LESSON 8.-MAY 21.-JESUS BEFORE PILATE | Signs of the Times, Vol. 31, No. 19. (5/10/1905)

Earlier text: GROWTH OF THE PUBLISHING WORK

LESSON 8.—MAY 21.—JESUS BEFORE PILATE.

Lesson Scripture, John 18: 28-40, A. R. V.

(28) “THEY led Jesus therefore from Caiaphas into the Prætorium; and it was early; and they themselves entered not into the Prætorium, that they might not be defiled, but might eat the Passover. (29) Pilate therefore went out unto them, and saith, What accusation bring ye against this Man? (30) They answered and said unto him, If this Man were not an evil-doer, we should not have delivered Him up unto thee. (31) Pilate therefore said unto them, Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law. The Jews said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death; (32) that the word of Jesus might be fulfilled, which He spake, signifying by what manner of death He should die.

(33) “Pilate therefore entered again into the Prætorium, and called Jesus, and said unto Him, Art Thou the King of the Jews? (34) Jesus answered, Sayest thou this of thyself, or did others tell it thee concerning Me? (35) Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests delivered Thee unto me; what hast Thou done? (36) Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world; if My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now is My kingdom not from hence. (37) Pilate therefore said unto Him, Art Thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end have I been born, and to this end am I come into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice. (38) Pilate saith unto Him, What is truth?

“And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find no crime in Him. (39) But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the Passover; will ye therefore that I release unto you the King of the Jews? (40) They cried out therefore again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber.”

Golden Text.—“Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice.” Verse 37.

SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.

(1) After Jesus was condemned by the Jewish council, where was He taken? What time of day was it? Why did not His accusers go into the palace of the governor? Verse 28. Note 1. (2) What concession did Pilate make to their tradition? Verse 29. Note 2. (3) How did the priests answer the governor? Verse 30. Note 3. (4) What then did Pilate tell them to do? What reply did the Jews make to this decision? Verse 31. Note 4. (5) What word of Jesus was fulfilled in this reply? Verse 32. Note 5. (6) What then did Pilate do? And what pointed question did he ask Jesus? Verse 33. (7) How did Jesus answer the governor's question? Verse 34. Note 6. (8) What reply did Pilate then make? Verse 35. Note 7. (9) What then did Jesus say of His kingdom? How does it differ from the kingdoms of this world? Verse 36. Note 8. (10) What further question did Pilate then ask? How did Jesus answer this question? Verse 37. (11) What question did this arouse in Pilate's mind? What verdict did he then render to the accusers of Jesus? Verse 38. Note 9. (12) To what custom did the governor then refer? And what did he propose to the people? Verse 39. Note 10. (13) What answer did the people give? Verse 40; Mark 15: 11-14. Note 11.

NOTES.

1. “That they might eat the Passover” does not necessarily mean the eating of the paschal lamb; but may refer to the whole Passover week, which was a festal season. During the entire week everything containing leaven was to be rigidly excluded from Jewish dwellings; and it was a Jewish tradition (not the law of God) that if a Jew entered into a Gentile house during that week he would be defiled, and therefore could not eat with his family until cleansed.

2. Pilate catered to their tradition by going out to see what the accusers of Jesus had to say against Him. This was his first weak step in the transaction.

3. The Jewish counselors assumed that their judgment was infallible and not to be questioned; and that all Pilate needed to do was to issue the death warrant.

4. The Jews had to admit that they wanted to go beyond what their position warranted. If Jesus was guilty of a crime which they could not adequately punish, they had exceeded their authority in presuming to try Him at all.

5. “The saying of Jesus” about His death is recorded in Matt. 20: 18, 19: “Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn Him to death, and shall deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify Him; and the third day He shall rise again.” See also Mark 10: 33, 34; Luke 18: 31-33.

6. “Sayest thou this of thyself?” When Pilate asked the question, “Art Thou the King of the Jews?” Jesus would have him commit himself definitely, whether it was merely the accusations of the Jews or a desire to learn of Him, that prompted the question.

7. Pilate's pride overcame his rising conviction, and he suddenly assumed an air of disinterest in the matter. The Spirit that strove to convict him was rejected, and his opportunity was gone. God has given this warning to every one, “My Spirit shall not always strive with man.”

8. In spite of Christ's words, “My kingdom is not of this world,” many enthusiastic people are to-day clamoring to have Christ formally recognized as king of this world's governments. But it never can be anything else than a formality. He evaded a temporal crown when on earth. See John 6: 14, 15.

9. “What is truth?” The Scriptures answer this query: “Thy law is the truth.” “All Thy commandments are truth.” Ps. 119: 142, 151. And Jesus Himself testified, “Thy Word is truth” (John 17: 17), and of Himself he says, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” Chapter 14: 6.

10. Pilate still hoped to release Jesus, for he had no sympathy with the Jews, knowing that “the chief priests had delivered Him for envy.” Mark 15: 10. He was willing to release Jesus (Luke 23: 20), but, notwithstanding his boast to Jesus that he had power to release Him (John 19: 10), he had compromised with the enemies of Christ until he was powerless before them.

11. Barabbas was not only a robber, but a murderer as well (Luke 23: 19); but in his insurrection against the government, he evidently had sympathizers among the leading Jews. So they had a double purpose in calling for his release. Therefore Pilate's judgment was so warped that, in putting up one for release whom he thought the people would least of all desire to have released, he unwittingly set up the man with whom there was influential sympathy.

Sabbath-School Lesson Quarterly

By Editor

The Sabbath-school lessons have been discontinued. The Lesson Quarterly may be obtained, containing three months' lessons and notes, for five cents. Address, Pacific Press, Mountain View, Cal. The Sunday-school lessons will continue.

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The Spirit of Sacrifice

Because Jesus commended the sacrifice of the woman who gave two mites to the cause of God, when it was all she had, we must not get the idea that there is virtue in a gift because it is small. People who are able to give much more, must not expect the widow's blessing upon their literal two mites. It was because she had given "all that she had," that He commended her act. There is too much of a tendency to laud and to imitate the "two mites," rather than the spirit of sacrifice.

"Ye have lived delicately on the earth, and taken your pleasure," is one of the items which a prophet-apostle has charged against the rich, who have "heaped treasure together for ["in," R. V.] the last days." James 5:1-8. Professed Christians have done this in the face of dire suffering and misery at home and in other lands. Cleveland Moffett tells us in Success, that there are 6,100 women in New York City alone whose dress bills amount to over $43,000,000 per annum. Think of the enormous sum! One hundred of these women spend yearly $30,000 each on wardrobes. Some of their handkerchiefs cost $100 apiece; Siberian sable muffs, $2,750 each; capes $10,000 each, and full-length coats, $44,000 each. With some of them, annual expenditures run as follows: Hats and veils, $1,200; fans, laces, etc., $2,500; shoes and slippers, $800; handkerchiefs, $600; hosiery, $500; gloves, $450. But worse than all this lavish expenditure on their poor mortal bodies, is their extravagance at the canine shrine. Some of the doggies wear clothes at the rate of $1,000 a year. These creatures have their walking coats and dusters, their house coats and sweaters, their automobile coats, with hoods and goggles, their coats lined with ermine, at $200 each, and all coats with pockets for doggie's fine handkerchiefs. Mr. Moffett says:

These women buy for their pet dogs, boots of different colors to match the clothes. They lace up nearly to the knee, and cost from $5 to $8 a pair. They buy half a dozen pairs at a time. They buy collars set with rubies, pearls, and diamonds, at several hundred dollars each. Every morning a woman calls—a sort of dog governess—to bathe and comb and curl and perfume the little darling, and then take him out for his walk. He eats and drinks from silver dishes, and, if he gets a stomachache, a specialist is promptly summoned.

There is a fitting symbolization of this dog-worship in a recent cartoon representing an overdressed female, with hands clasped, face wearing a look of ecstatic devotion, and eyes upward gazing to a wretched dog on a pedestal, with a sun-halo around its head, the apotheosis of caninity, femininity, and asinity. It is a repetition of an oft-repeated truth to say that this money lavished on dogs, to their discomfort, might have been a million times more wisely used in clothing and educating some of the children of New York's submerged million. When the overturning comes, as come it will, according to God's Word and the logic of facts, "the songs of the palace shall be wailings in that day, saith the Lord Jehovah." The rich are sowing for a harvest they will be sorry to reap.

"WATCH" AND "BE READY."

By G.

THE Lord will come again, for He has positively said so. See John 14:2, 3. The apostle Peter says, "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night." 2 Peter 3:10. And Paul tells us that "the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God." Again, Jesus says that when He comes "all the holy angels" will be "with Him." Matt. 25:31.

When will He come?—That is not revealed. The Lord says, "Of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but My Father only." Chapter 24:36. He gives us this clue, however: "This Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." Verse 14. When the apostle James saw in prophetic vision the world convulsed with a great conflict between capital and labor, he recorded this exhortation for the brethren who should be living at such a time: "Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." James 5:8.

In view of all these testimonies, the Lord's further counsel is just now very significant: "Watch therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come." Matt. 24:42. But watching is not all that is important; for He adds, "Be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh." Verse 44. And, as pertinent to our time, we take from an exchange the following rules for to-day:

Do nothing that you would not like to be doing when Jesus comes.

Go to no place where you would not like to be found when Jesus comes.

Say nothing that you would not like to be saying when Jesus comes. G.

CONTAINED IN THIS NUMBER.

By Editor

Poetry.

The Twenty-eighth Psalm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Night, MRS. M. ELISABETH BURNS-HOWELL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 After the Storm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 On Summer Days, BENJ. PHILLIPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Editorial.—Healed for Service—"Awake Thou that Sleepest"—A Clean Universe—Eternal Life and Immortality—Not a Local Issue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5

Question Corner.—Nos. 1656-1659 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Outlook.—English Nonconformists in Council, and the London Revival, M. ELLSWORTH OLSEN—Last-Day Conditions—The Church and State Movement in Washington, JOHN D. BRADLEY—"Backward States," W. N. GLENN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6, 7

General.

The Workers Needed, MRS. E. G. WHITE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Christian Progress, THORO HARRIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 "What Must I Do to Be Saved?" D. P. ZEIGLER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Amos, F. D. STARR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Fifty Reasons for Sabbath Observance, D. T. BOURDEAU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Antichrist, H. J. FARMAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Admonitions, Commands, Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 "The Devil and His Angels" (Bible Reading) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 How They Became Convinced (A Sabbath Symposium). 11

Missions.—Growth of the Publishing Work, J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH—Dedication Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12, 13

The Home.—Care of Men's Clothing, A. M. H.—American Temperance Lessons in Great Britain—Fearless and Honest—A Fatal Toothpick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14, 15

International Sunday-School Lesson.—Jesus Before Pilate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Hypnotism, or?

A special writer in the Seattle Star, of April 15, in speaking of Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman's evangelical services in Seattle, Wash., asks the questions: "Is Seattle under the hypnotic spell? Does Dr. Chapman mesmerize his audiences?" He calls the doctor "the world's great evangelist, and the world's great hypnotist." The writer thus concludes:

Am I converted to God— Or— To Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman? I fell beneath that powerful influence Thursday night. I am asking myself the same question. And I have no answer to make to you, to myself, to Dr. Chapman, Or to God.

Surely something is wrong somewhere when men do not know whether they are converted to God or to man.

Good Roads, Education, and Christianity

By Editor

Good Roads, Education, and Christianity.—Hon. W. C. Brownlow, member of Congress, from Tennessee, is working arduously for better roads, and it is a good thing. It is said that investigation has shown that, of all the roads in the United States, only 5 per cent. are good, 10 per cent. tolerable; only 15 per cent. really roads; 85 per cent. mere rights-of-way. Mr. Brownlow feels, and argues with force, that this only can be accomplished through federal and state co-operation. He believes that this would greatly help in the consolidation and efficiency of rural schools, and in the transportation of children to these larger schools, and thus greatly aid Christianity. We believe that working for good roads is a splendid work, and would prove a great benefit to the country in many ways; but we do not believe that it would either help or hinder Christianity. Christians ought to work for good roads, and all other things which make for the betterment of humanity; but Christianity is not in any way dependent upon these material matters. There is a road that it is well for the Christian church to look to, and that is the highway of holiness. Out of that she should gather out the stones, and the stumbling-blocks, that to its better, freer life those in the low plains of moral life, those in the sloughs and wallows of sin, may be attracted. That is the first business of the church; and, having that, she will, in the nature of the case, work for the physical betterment of all men.

A Good Suggestion.

In an editorial supporting the labor union cause, the Baltimore Labor Leader says:

A campaign of education is needed worse than anything else at present. Unionism should have the support and financial aid of the general public, whose battles it has been fighting so long and with such a heavy handicap. It can obtain what it wants if it goes about it in the right way, depending upon brains, and less upon force, to accomplish its purpose.

A good illustration of the fact that brains are better than force in support of the interests of wage-workers, is seen in the policy of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. They have a strong union without compulsion; work side by side amicably with non-union men, and have no strikes. As a result their union is recognized as a reasonable association, whose purpose is remarkably successful, and no class of laboring men are more highly respected by their employers and fellow-citizens. Brains instead of force is a good watchword for men who want to succeed in business and live peaceably. Brains constitute an excellent auxiliary of muscle in the battle of life.

Mercy for the Backslider

The condition of the backslider is worse than that of the unconverted person; "for if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein and overcome, the last state is become worse with them than the first." Yet there is mercy even for these. The merciful Father says: "Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; I will not look in anger upon you; for I am merciful, saith the Lord, I will not keep anger forever. Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed My voice, saith the Lord. Return, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am a husband unto you; and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion; and I will give you shepherds according to Mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." Jer. 3: 12-15.

Bible Reading in Public Schools

And New Zealand also is agitating for Bible-reading and Bible-study in public schools. What a sinister commentary all this is on the church and home in "Christian" lands.