have chosen you Twelve, but one of you is a devil.' This was Judas Iscariot, the wicked Apostle who betrayed his Lord.

So, you see, it is much better to be a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, and a much happier thing to have your name written down in heaven, than to be able even to work miracles.

CHAPTER XLIV.

THE PRODIGAL SON.

A RICH Pharisee made a feast on the Sabbath day, and invited Jesus to the feast. He did not ask Him out of kindness; for as soon as Jesus entered the house, the Pharisee and his friends began to watch Him; they wanted to see if He would do anything wrong, or if He would break the Sabbath.

Now there was a poor man standing just in front of Jesus who had the dropsy: his body was swollen with disease, and the Saviour, in His tender pity, wished to heal him. But what would the Pharisees think and say if He healed him on the Sabbath day?

Jesus knew with what unkind feelings they were watching Him, and He knew they had no pity for the sick man; and He was much grieved at the hardness of their hearts. Before He healed the man, He asked the chief Pharisee, and those who were sitting at table with Him, this simple question,

'Is it right to heal on the Sabbath day?'

And they did not answer a word. They knew it was not wrong; and yet they could not bear Jesus to do it.

Then the Saviour took him, and healed him, and let him go.

After He had done this, He said to them,- If any of you shall have an ox or an ass fallen into a deep hole, will you not pull him out on the Sabbath day? and how much better is a man than a beast!'

Ah, they knew that Jesus was right, and they were silent before Him; but they never liked His teaching, when He showed them their faults.

Yet there were some people who liked to hear Him; and these were the publicans and sinners. They were wicked people; but when they drew near to listen to His words, they felt how sinful they were, and they wanted to be made better. Feeling their sins, made them glad to hear of a Saviour.

So Jesus taught them; and when some of them asked Him to their houses, He went and eat with them; for He wanted to make them good.

Then the Scribes and Pharisees complained about it, saying,-'This man receives sinners, and eats with them.'

When Jesus knew they were murmuring, He told them a parable. He said, 'If a man has a hundred sheep, and he lose one of them, he will leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness, while he goes to look for the one that is lost. And when he has found it, he takes it up and carries it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

'Then he goes home, and calls all his friends and his neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.

'I say unto you, that just in the same way, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that is sorry for his sins.'

You see, if the Pharisees did not rejoice when a poor publican or sinner turned to God, the angels in heaven did.

Then Jesus told them another very beautiful parable to show how great the love of God is ; and how much He loves poor sinners. He said,

'A certain man had two sons. And after a time the younger son began to get discontented with his happy quiet home; he wanted to leave it, to go away where he could enjoy himself as he liked, and where his father would know nothing of what he was doing.

'So he gathered together all that belonged to him, and all the money that his father had given

him, and went into a far country. There he began to lead a wicked, riotous life. He did things he knew to be wrong,-things that he knew would make his father's heart to ache with sorrow. But he did not care about displeasing his father now.

'He thought it would make him happy to have so much liberty, and to have his own way in everything; but he found that sin brought great sorrow; and he was more miserable than he had ever been before.

6

Very soon all his money was spent; and besides this, a great famine was in all that land, and he began to be in want of food. So he asked a man of that city to take him for a servant; and the man sent him into his fields to feed pigs.

'And now he suffered terribly from hunger. He had not enough to eat; so he ate the husks and coarse food that was given to the pigs. And no man gave to him.

'How miserable he was! how cold and hungry! how different from what he had been in his father's home!

'At last he thought to himself, How many servants of my father have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no more