Sunday Srhool Tegson | LESSON 11 INDING OURSELVES IN SERVICE--Mark 8:27-38 Golden Text.-- What deth it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? Mark 8:36. THE LESSON IN ITS SETTING Tima.--Autumn, A.D. 29. . Place.--Near Caesarea Philippi, far north in Palestine under Mount Herman, a few miles east of the city of Dan, o7. And Jesus went forth, and his disciples, into the villages of Caesa- rea Philippi. This town is to be dis- tinguished from Caesarea on the coast, the seat of the' Roman govern- ment, where Paul was imprisoned. It was situated at the most eastern and chief of the two recognized sources of the Jordan on a rocky terrace under Mount Hermon, a few miles east of Dan, the old frontier city of Israel. And on the way he asked his disciples, saying unto them, Who do men say that IT am? Jesus is not asking for information for himself, for he knows the different opinions of men. What he wants is to have the disciples state the wrong opinions of men in order to set against them their own right convie- tion. His Identity 28. And they told him, saying, John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but others, One of the prophets. John stood for purity of character, Elijah for power with God, and the pro- phets for proclamation of the truth. Christ stood for all these--and for more. These were all good, but not good enough. Four conclusions are to be drawn from this statement of the disciples: men were discussing Christ; men were not able to agree as to who Christ really was; all men agreed that he was a great person, like unto Israel's greatest characters; most men were wrong as to their conclusion regarding the identity of Jesus. 29, And he asked them, But who say ye that I am? The emphasis here is certainly on the word "ye." The disciples had been with Jesus now for two years, and if they did not by this time know who he was, they never would. Peter answereth. And saith unto him, Thou art the Christ. The Jewish people for cen- turies had been looking for the Mes- siah ("Christ" is the Greek word for "Messiah") promised in the Old Testament Scriptures. Only one Messiah would ever appear; he would be their last prophet, their perfect priest, their omnipotent and eternal king. Peter was convinced that Je- sus was the long-looked-for Messiah, and that conviction has been the faith of all true Christians ever since. 30. And he charged them that they should tell no man of him. The dis- ciples' faith was weak and their knowledge small; the Holy Spirit had first to come to teach them about Jesus ere they could rightly proclaim the Messiah. 31.. And he began to teach them, By "began" is not meant that he had never before spoken of his sufferings, or intimated the coming cross, but that now, and from now on, his in- struction was to be precise and de- tailed." That the Son of man must suffer many things. and death, and Christ is compelled to suffer and to die only because he is determined (because he loves us) to redeem us from sin and give us eternal life. And be rejected. The verb here translated "rejected" means to reject after submitting to a test. Jesus will be rejected by no less an authority than the Sanhedrin, the highest judicial and religious au- thority of the nation. By the elders and the chief priests, and the scribes. The three classes together constitut- ed the Sanhedrin or supreme council of the Jews. And be killed, and af- ter three days rise again. Here are at least five different definite predic- tions which no man could make con- cerning himself except with superhu- man knowledge. Peter Rebukes Him 32. And he spake the saying open- ly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. The reason why Pe- ter began to rebuke our Lord was that he could not conceive of one who was the Christ of God suffering violent death at the hands of such hypocrites as those whom Jesus had designated to be his destroyers. 38. But he turning about. Jesus, as he turned, caught sight of the rest of the Twelve, who were probably watching the scene with interest, and perhaps shared Peter's views. A public reproof was therefore neces: sary. And seeing his disciples, re- buked Peter, and saith, Get thee be- hind me, Satan. Jesus uses to Peter the very words he spoke to Satan in the wilderness of temptation, for the apostle was tempting his Master with the same temptation. Peter proposes Messiahship without suffer- ing and death. Jesus does not mean that Peter is really Satanic and de- praved, but that in urging Christ to shrink from death he is taking, un- A--C Our redemption is derived from Christ's sufferings | consciously, the part of the tempter and is siding with man, not with God. For thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men. Peter was setting his love for his Master in opposition to God's love for his Son and for his sons. Life's True Values 34, And he called unto him the multitude with his disciples, and said unto them, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself. Christ had just spoken to the disciples about his cross, and now he tells them that there is also one for each of them, if they are true to him. A disciple who denies himself must give up self-worship and self-will. He must love God with all his powers and his neighbor as himself; against these claims his own interests must be set aside. And take up his cross, and follow me. This is the extreme phase of the self-denial which Jesus has just commanded. Let him deny himself and carry out that self-denial even to death. 85. For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's shall save it. These solemn words are used by our Lord on four separate occasions -- Matt. 10:39; Luke 17:33; John 12:25, and here. In the first clause, the word "life" means the bodily life, and in the sec- ond the true life of the spirit. Our Lord's statement here means that when a man deliberately sets out to keep his life to save his life, to pre- serve his life, no matter at what cost, he is going to lose it, for he has failed to identify himself with anything that abides, and when a man, for the sake of Jesus and his gospel, is willing to give up every- thing, even his life, he has thereby saved his life, for he belongs to Christ, and, in Christ, he has eter- nal life, 36. For what doth it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? The whole world, when put in one scale, is lighter than a fea- ther when the soul is in the other scale. The material and transient on the one hand, and the spiritual and eternal on the other hand, are utterly different values, and can never be chosen together. Losing One's Life 38. For whosoever shall be asham- ed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man shall be ashamed of him, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy spirit. Now Jesus Christ said there were men in.his age who were ashamed of him and his words. Why? Evid- ently because both he himself, and his teaching, set them in such light as to reveal by contrast their fail- ure. Again, they were ashamed to follow him because in his life and teaching he attacked their prejud- ices. We may go further still and say that men were asham- ed, and are still ashamed of Jesus, because he calls to definite and positive change of life. "If we are ashamed of him, says the patient, gentle, tender, beautiful, strong Son of God, there is a day coming when he will be ashamed of us, ashamed of us because we, ashamed of him, will have chosen the pathway that leads to destruction of character, and therefore to destruction of life, Rumanians Learn English Language So popular has the English langu- age become in Bucharest that special schools are being organized to cope with the thousands who wish to learn it. Contrary to-the general opinion on the Continent, Rumanians English is an easy language to mas- ter. But they are notably adept at learning foreign languages. One reason for the boom in Eng- lish study arises from the films, Cine- ma-goers form a large proportion of the pupils. Others are studying Eng- lish because it is being used more and more in business, diplomatic circles, and society abroad. Granite is one of the oldest of our rocks, and many other rocks have taken their materials from it. IS THIS YOUR BIRTHDAY? By A. R. WEIR What the Stars Foretell for Those Born on April 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14th Zodiac Sign--Aries You are intensely ambitious and desire a position of honour in the world. You are likely to go abroad and may not remain in one place for any length of time. Peace and quiet ness are necessary to you. A dis- appointment is shown in love mat- ters but you should overcome some financial difficulty and have clear sailing. Brought out of the Daimler factory when King George recently toured the Birmingham industrial district, the six horse-power chain-drive 1899 model built for King Edward VII performed remarkably well when His Majes- ty took a spin around the block. Lord Swinton is seen sitting behind the King, Who, apparently derived much ch. pleasure from: riding in his grandfather's automobile, the first ever built for a monar Alarming Increase Seen In Mental Aftlictions Governor-General Refers to Strain of Modern Life And Its Result at Annual Meeting of Canadian National Committee for Mental Hygiene. The strain which modern life puts on the mind is so heavy that there is an alarming increase in the number of people who are suffering from mental disabilities, and Lord Tweeds- muir, Governor-General, speaking in Montreal, at the 20th annual meeting of the Canadian National Committee for Mental Hygiene, praised the edu- cative work that is being done by this organization, outlining also the principal tasks it must undertake to combat the strain, and aid in the proper training of youth for the struggle of life. "One is forced to the conclusion," said the speaker, "that there is that in our modern life which puts a far heavier strain on the mind than any- * thing our grandfathers knew." "What is the cause?' Lord Tweedsmuir continued. "Many causes, I think. Partly the terrible social derangement of the War, the effects of which are by no means ex- hausted. Partly the unsettlement of the world which infuses in certain temperaments a perpetual nervous fear. Partly the fact that the scien- tific apparatus of life has been so speeded up and elaborated, and that human nature has not yet fully ad- justed itself to it. Partly the de- cline of religion, which gave our fa- thers a shield against the buffets of fate." 2 These conditions are common to all the world, but in Canada we have certain special causes--extremes of weather which put a strain on the nervous system, violent economic ups and downs, the loneliness which af- flicts people dwelling in the wilds far from neighbors. It is a problem say Off To Tennis Wars Helen Jacobs, California tennis star, sails from New York ahead of the Wightman Cup squad, to polish up on her play, abroad. The others wil] sail in May. which touches every civilized nation and Canada assuredly is not immune from it. I am told in this Dominion there are more hospital beds for the mentally afflicted than for all other types of illness put together. Thirty thousand people are being treated at. this moment in mental hospitals at an annual cost of more than ten million dollars. Out of every hun- dred children now in our schools four, under present conditions, are doomed to suffer from mental ail- ments. There can be no doubt about the urgency of the problem. Interpret Health In Wide Sense "We are beginning to interpret health in a wide sense--health of the mind as well as of the body. We are coming to realize more and more the intricate connection between body and mind, that physical well-being is nothing unless it is accompanied by mental well-being, and that the latter is the more vital since it is the more fundamental. "A variety of wholesome interests must be stimulated in children to forestall the development of un- healthy ones. This might mean a great saving to the nation of valu- able brains, as well as mere material economy. Southpaws Work Under Handicap Because the World Appears to Be Arranged for Right-Handed People This is, definitely, a righ-handed world, writes Ann Rutherford in the Stratford Beacon-Herald. Nobody pays much attention, of course, until some day that right arm decides to go on a holiday and let the left arm take the lion's share of the work. Then is born the resolution to spend a little more time training that left arm. Early in the morning the trouble starts. The comb scratches. The brush snarls. Even the toothbrush ob- jects to starting its job from the op- posite side of the mouth. That Coffee Cup! Then there's the coffee cup at breakfast. Nice, pleasant cup, com- panion of a hundred hours. But right- handed hours. It refuses to co-operate when the sugar is stirred. Its handle interferes when the spoon goes into the saucer. The sink is worse. The drain-board is on the wrong side entirely. Dishpan and rinsing pan are lined up awkward- ly. The dish towel is constitutionally opposed to changing its mode of oper- ation. A ray of hope comes from the tele- phone. It isn't so bad, receiver fitting nicely into left hand as usual. But when a message must be written down, .even the telephone joins the right-hand ranks and rebels. As for typewriter, notebook, pen and pencil, they too are adapted for anything but left-handed service. All the useful letters of the alphabet seem to move over to the right side of the typewriter. The shadow of a hand falls on the motebook slanted the op- posite direction. In short, the world is distinctly un- fair to southpaws. What can be done about it is another question for the League of Nations to puzzle out. May flies spend from one to three years as water crawlers, only to die after the first night as winged adults. Approximately 191,000 dry oil wells have been drilled in the Unit- ed States. Use More Science To Combat Crime Royal Canadian Mounted Police Are Very Up-to-Date In Their Methods Aided by modern scientific and aviation technique, the Royal Cana- dian Mounted Police plan a renewed campaign under vigorous new lead- ership to combat crime in Canada. A science laboratory is being de- veloped at Regina under direction of Dr. Maurice Poweys, one of the most eminent criminologists on the Continent. This will provide a cen- tre for R.C.M.P. scientific efforts to fight murderers, counterfeiters, thieves and smugglers in the fashion of the renowned United States Fed- eral Agents--the G-men. It is the latest advance in the dramatic his- tory of the Dominion's most famous police organization. y ; Ulitra-Violet Ray Colonel Wood, formerly head od the Criminal Investigation Branch, and now Chief of the 'Mounties", points with pride to such scientific instruments as the ultra-violet ray lamp, the comparison microscope and the spectograph, used by the force in criminal investigation. talk The ultra-violet ray lamp is rap- idly becoming increasingly import- ant for scientific detection of crime. With it, stains on clothing or walls can be examined which are invisible to the naked eye. The compari ons microscope enables comparisons : of bullets, cartridge cases, seals, stamps and fabrics to be made with the: or- iginal, while the spectrograph is an instrument used for detection of counterfeit coins. d The new Commissioner forecasts the airplane will have an increasing- ly important place in the develop- ment of the force, which now polices the three Prairie Provinces, the Mari- times, the Northwest and Yukon ter- ritories. x?! "At present our air force is con- centrated on the East Coast and ysed for observation purposes in spotting rum-runners, but we hope to have a plane operating in the Northwest Territories soon and eventually one on the Pacific Coast to watch for nar- cotic smugglers as the liners come in from the Orient, a duty that has been performed by the Royal Canadian Air Force," he said. Printer Can't Read A type-setter on a Centreville, U. S.A., paper has held the job five years, though he cannot read or] write. He recognizes the letters by: their shape. Comedian Arrives In New York From Coast Drawing allegedly dulcet tones from that constant companion, his violin, Jack Benny, radio comedian, arrives in New York for a brief visit. Benny will return to Hollywood quite soon. Hal Kemp's orchestra with soloists Maxine Gray and Bob Allen will head the new Time To Shine musical over the C. B. S. network, Tuesdays 10:00 to 10:30 p.m. beginning April 19th. The broadcasts will feature the popu- lar Kemp style of dance rhythms and personalized arrangements of new and old songs by Allen and Miss Gray. Saxy Dowell, rotund, comic saxophon- ist, and Eddie Cusby, trombonist will be on hand with a bagful of instru- mental tricks to present each week. Kemp's band just completed working in the film Radio City Revels. NEW SET-UP Benny Pollack and his orchestra with the glamorous Paula "peegee" Gayle will replaée Jimmie Grier's mu- sic on the Joe Penner broadcasts over C. B. S. Penner will be assisted on the program by an able cast of actors and stooges including Martha Wentworth as his mother, Dick Ryan as the but- ler, Roy Atwell whose tongue gets all twisted around his eyeteeth and he can't see what he's saying, and Gay Seabrook, as Penner's Suzabella. Gene Austin tener will share songs with Peegee Gayle. Kate Smith, the Washington girl who rose to fame via radio, stage and screen entered a new field on April 4th when she made her debut as an air columnist over C. B. S., 3:30 to 3:45 p.m. She is now heard every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Miss Smith will continue as Mistress of Ceremon- ies on her Thursday night program. Yr 2s The Dial Around RADIO HEADLINERS OF THE WEEK By FRANK DENNIS HOLLYWOOD HOTEL . Frank Parker, one of radio's. top ranking tenors has just been signed to M. C. the Hollywood Hotel program in place of Jerry Cooper. This is Par- ker's first series of programs since last November. During the past sev- eral months, he has been on practic- ally every important program as the guest star, and has been studying for the opera. However on the Hollywood Hotel program he will be heard in semi classical and popular songs. No program for children on. the ° North American continent has. ever won the same kind of enthusiastic fol- lowing as the Air Adventures of Jim- mie Allen. The lovable character of Jimmie himself, the splendid manhood of Speed Robertson, the really -thril- ling nature of each episode and. the complete absence of anything horrible or shocking have each helped to make Jimmie Allen a household word. Gen- uine flying lessons both over the air and distributed to members of Jimmie Allen Flying Clubs, real information about aviation, instructions and assist- ance in building model planes, all these give the children real and val- uable spare time occupation, and have won Jimmie Allen the endorsement of parent-teacher associations, wel- fare organizations and educational au-' thorities. The story begins with Jim- mie Allen employed as a messenger boy at an airport. He stumbles on a plot to hold up an airliner with a big shipment of currency. If you 'would like to know just what happens -- lis- ten to CBL or CKLW 5:45 to 6:00 p.m. or CBO, 6:00 to 6:15 p.m.