n3. Acts 4:19-20.\n\n4. Acts 8:5-14.\n\n\n\nLESSON 21\n\nCLOSING SCENES OF MINISTRY\n\n\"Love was to his impassioned soul, not a mere part of its existence,\nbut the whole, the very life-breath of his heart.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Eighteen Years Pass.]\n\nThe important council mentioned in the last chapter was held about 50\nyears after the birth of Christ (50 A. D.) During the next eighteen\nyears John seems to have been hidden from view. Nothing is known about\nwhat he did or where he went. It is presumed that he left Jerusalem,\nand seldom, if ever, returned. If so, then we may rightly conclude that\nMary the mother of Jesus had left Jerusalem also, and left it and all\nher loving kindred and friends on earth for a happy, glorious meeting\nwith her Son in their heavenly home on high. The dutiful and loving\nattention John had bestowed upon Mary, he is now free to give to the\nChurch which now bears her Son's name.\n\nUndoubtedly he visited nearly all, if not all the important places\nwhere Christians dwelt; but most of his latest years seem to have been\nspent in Asia Minor.\n\n[Sidenote: At Ephesus.]\n\nTradition informs us that he made his home at Ephesus, a large and\npopulous city of Iona about 40 miles from Smyrna. It was noted chiefly\nfor its wickedness and the beautiful temple of Diana. Some claim that\nthe Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene went to Ephesus with John and died\nthere. The tradition is a pleasing one; for with the devotion of a son\nto his mother, as shown by John, there is associated Mary Magdalene's\nlove, which might well be expressed in the words of another beautiful\nwoman, who said to her husband's mother, \"Intreat me not to leave\nthee or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest,\nI will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge; thy people shall be\nmy people, and thy God my God; Where thou diest, will I die, and there\nwill I be buried.\" [1]\n\nFrom Ephesus John visited all the branches of the Church, laboring\nespecially among \"The Seven Churches in Asia.\"\n\nWhen John had spent several years at Ephesus a cruel Roman emperor,\nduring his persecution of the Church, arrested him, had him carried\nto Rome, condemned him to death, and had him plunged into boiling\noil. John's life being preserved through the power of God, he was\nthen banished to Patmos. All that John says about it is that he was\n\"in the isle that is called Patmos, for the Word of God, and for the\ntestimony of Jesus Christ.\" It is quite evident from this that he had\nbeen persecuted for his belief in the Gospel and for his unwavering\ntestimony of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He\nwas probably the last living witness of the Savior's miracles and\nteachings. Perhaps that is why he was banished. But wicked men could\nnot banish the testimony he had borne. That was planted in the hearts\nof thousands of sincere believers, and like seeds sown in fertile soil,\nwould grow and bear rich harvests for ages to come.\n\nNor did banishment injure the aged apostle, for he was not alone even\non that uninhabited and barren rock. One Sunday morning, on the \"Lord's\nDay\" as he called it, he \"heard behind him a great voice, as of a\ntrumpet\" that said to him, \"What thou seest write in a book and send it\nunto the seven churches which are in Asia.\" He turned, and saw the Son\nof Man clothed with a garment down to the foot, and bound with a golden\ngirdle. As he beheld his Lord wrapped in such divine splendor, \"he fell\nat His feet as dead.\" But the Savior, John says, \"laid His right hand\nupon me, saying unto me. Fear not, I am the First and the Last, I am\nHe that liveth, and was dead, and behold I am alive forever more.\" He\nwas again commanded to write all he had witnessed and what would yet be\nshown him in vision. Thus was given to the seven churches of Asia, and\nsubsequently to the world, what is now known as \"Revelation,\" the last\nbook in the Bible, but the first one written by its author.\n\nUpon the death of Domitian, the cruel emperor who had banished him,\nthe Apostle was permitted to return to Ephesus, where he continued his\npreaching, writing, and testimony.\n\n[Sidenote: John's Writings.]\n\nBesides \"Revelation,\" he wrote his Gospel and his three Epistles.\n\nJohn's second Epistle should be of special interest to the young. From\nit we infer that there were two Christian homes, in each of which John\ntook delight. The mothers were sisters. His letter is addressed to \"The\nElect Lady\" or, as she is sometimes called, the Lady Electa and her\nchildren. John tells of his love and that of others for them--mother\nand children--because of their Christian character. He tells of his\ngreat joy because of the children walking in the truth, living as\nchildren should live who have learned of the teachings of Christ.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. JOHN. The Apostle and Evangelist.]\n\nIt is said that when he became so old and feeble that he could not walk\nto church, nor preach to his people, his loving friends would carry him\nto the place of meeting. On these occasions, he would repeat again and\nagain, \"My dear children, love one another.\" One day some asked him,\n\"Master, why dost thou always say this?\" He answered. \"This is what the\nLord commands you; and this, if you do it, is sufficient.\"\n\nIt is said that he lived to be over one hundred years of age, but\nof his last days there is nothing definite of record. We do know,\nhowever, that he survived most bitter persecution, outlived his wicked\npersecutors, instructed by his life and teachings thousands in the Way\nof life, and is blessing many thousands in the world today, by his\nlofty and childlike Christian spirit.\n\n\"Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He\nthat doeth good is of God, but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Ruth 1:16, 17.\n\n\n\nPART FOUR--PAUL AND HIS COMPANIONS.\n\n\n\nLESSON 22\n\nSAUL OF TARSUS\n\n\"Good company, and good discourses are the very sinews of virtue.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Benjaminite.]\n\nAt the time that Peter and Andrew, James and John were boys playing\nin Bethsaida, on the shores of Galilee, there was another bright,\nclever little lad playing and studying in a town about three hundred\nmiles from them, whom they were to know in after years, first as a\nbitter enemy and afterwards as a friend and brother. This boy's name\nwas Saul, and he lived in Tarsus, the capital of Cilicia. He was a\nJew and belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, the youngest son of Jacob.\nBenjamin's father, you remember, kept him home when the other sons\nfirst went to Egypt to buy corn. The tribe of Benjamin was said to have\nbeen valorous; and in this respect, you will see that Saul was a true\nBenjaminite.\n\n[Sidenote: Other Members of Family.]\n\nOf Saul's parents and boyhood days we know very little. His father, at\none time, lived in Palestine, and would, of course, teach his son to be\na good orthodox Jew. Of his mother we know nothing, but we may be sure\nthat she watched over him carefully, guided him in his games and in his\nstudies and inspired him, even in his youth, to desire to grow up to\nbe a great and useful man. Undoubtedly, this was the kind of mother he\nhad, for all great men have been blest with just such noble mothers.\nWe are not told whether he had any brothers; but he had at least one\nsister, whom he always loved and to whom he was a true and noble\nbrother all his life.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. PAUL.]\n\n[Sidenote: A Good student.]\n\nSaul was a good student, and attended school probably from the time he\nwas six years old until he became a man. But in those days, school boys\nhad no school books. They would just listen to what their teacher told\nthem, remember it, and try to be able to tell it again when asked to do\nso. The principal study in the schoolroom, at that time, was the holy\nscriptures. Of course, they did not have the Bible then as we have it\nnow, but they had the Old Testament, and could learn all about Abraham,\nIsaac, and Jacob, the children of Israel. King Saul, King David, King\nSolomon and the prophets. Thus, he was taught early in his life to look\nforward to the Messiah who should be King of the Jews.\n\n[Sidenote: Pharisees and Sadducees.]\n\nAmong the Jews were found different sects or religions, chief among\nwhich were the Pharisees and the Sadducees. In Saul's day, Pharisees\nwere the most popular of all the sects, and held most of the highest\noffices in the state and the church. They believed in the oral law\nas delivered from God to Moses, as well as in the written law. They\nbelieved also in the resurrection of the body. But they made long and\nfrequent prayers, not only in the synagogue and temple, but in the\nstreets, so they could be heard of men. In other things, too, they were\nvery hypocritical.\n\nThe Sadducees did not believe in a bodily resurrection. You will see,\nlater, how Saul used to good advantage this difference of belief\nbetween these two sects.\n\n[Sidenote: A Pharisee.]\n\nSaul was a Pharisee; and a good Pharisee, too. He was just as sincere\nin his belief and education as any good man could be. If Saul had been\na hypocritical Pharisee, he probably never would have found the truth,\nbut being sincere, that is, always doing what he thought was right, he\nwas led to the Gospel.\n\n[Sidenote: A Roman Citizen.]\n\nThere is another thing to learn about this boy, \"Saul of Tarsus;\" viz.,\nthat he was born a Roman citizen. Tarsus, an exceedingly rich and\npopulous city, was a Roman municipium, or free corporation. This means\nthat the freedom of Rome (which ruled all those countries at that time)\nhad been given to the freemen of Tarsus. This freedom had been granted\nbecause the men of Tarsus had defended two emperors of Rome during a\nrebellion against them.\n\nThus, Saul, though a Jew, was a freeborn Roman citizen. In this double\ncapacity, he had two names, Saul and Paul; the first his Jewish name\nand the latter his Roman or Latin name.\n\n[Sidenote: A Tentmaker.]\n\nAs has been said, Saul was a student; but he was industrious, not only\nwith his head, but also with his hands. He was a tentmaker. This trade\nhe learned when he was still a boy. It was a constant practice of the\nJews to bring their children to some honest calling that, in case of\nnecessity, they might provide for themselves by the labor of their own\nhands. The time came when Paul, though an apostle, labored at intervals\nfor twenty-nine years at the trade his father had taught him. It was\nduring such times that he wrote \"These hands have ministered unto my\nnecessities.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Gamaliel.]\n\nWhen Saul had completed the studies as given in the Jewish schools at\nTarsus, and had learned his trade, he desired to attend college. He\nwas then, probably, about fourteen years of age. There were Gentile\nuniversities near his home, but, as he wanted to become a Rabbi, he\nwent to Jerusalem, and became a student in the famous \"School of\nHillel.\" The president of this noted institution of learning was, \"a\nPharisee named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law had in reputation among\nall the people.\" [1] It is supposed that he was a son of Simeon who was\nin the Temple when the little baby Jesus was blessed, and who said,\n\"Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace; for mine eyes have\nseen Thy salvation.\"\n\nBut though Gamaliel was the most learned man of his day, he did not\nknow that the Messiah had come. Evidently, he did not believe what his\nfather had told him about the child Jesus.\n\nUnder the instruction and influence of his great teacher, Saul\ncontinued for several years studying in Hebrew and Greek, and\nmemorizing all the important commandments which the old Testament\ncontained.\n\n[Sidenote: Stephen.]\n\nSaul completed his course under Gamaliel, and probably returned to\nCilicia. In the meantime, Jesus had been crucified and a bitter\npersecution against some of His disciples had begun. The first to\nsuffer death during this persecution was Stephen, one of the seven\ndeacons chosen to look after the funds for the poor. Stephen was a very\nfaithful servant \"full of faith and the Holy Ghost.\" He declared that\nJesus was the Savior of the world, and that all men must believe in His\nname if they would be saved. Stephen knew that the Pharisees were wrong\nin what they thought was necessary to salvation, and he, undoubtedly,\ntold them so. At any rate he disputed with them in the synagogue.\n\n[Sidenote: Stephen Before Sanhedrin.]\n\nBeing defeated in their disputations, the angry Jews dragged Stephen\nbefore the Sanhedrin and accused him of blasphemy. Even in court he\nstill bore testimony of the divinity, death and persecution of the\nSavior, which so maddened the wicked Jews that they \"gnashed on him\nwith their teeth,\" and finally dragged him out of the court room, and\nstoned him to death.\n\n[Sidenote: Consents to Stephen's Death.]\n\nAmong those blinded Pharisees who disputed with Stephen, was the young,\nlearned student, Saul of Tarsus. And when \"they cried out with a loud\nvoice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,\" Saul\nconsented unto his death, held the cloaks of the murderers and stood by\nand witnessed the cruel death of this first Christian martyr. Saul was\nsincere in believing that Stephen was an enemy to the Jewish religion.\nProbably Stephen recognized this when, just as he was dying he prayed,\n\"Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Acts 5:34.\n\n\n\nLESSON 23\n\nSAUL'S CONVERSION\n\n\"Better is the wrong with sincerity, rather than the right with\nfalsehood.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Bitter Persecutor.]\n\n[Sidenote: His Sincerity.]\n\nAfter the death of Stephen, \"there was a great persecution against the\nchurch which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad,\nthroughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.\" One of the Saints' most\nenergetic and persistent persecutors, during those terrible days, was\nthe blinded Pharisee, Saul, of Tarsus. So determined was he to put an\nend to what he thought was a heresy that he secured the right as an\nofficer of the Sanhedrin to arrest the followers of Jesus wherever he\nfound them. He went from house to house, dragging men from their wives\nand children. He even arrested the women, and thrust them in prison!\nSurely the cries and piteous pleadings of the little children must\nhave rent even his bitter heart almost more than the martyrdom of the\nfaithful Stephen. Surely, as he forced men and women away from their\nhomes, the blanched faces of crouching children, and their heartbroken\nsobs must have imprinted upon his bigoted soul impressions that would\nhumble him if not haunt him all the days of his life! Only one thing\ncould give him comfort in later life as he looked back upon those awful\nexperiences. It was this, as expressed in his own words: \"I verily\nthought with myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name\nof Jesus of Nazareth.\" Saul was sincere in what he was doing. He did\nnot believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and thought it would\nbe pleasing to his Father in Heaven to make every believer in Christ\ndeny His name.\n\n[Sidenote: Made Havoc of the Church.]\n\nSo Saul \"made havoc of the church;\" and when he had either imprisoned\nor driven out of Jerusalem every man he could find who confessed the\nChrist, with his soul \"yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter\nagainst the disciples of the Lord,\" he asked the High Priest for\n\"letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this\nway, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto\nJerusalem.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: Doubt.]\n\nDamascus is about one hundred and fifty miles north of Jerusalem, so it\nwould take Saul and his attendants about a week to travel the distance.\nPerhaps during those few days of comparative leisure, he began to\nwonder whether what he was doing was right or not. Perhaps the shining\nface of the dying Stephen and the martyr's last prayer began to sink\nmore deeply into his soul than it had done before. Little children's\ncries for their parents whom Saul had bound began to pierce his soul\nmore keenly, and make him feel miserably unhappy as he looked forward\nto more experiences of that kind in Damascus. Perhaps he wondered\nwhether the work of the Lord, if he were really engaged in it, would\nmake him feel so restless and bitter. He was soon to learn that only\nthe work of the evil one produces those feelings, and that true service\nfor the Lord, always brings peace and contentment.\n\n[Sidenote: Light.]\n\nBut, whatever his thoughts and feelings were, he was hastening on with\na determination to arrest every follower of Jesus whom he could find.\nAs he neared the city, however, \"suddenly there shined round about him\na light from heaven.\" Saul fell to the earth, and the men with him\nstood around him speechless.\n\nFrom that moment, Saul was a changed man. When he fell to the earth, he\nwas a proud, haughty Pharisee, a persecutor of innocent people: when\nhe arose, he was a humble, submissive seeker after truth, a repentant\nfollower of Him whom he had been persecuting. From the midst of the\nlight, came a voice saying:\n\n[Sidenote: The Revelation.]\n\n\"Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?\"\n\n\"Who art thou, Lord?\" asked Saul.\n\n\"I am Jesus whom thou persecutest,\" and then He added, in effect. \"The\nmore you persecute me the worse you feel; and the more your conscience\ntroubles you.\" Fighting the Lord is just like kicking a \"prickly pear,\"\nthe harder you kick the worse it hurts.\n\nWhen Saul realized this, and knew he had been doing wrong, he asked,\n\"What wilt Thou have me to do?\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Commission.]\n\n\"Arise, go into the city, and it will be told thee what thou must do,\"\nnot what Saul would like to do; not what he might do; but what he\n_must_ do, if he would be accepted of the Lord.\n\n[Sidenote: Eyes but Saw Not; Blind, but Sees.]\n\nSaul had been blessed with eyesight but had been blinded spiritually.\nNow he was blind physically, but light was coming into his soul. As he\narose he could see nothing, and his attendants led him into the city,\nwhere he lodged in the house of Judas, in a street called Straight.\n\n[Sidenote: Ananias.]\n\nIn the meantime, the Lord, in a vision, said to one of His servants\ncalled Ananias, \"Arise and go into the street called Straight, and\ninquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for,\nbehold, he prayeth.\"\n\nBut Ananias answered, \"Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how\nmuch evil he hath done to Thy saints of Jerusalem: and here he hath\nauthority from the chief priests to bind all that call on Thy name.\"\nAnanias was probably one whom Saul would have arrested first.\n\nThe Lord told Ananias to go as directed, for He had chosen Saul to bear\nHis name, \"before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Saul Administered to.]\n\nAnanias did as directed; and when he entered the house of Judas, he\nfound Saul not only penitent but blind. All the proud Pharisee's\nbitterness was gone and he was praying for light--light in his eyes and\nlight in his soul. His prayers were answered, for God's humble servant\nlaid his hands upon him and said, \"Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus\nthat appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that\nthou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Receives Sight.]\n\nAnd Saul received his sight immediately, and arose and was baptized.\nThis was one thing he had to do if he would be numbered in the\nChurch of Christ. Thus in the conversion of this great man, we find\nillustrated the application of several principles of the Gospel, viz.:\nFaith, in Jesus Christ; Repentance from wrong doing; Baptism and the\nrecognition of Christ's authority on earth.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Acts 9:2.\n\n\n\nLESSON 24\n\nIN ANOTHER SCHOOL\n\n\"All the scholastic scaffolding falls as a ruined edifice, before one\nsingle word--faith.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Teachers Compared.]\n\nFor several days immediately following his wonderful conversion and\nhis restoration to sight, Saul \"was with the disciples who were at\nDamascus.\" Saul had now entered another school, but how different from\nthe one in which he sat at the feet of the learned Gamaliel! There he\nlistened to instruction from the most learned men of his day; now he is\nlistening to men who were thought unlearned. There he received training\nof the intellect; now he is receiving training of the soul. There he\nstudied blindly; now he studies, truly seeing! His instructor is one of\nthe faithful men whom he had despised and whom he came to arrest. \"Not\nPeter, or James or John, no great and eminent apostle need be sent for,\nto instruct the learned and highly talented Saul; but Ananias, some\npoor, simple-hearted Christian of whom the Divine word has never before\nmade mention, is fully sufficient, in God's hand, to teach this most\nrichly endowed of all the early converts.\"\n\n[Sidenote: True Zeal.]\n\nAs he listened, hour after hour, during those few memorable days, his\nsoul became fired with a true zeal; and we can imagine hearing him say\nto his new teachers,\n\n\"Set on your foot. And with a heart new fir'd I follow you.\"\n\n\"And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that He is the\nSon of God.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jews Amazed.]\n\nWe are not told whether any of the men who accompanied him to Damascus\nbecame converted. Perhaps one or two did; but, undoubtedly, some\nof them thought Saul had turned traitor. So also did the Jews in\nDamascus, who were amazed, and said to one another, \"Is not this\nhe that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and\ncame here for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the\nchief priests?\" But the more they opposed him, the more eloquently he\ndefended the name of Jesus and proved to them that Jesus is the Christ.\n\n[Sidenote: The School of Solitude.]\n\nAfter a few days of fiery disputations in the synagogues, Saul\nconcluded to leave Damascus and go into retirement; so, bidding his new\nfriends goodby, he went into Arabia in the mountains near the Red Sea.\nHere he received instruction in the School of Solitude.\n\n  \"O sacred solitude! divine retreat!\n  Choice of the prudent! envy of the great!\n  By thy Pure stream, or in thy waving shade,\n  We court fair wisdom.\"\n\nLike Moses, Elijah, John the Baptist, and even the Savior Himself, Paul\nnow sought to be alone with God, and to learn how to get his spirit in\ncommunion with the Holy Spirit.\n\nHow long he remained there, we do not know. All he says about this\njourney is: \"I went into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.\"\n\nHIS FLIGHT FROM DAMASCUS\n\nNo sooner had he returned to the city of his conversion, than he began\nto preach again in the synagogues. Again the Jews began to dispute\nhim, and again he confounded them. Day after day, and week after week\nthe religious controversy continued until the Jews could stand it no\nlonger, and \"took council to kill him.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Every Gate Guarded.]\n\nAround the city of Damascus was a high wall, and no one could go in or\nout except through the gates. Therefore, when the Jews decided to kill\nSaul, the first thing they did was to make sure he could not escape. So\nthey placed guards at every gate, and \"watched day and night to kill\nhim.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Friends.]\n\nBut Saul had his friends as well as enemies, and he had one Friend who\nhad chosen him for a great and useful mission, and as long as Saul was\nfaithful, his life would be spared until this special work was done.\nThrough inspiration or otherwise, Saul knew that his enemies were lying\nin wait for him, so he kept out of their way.\n\n[Sidenote: Over the Wall.]\n\nFortunately, one of his friends lived in a house built right near the\nwall of the city; and from here, some of the disciples assisted Saul\nto escape. They put him in a basket, and then watching carefully to\nsee that no enemies were in sight, they carried Saul to the top of the\nwall, and let him down on the other side. Thus it happened that while\nthe wicked guards were watching day and night to entrap Saul, that\ndisciple of the Master was making his journey back to Jerusalem.\n\nWITH THE DISCIPLES IN JERUSALEM\n\n[Sidenote: Returns to Jerusalem.]\n\nThree years before, he left Jerusalem as an officer of the Sanhedrin,\nbearing a special commission, and accompanied by attendants and\nofficers. He left with enmity in his heart for every person who\nprofessed to believe in Jesus Christ. Now he journeys back alone,\nrejected by those whom he had served, a fugitive from the Jews who, a\nfew years before, awaited to welcome him as a hero! But Saul is happier\nnow alone as he is than when he went in pomp to arrest God's servants.\nAnd yet he can look forward to no welcome in Jerusalem! His old friends\nand teachers think he has turned traitor to their cause, and the\nApostles of Jesus doubt his conversion. \"They were all afraid of him,\nand believed not that he was a disciple.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Barnabas.]\n\nBut there was one, an old friend and true, a classmate, and fellow\ntownsman who extended to Saul the glad hand of fellowship. That was\nBarnabas, who \"took him, and brought him to the apostles,\" declaring\nhow Saul had been converted by a light, and the voice of the Lord, and\nhow he had preached in Damascus in the name of Jesus.\n\nWith this testimony, the Apostles accepted Saul, and gave him their\ncompanionship. Soon Saul was preaching in Jerusalem as boldly as he had\nin Damascus. In his disputes with the Grecians, he evidently confounded\nthem as he had those in Damascus, and with the same effect--\"They went\nabout to slay him.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Back to Tarsus.]\n\nWhen the brethren learned this, \"they brought him down to Caesarea,\nand sent him forth to Tarsus\" back to his old home, to his parents and\nto his sister. But what a changed man from what he was when he left to\npractice in Jerusalem. In name he was still \"Saul of Tarsus;\" but in\nnature he was Paul the disciple of Jesus Christ.\n\n[IMAGE: MAP, ST. PAUL'S FIRST JOURNEY.]\n\nCALLED TO ASSIST BARNABAS\n\nDuring the persecution in which Stephen was martyred, the Saints\nscattered to different places, and where ever they went, they preached\nthe Glad Tidings of Great Joy. \"And the hand of the Lord was with them,\nand a great number believed and turned unto the Lord.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Christians.]\n\nA large number of these converts gathered in Antioch and it was there\nas you already know that the Saints were first called Christians. It\nwas first applied to them in derision just as the word \"Mormon\" was\nfirst applied to the Church in this day, but later was accepted as an\nhonorable title.\n\n[Sidenote: Barnabas Seeks Saul.]\n\nBarnabas, who \"was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of\nfaith\" was appointed to look after the Saints in that great city.\nFinding a great missionary opportunity in that field, and desiring able\nassistance in carrying on the great work assigned him, Barnabas decided\nto go to Tarsus, his old home, and try to find Paul. What a happy time\nthese old playmates must have had when they met once again in the\nfamiliar scenes of their boyhood days! We are not told what they did,\nnor what they said, nor what their old friends and relatives thought of\ntheir new religion. We do know, however, that Paul accepted the call to\ngo with Barnabas to Antioch. There \"they assembled themselves in the\nChurch, and taught much people.\" This seems to have been Paul's first\ndefinite assignment in the Church.\n\n\n\nLESSON 25\n\nSPECIAL MESSENGERS TO JERUSALEM\n\n\"God has so ordered that men, being in need of each other, should learn\nto love each other, and bear each other's burdens.\"\n\n\"To pity distress is but human; to relieve it is God-like.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Agabus.]\n\nWhile Paul and Barnabas were at Antioch, there came \"prophets from\nJerusalem,\" one of whom was named Agabus. He is thought to have been\none of the Seventy chosen by the Savior; but just what priesthood and\nwhat position in the Church he held we do not know for certain. But he\nmust have been a righteous man, and filled with the Holy Ghost, for\nhe could foretell, through the inspiration of the Spirit, things that\nother people, by their own intelligence, could not see. At the time\nof which we are speaking he prophesied that \"there should be a great\ndearth throughout all the world,\" meaning that there would be a famine\nin the land, and that people would go hungry.\n\n[Sidenote: Offerings to Poor.]\n\nThe disciples had faith in Agabus and believed to be true what he said.\nThey knew of some of the Saints in Judea who could not stand a famine;\nin fact, many of them had given all they had to the Church; so \"every\nman according to his ability determined to send relief unto the brethren\nwho dwelt in Judea.\" Paul and Barnabas were chosen as the messengers of\nrelief.\n\n[Sidenote: Famine.]\n\nIt was well they did so, for the famine came just as Agabus had said it\nwould. Luke tells us that it happened in the days of Claudius Caesar\n(44 A. D.), and profane historians inform us that it was so severe that\neven the emperor himself was insulted in the market place by those who\nwere starving.\n\n[Sidenote: Persecution Under Herod.]\n\nAt about the time that the two elders were sent from Antioch to\nJerusalem, there was a bitter persecution, waged against the Saints;\nand \"Herod the king began to vex certain of the Church, and he killed\nJames, the brother of John, with the sword.\" Those were the days in\nwhich Peter was imprisoned and chained to his guards, but through the\nmiraculous intervention of God, was delivered by an angel. Paul and\nBarnabas were probably present in the house of Mary the mother of John\nMark, joining in prayer for the preservation of Peter's life, when, as\nwe have already learned in the lessons on Peter, Rhoda announced Peter\nat the door.\n\n[Sidenote: Return to Caesarea.]\n\nAfter witnessing this wonderful manifestation of the power of God\nin behalf of His servants, Paul and Barnabas probably witnessed\nhow God sometimes punishes the wicked. If so, it happened on this\nwise. Their duty as messengers for the Saints in Antioch had been\nfaithfully performed, and the relief sent to the members of the Church\nin Judea properly delivered to those who should have it in charge.\nThey had spent many days renewing old friendships, and enjoying the\ncompanionship, even in persecution, of the leaders and members of the\nChurch of Christ. They were now ready to return and report their labors\nto the Church in Antioch. Their return journey took them to Caesarea.\nPerhaps they visited Cornelius, whose home, you remember, was there.\nAt any rate, some who have carefully studied the life and travels of\nSt. Paul tell us that on his return from Jerusalem at this time, he\nwitnessed the death of the wicked King Herod. Weed describes the scene\nas follows:\n\n[Sidenote: Death of Herod.]\n\n\"The Roman Emperor Claudius had obtained great victories in Great\nBritain. On his return to Rome there was great rejoicing. Herod thought\nhe would gain great favor with the emperor by a grand festival in his\nhonor in Caesarea, to which he hastened from Jerusalem. On the morning\nof the second day the theatre was filled with a mass of human beings\nto witness the inhuman exhibition of gladiators who fought one another\nfor public amusement. Herod appeared in a magnificent robe, sparkling\nwith silver. As the rays of the early morning sun fell upon him, the\neyes of the beholders were dazzled by the brilliant robe. Flattered by\ntheir foolish cries of admiration he made an oration to the people who\ngave a shout, crying, 'It is the voice of a God and not of a man.' He\nwas willing to be so called, though this was blasphemy, giving to a man\nwhat belongs to God alone. \"Immediately the angel of the Lord smote him\nbecause he gave not God the glory.\" This was very different from the\nexperience of Peter in prison when the angel of the Lord came upon him,\nand smote him upon the side; and led him from death.\n\n\"The smiting of Herod by the angel was with a dreadful disease such\nas had caused the death of his grandfather. He was carried from the\ntheatre to his palace where he lingered five days in agony until death\nclosed his life in the fifty-fourth year of his age. It was the fourth\nyear of his reign over the region where had ruled his grandfather,\nwhose wicked example he had followed to a like inglorious end.\"\n\n\"When in the theatre the scene was suddenly changed from the\ngladiatorial and other wicked amuesements to the judgment on the king,\nthe multitude fled, rending their clothes according to the custom in\nhorror.\"\n\n[Sidenote: John Mark.]\n\nAll these things and many more, Paul and Barnabas would report to the\nSaints upon their return to Antioch. Luke informs us that after they\nhad fulfilled their ministry they returned from Jerusalem, and \"took\nwith them John whose surname was Mark.\"\n\n[Sidenote: The Report.]\n\nInteresting meetings were held in Antioch, at which the report of the\nmission of Paul and Barnabas was given. In attendance at these meetings\nand reasiding in Antioch at the time were certain prophets and\nteachers, Barnabas, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manean, which had been\nbrought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the\nLord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, \"separate me Barnabas and Saul\nfor the work whereunto I have called them.\" They had performed one duty\nwell and faithfully, and were now better prepared for a greater one\nfor which the Lord had chosen them. This was a special mission to the\nGentiles.\n\nSome time later, after fasting and prayer, some of the prophets and\nteachers laid their hands on the chosen missionaries, set them apart,\nand bade them prepare for their journey.\n\n\n\nLESSON 26\n\nFIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY\n\n\"Let your religion be seen. Lamps do not talk, but they do shine. A\nlighthouse sounds no drum, it beats no gong; yet far over the waters\nits friendly light is seen by the mariner.\"\n\nSoon after the special meetings mentioned in the last chapter, Paul,\nBarnabas and John Mark started on their mission, which is now known as\nPaul's first missionary tour.\n\n[Sidenote: At Cyprus.]\n\nLeaving the famous city of Antioch, in Syria, they sailed down the\nriver to Seleucia, a seaport town on the Mediterranean Sea. Here they\ntook the boat on the open sea, and sailed southwestward to the island\nof Cyprus.\n\n[Sidenote: At Salamis.]\n\nLanding at Salamis, a port of Cyprus, the missionaries began their\nlabors at once, preaching the word of God in the synagogue of the Jews.\nHere Barnabas was at home, and undoubtedly experienced great joy in\npreaching the Gospel to his old friends and playmates. But he must have\nbeen deeply grieved to see how many of them rejected his message, and\ncontinued in sin and idolatry.\n\nThe Gentiles on this island worshiped the goddess Venus, to whom they\nbuilt a temple and offered sacrifices.\n\n[Sidenote: Call to Repentance.]\n\nTheir religion, instead of making them purer in their thoughts and\nmore virtuous in their actions, made them more sinful. So Paul and his\ncompanions found the people very wicked indeed. Wherever they went,\nthese three missionaries preached the only true Gospel, and called on\nmen \"everywhere to repent.\"\n\nThey traveled the entire length of Cyprus, a distance of one hundred\nmiles, telling the people about Christ the Redeemer of the world.\n\nAT PAPHOS\n\n[Sidenote: Governor Hears Gospel.]\n\nOn the southwestern coast of Cyprus was the chief city of the island\nnamed Paphos. Here is where the Roman governor, or, as Luke says, the\n\"deputy of the country,\" lived. As was their custom, soon after the\nmissionaries entered the city they proclaimed their message to the\npeople. When the governor, Sergius Paulus, heard about them, he \"called\nfor Barnabas and Paul, and desired to hear the word of God.\" Luke says\nhe was \"a prudent man,\" so we conclude that he was sincere in his\ndesire to know the truth.\n\nELYMAS THE SORCERER\n\n[Sidenote: A Sorcerer Rejects Gospel.]\n\nBut there was living in the deptuy-house at the time a man who was not\nsincere, and who claimed to be a sorcerer. He rejected Paul's message,\nand opposed his teachings. Bar-Jesus was his right name, and he was a\nJew, and a false prophet. Paul read his wicked heart, and knew that\nbecause of selfishness and love of money he rejected the Gospel.\n\n\"Then Paul, filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him and said, O\nfull of subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy\nof all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of\nthe Lord?\n\n\"And now behold the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be\nblind, not seeing the sun for a season.\n\n\"And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went\nabout seeking some one to lead him by the hand.\"\n\nIf in his darkness he had let the messengers of Light lead him they\nwould have given him eternal sight, just as Paul had received it\nthrough Ananias, in Damascus. But we are led to believe that he\nremained blind and bitter.\n\n[Sidenote: The Governor Believes.]\n\nSergius Paulus, however, believed, \"being astonished at the doctrine\nof the Lord.\" Many others believed also, and in the wicked town of\nPaphos, where the revellers worshiped the goddess of love, a church was\norganized, and a little body of Christians came together to worship the\ntrue God and His Son Jesus Christ.\n\nIN PAMPHYLIA\n\n[Sidenote: A Missionary Returns.]\n\nFrom Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed northward to Perga in\nPamphylia. At this place something happened about which we wish we knew\nmore. All that Luke says about it is this:\n\n\"And John departing from there returned to Jerusalem.\"\n\nWe know that later, this circumstance became a matter of sharp dispute\nbetween Barnabas and Paul, but just why John wished to return we are\nnot informed. Perhaps he had not intended to travel so far; or it\nmay be that matters at home needed his attention; or he might have\nbeen over sensitive, and felt that \"two were company but three were a\ncrowd;\" but whatever the cause Paul and Barnabas had to continue their\njourney without the young man Mark. Later, he resumed his missionary\nwork traveling with Barnabas. There is no record of his traveling again\nwith Paul; although the latter wrote of him later as \"a comfort, and a\nfellow worker unto the kingdom of God.\"\n\nIN PISIDIA\n\n[Sidenote: Through Mountain Passes.]\n\nFrom Perga in Pamphylia, Paul and Barnabas continued north to Antioch\nin Pisidia. Day after day, these two missionaries traveled on foot\nthrough a mountainous region, where very few people resided. Sometimes,\nperhaps, they could find lodging with some shepherd, but more often,\nthey would sleep in caves or among the trees. But they had a message of\nsalvation in their hearts and so were happy. After about seven days of\nwearisome and dangerous travel, they reached Antioch in Pisidia.\n\n[Sidenote: In the Synagogue.]\n\nWhen the Sabbath day came, as was their custom, the missionaries went\ninto the synagogue, and sat down in the congregation. After the leaders\nhad read the law and the prophets, they asked the visitors if they had\n\"any word of exhortation for the people.\" At this, Paul stood up and\ndelivered a most impressive sermon, so much so, that the people invited\nPaul to speak again on the next Sabbath. Many who were present accepted\nthe Gospel. [1]\n\n\"And the next Sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear\nthe word of God.\n\n[Sidenote: Turn to Gentiles.]\n\n\"But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and\nspake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and\nblaspheming.\" Their opposition and contradiction made the missionaries\nonly more earnest and emphatic. Finally, when it was apparent that the\nJews would not accept the truth, Paul and Barnabas waxed bold and said,\n\"It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken\nto you; but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of\neverlasting life, lo we turn to the Gentiles.\" When the Gentiles heard\nthis announcement, they were delighted and many of them accepted the\nprinciples of the Gospel.\n\n[Sidenote: Jews Jealous.]\n\nBut the Jews were jealous; they became filled with envy and determined\nto drive the missionaries \"out of their coasts.\" This they did with the\naid of \"the devout and honorable women and the chief men of the city.\"\nThe persecution became so bitter that Paul and Barnabas \"shook off the\ndust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium.\"\n\nIN ICONIUM\n\n[Sidenote: Again in Synagogue.]\n\nFilled with the joy that comes from true service to one's fellowmen,\nPaul and Barnabas began their preaching in Iconium. Entering the\nsynagogue here, as they had done in the city from which they had just\nbeen driven, they spoke \"boldly in the Lord, who gave testimony unto\nthe word of His grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by\ntheir hands.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Again Opposed.]\n\nJews and Greeks also rallied around the standard as unfurled by these\ngreat missionaries; but Jews and Greeks also organized to oppose them.\nThe result was that the city was divided; \"and part held with the Jews\nand part with the Apostles.\"\n\nHearing that a plot was on foot to do them injury, and to stone them,\nPaul and Barnabas withdrew from the city, and went to \"Lystra and\nDerbe, cities of Lycaonia, and unto the region that lieth round about.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. See Paul's sermon, Acts 13:14-41.\n\n\n\nLESSON 27\n\nFIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY--Continued\n\nAT LYSTRA AND DERBE\n\n\"Outward attacks and troubles rather fix than unsettle the Christian,\nas tempests from without only serve to root the oak more firmly in the\nground.\"\n\n\"As sure as ever God puts His children in the furnace, He will be in\nthe furnace with them.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Among the Heathen.]\n\nAt Lystra, Paul and Barnabas found a people who were almost entirely\nheathen for they worshiped Jupiter and Mercury and other false deities,\nand knew little or nothing about the true God. There were Jews amongst\nthem, but not of sufficient numbers even to build a synagogue.\n\nThe country was wild and rugged, and the inhabitants were like the\ncountry. They were \"villagers of little learning, and rude in dress and\nmanner.\" Such people are usually shy of strangers, and slow to accept\nanything new. But once they begin to get confidence in the stranger,\nthey may be easily swayed by him; not having very definite opinions of\ntheir own.\n\nThe doctrine preached by Paul and Barnabas was new to them, and after a\ntime began to arouse their curiosity, and then awaken their interest.\n\n[Sidenote: Choice People Among Them.]\n\nSome of the most intelligent comprehended the truth, and accepted it.\nLest you boys and girls might think that there were no superior people\namong these heathens, you must be reminded of the fact that in Lystra\nthere was at least one choice family of whose membership in the Church\nthe Bible makes mention, and in Derbe there were others.\n\n[Sidenote: Timothy.]\n\nIn these towns, out of the persecution and affliction heaped upon them\nby the ignorant and wicked, Paul and Barnabas brought to the faith some\nof the choicest members of the early Church. Among these were Timothy,\nwhom Paul afterwards called his son; Eunice, Timothy's mother, and\nLois, Timothy's grandmother, whose \"unfeigned faith\" Paul commended in\nlater years. Undoubtedly, the friendship alone of these noble people\nmore than paid Paul for all the persecution he suffered during this\nfirst mission.\n\nBut to the people generally, the message was strange and\nincomprehensisble. They could not separate the doctrine of Christ from\ntheir heathen deities as was shown by a remarkable experience.\n\n[Sidenote: A Miracle.]\n\nPaul and Barnabas and a few converts were holding a meeting one day in\nthe \"open air.\" In the audience sat a man \"impotent in his feet,\" who\nhad been a cripple from birth, and who had never walked. This fact, of\ncourse, all the people knew, for many of them were acquainted with him,\nand had seen him carried to the meeting. \"The same heard Paul speak,\"\nand conviction entered his weary heart that what Paul said was true.\nPaul looked at him, and \"perceiving that he had faith to be healed,\"\nsaid, \"Stand upright on thy feet.\" This he commanded by the power of\nthe Redeemer.\n\n[Sidenote: Effect.]\n\n\"The man leaped to his feet and walked.\" When the people saw this, they\ncreated an uproar in the city, and they said in their language, which\nwas a mixture of Greek and Syrian:\n\n\"The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men,\" and they named\nPaul and Barnabas after their gods. Barnabas was tall, so they called\nhim Jupiter; and Paul, being short and a gifted speaker, they called\nMercury, because Mercury was supposed to preside over learning and\neloquence.\n\n[Sidenote: To Offer Sacrifice]\n\nSome time after the meeting, the priests of Jupiter, who officiated in\nthe temple of Jupiter that was in the city, decided to offer sacrifice\nto their gods as personified in Paul and Barnabas. So with the people,\nthey gathered at the gates of the city, brought oxen and began to\nprepare to offer sacrifice.\n\n[Sidenote: Missionaries Protest.]\n\nWhen Paul and Barnabas heard of it, they ran among the people, and\n\"rent their clothes\" in protestation against such sacrifice. To\nrend their clothes was to express intense feeling and the people so\nunderstood it. Besides doing this they cried: \"Sirs, why do ye these\nthings? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you\nthat ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made\nheaven and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Stoned.]\n\nHowever, they could scarcely make the people refrain from worshiping\nthem; but there were certain Jews there who had followed the\nmissionaries from Antioch and Iconium, \"who persuaded the people\"\nthat Paul and Barnabas were deceivers, and that the miracle which had\nbeen performed had been done by the power of the evil one. These Jews\nswayed the people to such an extent that instead of worshiping Paul and\nBarnabas, they picked up stones and stoned Paul until he fell to the\nearth, apparently dead. Thinking he was so, the mob then dragged his\nbody out of the city and left it.\n\n[Sidenote: A Many Headed Monster.]\n\nWhat a many-headed monster this mob was! First they were ready to\nworship the men as gods, and then in just a few minutes became so\nbitter that they would stain their souls with murder! Shakespeare\ncalled such a crowd\n\n  \"The blind monster, with uncounted heads.\n  The still discordant, wavering multitude.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Regains Consciousness.]\n\nThe mob dispersed, and around the still bleeding, silent body on the\nground, stood the few intelligent, faithful disciples who had believed\nthe true Gospel. How delighted and thankful they must have been when\nthey saw Paul move, and later regain consciousness.\n\nHe had been stunned, but not seriously injured; so a little gentle\nnursing gave him strength to stand on his feet, and he walked back to\nthe city.\n\n[Sidenote: Gaius.]\n\nThe next day he left Lystra and traveled twenty miles to Derbe. Here he\npreached boldly and effectively, and converted many to the truth, among\nthem a man by the name of Gaius, who proved to be a staunch and true\nfriend to Paul and to the Church generally.\n\n[Sidenote: Another Branch Organized.]\n\nAs they had done in other cities, so the missionaries did in\nDerbe--organized a branch of the Church and ordained elders over it.\nThese they instructed, and met with them and with the Saints in fasting\nand prayer, \"commended them to the Lord,\" and bade them goodby, for the\ntime had come when the first missionaries from Antioch should return\nhome.\n\n[Sidenote: Return Home.]\n\nThey visited all the branches, preaching the Gospel, instructing,\nblessing, and comforting the Saints in Lystra and the regions round\nabout. They then returned forty miles to Iconium and sixty miles back\nto Antioch in Pisidia. From there, they went to Perga in Pamphylia, and\nsailed from Attalia to Antioch in Syria.\n\nHere the Saints gathered and bade them welcome, and heard the returned\nElders report \"all that God had done with them, and how He had opened\nthe door of faith unto the Gentiles.\"\n\n\n\nLESSON 28\n\nA GREAT CONTROVERSY\n\nTexts: Acts 15:1-35\n\n\"The union of Christians to Christ, their common head, and by means of\nthe influence they derive from Him, one to another, may be illustrated\nby the loadstone. It not only attaches the particles of iron to itself\nby the magnetic virtue, but by this virtue it unites them one to the\nother.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jews Scattered Over Empire.]\n\nAs we followed Paul and Barnabas in their first missionary journey, we\nnoticed that in nearly every city they visited, they found Jews, and\nthat their preaching was frequently first done in a synagogue. The fact\nis, that the Jews were scattered over nearly all of the Roman Empire.\nThey were on the coasts and islands of Western Asia, on the borders of\nthe Caspian Sea, and some were even as far as China.\n\n[Sidenote: Jews Kept to Their Religion.]\n\nBut no matter where the Jew was living, he always kept his own\nreligion, and studied carefully the Law of Moses. That is what James\nmeant when he said, \"Moses of old time, hath in every city, them that\npreach him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day.\" Their\nreligion taught them not to mingle with the Gentiles in marriage or in\nsocial intercourse.\n\n[Sidenote: Gentiles Would Not Worship With Jews.]\n\nThe Gentiles, on the other hand, looked with contempt upon the Jews;\nwhile the \"gay and licentious festivities of the Greek and Roman\nworship\" made the Jews look with contempt upon Gentiles. They would\ntrade with each other, and mingle together in daily vocations, but as a\nrule, that is as far as their intercourse went. They said with Shylock:\n\"I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with you, and\nso following; but I will not eat with you, drink with you, nor pray\nwith you.\" [1]\n\nOf course, there were Gentiles who sometimes became converted to the\nJewish religion, and there were some who married Jewish women, but the\nline of dislike and suspicion was none the less sharply drawn.\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Prejudices.]\n\nYou remember how difficult it was for the Lord to convince Peter that\nthe Gentiles were worthy to be baptized into the Church of Christ.\nPeter saw in a vision a vast sheet descending from heaven in which\nthere were unclean animals, and he heard a voice saying, \"Arise, Peter,\nkill and eat.\" But Peter said, \"Not so, Lord: for I have never eaten\nanything that is common or unclean.\" [2]\n\n[Sidenote: Peter's Revelation.]\n\nWhen Peter realized the meaning of the vision, his whole Jewish nature\nwas shocked; for to obey was to break the Law of his forefathers by\nassociating with Gentiles. The Jewish Christians who were with Peter\nfrom Joppa to Caesarea were \"astonished\" when they saw \"the gift of the\nHoly Ghost poured out\" on the \"unclean\" Gentiles. When Peter reached\nJerusalem, he was accused of having not only associated but eaten with\nGentiles, but Peter had learned by revelation that \"what God has made\nclean\" no one should \"call common or unclean,\" that the Lord is \"no\nrespecter of persons,\" and that \"every nation\" that accepts Him, and\n\"feareth Him and worketh righteousness,\" may receive His blessings.\n\nTHE QUESTION AGITATED\n\n[Sidenote: The Church Agitated.]\n\nBut there were many Jews in the Church who did not believe this, and\nthe only condition on which they would accept a Gentile was that he\nshould obey the Jewish religion also. When this class of Christians\nheard that Paul and Barnabas had baptized hundreds of Gentiles, they\nbecame very much agitated in their feelings, and some of them went\nto Antioch and began to preach, first privately then publicly, that\nunless the Gentiles obeyed a certain Jewish rite, they could not be\nsaved. Paul and Barnabas had told the Saints that obedience to the\nGospel of Christ would save the Gentiles as well as the Jews, and that\nthe Gentiles did not have to become Jews. Now these men from the chief\nbranch of the Church declared that Paul and Barnabas were wrong. No\nwonder \"those who from among the Gentiles were turned unto God,\" were\n\"troubled\" and perplexed. Indeed, the controversy became so sharp that\nit threatened to lead some out of the Church.\n\nMESSENGERS SENT TO JERUSALEM\n\n[Sidenote: Messengers to Jerusalem.]\n\nSo it was \"determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of\nthem, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this\nquestion.\"\n\nThe Church in Antioch evidently believed Paul and Barnabas to be in\nthe right, for when they started on their journey they were escorted\non their way by the Church. As they passed through Syro-Phoenecia and\nSamaria, and told the Saints who greeted them how the Gentiles had been\nconverted, they \"caused great joy unto all the brethren.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul's Third Visit.]\n\nThis was Paul's third visit to Jerusalem since his conversion. The\nfirst was three years after he joined the Church, when he spent two\nweeks with Peter, and then had to flee for his life. The second was\nwhen he accompanied the messengers who brought relief to the Saints in\nJudea during the famine. That was the time Peter was sentenced to be\nkilled. Fifteen years had passed since he left Jerusalem for Damascus\nwith papers to arrest all Christians whom he found! Now he enters the\ncity as the defender of one of the greatest truths that the Christian\nChurch or the world can know; namely, that God is no respecter of\npersons, but will bless every nation as it obeys the principles of life\nand salvation.\n\nIN COUNCIL WITH THE LEADERS\n\n[Sidenote: Titus.]\n\nHe first met in council with Peter, James and John, and received for\nthe first time, so far as we know, \"the right hand of fellowship\" from\nJohn the beloved disciple. Titus was with Paul as an example of those\nwho were Gentile converts.\n\n[Sidenote: An Appeal to the Presidency.]\n\nThis visit was really an appeal to the Presidency of the Twelve, and\nconfirms the belief of the members of the Church today that Peter,\nJames and John were appointed leaders at that time just as three High\nPriests are now chosen as the First Presidency of Christ's Church.\n\n[Sidenote: An Important Meeting.]\n\nAt length the great meeting was called at which was to be settled once\nand for all the standing of the Gentiles in the Christian Church. \"It\nwas a scene of earnest debate, and perhaps, in its earlier portion, of\nangry disputing\"; but finally Peter addressed the assembly, and told\nhow God had revealed to him the fact that the Gentiles could accept the\nGospel without obeying all the Jewish ceremonies.\n\n[Sidenote: Missionaries Testify.]\n\nThen Paul and Barnabas spoke amidst great silence, while every eye\nwas riveted upon these two great missionaries who had first organized\nbranches of the Church among Gentile nations.\n\n[Sidenote: The Decision.]\n\nFinally, James, the brother of the Lord, who was known among the Jews\nas \"James the Just,\" arose and gave the decision of the council, which\nestablished the union of the Jewish and the Gentile Christians.\n\nPAUL RETURNS TO ANTIOCH\n\n[Sidenote: Judas and Silas.]\n\nThus the controversy ended, and Paul's mission to the Gentiles was\nauthoritatively approved. When he started back to Antioch he was\naccompanied by Judas surnamed Barsabas and Silas, \"chief men among the\nbrethren.\" It seems that John Mark went with them also. They carried\nwith them the decree of the council to be read to the churches that had\nbeen so disturbed by the controversy.\n\nWhen they reached Antioch, the whole body of the church met together,\nto hear the decision of the council. We can imagine with what interest\nand consolation the saints listened to the decree that there should\nnot be one Church for the Jew and another for the Gentile; but that\neveryone who sincerely believed in Christ, and obeyed the Gospel would\nbe saved.\n\n[IMAGE: MAP, SAINT PAUL'S SECOND JOURNEY.]\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Merchant of Venice; Act 1, Scene 3.\n\n2. Review entire experience.\n\n\n\nLESSON 29\n\nPAUL BEGINS HIS SECOND MISSIONARY JOURNEY\n\n\"Man should trust in God, as if God did all, and yet labor as earnestly\nas if he himself did all.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Desires to Visit Branches.]\n\nAfter Silas and Judas Barsabas had remained in Antioch a short time\n\"teaching and preaching the word of the Lord\" with Paul and Barnabas\nand \"many others also,\" Judas returned presumably to Jerusalem, but\nit \"pleased Silas to abide there still.\" Two years had passed since\nPaul and Barnabas had returned from their first mission, and Paul felt\nimpressed to visit again the churches they had established on that\nmemorable tour. So one day he said to Barnabas. \"Let us go again and\nvisit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the\nLord, and see how they do.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Disagreement.]\n\nTo this Barnabas readily consented, but said, \"Let us take my cousin\nJohn Mark along with us.\" \"No,\" answered Paul, \"it is not good to take\nMark with us, because he turned back from us at Pamphylia, and went not\nwith us to the work.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Separation.]\n\nBut Barnabas knew why Mark had done that, and was sure he would not\nturn back this time. Paul, however, would not consent; so these two\ngreat missionaries agreed to separate, and each take his own companion.\nBarnabas chose John Mark, and Paul chose Silas. They probably also\nagreed that Barnabas and Mark should go to the churches on the islands,\nand Paul and Silas to those on the mainland.\n\nWe do not know that Paul and Barnabas ever met again, but Paul speaks\nof him afterwards as of an apostle actively engaged in his Master's\nservice. Mark, too, in later years won Paul's confidence, for the\nlatter speaks of him as his \"fellow-laborer,\" and one \"profitable to\nthe ministry.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Barnabas and Mark at Cyprus.]\n\nBarnabas and Mark left first, and sailed to Cyprus, Barnabas' native\nisland. Here Mark, too, would feel at home, for it was where he began\nhis work as a missionary. Here we will leave them among the newly-made\nChristians, and follow Paul and Silas.\n\nPROBABLE VISIT TO PAUL'S OLD HOME\n\nThese two missionaries started by land northward through \"Syria and\nCilicia, confirming the churches.\" They had with them, of course, the\ndecision of the Council which no doubt, gave a great deal of comfort to\nthe Christian Gentiles in these branches.\n\n[Sidenote: Paul and Silas.]\n\nJust what particular cities Paul and Silas visited in Syria and\nCilicia, we do not know; but there was one which Paul certainly\nwould not pass by. Paul and That was his old home town Tarsus. If\nhe had succeeded in establishing a church there, with what joy and\nsatisfaction he would return to it now. Paul was always proud of\nTarsus, and spoke of it later as \"no mean city.\" [1]\n\n[IMAGE: TIMOTHY. \"Instructed from childhood to read the scripture, and\nto lead a pure life.\"]\n\nAT DERBE AND OTHER TOWNS\n\n[Sidenote: Derbe First.]\n\nOn his first mission, Paul and Barnabas visited in order Iconium,\nLystra, and Derbe, Now he and Silas approach these towns from the\nopposite direction, and come to Derbe first, then to Lystra, then to\nIconium.\n\n[Sidenote: Welcome at Lystra.]\n\nAt Lystra he was welcomed by that beautiful character Eunice who was a\nJewess, the mother of Timothy. Lois, her mother, would also greet Paul,\nand extend the glad hand to his companion Silas.\n\nCALL AND ORDINATION OF TIMOTHY\n\n[Sidenote: Timothy True to Faith.]\n\nFrom the brethren at Iconium and Lystra, Paul learned that these good\nwomen and their noble young son Timothy had been true to the faith. He\nalready knew that Timothy had been instructed from childhood to repeat\nthe scripture and to live a pure life. Timothy had been one who had\nstood by him when the mob dragged him from the city and left him for\ndead, and now he finds still in the young man's heart the \"unfeigned\nfaith which first dwelt in his grandmother Lois, and his mother\nEunice.\" No wonder Paul said to the women \"I desire Timothy to go forth\nwith me.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Timothy Ordained.]\n\nThe mother consented, and Timothy accepted the call, though scarcely\ntwenty years of age. Accordingly, a meeting was held, and Paul ordained\nTimothy by \"the laying on of hands\" to be a missionary and servant\nof the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul afterwards called this young man his\n\"own son in the Faith.\" [2] This instance tends to confirm the truth\nof the Article of Faith which declares the belief of the Latter-day\nSaints that \"a man must be called of God, by prophecy and by the laying\non of hands, by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and\nadminister in the ordinances thereof.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Towards Galatia.]\n\nAfter baptizing many more converts and establishing the churches in the\nfaith, and undoubtedly visiting Antioch in Pisidia and other towns\non the mainland where he and Barnabas had organized branches of the\nChurch, Paul, Silas, and Timothy went in a northerly direction through\n\"the region of Galatia.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul III.]\n\nWhile passing through here Paul was taken sick. What kind of sickness,\nwhether it was \"the thorn in the flesh\" he mentions in one of his\nepistles, or some other bodily ailment, is not stated. Paul calls it an\n\"infirmity of the flesh.\" [3] But he was very sick, and was detained\nin Galatia seemingly against his will. In spite of sickness, however,\nhe preached the Gospel to the people and many believed. How he loved\nthe friends he made at that time, and appreciated their tender care,\ncan be partly understood from a letter he wrote to them in which he\nsaid in effect, \"When I was sick in your midst, ye despised me not, nor\nrejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.\nWhat was then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that,\nif it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and\nhave given them to me.\" [4] In that same letter he calls them his\n\"little children,\" [5] and expresses a desire to be with them again to\nstrengthen them in the Gospel.\n\n[Sidenote: Branches Established.]\n\nBefore the missionaries left Galatia, even though Paul suffered in\nsickness, several new branches of the Church had been organized, and\nPaul's letter to these churches now forms part of the New Testament.\n\n[Sidenote: Westward.]\n\nLeaving Galatia, the three travelers continued westward toward the\nAegean Sea, and \"passing by Mysia came to Troas,\" the full name of\nwhich was Alexandria Troas.\n\nPaul had his face turned toward Europe and from this place could look\nacross the Aegean and see the \"distant prospect of the Macedonian\nhills.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Vision.]\n\nOne evening he went to bed, perhaps wondering about the people who\nlived on the other side of the water and inspired with the feeling that\nthe Lord desired him to go to them. There appeared to him, that night,\na vision, in which \"There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him,\nsaying,\n\n\"Come over into Macedonia, and help us.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Luke.]\n\nBut before he took boat across, he and his companions had been joined\nby another faithful convert to whom you must now be introduced. It may\nbe that Paul met him when Paul was sick, for the man was a physician,\nand could be of great service to him in his affliction. This new\ncompanion kept notes and afterwards wrote the \"Acts of the Apostles\" in\nwhich we learn most of the things we are telling you about. His name\nwas Luke, called by Paul the \"beloved Physician.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Over to Macedonia.]\n\nPaul told his vision to his brethren, and \"immediately\" Luke says, \"we\nendeavored to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had\ncalled us for to preach the Gospel unto them.\"\n\nThey sailed from Troas \"with a straight course\" across to Samothracia\nand \"the next day to Neapolis; and from thence to Philippi, the chief\ncity of that part of Macedonia.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Acts 21:39.\n\n2. I Tim. 1:2.\n\n3. Gal. 4:13.\n\n4. Gal. 4:13-15.\n\n5. Gal. 2:19.\n\n\n\nLESSON 30\n\nAT PHILIPPI\n\n\"The Gospel is the fulfillment of all hopes, the perfection of all\nphilosophy, the interpreter of all revelations, and a key to all\nseeming contradictions of truth in the physical and moral world.\"\n\n[Sidenote: By the River Side.]\n\nNear the city of Philippi flowed the river Gaggitas. On its banks just\n\"out of the city\" was built a plain enclosure probably open at the top,\nin which a few people met to worship the Lord.\n\nThere was no synagogue in Philippi; and the few Jews who were there\nwent to this place \"by the river side\" to offer their prayers, and to\nread the law. Most of those who did so were women.\n\nWhen the first Sabbath day came after the elders had been in Philippi\nseveral days, they went to this place of worship, \"sat down, and spake\nunto the women who resorted thither.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Gospel Preached.]\n\nNo doubt evil minded men accused the missionaries in those days of\ntrying to lead the women astray, just as enemies accuse the elders of\nthe Church today. But lies and false accusations could not keep Paul\nand his associates from doing their duty. To these women, they preached\nthe Gospel of Jesus Christ, and told them the story of His life. His\ncruel death and His glorious resurrection.\n\nLYDIA\n\n[Sidenote: First in Europe to Accept Gospel.]\n\nIn the group that listened to the wonderful message was \"a certain\nwoman named Lydia,\" who lived in Thyatira, but who was then in Philippi\nattending to her business connected with the dyeing trade. She sold\npurple dyes used by the rich and the nobility. The Lord gave her a\ntestimony of the truth as Paul explained it, and she applied for\nbaptism. She and \"her household\" were admitted into membership that\nday. If Lydia was the first one baptized, then she has the distinction\nof being the first person in Europe to accept Christianity. Whether\n\"her household\" means she had children, or whether it refers to her\nservants or to both we do not know, but they became the nuclueus of a\nthriving branch of the Church in that city, and in Lydia's home town\nas well.\n\nAfter baptism, Lydia invited the missionaries to her home, saying, \"If\nye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and\nabide there.\"\n\nTHE DAMSEL WITH THE SPIRIT OF DIVINATION\n\n[Sidenote: Evil Spirit Rebuked.]\n\nOne day when the elders were going out to the place of prayer, they met\nan unfortunate woman who caused them no little annoyance. She was a\ndamsel who seemed to be \"possessed by some spirit of divination\" which\nher masters (for she had more than one) used for making money. When she\nwould meet the elders, she would cry out:\n\n\"These men are the servants of the most high God, which show unto us\nthe way of salvation.\"\n\nAfter she had done this on several different days, Paul became\n\"grieved,\" not particularly because of what she said, but because he\nknew the evil spirit was tormenting her. So he turned to her one day,\nand said to the evil spirits:\n\n\"I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her,\" and\nimmediately she was healed.\n\n[Sidenote: Effect.]\n\nWhen her masters realized that their female slave had been cured, and\nthat the hope of their gains was gone, they became very angry. \"They\ncaught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the court unto the rulers.\"\nBut they were shrewd enough not to tell the magistrates the real reason\nwhy Paul and Silas had been brought there. They didn't say \"these\nmen cured our slave, and we cannot any longer fool the people for\nmoney.\" No, they accused them of breaking the Roman law by introducing\n\"customs\" and beliefs which it was unlawful for Romans to observe.\n\nWhen the mob cried out \"That is so,\" the magistrates gave the elders no\nopportunity to defend themselves, but condemned them to be taken out\nand beaten.\n\nSCOURGED AND IMPRISONED\n\n[Sidenote: The \"Inner Prison.\"]\n\nWith their hands tied, and their backs bared to the whip, the elders\nwere beaten \"with many stripes.\" Bleeding and faint they were then\ntaken to the prison. As the jailor received them, he was ordered to\n\"keep them safely.\" Hearing this order and thinking the prisoners\nmust be wicked men indeed, the jailor took them and \"thrust them into\nthe inner prison.\" The inner prison of a Roman jail was a dark, damp,\ngloomy dungeon. One writer calls it a \"pestilential cell, damp and\ncold, from which the light was excluded, and where the chains rusted\non the limbs of the prisoners.\" But not content with shutting the\nelders up in such a gloomy hole, \"the jailor made their feet fast in\nthe stocks.\" In fastening only their feet, however, he showed a little\nmercy for there were holes in the stock for the wrists and for the neck\nalso.\n\n[Sidenote: Happiness in Gloom.]\n\nWith their backs sore and bleeding, their bodies chilled by the cold\nand dampness, their legs cramped and aching, hungry and sleepless\nand surrounded by the blackness of midnight, Paul and Silas who knew\nthey were suffering for the sake of the true Gospel, could rejoice\nand praise the Lord. This they did at midnight by praying and singing\n\"praises unto God.\" Their voices rang out through the prison cells;\nand prisoners, hard hearted and sinful, listened in surprise to the\nfirst Christian hymn they had ever heard. The power of the Lord\nmanifested itself not only in the hearts of His true servants, but in\nthe entire prison and the town as well; for \"suddenly there was a great\nearthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken.\" All the\nbolts and bars at the doors fell from their sockets and the doors of\nthe prison flew open, and \"every one's bands were loosed,\" but not a\nprisoner tried to escape.\n\n[Sidenote: The Jailor's Fear.]\n\nAroused from his sleep by the commotion and earthquake, the jailor\nhurried to the prison only to find the doors wide open. Remembering his\ninjunction to \"keep the prisoners safely,\" and knowing that he would\nforfeit his life if any had escaped, he drew his sword to take his own\nlife, when Paul cried out:\n\n\"Do thyself no harm; for we are all here!\"\n\n[IMAGE: PAUL AND SILAS IN PRISON AT PHILIPPI. \"Then he called for a light,\nand sprang in and came trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas.\"]\n\n\"Then he [the jailor] called for a light and sprang in and came\ntrembling and fell down before Paul and Silas.\"\n\nHIS CONVERSION\n\n[Sidenote: An All-Important Question.]\n\nPerhaps he had heard what the damsel had said, that \"These men are\nthe servants of the most high God;\" it may be that he had heard them\npreach, or at least had been told by others what they preached.\nProbably the earthquake itself had convinced him that these men not\nonly were innocent, but were servants of God. At any rate, he cried\nout: \"Sirs, what must I do to be saved?\"\n\nThat is the question everybody should ask, and the answer, when\ntruthfully given, everybody should obey.\n\n[Sidenote: The Answer.]\n\nNote the answer: \"Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be\nsaved, and thy house.\" Then the servants of the Lord explained what a\ntrue belief is, expounded the \"word of the Lord,\" taught them faith\nand repentance and baptism; and when the keeper of the prison and his\nfamily said they believed the Gospel to be true, he led the elders out,\nwashed their stripes, and was baptized that same night, \"he and all his\nstraightway.\"\n\nThen he took them, not back to the dreary dungeon, but into his own\nhouse, and set meat before them. We are told that his heart was filled\nwith rejoicing because he \"believed in God with all his house.\"\n\nBy doing right he had opened the windows of his soul, and the sunshine\nof pure happiness had radiated through his entire being. He was\nexperiencing the truth as expressed in the song:\n\n  \"Doing good is a pleasure,\n  A joy beyond measure,\n  A blessing of duty and love.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Prisoners Released.]\n\nThe earthquake or something else had put fear in the hearts of other\nmen in that city, too, and among these were the magistrates who had\nsentenced, uncondemned, two innocent men to be beaten and imprisoned.\nRealizing their mistake they sent word early in the morning to the\njailor to \"Let those men go.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Surprises the Jailor.]\n\nPleased with the message, the keeper of the prison hurried to Paul and\nSilas crying: \"The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore\ndepart, and go in peace.\"\n\nHe was surprised to hear Paul coolly answer, \"No, they have beaten\nus openly, uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison.\"\nNow they want us to go out privily so that people will think we are\npestilent fellows who escaped from jail. \"Nay verily, but let them come\nthemselves and fetch us out.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Magistrates Humbled.]\n\nWhen the magistrates heard what Paul had said, and learned that Roman\ncitizens had been scourged and thrust into prison without even a trial,\nthey were very much afraid, for they realized that they might lose\ntheir offices. So they came, and led Paul and Silas out of the prison,\nand expressed a desire that the missionaries leave the city.\n\nBut the released prisoners had won a great victory; and while they did\nnot flaunt it in the face of their persecutors, they took occasion\nto go to the house of Lydia, and meet all the Saints. Perhaps Paul\nreminded the Saints of the night in Jerusalem when Peter was released\nfrom prison and came to the house of Mary.\n\nWhatever was said, we know that \"when he had seen the brethren they\ncomforted them and departed.\"\n\nLuke remained to strengthen and build up the Church in Philippi, and\nPaul and his other companions went to Thessalonica.\n\n\n\nLESSON 31\n\nAT THESSALONICA AND BEREA\n\n\"A constant struggle, a ceaseless battle to bring success from\ninhospitable surroundings, is the price of all great achievements.\"\n\n\"To banish, imprison, plunder, starve, hang, and burn men for religion\nis not the Gospel of Christ, but the policy of the devil. Christ never\nused anything that looked like force but once, and that was to drive\nbad men out of the temple, not to drive them in.\"\n\nIt is easy enough to do right when in good company, but it is not easy\nto defend the right when the majority of the crowd are opposing it; and\nyet, that is the time to show true courage. The Prophet Joseph, for\nexample, was reviled and persecuted for saying that he had received a\nvision, but he always remained true to his testimony. Though he \"was\nhated and persecuted yet he said it was true that God had spoken to\nhim, and\n\n\"_All the world could not make him think or believe otherwise_!\"\n\nSuch is the courage and firmness everyone should have. When one knows\nwhat is right one should always have the courage to defend it even in\nthe face of ridicule or punishment.\n\n  \"It's easy enough to be virtuous\n  When nothing tempts you to stray;\n  When without or within\n  No voice of sin\n  Is luring your soul away;\n  But it's only a negative virtue\n  Until it is tried by fire:\n  And the soul that is worth\n  The praises of earth\n  Is the soul that resists desire.\"\n\nIn the matter of courage to preach the Gospel in the face of bitter\npersecution, the missionaries at Thessalonica and Berea proved\nthemselves true heroes.\n\nAfter the cruel treatment Paul had received in Philippi, he was\nnot in a condition to endure long travel, and hardship; yet he and\nhis companions traveled over one hundred miles before they reached\nThessalonica.\n\nThis city, the capital of Macedonia, towards which Paul had been\ndirecting his course ever since he left Troas, was an important trading\ncenter. \"Indeed, in all Greece,\" \"if we except Corinth, there is no\nharbor with a finer situation; the anchorage is of the best; the\nroadstead is as smooth as a lake, while the neighboring valleys give\naccess to highways leading into Epirus and upper Macedonia.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: How Named.]\n\nAt one time the city was called Therma; but in the days of Alexander\nthe Great, it was named Thessalonica for Alexander's sister,\nThessalonica, the wife of one of Alexander's generals.\n\nThis name, slightly shortened clings to the city today. It is now\ncalled Saloniki and is one of the centers of the great war that is,\nat the present time, [2] wasting all Europe. In importance it is the\nsecond city in European Turkey.\n\n[Sidenote: Worn in Body; Fresh in Spirit.]\n\nTired and worn and penniless, Paul entered this great city. Tired\nand worn in body, but fresh and vigorous as ever in spirit, he took\nimmediate steps to give to the people the glorious message of the\nGospel of the Redeemer.\n\n[Sidenote: In the Synagogue.]\n\nThe first meeting was probably held in \"the synagogue,\" for\nThessalonica was then, and has been since, a strong Jewish center. For\nthree successive weeks, Paul and Silas \"reasoned with them out of the\nscriptures; opening and alleging that Christ must needs have suffered\nand risen again from the dead; and that this same Jesus, whom, he said,\n'I preach unto you,' is Christ.\"\n\nNor was it only in the synagogue that these earnest missionaries\nproclaimed their message, but in the street and in the workshop.\n\n[Sidenote: With Jason.]\n\nPaul and Silas lodged with a man named Jason, where Paul worked at the\ntrade he had learned in Tarsus. Paul says himself that he \"labored\nnight and day, that he might not be burdensome to any of them.\" [3]\nThus \"late at night, when the sun had long set on the incessant\nspiritual labors of the day, the apostle might be seen by lamplight\nlaboring at the rough haircloth, that he might be chargeable to none.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Aided by the Saints.]\n\nWe can well imagine that he was frequently interrupted in this work by\nmen and women who would seek for more light on the doctrines of the\nGospel. The result was that Paul made scarcely enough money to pay for\nhis food and clothing; and if the good Saints in Philippi had not sent\nhim relief, he and Silas would perhaps have been in actual want.\n\nNot many Jews believed, so Paul and his companion turned to the\nGentiles, many of whom believed, \"of the devout Greeks a great\nmultitude, and of the chief women not a few.\"\n\nTHE STORM GATHERS\n\n[Sidenote: A Mob.]\n\nBut when the unbelieving Jews saw great numbers accepting this new\nGospel, they became very jealous and angry. They went among a low,\nignorant class of the citizens, \"certain lewd fellows of the baser\nsort,\" and told them that these Christians are setting the whole world\nin an uproar, and ought to be driven out of the town. So they gathered\na mob, and surrounded the house of Jason where the elders lodged.\n\n[Sidenote: Missionaries Warned.]\n\nBut, fortunately, Paul and Silas were not in, and could not be found.\nPerhaps some friend, or it may be the Spirit of the Lord, had warned\nthe Lord's servants not to go home just at that time. Not finding the\nelders, the mob dragged Jason and some other brethren before the rulers\nof the city and said:\n\n[Sidenote: Jason Seized.]\n\n\"Those Christians that have turned the world upside down have come\nhither also;\n\n\"Whom Jason hath received; and these all do contrary to the decrees of\nCaesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.\"\n\nHow easy it is sometimes to prevert the truth into a lie!\n\n[Sidenote: Paul and Companions Escape.]\n\nJason and his friends had to give \"security;\" (by which is probably\nmeant that they had to deposit money as assurance that they would do\nnothing against the government), after which they were permitted to go\nfree.\n\nBut the mob was still bitter against Paul and Silas who were advised by\nthe brethren to leave immediately. This they did by night, traveling\nfifty-one miles to Berea.\n\nAT BEREA\n\n[Sidenote: Many Accept Gospel.]\n\nPersecution and suffering could no more stop these inspired workers\nfrom preaching the Gospel than it could stop them from breathing; so\nas soon as they arrived at Berea, \"they went into the synagogue of the\nJews.\" The Jews here were more noble than those in Thessalonica, and\nwould reason from the scripture, which was the Old Testament, kept\nin sacred rolls in the synagogue. So we conclude that the Bereans,\nnot only listened attentively to what the missionaries told them but\nsearched the scriptures to see if what they said was in harmony with\nthe Law. When they found that it was, many believed, \"also of honorable\nwomen who were Greeks, and of men not a few.\"\n\nTHE STORMS FOLLOWS THEM\n\nAs the Jews had gone once before from Iconium to Lystra, so they came\nnow from Thessalonica to Berea, \"like hunters upon their prey,\" and\n\"stirred up the people.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Silas and Timothy Remain.]\n\nBut the seeds of truth had taken root in the rich soil, and while the\nstorm of persecution threatened to deluge Paul, it served only to\nstrengthen and vitalize the Gospel field.\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Escapes.]\n\nLeaving Silas and Timothy to continue the work, to bless and encourage\nthe Saints, Paul became once more a fugitive and was conducted by some\nof the brethren to the sea. From some point on the coast he embarked\nfor Athens.\n\n[IMAGE: MAP, ST. PAUL'S THIRD JOURNEY.]\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Touard.\n\n2. 1915.\n\n3. I Thess. 11:9.\n\n\n\nLESSON 32\n\nAT ATHENS AND CORINTH\n\n\"Sometimes a noble failure serves the world as faithfully as a\ndistinguished success.\"\n\n\"Life has no blessing like a prudent friend.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Loneliness.]\n\nPerhaps few if any of the young folks who read these lessons have ever\nbeen alone, even for a short time, in a strange city; but it may be\nthat some of your fathers or brothers have, if so, you may learn by\nasking just how lonesome one can feel when one is in a large crowd, in\na strange city, and out of sympathy with the people around him. To be\n\n  \"Amid the crowd, the hum, the shock of men,\n  To hear, to see, to feel and to possess,\n  And roam along the world's tired denizen,\n  With none to bless us, none whom we can bless;\n  This is to be alone; this, this is solitude.\"\n\nSuch must have been Paul's condition after he said goodby to his\nbrethren, and walked through the streets of Athens alone.\n\nThis loneliness impressed him so deeply that he afterwards wrote to\nthe Thessalonians that he \"was left in Athens alone.\" [1] He had sent\na command back to Berea for \"Silas and Timothy to come to him with all\nspeed;\" but until they came, he was the only Christian in the great\npagan city.\n\n[Sidenote: Statues and Deities.]\n\nAs Paul walked through the streets of Athens, he saw many statues and\nmemorials built in honor of men and mystical gods. Some of these were\nthe statues of the great men of Athens, \"such as Solon the lawgiver,\nConon the admiral, Demosthenes the orator.\" Among her defied heroes\nwere Hercules, Mercury, Apollo, Neptune, Jupiter, Minerva, and many\nothers, and in one place, in the center of all these was an altar to\nthe \"Twelve Gods.\" \"There were more statues in Athens than in all the\nrest of Greece. It has been said as almost a truth that it was easier\nto find a god in Athens than a man.\" [2] There were altars erected also\nto Fame, to Modesty, to Energy, to Persuasion, and to Pity, and Paul\nsaw one inscription,\n\n\"To the Unknown God.\"\n\n[Sidenote: The Market Place.]\n\nIn the city was a common meeting place called the Agora. Here the\nAthenians gathered to talk about and discuss the questions of the\nday. Idlers and professed philosophers mingled together eager to hear\nanything new. While Paul was waiting for his companions, he visited\nthis gathering place daily, and conversed with those whom he met.\nFrom him the crowd heard, for the first time, about Jesus and the\nresurrection.\n\nHe also attended the service in the synagogue, and disputed with the\nJews.\n\n[Sidenote: Interest Awakened.]\n\nSo Paul, though lonely and discouraged, and perhaps gloomy because of\nthe ignorance and wickedness he saw around him, \"began to stir the\ncity\" because of the message he announced. The Athenians and strangers,\ntoo, began to get curious; for some of them, Luke tells us \"spent their\ntime in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing.\"\n\nThen certain philosophers began to hear about him, and took notice of\nhim. Some said,\n\n\"What will this base fellow say?\"\n\nAnd others,\n\n\"He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods; because he preacheth\nunto them Jesus and the resurrection.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Mars' Hill.]\n\nOn the top of the hill of Areopagus was a platform which was reached by\na flight of stone steps leading immediately from the Agora. On this had\nsat the leading judges who had, for time immemorial, decided important\nquestions of religion, or passed sentence on the greatest criminals.\nBecause Mars was supposed to have had his trial there, it was called\n\"Mars' Hill:\" On the brow of this hill was built the temple of Mars.\n\nTo this important and memorable spot, the philosophers led the Apostle,\nsaying,\n\n\"May we know what this new doctrine whereof thou speakest is? For thou\nbringest certain strange things to our ears; we would know, therefore,\nwhat these things mean.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Memorable Address.]\n\nPaul accepted the invitation, and delivered one of the most memorable\naddresses in the world. You will notice, however, that he does not\neven mention the name of Christ, but tries to influence his hearers A\nby leading them from what they were interested in to that in which he\nwanted them to be interested. [3]\n\n[Sidenote: Interrupted.]\n\nAs soon as Paul mentioned the resurrection of the dead, he was\ninterrupted. Some broke out into laughter and made light of his remark.\nOthers were more courteous, and said, as they withdrew from him, \"We\nwill hear thee again on this matter.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Converted Dionysius.]\n\nPaul must have felt almost crushed with the thought that his sermon had\nbeen an utter failure; but he had done his duty and the seeds of truth\nhad been sown. They bore fruit in the conversion of Dionysius, a member\nof the court of the Areopagus, and of a woman whose name was Damaris,\nand \"others with them.\"\n\nAfter remaining a short time, \"he left Athens as he had lived in it, a\ndespised and lonely man.\" Yet that short visit, and that interrupted\nspeech, characterized, as both were, by a sincere desire to call the\nerring and wicked to repentance, have made Paul more famous than any of\nthe philosophers, so wise in their own conceit, who mocked and spurned\nhim.\n\nAT THE CLOSE OF THE SECOND MISSION\n\n[Sidenote: Alone in Corinth.]\n\nIt is probable that Timothy joined Paul in Athens; but if so, he\nreturned immediately to the churches in Macedonia. Thus it was that\nPaul sailed from Athens alone, and having landed at the seaport of\nCenchrea, walked eighteen miles to Corinth. Here he found many Greeks\nand Jews. There were crowds also of strangers who came to see the great\ngames and races for which Corinth was noted. Corinth, at that time, was\na great commercial center, and merchantmen and other traders from far\nand near made up its population. If Athens was a learned city, Corinth\nwas a wealthy and wicked one. So Paul's loneliness here must have been\njust as keen as it was in Athens. Indeed, he says himself that he went\nthere \"in weakness and in fear and in much trembling.\" [4]\n\n[IMAGE: ST. PAUL AT ATHENS. \"And when they heard of the resurrection of the\ndead, some mocked and others said, we will hear thee again on this matter.\"]\n\n[Sidenote: Aquila and Priscilla.]\n\nJust about that time a Roman emperor named Claudius issued a decree\nthat all Jews should be banished from Rome. Among those who had to\nleave were a man named Aquila and his wife Priscilla. Whether they were\nChristians before they came to Corinth is not known. At any rate, they\nwere among the first friends Paul met in that city. It may be that they\nbecame acquainted because Aquila and Paul had the same trade. At any\nrate, Paul lived with them, and (if they were not Christians before)\nconverted them to the Gospel, to which they remained staunch and true.\nThese friends were a help to Paul in furnishing him employment, but in\na greater way by proving to be true friends indeed.\n\n[Sidenote: In the Synagogue.]\n\nEvery Sabbath day, these three friends and fellow-laborers would lay\naside their unfinished tents, and go to the synagogue to worship\nthe Lord. Paul, as usual, would speak to his countrymen and to the\nconverted Greeks, and proclaim to them the glorious message of the\nrisen Redeemer. He would reason with them from the scripture, and\npersuade them to become Christians.\n\n[Sidenote: Timothy and Silas Join Paul.]\n\nFor some time, he seems to have been less energetic than usual. He\nwas more discouraged than enthusiastic. But, just at that period, he\nwas joined by his two dear friends, Timothy and Silas. Their coming\ngave him new heart, or as Luke says, \"he was pressed in the spirit,\nand testified to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.\" Judging from the\nstrength Paul received from the companionship of these friends, he\nrealized that,\n\n\"A true friend is the gift of God, and He only who made hearts can\nunite them.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jews Reject Truth.]\n\nBut the more boldly and earnestly Paul preached, the more bitterly\nthose unconverted Jews opposed him. Finally, when they blasphemed the\nname of God, and refused to accept the truth, Paul \"shook his raiment,\"\nand said, \"Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean; from\nhenceforth I will go unto the Gentiles.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Crispus Converted.]\n\nBut many were converted, and among these was--Crispus, the chief ruler\nof the synagogue--\"he and all his house.\" His conversion, with the\ncrowds of Corinthians who were baptized also, only made the Jews more\nbitter than ever; and they began to threaten Paul.\n\n[Sidenote: Comfort.]\n\nAbout this time Paul wrote his second letter to the Thessalonians. In\nit he asks, especially, for their prayers that he might be delivered\nfrom the wicked men around him. \"Pray for us, brethren,\" he pleads,\n\"that the word of the Lord may be preached freely; and that we may be\ndelivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all have not faith.\" [5]\n\nAnd Paul prayed, too, and he received a direct answer from the Lord,\nwho said: \"Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace:\n\n\"For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I\nhave much people in this city.\"\n\n[Sidenote: In the House of Justus.]\n\nWhen Paul left the synagogue, he held meetings in a house that \"joined\nhard to the synagogue;\" that is, it was perhaps next to it. Here Paul\nand his two companions continued preaching. This so exasperated the\nJews that they concluded to try to get Paul either expelled or punished.\n\n[Sidenote: Before Gallio.]\n\nNow it so happened that just at that time a new governor was appointed\nover Achaia. His name was Gallio, and he was known as a very \"kind and\ngentle man.\" Thinking he would be easily influenced, the Jews had Paul\narrested, and dragged him before the \"judgment seat,\" saying falsely,\n\"This fellow persuadeth men to worship God contrary to the law.\"\n\nPaul arose, or beckoned some way that he desired to answer the charge;\nbut Gallio stopped him, and addressing the Jews, said:\n\n\"If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason\nwould that I should bear with you; but if it be a question of words and\nnames, and of your law, look ye to it; for I will be no judge of such\nmatters.\"\n\nAnd he drove them from his presence.\n\n[Sidenote: Persecutors Punished.]\n\nSo Paul was not harmed, just as the Lord promised. But the Jews were;\nfor the Greeks took their leader and whipped him even before the\n\"judgment seat.\"\n\nPaul remained in Corinth one year and a half, and established there a\nstrong church.\n\nThen, as the time for the Passover at Jerusalem was drawing near, he\nbade goodby to the Saints; and taking Aquila and Priscilla, Silas and\nTimothy, his faithful friends and companions, he set sail for Ephesus,\nthence to Caesarea, and Jerusalem.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. I Thess. 3:1.\n\n2. Weed.\n\n3. Read and explain sermon Acts 17:22-31.\n\n4. I Cor. 2:3.\n\n5. II Thes. 3:1-2.\n\n\n\nLESSON 33\n\nPAUL'S THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY FROM ANTIOCH TO EPHESUS\n\n\"No man taketh this honor unto himself but he that is called of God as\nwas Aaron.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Promise.]\n\nWhen Paul stopped off at Ephesus on his way to Jerusalem, as mentioned\nin the previous lesson, the Jews to whom he preached asked him \"to\ntarry a longer time with them.\" Not being able to do so, he promised\nthem to \"return again if God will.\" This promise, as we shall see, Paul\nliterally fulfilled.\n\n[Sidenote: Salutes the Church.]\n\nWhether he arrived in Jerusalem in time to attend the Passover we do\nnot know. In fact we are led to infer that he did not, for all that we\nknow of this visit is that he \"saluted the church,\" and went down to\nAntioch.\n\n[Sidenote: Beginning of Third Journey.]\n\nAfter spending some time with the important church in Antioch, Paul\nstarted on his third missionary journey. Just what course he followed,\nit is difficult to determine; but since Luke tells us that he went\n\"over all the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order,\" we may safely\nconclude that he visited his old home in Tarsus, as well as the cities\nof Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, and possibly Antioch in Pisidia. The good\npeople in Galatia also would again have the pleasure of meeting the\napostle who first preached to them the Gospel, and to whom they had so\nkindly administered in affliction.\n\nNeither do we know of a certainty who were his companions. Timotheus,\nundoubtedly, was one who accompanied him on the whole of his journey.\n\nAPOLLOS\n\n[Sidenote: An Eloquent Preacher.]\n\nWhile Paul and Timothy are visiting the churches in Galatia and\nPhrygia, let us hasten ahead of them to Ephesus; for there is a man\nthere whose acquaintance we should make. His name is Apollos and he\ncame from Alexandria. He was, undoubtedly, one of the most eloquent\npreachers of the Gospel in that day.\n\nBut when he first came to Ephesus, he \"knew only the baptism of John.\"\nHe had accepted the message of John the Baptist, but he had not heard\nthe Gospel as it had been taught by Jesus and His disciples. He seemed\nto have been ignorant of the mission of the Holy Ghost.\n\nWith him were twelve other men who held the same incomplete belief.\n\n[Sidenote: New Light.]\n\nBelieving they had the truth, these men went to the same synagogue\nin which Paul had preached when the Jews asked him to tarry longer,\nand Apollos spoke to the people. In the congregation sat Aquila and\nPriscilla. These good Christians perceived at once that Apollos did\nnot understand the Gospel; so, they invited him home with them and\n\"expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.\"\n\nShortly after this, Apollos left Ephesus for Corinth, taking with him a\nletter of recommendation from the Saints in Ephesus.\n\nTHE HOLY GHOST GIVEN\n\nThus it was that when Paul arrived in Ephesus he met the twelve men who\nhad been taught the Gospel as Apollos had known it. When they told Paul\nthat they believed the Gospel, he asked them, \"Have ye received the\nHoly Ghost since ye believed?\"\n\n\"We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost,\" they\nanswered.\n\n\"Unto what then were ye baptized?\" asked Paul.\n\n\"Unto John's baptism,\" they replied.\n\n\"John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance,\" said Paul,\n\"saying unto the people, that they should believe on Him which should\ncome after him that is, on Christ Jesus.\"\n\nThey were then baptized by the proper authority, in the name of the\nLord Jesus. Paul then \"laid his hands upon them\" and \"the Holy Ghost\ncame on them; and they spoke with tongues, and prophesied.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Three Months in the Synagogue.]\n\nFor three months Paul continued to preach in the synagogue, \"disputing\nand persuading the things concerning the Kingdom of God.\" During this\ntime, he worked at his trade supporting himself \"with his hands.\" Daily\nthe Church grew in strength, and daily its enemies became so bitter in\ntheir opposition that Paul left the synagogue, and held his meetings in\na schoolhouse where taught a man named Tyrannus.\n\n[Sidenote: Two Years at Ephesus.]\n\nIn this place, Paul labored for two years, a period in his life marked\nby wonderful manifestations from the Lord. Sick people were healed by\nthe power of faith in most miraculous ways. Sometimes when Paul could\nnot visit in person those afflicted, they would be healed by simply\ntouching a handkerchief or an apron he had worn. Thus \"the name of the\nLord Jesus was magnified.\"\n\nMEN WHO ACTED WITHOUT AUTHORITY\n\n[Sidenote: Sons of Sceva.]\n\nAmong those who witnessed these miracles were some vagabond Jews who\nmade a living by deceiving the people by pretending to be magicians.\nWhen they saw Paul heal the sick in the name of Jesus, they thought\nthey could do the same, and thus make a great deal of money. So one\nday these seven men who were sons of Sceva, meeting a man who was\nafflicted with an evil spirit, said, \"We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul\npreacheth,\" to come out of him.\n\n\"Jesus I know,\" said the evil spirit, \"and Paul I know, but who are\nye?\" And the man leaped on them, and overcame them, so that they fled\nout of the house naked and wounded.\n\n[Sidenote: A Big Bonfire.]\n\nThe treatment that these seven men received through their hypocrisy,\nsoon spread over the city. Many who had practiced such arts as the sons\nof Sceva had, brought all their books of magic and made a bonfire of\nthem. Paul saw burned that day about $10,000 worth of books and papers.\n\n[Sidenote: Annual Festival.]\n\nEvery year in Ephesus, in the month of May, there was held a great\nfestival in honor of the Goddess Diana. Rich men came from all parts\nof Asia, and \"paid vast sums of money for the entertainment of the\npeople. The entertainments were of different kinds. In the theatre were\nconcerts and shows; in the hippodrome horse-racing; in the stadium\ngymnastic games of running, leaping and wrestling. There were noisy\nscenes through the day and night. In every hour of the day there were\ngay processions to the temple, following the bleating animals crowned\nwith garland, being led to sacrifice. Idlers and drunkards could be\nseen almost everywhere at any time. * * * The shops and bazaars were\nfilled with all the attractive things of those days which parents and\nfriends would buy themselves and those left in distant homes. The\nspecial mementos would be little models of Diana and her shrine. The\npoorest of purchasers would buy those made of wood; others those of\nsilver; and the wealthy those of gold.\" [1]\n\n[Sidenote: A Loss of Trade.]\n\nPaul, no doubt, had told the Ephesians as he had the Athenians, that\nGod is not made of wood or of silver, or of gold, \"neither graven by\nart of man's devise.\" These were hundreds and thousands of people who\nbelieved Paul and worshiped the true God. Consequently, at this annual\nfeast, there were not so many images of Diana bought as there had been\nat other festivals.\n\nA MOB GATHERS\n\n[Sidenote: Demetrius]\n\nDemetrius, a sliversmoth, who made silver shrines for Diana, became\nvery much agitated when he saw his trade interfered with. He called\ntogether all his workmen and said:\n\n\"Sirs, ye know by this craft we have our wealth. Moreover ye see and\nhear, that not alone at Ephesus but almost throughout all Asia, this\nPaul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no\ngods, which are made with hands.\"\n\nHe continued to speak to them until they became thoroughly aroused and\ncried out, \"Great is Diana of the Ephesians.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Paul's Companions Seized.]\n\nSoon the whole city became in confusion. A mob gathered, and tried to\nfind Paul. Failing in this, they caught Gaius and Aristarchus, two of\nPaul's companions, and rushed them into the theatre.\n\nPaul was kept in safety by his friends who refused to let him enter the\ntheatre, although he insisted on doing so.\n\n[Sidenote: A Howling Mob.]\n\nA Jew named Alexander tried to speak to the mob, but they would not\nlisten, and continued to howl for two hours, \"Great is Diana of the\nEphesians, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.\"\n\nWhen they had worn themselves out, the town clerk arose and told them\nthey had better go home and be quiet, or the Romans might \"call them in\nquestion for this day's uproar.\" He said, too, that if Demetrius had\nany case against Paul, he could have Paul arrested and taken into court.\n\nAs half the people, as is the case of all mobs, did not know why they\nhad come, they began to move out of the theatre. \"The stone seats were\ngradually emptied, the uproar ceased and the rioters dispersed to their\nvarious occupations and amusements.\"\n\nAs Paul had already made preparations to go into Macedonia, he called\nthe disciples to him, and after embracing them, left Ephesus so far as\nwe know, forever. Later, however, as we shall learn in the next lesson,\nhe met some of the Elders and Saints from Ephesus.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Weed.\n\n\n\nLESSON 34\n\nTHIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY--(Continued)\n\nPaul's farewell visit to churches he had established\n\nDuring the next nine or ten months--from the summer, A. D., 57, to\nthe spring, A. D., 58--following Paul's affectionate farewell to the\ndisciples at Ephesus, we know very little of his travels. From the\nepistles that he wrote during this period, we learn most of what is\nknown about his labors and duties \"over those parts\" in Macedonia.\n\nHe first went to Troas, where he expected to meet Titus whom he had\nsent to Corinth. Here, he says, \"I had no rest in my spirit, because I\nfound not Titus, my brother.\" [1]\n\nWorrying over the reports he had heard about the evil conditions in the\nCorinthian church, he left Troas for Philippi.\n\n[Sidenote: A Joyous Welcome.]\n\nHere he met some of his most beloved Saints; for the Philippian\nconverts, though among the poorest, financially, were among the most\nfaithful of all the churches. Paul had accepted their assistance when\nhe had refused help from other sources. This is one church which Paul\ndid not reprove. What a joyous welcome these faithful Saints must\nhave given the Apostle! How their hearts would rejoice as they retold\ntheir experiences when Paul and Timothy and Silas first preached to\nthe women by the river side. Lydia and the jailor and a host of other\nfaithful members would all be there to recall the arrest, the whipping,\nthe imprisonment, the stocks, the midnight hymns, the earthquake, the\nauthorities' fears and all the other wonderful experiences of that\nfirst visit to Philippi!\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Depressed.]\n\nYet amidst all this welcome Paul says his \"flesh had no rest; without\nwere fightings, within were fears; until God who comforts them that are\ncast down, comforted me by the coming of Titus.\" [2]\n\n[Sidenote: Second Epistle to Corinthians.]\n\nTitus told him that the members of the Church in Corinth who had been\ndoing wrong had been excommunicated, and that many of the saints were\ndoing better. Hearing this, Paul wrote another letter to them, (the\nsecond Epistle to the Corinthians) and sent Titus back with it.\n\n[Sidenote: Offerings.]\n\nTitus seems to have been one of the chief men in collecting\ncontributions for the relief of the poor in Judea. When he returned to\nCorinth, he continued to make collections for Paul to take to Jerusalem\nin the near future. [3]\n\nThe next we hear of Paul, he is in Corinth. While there he hears that\nthe Galatians were saying that he was not an apostle because Jesus\nhad not chosen him as one of the Twelve. So he wrote a letter to the\nGalatians in which he says,\n\n[Sidenote: Galatians Reproved.]\n\n\"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you unto the\ngrace of Christ unto another Gospel.\"\n\nThen he warns them against accepting any other Gospel, for if anyone\npreach any other Gospel, \"let him be accursed.\"\n\nHere he also wrote his epistle to the Romans.\n\n[Sidenote: Retraces Steps.]\n\nPaul prepared to go to Palestine direct from Corinth, but he heard of a\nplot to take his life. To frustrate this, he retraced his steps through\nMacedonia. When the company again reached Philippi, Timothy and several\nothers went ahead to Troas. Paul and Luke remained for a short time and\nthen rejoined the company at Troas.\n\nA LONG AND MEMORABLE MEETING\n\nWhen Sunday came, all the disciples \"came together to break bread,\" and\nPaul preached to them his farewell sermon. As he was to leave them in\nthe morning, they persuaded him to continue his speech until midnight,\nwhich he did.\n\nThe meeting was held in an upper room, the windows of which were all\nthrown open so the congregation could enjoy the cool of the evening.\n\n[Sidenote: Eutychus Falls.]\n\nSitting in one of the windows was a young man named Eutychus who\nlistened to the sermon as long as he could, and then fell asleep. As\nPaul continued to preach, Eutychus continued to nod, until finally\nhe became overbalanced and fell into the courtyard below. No doubt a\nwoman's scream first interrupted the sermon. The people sprang to their\nfeet, and rushed below, and picked the young man up for dead.\n\n[Sidenote: Restored.]\n\nPaul, too, went down, and embracing the boy, said,\n\n\"Trouble not yourselves for his life is in him.\"\n\n[IMAGE: ST. PAUL AT MILETUS WITH THE ELDERS OF THE CHURCH AT EPHESUS.\n\"And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him, sorrowing\nmost of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no\nmore.\"]\n\nThankful that the young man was restored, the people returned to the\nroom, and Paul preached to them until morning.\n\nPaul's companions went by ship to Assos, but he preferred to walk the\ntwenty miles alone.\n\nAt Assos he went abroad the ship and sailed to Mitylene, thence to\nChios, and the next day to Samos, about a mile from which they tarried\nat Trogyllium.\n\n[Sidenote: At Miletus.]\n\nOn the next day, Paul sailed past Ephesus, thinking that he would not\nhave time to visit the Saints there, for he wanted to be in Jerusalem\non the day of Pentecost. But when he reached Miletus, a few miles from\nEphesus, he sent word over to the Elders of the Church to come to him.\nThis they did with all gladness, and listened with intense interest to\nhis address to them. [4]\n\n\"And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down and prayed with them all.\"\n\nThat little company of Christians assembled in an obscure place on the\nseashore presents to our minds one of the most beautiful pictures of\nthe world, and their farewell greeting one of the most impressive and\npathetic.\n\n[Sidenote: A Sad Farewell.]\n\nWhen the beloved apostle was about to leave them, \"they all wept sore,\nand fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him; sorrowing most of all for the\nwords which he spake.\" It seemed that they just could not bear to have\nhim leave them. They clung to him even when he went aboard the ship,\nand it was with difficulty that his companions drew Paul from them.\n\nA similar scene was enacted at Tyre where the company remained seven\ndays. While Paul was visiting and comforting the Saints here, they\nentreated him not to go up to Jerusalem, because his life would be in\ndanger. But Paul could not be persuaded.\n\nWhen the time came to say \"goodby,\" the men, women and children all\nwent with Paul and his company down to the shore. Here they all kneeled\ndown and prayed, and bade farewell \"one of another.\" Then Paul and his\ncompanions entered the ship, and the sorrowing Saints returned slowly\nto their homes.\n\nAT CAESAREA\n\nAt Caesarea the missionaries were entertained by Philip, the\nevangelist, one of the seven chosen deacons.\n\n[Sidenote: A Prophecy.]\n\nWhile they were there, Agabus, a prophet came down from Jerusalem and\nafter greeting them all, took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands\nand feet, saying,\n\n\"Thus sayeth the Holy Ghost, so shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the\nman that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of\nthe Gentiles.\"\n\nHearing this prophecy, Luke and all Paul's company pleaded with him not\nto go to Jerusalem. But Paul answered,\n\n[Sidenote: Ready to Die.]\n\n\"What mean ye to weep and to break my heart? for I am ready not to\nbe bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord\nJesus.\"\n\n\"All right,\" said his friends, \"The will of the Lord be done.\"\n\nFrom Caesarea, they traveled by carriage to Jerusalem, where the\nbrethren received them gladly.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. II Cor. 2:13.\n\n2. II Cor. 7:6.\n\n3. II Cor. 8.\n\n4. See Acts 20:17-35.\n\n\n\nLESSON 35\n\nEXCITING EXPERIENCES IN JERUSALEM\n\n\"In the huge mass of evil as it rolls and swells, there is ever some\ngood working toward deliverance and triumph.\"\n\n[Sidenote: At Headquarters.]\n\nAt Jerusalem, Paul and his companions met with the Church and\nundoubtedly gave the money that had been given by the Gentile churches\nfor the benefit of the poor in Judea. At the advice of James, the\nbrother of the Lord, who was then presiding over the Church in\nJerusalem, Paul shaved his head, and did certain other things to show\nthe Jews that he was willing to observe the Jewish laws.\n\n[Sidenote: Falsely Accused.]\n\nWhen he had been in Jerusalem about a week, he went to the temple to\nworship. There happened to be also in the temple, some men who had\nseen Paul in Asia with the Gentiles. Thinking that he had brought\nsome of these Gentiles into the temple, they stirred up the people,\nseized Paul, and cried out, \"Men of Israel, help; this is the man\nthat teacheth all men everywhere against the people, and the law, and\nthis place; and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath\npolluted this place.\"\n\nOf course, this was not true, but it served to arouse the crowd, who\ndragged Paul out of the temple and shut the doors. In their rage they\nwere about to kill Paul, which they would have done but for the timely\ninterference of a Roman officer.\n\nStationed in the castle north of the temple was a guard of soldiers\nunder command of an officer called the \"Chief Captain.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Rescued From Death.]\n\nWhen somebody told the captain, whose name was Claudius Lysius, that\nthere was trouble in the outer court of the temple, he hurried the\nsoldiers down there just as the mob began to beat and trample Paul to\ndeath. The soldiers rescued Paul; but the captain thinking he was a\ndesperate man, commanded him to be bound with chains.\n\n\"Who is this man, and what has he done?\" Claudius asked of the angry\nJews.\n\nSome cried one thing and some another in such confusion that the chief\ncaptain could understand nothing; so he said to the soldiers, \"Carry\nhim to the castle.\"\n\n[Sidenote: On the Castle Steps.]\n\nAs the soldiers bore Paul away, the mob, acting like wolves after their\nprey, followed, crying, \"Away with him.\" Just as they were going up\nthe steps into the castle, Paul speaking in Greek said to the chief\ncaptain, \"May I speak unto thee?\"\n\n\"Canst thou speak Greek?\" answered the captain, \"Aren't you that\nEgyptian who sometime ago made an uproar here and led out into the\nwilderness four thousand men that were murderers?\"\n\n\"I am a Jew from Tarsus,\" answered Paul, \"a city in Cilicia, a citizen\nof no mean city, I beseech thee let me speak unto the people.\"\n\nHoping to learn something about the cause of the uproar the chief\ncaptain gave his consent.\n\nPaul turned to the people and beckoned for them to be quiet. Their\nyelling ceased, especially when they heard Paul speak in Hebrew, their\nown language. [1]\n\n[Sidenote: The Word \"Gentiles.\"]\n\nThe Jews listened to him quietly until he happened to mention the word\n\"Gentiles,\" then they cried, \"Away with such a fellow from the earth;\nfor it is not fit that he should live.\"\n\nIn their anger, they took off their coats and threw dust in the air to\nshow how they hated him.\n\n[Sidenote: Ordered Whipped.]\n\nBeing still in doubt as to what Paul had done, the chief captain\nordered him brought into the castle and whipped until Paul told why the\nJews cried so against him. As they were binding him to beat him, Paul\nsaid to the centurion who stood by.\n\n\"Is it lawful for you to whip a man who is a Roman and uncondemned?\"\n\nWhen the centurion heard this, he hurried to the chief captain saying,\n\"Take heed what thou doest; for this man is a Roman.\" Then the chief\ncaptain came and said to Paul,\n\n\"Tell me, art thou a Roman?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" answered Paul.\n\n\"With a great sum obtained I this freedom,\" said Claudius.\n\n\"But I was a free born Roman,\" proudly answered Paul.\n\nWhen they heard this, those who were going to torture him hurried away\nfrom him, and the chief captain, too, was troubled; for he knew he had\nno right to put chains on a Roman citizen who had not had a fair trial.\n\nBEFORE ANANIAS THE HIGH PRIEST\n\nNext morning Paul was brought before Ananias the High Priest and the\nCouncil.\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Smitten.]\n\n\"And Paul earnestly beholding the council said,\n\n\"Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until\nthis day.\"\n\nAt this Ananias became so enraged that he said to those who stood by\nPaul,\n\n\"Smite him on the mouth.\"\n\n\"God shall smite thee, thou whited wall,\" answered Paul with sudden\nanger. \"Sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be\nsmitten contrary to the law?\"\n\n[Sidenote: Temper Controlled.]\n\nThose who stood nearest Paul said, \"Revilest thou God's High Priest?\"\nThen Paul, getting control of his feelings answered,\n\n\"I did not know, brethren, that he was the High Priest; for it is\nwritten, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Two Sects.]\n\nPaul then noticed that in the council were two parties, some Pharisees\nand some Sadducees; so by speaking wisely of the resurrection, he won\nthe Pharisees on his side, who said,\n\n\"We find no evil in this man. It may be that an angel or a spirit has\nspoken to him.\"\n\nThis made the Sadducees angry, the two factions got to quarreling and\nbecame so angry at each other that the chief captain fearing that they\nwould tear Paul to pieces, commanded the soldiers to take him back to\nthe castle.\n\n[Sidenote: Divine Comfort.]\n\nOn the next night while Paul was still in the castle, the Lord stood by\nhim and said,\n\n\"Be of good cheer, Paul; for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem\nso must thou also bear witness at Rome.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Plot to Kill.]\n\nOn the following morning about forty of these angary Jews bound\nthemselves together by an oath, swearing that they would neither eat\nnor drink until they had killed Paul. To accomplish this, they said to\nthe chief Priests, \"we have bound ourselves under a great oath that we\nwill taste nothing until we have slain Paul. Now, you ask the chief\ncaptain to bring him down to you tomorrow, as though you would inquire\nsomething more; and we, as soon as he comes near us, will be ready to\nkill him.\"\n\nBut their plot became known to Paul's sister's son, who hastened to the\ncastle, and told his uncle all about it. After hearing his nephew's\nstory, Paul called one of the centurions, and said,\n\n[Sidenote: The Plot Frustrated.]\n\n\"Take this young man to the chief captain; for he hath a certain thing\nto tell him.\" The centurion did as directed and said to the chief\ncaptain,\n\n\"Paul, the prisoner, called me to him, and asked me to bring this young\nman unto thee, who hath something to say unto thee.\"\n\n\"What is it thou hast to tell me?\" asked the chief captain.\n\n\"The Jews have agreed to ask you to take Paul tomorrow into the\nCouncil, as though they would inquire somewhat of him more perfectly.\nBut do not thou yield unto them; for there lie in wait for him about\nforty men, who have bound themselves together with an oath that they\nwill neither eat nor drink till they have killed him.\"\n\nThe chief captain believed the young man and said to him.\n\n\"See thou tell no man that thou hast shewed these things to me.\" The\nchief captain then called two centurions saying,\n\n\"Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea, and seventy\nhorsemen, and two hundred spearmen. Tell them to be ready at nine\no'clock tonight to take Paul safely unto Felix the governor.\"\n\nClaudius Lysius then wrote a letter to Governor Felix explaining,\nbriefly, why Paul was being sent to him. [2] He also sent word to\nPaul's accusers to go to the Governor and make their charges known.\n\nWhen Paul, safe and sound, appeared before Felix, the Governor asked,\n\n[Sidenote: At Caesarea.]\n\n\"What province are you from?\"\n\n\"From Cilicia,\" Paul answered.\n\n\"I will hear thee,\" said Felix, \"when thine accusers are also come.\"\n\nPaul was then put in Herod's judgment hall until his trial five days\nlater.\n\n[Sidenote: In Confinement.]\n\nThus had Paul's life within the short space of a few days been twice\npreserved from those who wanted to kill him. God had spoken to him,\nsaying, \"Be of good cheer,\" and although he was still a prisoner, there\nwas peace in his soul for he knew he had done only what was right, and\nthat God approved of his labors.\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Read the entire speech as recorded in Acts 22:1-21.\n\n2. See Acts 23:25-30.\n\n\n\nLESSON 36\n\nTWO YEARS IN PRISON\n\n\"I have a conscience void of offense toward God and all men.\"--Joseph\nSmith.\n\nBEFORE FELIX\n\nFive days after Paul had been put in the Judgment Hall, the high priest\nAnanias and some of his elders came to Caesarea to appear against him.\nThey brought with them a lawyer named Tertullus.\n\nFelix, the Roman Governor, summoned the prisoner to appear before him\nto hear from the Jewish lawyer what things Paul had done. The hired\nlawyer began his speech by flattering Felix, to win his favor, and then\ncharged Paul as follows:\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Falsely Accused.]\n\n\"This man is a pestilent fellow, a mover of sedition among all the Jews\nthroughout the world and a ringleader among the sect called Nazarenes.\nHe has profaned the temple, and has done many other things for which he\nshould be punished.\"\n\nAnd the Jews all cried out,\n\n\"Yes, these things are true.\"\n\nWhen they had spoken, Felix motioned with his hand for Paul to speak in\nhis own defense, which he did by saying:\n\n[Sidenote: Paul's Defense.]\n\n\"As I know that thou hast been of many years a judge over this people,\nI cheerfully answer for myself these charges of the Jews. Twelve days\nago, I went up to Jerusalem to worship; but I deny that I disputed with\nany man, or that I stirred up the people, either in the synagogues, or\nin the city. Neither can they prove the charges they make against me.\n\n\"This, however, I do confess, that after the way which they call\nheresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing in the law and\nthe prophets, and in the resurrection of the dead, both of the just and\nthe unjust; and I try to live to have always a clear conscience void of\noffense toward God, and men.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Innocent but a Prisoner.]\n\nPaul spoke so earnestly and honestly that Felix was convinced he spoke\nthe truth; and when he concluded, Felix knew he was innocent, but, for\nfear of displeasing the Jews, who, he could see, hated Paul, he told\nthe officers to hold Paul a prisoner, but to give him his liberty, and\nto let his friends come to see him. So Ananias and Turtullus had to go\nback to Jerusalem without having seen Paul punished. They still hoped,\nhowever, to get him either scourged or killed.\n\n[Sidenote: Before Felix and Druscilla.]\n\nSeveral days later, Felix and his wife Druscilla, a Jewess, called Paul\nbefore them to hear more about this Christian doctrine. Unfortunately\nthe governor and his wife had not lived a good life; so when Paul\n\"reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come upon\nsinners, Felix trembled, and answered,\n\n\"Go away for this time; when I find it again convenient to hear you, I\nwill send for you.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Offered a Bribe.]\n\nFelix was not a just judge, yet he wanted to dismiss Paul; but he hoped\nto get some money for doing it. So he called the prisoner before him\nmany times, and hinted that if Paul would give him money, he would free\nhim; but Paul scorned the intimation to be bribed.\n\nSo for two years Paul was kept in prison; but during that time, he no\ndoubt preached the Gospel to many of his friends, and perhaps to many\nstrangers as well. When Felix was released as governor, \"willing to\nshow the Jews a pleasure, he left Paul bound.\"\n\nBEFORE FESTUS\n\n[Sidenote: Another Wicked Scheme.]\n\nFelix was succeeded by Festus, who was a more just and honorable\ngovernor. Festus remained in Caesarea about three days, and went up to\nvisit Jerusalem. Then the chief priests and others tried to poison his\nmind against Paul, and asked that he might be brought from Caesarea to\nJerusalem to be tried. It was their wicked plan to waylay Paul and kill\nhim.\n\nBut Festus answered, \"This prisoner will be kept at Caesarea, and I\nwill return there myself. Let some of your ablest men go down with me,\nand prove that this man is as wicked as you say.\"\n\nTen days later, in Caesarea, Festus sat on the judgment seat, and\nsummoned Paul before him. They again accused Paul of many wicked\nthings, but could prove none of them. Paul again answered for himself,\nsaying,\n\n[Sidenote: Denies Charges.]\n\n\"I have done no wrong against the law of the Jews, neither against the\ntemple; nor against Caesar.\"\n\nFestus, desiring to please the Jews, and not knowing that they desired\nto kill Paul, said,\n\n\"Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these\nthings before me?\"\n\n\"I am standing in a Roman court, where I ought to be judged; I have not\nwronged the Jews, as thou very well knowest; and no man shall deliver\nme unto them. I appeal unto Caesar.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Appeal to Caesar.]\n\nPaul, you remember, was a Roman citizen; and therefore, had the right\nunder the law to be tried at Rome before Caesar, the emperor.\n\nFestus, after conferring with his council, said to Paul.\n\n\"Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? Then unto Caesar shalt thou go.\"\n\nSo Paul was taken to prison to await a favorable opportunity to be sent\nto Rome.\n\nBEFORE KING AGRIPPA\n\nWhen Paul was blind just after his vision, the Lord said, \"He is a\nchosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles and kings,\nand the children of Israel.\" Among the rulers to whom Paul preached\nthe Gospel were King Agrippa and his sister Bernice. Agrippa, who\nruled over part of the land on the east side of the river Jordan, paid\nFestus a visit; and the Governor took occasion to tell the King all\nabout Paul, how he had been left a prisoner by Felix; how the Jews had\naccused him, but failed to prove their charges; how he refused to go to\nJerusalem; and how finally he had appealed to Caesar. [1]\n\nSaid Agrippa, \"Festus, I should like to hear this man myself.\"\n\n\"All right,\" said Festus, \"tomorrow thou shalt hear him.\"\n\n[Sidenote: A Royal Assembly.]\n\nOn the morrow, Agrippa and Bernice came with \"great pomp;\" which means,\nno doubt, that he dressed in his purple robes and she in her bright\njewels, and attended with servants all dressed in gorgeous colors.\nIt was a royal assemblage, and a royal occasion, but the most royal\npersonage among them was the humble prisoner who appeared in chains to\nplead his innocence and the justice of his cause.\n\nThe King, looking at Paul, with more curiosity than contempt, said,\n\n\"Thou art permitted to speak for thyself.\"\n\nThen Paul, addressing himself principally to Agrippa, delivered a most\nimpressive address as follows:\n\n[Sidenote: An Impressive Address.]\n\n\"I think myself happy, King Agrippa, that I shall answer for myself,\nbefore thee, of all the things charged against me by the Jews; because\nI know that thou dost know all about the customs and the questions\nwhich are among the Jews. I ask thee then, to hear me patiently.\n\n\"My manner of life from my youth, all the Jews know, for I lived among\nthem; and if they would tell the truth, they would testify that after\nthe most strict sect of our religion, I lived a Pharisee. And now I\nstand and am to be judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto\nour fathers; that promise unto which our twelve tribes, constantly\nserving God day and night, hope to come. For this hope, King Agrippa,\nI am accused of the Jews. Why should it be thought a thing which thou\ncouldst not believe, that God should raise the dead?\n\n\"At one time, I verily thought myself, that I ought to do many things\ncontrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth; and this I did in Jerusalem:\nand many of the Saints I shut up in prison, having received authority\nfrom the chief priests; and even when they were put to death, I gave my\nvoice against them.\n\n\"And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to\nblaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted\nthem even unto strange cities. Whereupon as I went to Damascus with\nauthority and commission from the chief priests, at midday, O King, I\nsaw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun,\nshining round about me and them who journeyed with me. And when we were\nall fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, saying, in\nthe Hebrew tongue:\n\n\"'Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?'\n\n\"And I said, 'Who art thou. Lord?'\n\n\"And he answered, 'I am Jesus whom thou persecutest, But rise, and\nstand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to\nmake thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast\nseen, and of those things in which I will appear unto thee; delivering\nthee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,\nto open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from\nthe power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins,\nand inheritance among them who are sanctified by faith that is in me.'\n\n\"Whereupon, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly\nvision: but explained first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem,\nand throughout all the coasts of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that\nthey should repent and turn to God, and to works meet for repentance.\n\n\"For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to\nkill me.\n\n\"Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day,\nwitnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those\nwhich the prophets and Moses did say should come, that Christ should\nsuffer, and that he should be the first to rise from the dead, and\nshould show light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.\"\n\n[Sidenote: An Interruption.]\n\nJust at this point in his address, Paul was interrupted by Festus, who\ncried,\n\n\"Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad!\"\n\nBut Paul said, \"I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the\nwords of truth and soberness.\n\n\"The king knoweth of these things, before whom I speak freely; for I am\npersauded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing\nwas not done in a corner. King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I\nknow thou believest.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Almost Persuaded.]\n\nThen said Agrippa, \"Almost thou persaudest me to be a Christian.\"\n\n\"I would to God,\" answered Paul, \"That not only thou, but also all that\nhear me this day, were both almost and altogether such as I am, except\nthese bonds.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Should Be Free.]\n\nAfter listening to Paul's great address, the king and his sister, and\nthe governor withdrew to one side, and said that there was no cause to\nkeep Paul a prisoner, for he had done nothing worthy of death or of\nbonds.\n\n\"This man,\" said Agrippa to Festus, \"might have been set at liberty, if\nhe had not appealed unto Caesar.\"\n\nFootnotes:\n\n1. Acts 25:13-22.\n\n\n\nLESSON 37\n\nTHE VOYAGE TO ROME\n\n\"If we acknowledge God in all our ways, he has promised safely to\ndirect our steps, and in our experience we shall find the promise\nfulfilled.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Julius the Roman Captain.]\n\nPaul's appeal to Caesar made it necessary for him to go to Rome, Italy,\nwhere the Roman Emperor lived. Accordingly, when all was in readiness,\nand passage on a ship secured, Paul and some other prisoners embarked\nfor Rome. He was put into the charge of a Roman captain named Julius, a\nman who proved to be a kind, honorable gentleman, and a true friend to\nPaul. He recognized that his apostle-prisoner was a great and good man,\nand possessed wisdom superior to that even of the wisest. Thrilling\nexperiences happened on this voyage that proved to Julius that Paul was\nnot only wise but also inspired of the Lord. No matter where Paul was,\nin whose company he was thrown, in peace or persecution, in prospect of\nlife or threatened death, he was always the same earnest preacher of\nthe Gospel--a true servant of his Lord and Master Jesus Christ. This is\nwhy even his enemies respected and feared him, and why Julius and other\nhonest men admired and loved him.\n\n[Sidenote: Companions.]\n\n[Sidenote: On the Sea.]\n\nTwo of Paul's true friends were with them, Luke the doctor and\nhistorian, and Aristarchus from Thessalonica. Sailing northward from\nCaesarea, they stopped for a day at Sidon, where, through the courtesy\nof Julius, Paul went ashore to see his friends who were living there.\nWhat a happy and yet sad meeting that must have been! From Sidon, they\nsailed to the northwest, past the island of Cyprus, thence westward,\npast the shore of Asia Minor. At Myra, a city of Lycia, Julius, the\nCenturion, found a ship sailing from Alexandria to Italy, so he\ntransferred his prisoners from the ship of Adranythum to the one from\nAlexandria. This latter ship was loaded with wheat that was being taken\nfrom Egypt to Italy.\n\n[Sidenote: \"The Fair Havens.\"]\n\nFor many days, the ship moved very slowly because of a heavy wind, but\nat length it came to the island of Crete. They followed its shore until\nthey found a harbor called \"The Fair Havens,\" near the city of Lasea.\nAs it was not a very good place in which to spend the winter, the owner\nconcluded to sail to another harbor.\n\nPAUL GIVES WARNING\n\nAs the sailing was dangerous, it being late in the season, Paul warned\nthem not to leave, saying:\n\n[Sidenote: Inspired Warning.]\n\n\"Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with injury and much damage,\nnot only of the lading of the ship, but also of our lives;\" and he\nurged them to stay where they were for the winter.\n\nBut the owner of the ship, believing Paul didn't know anything about\nsailing, said it was alright to go; and the Centurion believing the\nowner of the ship had better judgment than Paul, consented to sail for\nsea again.\n\n[Sidenote: Ancient Ships.]\n\nThe ships in those days were not like the steamships of today. They\nwere \"rudely built and rigged; having one large mast, through whose\nhead passed Ancient strong ropes; and one large sail. It was steered by\ntwo paddle-rudders. Easily strained and exposed to leakage, it was in\ndanger of floundering; the way in which many ancient vessels were lost.\nRopes were carried for binding the hull when weakened by storm. On the\nprow was a painted eye, as if seeking direction and watching against\ndanger. Its ornaments were figures of heathen divinities, to whom\nidolatrous and superstitious sailors looked for protection.\"\n\nPaul's judgment told him it was dangerous to attempt to cross the\nMediterranean Sea in such a boat, and he knew by the inspiration of\nthe Lord that, if the sailors attempted to do so, they would meet with\ndisaster.\n\nThere were two hundred and seventy-six persons on board as they weighed\nanchor at Fair Havens, and continued their journey. The fair weather\nand favorable wind gave promise of a successful and safe voyage; and no\ndoubt the sailors laughed at Paul for his fears.\n\n[Sidenote: A Storm Begins.]\n\nBut suddenly all was changed. A strong wind sweeping down from the\nmountains on the shore, struck the ship and wheeled it around. The\nsailors were unable to control it, and the rudder was powerless to\nguide it. Behind the ship was a little boat, which they now pulled up\non board; and as the ship was being threatened to be dashed to pieces,\nthey bound it with ropes to keep it together, and if possible, to\nprevent it from leaking.\n\n[Sidenote: Ship Threatened.]\n\nBut notwithstanding all their efforts, the boat began to leak, and was\ndriven out into the sea. It was then that \"they began to lighten the\nship.\" Still the \"tempestuous\" wind and rain beat against the ship,\nand the danger of ship wreck increased every hour. The hours dragged\non into days, and the hungry, stricken passengers and sailors paced\nterror-stricken day and night. On the third day, Luke says, \"We cast\nout with our own hands the tackling of the ship;\" by which we conclude\nthat the ship was leaking so badly that even the passengers assisted in\ncasting overboard everything that could be thrown.\n\n\"And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small\ntempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken\naway.\"\n\nEven Luke, it seems lost heart, and was about to give up.\n\n[Sidenote: All in Despair but One.]\n\n\"Without regular food--and what they had probably in a spoiled\ncondition--drenched and cold, despair seized the whole company. But\nthere was one exception--that was Paul. While others were losing hope,\n'he was engaged in earnest prayer.' Neither discomfort nor danger,\nnor opposition to his counsels, nor these combined could disturb his\ncalmness which was so unlike the fear and anguish about him. There was\na great contrast between the reeling ship and his firmness; between the\ndarkness, and the heavenly light within him; between bodily weakness\nand spiritual strength; between the despairing cries about him, and\nhis calm voice; between the painted eye on the ship's prow, and the\nall-seeing eye upon him; between the ornamental images of powerless\nfalse gods, and the Almighty Ruler over all.\"\n\nIn the midst of this despair and darkness, Paul arose, and said:\n\n[Sidenote: A Prophecy.]\n\n\"Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from\nCrete, and to have gained this harm and loss. And now, I exhort you to\nbe of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among\nyou, but the ship. For there stood by me this night the angel of God,\nwhose I am, and whom I serve, saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be\nbrought before Caesar; and lo, God has given thee all of them that sail\nwith thee; wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer; for I believe God, that\nit shall be even as it was told me. But we must be cast upon an island.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Sailors Attempt to Escape.]\n\nFor fourteen days the storm lasted; and then one night the sailors\nthought they were nearing land. They sounded the depth and found the\nwater twenty fathoms deep; then in a little while, they measured again,\nand found it fifteen fathoms deep, so they knew that land was not far\naway. They anchored the ship, and looked anxiously for the day. Then\nsome of the sailors began to lower the little boat, pretending to throw\nout more anchors, but really intending to forsake the ship and leave\nall on board to destruction. When Paul discovered their purpose, he\nsaid to the Centurion,\n\n[Sidenote: Paul Stops Them.]\n\n\"Unless these sailors stay in the ship none of us can be saved.\" At\nthis the soldiers cut the rope and let the boat fall away, so the\nsailors could not get off.\n\n[Sidenote: Comfort and Food.]\n\nAbout daylight, Paul addressed the company again, and urged them to\ntake food. \"This is the fourteenth day,\" he said, \"that you have gone\nwithout eating, wherefore, I pray you to take some meat; for this is\nfor your health: for there shall not a hair fall from the head of any\nof you.\"\n\nHe then took bread, and gave thanks in the presence of them all: and\nwhen he had broken it, he began to eat. Encouraged by Paul's faith and\nassurance, they all broke their fast, and then lightened the ship by\nthrowing overboard the wheat.\n\nAs soon as daylight came, they could see land, but did not know what\nplace it was. However, they saw a creek coming into the sea, and\nconcluded they could run their ship safely into the bay. So they cut\nanchor, hoisted the sail, and struck for shore.\n\nAs a climax of all disasters, the ship ran aground. The front end stuck\nfast in the sand and the rear part began to break in pieces.\n\n[Sidenote: Ship Wrecked.]\n\nThere was a Roman law which said a soldier must take a prisoner's\nplace if the soldier permitted the prisoner to escape; so the soldiers\nfearing the prisoners might swim ashore and escape asked the Centurion\nto kill all the prisoners while they were on board. But Julius,\ndesiring to save Paul's life, refused to permit the prisoners to be\nkilled. Some then swam ashore, and rendering help to others, succeeded\nin getting every soul safe to land--not one life was lost, but the\nship, just as Paul had foretold it.\n\nThe island was Melita, just south of Sicily.\n\nTHE POWER OF GOD MANIFEST\n\nLuke says \"the barbarous people showed us no little kindness; for they\nkindled a fire, and received us everyone, because of the present rain,\nand because of the cold.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Bitten by a Viper.]\n\nPaul was busy helping to feed the fire, and to make it more comfortable\nfor himself and others, when something happened that startled the\nnatives. A viper crawled from one of the sticks, and fastened itself\non Paul's hand. When the people saw it, and knew how poisonous it was,\nthey said:\n\n\"No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea,\nyet vengeance will not permit to live.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Natives Astonished.]\n\nThen they looked for him to swell up and die. But they were surprised\nto see that not the least harm came to him. Then they changed their\nminds, and said he was a god.\n\n[Sidenote: Gospel Preached.]\n\nUndoubtedly, Paul told them who he was, and preached the Gospel of\nJesus Christ to them. They were entertained by Publius, the chief man\nof the island, who also heard the Gospel, and saw the power of the\nPriesthood made manifest. His father was sick of fever, and very ill.\nPaul administered to him by laying on of hands, and he was instantly\nhealed. The news of these miracles soon spread with the result that\nmany who were sick \"came to the brethren and were healed.\"\n\n\"All these honored us with many honors,\" says the historian Luke, \"And\nwhen we departed, they loaded us with such things as were necessary.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Seeds of Truth Sown.]\n\nWhat a blessing to these people was the three months sojourn of Paul\nand his companions, and with what keen regret and sorrow they must have\nsaid goodby when the \"Castor and Pollus,\" the ship from Alexandria,\ncarried Paul away from them forever? It carried him, but not the truths\nhe had taught. These would remain with them, and, if accepted, would\nbless them eternally.\n\n\n\nLESSON 38\n\nTHE WORLD ENRICHED BY A PRISONER CHAINED\n\n\"The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Anticipation vs. Realization.]\n\nA few school boys, one day, met to debate the question, \"Resolved,\nThat there is more pleasure in Anticipation than in Realization.\" One\non the side that tried to prove that Anticipation gives more pleasure,\nreferred to every boy's experience at Christmas time, saying that\nthe day before Christmas and Christmas Eve always give more joy than\nChristmas itself--\"As soon as the boy gets his toys, then he begins to\nregret that Christmas isn't tomorrow.\"\n\nThat boy expressed in his simple way about the same thought contained\nin this sentence from Emerson: \"Man looks forward with smiles but\nbackward with sighs;\" or as another writer puts it, \"What we expect is\nalways greater than what we enjoy.\"\n\nSuch may not be the case always in life; but it certainly must have\nbeen Paul's experience in regard to his anticipated visit to Rome. For\nseveral years he had looked forward with pleasure to the time when he\nwould have the opportunity to preach the Gospel in the famous capital\nof the great Roman Empire. But now as he approaches the realization of\nhis hopes, he is an old man, worn with exposure and confinement, and a\nprisoner.\n\nHowever, we must not conclude that he was left comfortless, or that\nhe had any less desire to bear testimony to the world of the divine\nmission of his Savior. On the contrary he continued to seize every\nopportunity to preach the everlasting Gospel.\n\n[Sidenote: Syracuse.]\n\nThis he did when the \"Castor and Pollux\" or \"The Twin Brothers,\"\nstopped eighty miles north from Malta, at a place called Syracuse,\nthe ancient capital of Sicily. It is not unlikely that Paul asked\npermission to go ashore and preach the Gospel to the Jews and the\nGentiles who were in that celebrated city. If so, we are sure Julius\nwould grant his request. At any rate, the Sicilians afterward claimed\nthat Paul founded the Church on that island.\n\n[Sidenote: Puteoli.]\n\nHis next important stop was on the northern part of the beautiful\nbay of Naples, where was situated a town named Puteoli; now known as\n_Pozzuoli_. As the ship carrying Paul and his friends entered this\nharbor, it was met by a crowd of people who had gathered to greet\nit. Among these were \"brethren\" who came to welcome and comfort the\nmissionary-prisoner. Perhaps through a desire of Julius to remain here\nlong enough to communicate with Rome, or it may be through his kindness\nto Paul, the company remained at Puteoli seven days, thus giving the\nElders an opportunity to spend a Sabbath day with the Saints in that\nplace. How refreshing to Paul's spirit to worship once again with those\nwho possessed the same testimony of the Gospel as he!\n\n[Sidenote: Met by True Friends.]\n\nWord having been sent ahead that Paul was on his way from Puteoli\nto Rome, many of the brethren in that city started out to meet the\nbeloved and famous missionary. No doubt the Saints in Rome realized\nthat Paul's spirit as well as his body would be worn and weary, and,\nas true friends indeed, they made preparation to go to him. True\nfriendship always prompts one to go to a friend in adversity rather\nthan in prosperity. It may be that they desired only to give him a\nroyal convoy into their city; for he was truly a royal personage even\nthough bound in chains. Whatever their motive, some of the brethren\ntraveled forty-one miles, and met their beloved Apostle at the Apii\nForum. Another party met him at \"Three Taverns\"--thirty miles from\nRome. Paul's heart was touched by this manifestation of friendship and\ntrue brotherhood, and he \"thanked God, and took courage.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Under Guard.]\n\nWhen the company reached the renowned capital of the ancient world,\nit must have seemed to Paul like a huge prison; and when his friends\nparted from him to go to their own homes and he to his guarded place,\nhis heart must have been heavy indeed. However, Julius kindly delivered\nhis prisoner over to the captain of the Pretorian Guard, the highest\nmilitary authority in the city--the guard that had charge of all those\nwho were to come before the Emperor for trial. Fortunately, Paul was\nnot put in prison but permitted to dwell in a house by himself, under\nthe constant guard of a soldier. Here he was given all the freedom\npossible, to a prisoner; so, true to his energetic spirit, he found\nmany opportunities to continue his preaching. This he would do first\nto the soldiers to whom he was chained daily. As they would frequently\nrelieve one another, he would have ample opportunity to preach the\ntruth to many of the guards, and thus, probably, indirectly to the\nEmperor himself.\n\n[Sidenote: Appeals to Jews.]\n\nHe made occasion, also, to preach to the Jews. He called the chief\nmen of this nation together and told them why he was then a prisoner.\n\"Though I have committed nothing against the people, or customs of our\nfathers,\" said he, \"yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into\nthe hands of the Romans, who, when they had examined me, would have let\nme go, because there was no cause of death in me; but when the Jews\nspake against it, I was constrained to appeal unto Caesar.\n\n\"For this cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to\nspeak with you, because that for the hope of Israel I am bound with\nthis chain.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Jews Reject Message.]\n\nThe Jews answered that they had heard nothing of evil against him;\nbut \"as concerning this sect (meaning the Christians), we know that\neverywhere it is spoken against.\" In fact, in Rome as elsewhere, the\nJews rejected the Gospel message, and compelled Paul to turn to the\nGentiles.\n\n[Sidenote: The Gospel Spreads.]\n\nFor nearly eight hundred days, Paul remained a prisoner awaiting his\ntrial before the Emperor. During that time, he preached the Gospel to\nhundreds of soldiers who had one after another daily been appointed as\nguards. These, when converted, would convert others, and when sent off\nto Roman provinces, would spread the Gospel in new lands, thus widening\nthe area in which the light of truth might shine.\n\n[Sidenote: Message Through Epistles.]\n\nBut that was not the only way in which it radiated from the humble\nabode of the missionary-prisoner. During that two years confinement,\nhe kept in communication with the Church in Europe and Asia. As there\nwere no railroads, no steamboats, nor telegraph, every letter that\nhe received or that he sent to them was carried by a courier, who\nhad to travel very slowly by land and sea, sometimes for hundreds\nof miles. But he had loving friends attending him who were always\nready to bear his messages. Some of these you already know. Luke, the\nfaithful physician; Timothy, his son in the Gospel; John Mark, who,\nyou remember, started with Paul and Barnabas on their first mission;\nAristarchus of Thessalonica; Epaphroditus, a friend from Macedonia;\nOnesimus, a slave belonging to Paul's friend, Philemon, and others.\nWith these faithful servants as messengers, Paul wrote letters, called\nepistles, which have made the whole world better and richer in the\nknowledge of truth. These letters are now in the New Testament, and are\ncalled Epistle to the Philippians, Epistles to Philemon, Epistle to the\nColossians, and Epistle to the Ephesians.\n\n[IMAGE: ST. PAUL. Chained by the wrist to his soldier guard, in his own\nhouse, for two whole years.]\n\nThus did Paul's epistles written in a Roman prison become literally\n\"Winged messengers that can fly from east to west on embassies of love.\"\n\n[Sidenote: Released.]\n\nCertainty of what Paul did after his having been a prisoner in Rome for\ntwo years, ends with Luke's statement, that he \"received all that came\nunto him, preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which\nconcern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no man forbidding\nhim.\" It is believed, however, that he was finally given his liberty\nand that he preached in many lands, tradition saying that he even went\nto England. It is thought that it was during this missionary tour that\nhe wrote his first letter to Timothy, who had been appointed to take\ncare of the church at Ephesus, and also the one to Titus who was with\nthe churches on the island of Crete.\n\n[Sidenote: Again Arrested.]\n\nAbout the year 64 A. D., however, he was again arrested and imprisoned\nin Rome. Only a year previous the Saints had been persecuted to death\nby the wicked Nero. They had been thrown into the Arena, devoured by\nwild beasts, burned to death as human torches, and martyred in other\ncruel ways.\n\n[Sidenote: Beheaded.]\n\nIt was soon after the burning of Rome by this wicked emperor, that\nPaul, the most energetic of all missionaries, after thirty years of\nconstant service in the ministry, was put to death by beheading. Just\nbefore the end came, he wrote to Timothy these beautiful and pathetic\nwords:\n\n\"I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.\nI have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the\nfaith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness,\nwhich the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day.\"'\n\nAs he bowed his head to receive the fatal stroke, we know that he could\nhave said in very truth:\n\n\"I feel my immortality o'ersweep all pains, all tears, all time, all\nfears; and peal, like the eternal thunders of the deep, into my ears\nthis truth--thou livest forever!\"\n\n  Before the Royal he was kingly,\n  In the prison, noble, true;\n  In the tempest, mighty captain\n  Of a terror-stricken crew.\n\n  Sunless days nor nights of blackness,\n  Prison chains--tempestuous wave.\n  Floundered ship nor deadly viper--\n  Feared he not the yawning grave.\n  \"God's good angel stood beside me,\n  His I am and Him I serve,\"\n  This the secret of his power--\n  Him from Right no power could swerve.","title":"Ancient Apostles","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":55761}