There are a million and a half Sunday school teachers who should be acquainted with the story of Christ and his church: and there are several millions of young people in our Sunday schools who may be teachers before many years and need the same knowledge. This book has been prepared in the hope that these teachers and young people may find it a help to know Him who is the head of the church; and to understand the church, which is the pillar and ground of truth. JESSE L. HURLBUT. January 3, 1906. HINTS TO STUDENTS Those who desire merely to _read_ this book, or to look it over, will not find it interesting. Those who already know how to study will not need these hints, and can use the book in their own way. But there are many who desire to study these subjects carefully and yet do not know precisely how to do the work. For these students, earnest but untrained, these hints are given. 1. These studies should be pursued with the Bible close at hand, so that every Scripture reference may be at once searched out and read. 2. Begin each lesson by a general view; reading it through carefully, and memorizing the leading divisions of the outline, which are indicated by the Roman numerals I, II, III, etc. This will give the general plan of the lesson. 3. Now take up Part I of the lesson in detail; notice and memorize its subdivisions, indicated by 1, 2, 3, etc., and search out all the Scripture references cited in it. If practicable, write out on a sheet of paper the reference (not the language of the text in full), and what each reference shows. Thus with references in the Second Study, page 19, Section I, =Origin=, 1. =Semitic.= (Gen. 12. 1-3) God's call and promise to Abram. (Gen. 17. 1-8) The call repeated; name changed to Abraham. (James 2. 23) The Friend of God. (Gen. 18. 19: "He will command his children," etc.) In this manner write out all the facts ascertained from all the references in the section. 4. It would be a good plan to write out in full, as a connected statement, all the facts in the section. 5. In like manner study out and write out all the facts obtained by a study of the lesson and the text cited in it. This will greatly aid the memory in holding fast to the information gained. 6. Having done this, look at the blackboard outline at the end of the study and see if you can read the outline of the lesson by the aid of the catch-words and indications which it affords. Study the lesson until you can read it with the blackboard outline, and then recall it without the outline. 7. Now take up the questions for review. Read them over, one by one, and see if you can answer them. To many of them the answer is not given in the text-book, but it will be found in the Scripture references when searched out. Do not cease your study until every question can be answered from memory.