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Show FORWARD MARCH, f, SUNDRY SGHOOL 1 LESSON Rev G. F Rassweiler If ! 9IU-31-C TKK- l.nlJ.nl I a. the history of Israel is no Isolated ancient bit of history. It Is a tyio of the universal experience of hu I manlty In ltd pllgrlmase toward the I better day that lles before us. Before humanity lies the t state o' better things of better thoughts, of better deeds, of belter joys, of better bet-ter lives, of better government, of better bet-ter business, of better mec-haulcd and of better society. And always the chasm of a Jordan of difficulty yawns between It is such a break with the present, such a different 6tate. that it seems Impossible to proceed. So It was with Israel of old as they reached the other side of the rer Jordan which separated them from the land of promise toward which God had been lending them THE LESSON TEXT The Authorized Version. 7 And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day will 1 begin to magnify thee In the sight of all Israel, that they ma know that, as I was with Mo i sen. so I will be with thee. S And thou ahalt command -the priests that bear tlx ark ot the 00 nnt. laylnSH When ye arf rome to th-brink th-brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan 9 And Joshua said unto the i hildren of Israel. Come hither and hear the words of the Lord your God 10 And Joshua said. Herb know that the llvlnj? God Is amon; you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanltes, I and the Hlttltes. and the Hivltes. and, the Ferlzzites. and the QlrgashiU -1. and the Amorltes and the Jebufii-' 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of tho Lord of all the earth passeth over before you Into Jordan. 11! Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man. 13 And It shall come to pass, as soon as the solea of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord.! the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from th' waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap 14 And It r-ame to pass, when the people removed irom the-lr tents, to pass over Jordan, and tru- priests bear Ing the ark of the covenant berore the people; 16 And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan and thf fai of the priests that ban- the ark were dipped In the brim of the water (for Jordan ovorfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest ! id i uai i ne RB.eii irnico came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that Is beside Zaretan; anil those thai came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt eea. tailed, and were cut off; and the people past, ed over right ageme' Jericho. 17 And the priefts uat oare the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood (Irm on dry ground In the midst or Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground until all the people were passed clean over Jordan. Golden Text Fear thou not. for 1 ! am with thee Isa 11 10. I Yes. that better state seems so separated sep-arated from us thai a tap yawns lw rore us that apparently Is ImDBISlble llow can we ever make the passage from the state where we are to ih state where we oucht to be? The Ideal yeems to belong to another world en tlrely. It amilea tentallzlncly at from the other s!d Rut It Beent! 'i say. "This Is a beautiful land but you can't como over. Tnls belongs to a dllferent order or things." Difficulties always confront ns in our march to better things. But the Joshuas of undaunted rour:.i;" and unwavering faith, and unswerving 103 alty to duty, who are e.-r the leader) of the march of progress, hear the VOlCfl of the Creator who has ore) I tho world for our attainment, say. "Go. forward. Difficulties will vanish before you." And It 1b so. Not only are we surmounting sur-mounting difficulties, but as we proceed, pro-ceed, they actually vanish before ue The Stevensons were puirl'nK thoii brains aB to how to proves: ti0 wheels of the first locomotive which they uere Inventing rrom slipping on the rails when one of them said "Perhaps they won't slip. Let's try-it." try-it." ,md they did not slip. Darius Green dreams of flying in the air, but Is prevented by the lorce of gravity Others try to couquer the air by balloons, but are prevented by the force of tho wind. But ever. I C C n-. ct r. f r, r w rl cAmn "r- . . tirv I . I llne cuts off our difficulties by the In- vrntlon of small gasoline motors, and the Impossible land Is entered. Morse sees the iosslbIllty of writing writ-ing his mess-i s across the continent with the long arm of the telegraph) wire But people say that It Is an I Idle dream. But he goes forward. It does scf-m Impossible, Time after : time he is halted, and progress seems; out of th' U.-,-i i.. i Tl.. n he s.iss he prays, and before him there opens I a way out of hi difficulty, till at la3t j he has reached the land of his promise. prom-ise. The inventor of the cotton picking machine moved forward in 6plte of J after time he failed. One difficulty I was removed only to find another con fronting him. People thought he was crazy Ho had to continue his work ! in secret to avoid unbearable ridicule, j He spent a lifetime working forward i when at last his feet trod on the solid 1 ground of success and he found him self in the land of achievement. Reformers see the better state o!' ' sobriety, of chastity, of honesty, and of brotherhood "It is no use," says th world about him. that belongs to another world, the very nature of things prevent! us ' But he presses forward and problems are solved and obstacles overcome. And if we but go forward courageously we, too. fhall enter the land of better things. Youth looks at the hljh peaks of attainment in the state of clean, no ble, honest living, and even as he looks the world points out to him the yawning chasm that well might ap pall him But If he will only proceed In the sure faith that the Creator does not defraud us. nor put lying promises prom-ises before us. anil nerves himself with the help of the Omnipotent, he. too. will find that the way is open to the forward march of faith ami obedience. on |