No information is given as to the time or place of this miracle. The only thing to be particularly noticed about it is the important part assigned to the faith of these men. Their faith was the condition of their being healed. Their faith had been indicated by their coming to Jesus, following him and crying for help; but he also asked of them a definite profession of belief in his ability to heal, and then said, "Be it unto you according to your faith."

In immediate connection with his account of the healing of these blind men who came to Jesus in the house, Matthew says, "As they went forth there was brought unto him a dumb man possessed with a demon." The demon was exorcised and the dumb man spake, and the multitudes marvelled, saying, "It was never so seen in Israel." But the Pharisees took exception, and said, "By the prince of the demons casteth he out demons:" It is probable that the Pharisees did not say this publicly at this time, but whispered it among themselves and afterwards said it publicly.

When the evangelists describe the emotions of Jesus as he looked on sinning, suffering humanity, they use the word "compassion," and that word is well adapted to describe the great motive power of the Christian church. Nevertheless, the preeminent word in the New Testament is the word "faith." Faith forms the vital link between the sinner and his Saviour. Three of these miracles seem to be especially designed to emphasize the importance of faith. The woman who was healed had shown her faith by touching the border of Jesus' cloak, and when she had made her confession, Jesus said to her, "Thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace. When Jairus said "My daughter is even now dead; but come and lay thy hands. on her and she shall live," Jesus said, "Fear not, only believe." Faith was the great essential. When the blind

men had shown their faith by following Jesus and crying out "Have mercy on us," Jesus said, "Believe ye that I am able to do this?" and when they said, "Yes, Lord," Jesus said, "According to your faith be it unto you." Faith is the instrument, channel and essential condition of the exercise of saving power.

"More things are wrought by prayer

Than this world dreams. Wherefore let thy voice
Rise like a fountain for me night and day;

For what are men better than sheep and goats

That nourish a blind life within the brain,

If, knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer

Both for themselves and those who call them friend.
For so the whole round world is every way

Bound by gold chains about the feet of God."

XXVIII

TEACHING BY PARABLES

Matthew 13:3. "And he spake to them many things in parables."

(Mat. 13: 1-52; Mark 4:1-34; Luke 8:4-18.)

J

ESUS, with his disciples, had returned to Capernaum and resumed his teachings by the seaside on a day

that was to mark a new epoch in the development of his kingdom. He came forth from the house, probably early in the morning, and sat by the sea and taught the people that had gathered about him. The crowd increased until it became necessary for him to get into a boat and speak to the people as they stood on the beach.

Three evangelists give reports of this day's teaching, and they all say that he taught by parables, and that the change in manner of teaching was so marked that it led the disciples to ask why he spake in parables. With the exception of the parable of the debtor in the house of Simon the Pharisee, Jesus had used no parables until this time. In the Sermon on the Mount he had revealed the spirit and aim of the Messianic kingdom in very simple and direct language, but this discourse is made up of parables and of what seemed, even to the disciples, dark sayings.

When the disciples asked their Master why he spake in parables he replied, "Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but to them it is not given. Therefore speak I to them in parable; be

cause seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And unto them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith,

"By hearing ye shall hear, and shall in no wise understand,

And seeing ye shall see, and in no wise perceive;

For this people's heart is waxed gross,

And their ears are dull of hearing,

And their eyes they have closed,

Lest haply they should perceive with their eyes,
And hear with their ears,

And understand with their hearts,
And should turn,

And I should heal them."

Jesus' miracles and teaching had attracted and favorably impressed the people, but they had also developed and crystalized opposition on the part of scribes, Pharisees and Jewish religious teachers. These religious teachers could not deny the miracles, but they began to suggest to the people that Jesus was in league with the powers of evil, and that he cast out demons by the prince of the demons. It was not possible to reach these hard hearts by direct statements concerning the kingdom of God; therefore, the great Teacher spoke to them in parables, as Isaiah had predicted, when he said, "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from the foundations of the world."

It might not be amiss to remind the reader of the difference between parables and fables. The fable, like the parable, seeks to throw light on the unknown by means of the known, but, while the fable uses similitudes that are not within the range of ordinary possibility, representing trees and animals as talking like men, the parable takes similitudes from the ordinary experiences and observations of life. There are very few fables in the sacred

Scriptures, but there is one in the Old Testament, in the address of Jotham to the men of Shechem. (Judges 9: 6-15.)

Parables are adapted to carry wholesome, but unwelcome truths into prejudiced minds that would exclude direct statement; and men find themselves committed to a judgment or course of action before selfishness or prejudice can organize resistance, as in the case of Nathan's parable to king David. It was the unreceptiveness on the part of his hearers that led Christ to use so many parables. Many of them were so blinded by prejudice that they would not listen to a direct proclamation of the truth, and the parabolic method was adopted in order to meet their unreceptiveness. This reason for their use does not exclude other reasons.

The advantage of teaching by parables or by any kind of illustrations, is greatest when the teacher's knowledge is vastly superior to that of the learner. This fact renders the parables of Christ unique. He knew perfectly the great spiritual realm of which his disciples were very ignorant, and he could take the events and observations of every day life and give to his disciples some conception of what their eyes had not seen. He had come from God and testified in regard to things of which he had perfect knowledge.

The Jews were accustomed to teach by parables, but their parables differed from the parables of Christ in that they sought to throw earthly light on heavenly things, while He sought to throw heavenly light on earthly things. The Jewish teacher applied sensual, temporal limits and measures to spiritual, eternal verities, while Christ lifted the sensual and the temporal up into the bright light of the spiritual and eternal. Jewish teachers, by their parables, sought to bring God down to the level of men, while