athered together for attack upon the
mind of a mortal man. Would it have been any wonder had even such a
man as Jesus succumbed?

But He did not succumb. Rallying His Inner Force to His rescue He beat
back the attacking horde, and by an effort of His Will, He swept both
picture and tempters away into oblivion, crying indignantly "Thou
darest to tempt even me, thy Lord and Master. Get thee behind me thou
Fiends of Darkness"!

And so the Temptation of the Wilderness failed, and Jesus received His
answer from His soul, and He descended the mountains, back to the
haunts of men--back to the scene of His three years' labors and
suffering, and back to His Death. And He knew full well all that
awaited Him there, for had He not seen the First Picture?

Jesus had chosen His career.

* * * * *

The Master descended from the mountains and forsook the Wilderness for
the place in which John and his followers were gathered. Resting for a
time, and refreshing Himself with food and drink, He gathered together
His energies for His great work.

The followers of John gathered around Him, filled with the idea that
He was the Messiah come to lead them to victory and triumph. But He
disappointed them by His calm, simple manner, and His disavowal of
royal claims. "What seek ye of me?" he asked them, and many, abashed,
left His circle and returned to the crowd. But a few humble souls
remained and around these few gathered a few more, until at last a
little band of faithful students was formed--the first band of
Christian disciples. This band was composed almost entirely of
fishermen and men of similar humble occupations. There was an absence
of people of rank or social position. His people were of the "plain
people" which have furnished the recruits for every great religion.

And after a time, Jesus moved away from the place, followed by His
band of disciples, which drew new members from each place of
gathering. Some stayed but for a short time, while others replaced the
faint hearted ones of little faith. But the band steadily grew, until
it began to attract the attention of the authorities and the public.
Jesus constantly disclaimed being the Messiah, but the report that
such indeed He was, began to spread and the authorities began that
system of spying and watching which followed His footsteps for three
years, and which finally resulted in His death on the Cross. And this
suspicion was encouraged by th