the Chri~tio.n minister should know his Homer ancJ his Cicero; but it is monBtrous that he should bo satisfied with o.n o.cquaintance with 1he pagan classics, without acquiring at least an equally familiar knowledge of the New Testament, which it is his life--work to ten.eh. Now, the discipleship of the kingdom i~ not e. merely intellectual schooling. It is more than learning the letter of Scripture. Only that living grasp of spiritual truth which comes from a sympathetic study of it, interpreted by experience, can fit one to teach it to others. II. THE TEACHER MUST BRING FORTH NEW TnEABURES. He must not be a mere machine grinding out exactly the same ideas year after year. Yet he is not to invent notions of his own and give them forth as Divine revelations. The treasury to which he is to go for his materials is the sacred Scriptures. Ho,v, then, can he find anything new? 1. By new insight. Each is to read for himself. 'l'here is always a freshness in what we perceive ourselves, even if others have perceived it before. To us, at least, it is new; and our own living apprehension of it gives it a new vitality for others. 2. With fresh applications. Truth is ever assuming new colours as it is reflected on fresh objects. The Christian teacher has to apply truths of the Bible to present cir- cumstances. It ill not his business to linger among the archreological conditions of ancient Israel, but to show how the revelation of God concerns the England of to-day. 8. Because of the inexhaustible fulness of the Bible. There is al ways fresh light for earnest eyes. III. 'l'HE TEAOBER MUST NOT NEGLECT OLD TREASURES. An idea does not cease to be valuable because it is old. Truth is eternal. Facts remain. The great events of Bible history are always speaking to us; they have living lessons for our own day. The experiences of psalmist and apostle are true to the heart of man, and types of devotion for all time; we cannot afford to forget them. Above all, the revelation of Christ, though now old in centuries, is still fresh and living. We can never outgrow the gospel. Bethlehem and Calvary will always be the centres of our most helpful meditations. The new truth is only inspiring when it springs out of the old, which it does not obscure, which rather it explains and exalts.-W. F. A. Vere. 64-58.-" The carpenter's Son." Jesus returns to Nazareth after having taught and wrought mirac'es in many places, and follows his usual method of preach- ing even in the synagogue of this town of his boyhood. Of e.ll fields of labour this is the most difficult, and we cannot be surprised that the result is disappointing. The one thing that all hearers think of is the well-known homely up-bringing of the great Prophet, and their familiar knowledge of this is enough to destroy the influence of his words e.nd works. I. THE FACT. Jesus was a carpenter's Son; St. Mark tells us that he was himself a carpenter (vi. 3), and it is not to be supposed that he would have lived for thirty years in the humble Nazareth home without ever contributing to its maintenance. 1. Jesw was a complete Man. He was not a mere appearance of man. He took on him man's life e.nd its toil. 2. Jesus belonged to the artisan class. He waa so truly human, so large in his sympathies, that we cannot connect any class prejudices with him. He would not side unfairly with labour against capital, any more than he would with capita.I against labour. Still, if there is one class which beyond all others we may be sure he does not forget or misunderstand, it is that of handicraftsmen. Work- ing men should claim Christ as one of themselves. 3. He was trained in a secular calling. He was not brought up in a monastery; he did not spend his time in a ohurch. His school was the carpenter's workshop. Among the shavings and sawdust his thoughts rose to heaven and the redemption of man. A wholesome secular training is a help and not a hindrance to the spiritual life. II. How IT w.AB REGARDED. 1. Jesus was judged by his circumstances. Other grounds of judgment were not wanting. The people of Nazareth listened to the wonderful teaching of Christ, and it astonished them. Yet they only turn to the well-known external facts in coming to a conclusion about the Teacher. They seem to be attempting to dispel what they regard as the glamour of his words by the hard, common circumstances that are familiar to them. 'l'hus men will judge by the out- side, by the earthly, by the conventional. 2. Jesus was rejected where he was beat i:nown. He was judged by his circumstances and his family, all familiar to the ~ THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW [cH. x.m. 1-58.
Nazareth townsfolk. Perhaps the character of his relatives wa.s not such as to inspire great respect; but we have no hint of this. Social inferiority and familiar homeliness were enough. Therefore we do not lose much by not having seen Jesus in his earthly life. III. THE UNHAPPY RESULTS. Nazareth suffered for its rejection of the one Man who has since given eternal fame to the hitherto obscure Galihean town. 'l'he sick went unhealed. A chill fog of unbelief crept over the community and quenched the gracious curative influences of the Saviour. Unbelief is a fatal hindrance to the work of Christ. It is not that be is offended and will not help. It is that the very possibility of·aid is cut off. Christ's miracle-working was dependent on the faith of its subjects, and when. they were unbelieving he simply could not heal. "According to thy faith be it unto thee" was a common remark. Spiritually, Christ cannot save those who do not true~ him, though he desires to save all, and this is the simple explanation of the miserable fact that all are not saved. Faith is not an artificial condition. It is the link of con- nection with Christ. If this link is missing we cannot have living relationship with- him.-W. F. A.