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synagogue, and he could reason with them on common ground; but in that synagogue, as in most other synagogues that he visited, he soon met with opposition, which compelled him to withdraw, taking with him "the disciples.".

Having left the synagogue he occupied the school of one Tyrannus. Who this Tyrannus was does not appear. He was probably a public teacher of rhetoric or philosophy. In this lecture hall he gets a more mixed audience than in the synagogue. Whilst the Gentiles would not find admission to the synagogue, both Jews and Gentiles could meet in this public hall. In looking at him in connection with these places the subject, characteristics, and success of his ministry at Ephesus are brought under our notice

First: The subject of his ministry. The subject was one -the Gospel; but this one subject, it would seem, he presented in different forms, according to the character of his audience. In the synagogue he spoke of it as "the kingdom of God." In the hall of Tyrannus perhaps in some other form. Christ, however, was the one subject. He determined to know nothing among men save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Secondly: The characteristics of his ministry at Ephesus. It was free. He did not, as à preacher, feel that he could minister only in one place. Driven from the synagogue, he goes to the school of Tyrannus. He was not a localized priest. It was argumentative—“ disputing." He gave reasons to sustain his propositions. He answered objections and presented convincing proofs. He was no empty declaimer, no whining sentimentalist. He spoke to men's judgment. It was persuasive. He plied them with motives rightly to excite their affections and determine their will. It was indefatigable. He was "daily" at the work. For two long years every day he would be found in the lecture hall of Tyrannus preaching the Gospel. He was instant in season and out of season.

Thirdly: The success of his ministry at Ephesus. "All they that dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks." Is this literally true, or is it hyperbolical? It is very probable that nearly the whole, if not

136 HOMILETIC glance at the acTS OF THE APOSTLES,

the whole, of that province of Asia heard of the new doc. trine, if not directly from the lips of Paul, from his coadjutors, and from those whom he then addressed. Some suppose that at this time the seven churches of Asia, to which the epistles in the Book of Revelation are addressed, were originally founded. Ephesus was the metropolis of that region, and into it the population of the provinces were constantly flowing for purposes both of commerce and of worship. Hence the doctrines of Paul would rapidly and extensively spread. Another point in this chapter from which we may take a view of Paul is

III. THE DISEASED AND POSSESSED. "And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul; so that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them." There were in Ephesus at this time what are found in all places at all times-suffering humanity. There were men there not only afflicted with corporeal diseases, but also afflicted by demoniacal possessions. There were there men so fallen that they became the residences and the organs of infernal spirits. Paul's supernatural ministry met the case of these afflicted ones. He cured them by a miraculous agency. His supernatural ministry was

First: Derived. Unlike Christ, he had not the power of working miracles natural in himself. God wrought special miracles by the hand of Paul. His supernatural ministry was

Secondly: Beneficent. It was put forth not to wound or to injure men, but to heal and bless them. His supernatural ministry was—

Thirdly: Strikingly manifest. The mere "handkerchiefs or aprons" which touched his body carried with it virtue to heal the diseased and to expel the devil from the possessed. Another point in this chapter from which we may take a view of Paul is

IV. "THE SEVEN SONS OF SCEVA." (See the leading homily of the present number.)

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SUBJECT: Bramble Rule; or, The People and their Leaders!

"The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the olive trees said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they' honour God and and go to be be promoted over the trees? And the trees said to than fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us. But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign over us. And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then said all the trees unto the bramble,\ ́ Come thou, and reign over us. And the bramble said unto them, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon."-Judges ix. 8-15.

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Analysis of Homily the Seven Hundred and Twenty-Eighth.x av

HIS is one of the oldest and the most beautiful fables ins

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existence. A fable is a form of speech that invests! the inanimate with life, the irrational with intelligence, thei dumb with tongues. It is a method of instruction peculiarly: adapted to arrest attention, disarm prejudice, and thus prepare the mind to receive ideas. Fables have ever been common in the East. The temperament of the Orientals being highly glowing and imaginative accounts for this.

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The Heavenly Teacher employed them in His instruction; they were His favourite modes of communication. He spake in parables. He knew that a short fable or parable would not only strike the attention, but more effectively convey an unpopular truth, and be more easily remembered than any laboured argument in abstract language.

Jotham stands on Mount Gerizim, and from its heights delivered this parabolic address in the ears of the men of Shechem. The scene is romantic.

"

The general truths contained in this fable are :

VOL. XIX.

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I. THAT THE PEOPLE HAVE A CONSCIOUS WANT OF LEADERS, AND THEY ARE NOT PARTICULAR IN THEIR CHOICE OF THEM.

"The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them." The trees mean the people.

First, we infer that the people have a conscious want of leaders. Why else did "the trees "-the people-go forth in search of a king? The people in every age have needed leaders in every department of life, mercantile, artistic, political, and especially religious. The uncultured masses have ever been ignorant, credulous, servile. They are conscious of the want. Hence, as in the case of the men of Shechem represented by "the trees," they are looking out for some coming man to lead them on. The conscious want arises (1) From an instinctive faith that there is somewhere an unpossessed good for them. They feel that the benevolent Author of their being has somewhere in store for them that which they have not obtained. (2) From a consciousness that they are incapable of reaching it themselves. There is a deep feeling of helplessness in the soul of the masses. (3) From a conviction that there are members of their race superior to themselves. The people have ever manifested a readiness to recognise superiority.

We infer, secondly-That the people are not particular in their choice of leaders. The trees did not solicit the leadership of the most majestic of their brethren; they sought first the "olive tree," then "the fig tree," then "the vine." All these are comparatively small. The forest has far finer productions than these; it has the elm, the cedar, the oak. They sought not these. The people, especially in their more uneducated condition, and in religious matters, do not generally follow the greatest men. False Christs in Judea were more popular than the real one. The people cried for Barabbas, and rejected the Messiah. The character of popular priests, both in heathen lands and in Christendom, shows that the people generally choose not men of the higher type. The reason of this is obvious. Men of inferior capacity and uncultivated natures are scarcely qualified to appreciate the highest form of

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II. THAT INFERIOR MEN ARE OFTEN MORE READY TO A SUME THE RESPONSIBILITY OF LEADERSHIP THAN GREAT ONES. Although the "olive tree," the "fig tree," and "the vine" were not the greatest of their race, they were great enough to shrink from the responsibility of the position to which they were invited. The one said, "Shall I leave my fatness ?" thể other, Shall I forsake my sweetness?" the other, "Shall I leave my wine" to be promoted over "the trees?" "The humblé bramble," however, was no sooner asked than he consented. As a rule, perhaps it is the smaller men the brambles of the forest that are the most anxious to attain the prominent and responsible places in society. The greater a man is the less taste he has for conventional greatness, the greater resources he has in himself, and more disposed is he to work in the glorious realms of principles than amidst the din of social parties. Great men build their own thrones and establish their own empires. They have a "fatness," a "sweetness," a "cheering wine" in themselves that make them sublimely independent of conventional honours. In the religious world platforms and pulpits are yet far too thick with "brambles." Oh, for cedars and Oaks!

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III. THAT LEADERSHIP IN THE HANDS OF INFERIOR MEN IS EVER FRAUGHT WITH MISCHIEF. "And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust under my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon." The last clause "let fire," &c., is not to be taken as a command, but as a prediction. It means that fire shall come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon; and as the bramble represents Abimelech, who was made king of Shechem, the sequel shows (verses 16-57) that his election.

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