t h e K I N G ’ S BUS I NE S S v. 16. People that sat In darkness. In utter ignorance of all those points with which it is most of all the con cern of immortal beings to be ac- __ quainted. They COMMENTS PROM are destitute of MANY SOURCES. a n y spark of Keith Ii. Brooks. spiritual life and the g l o o m of present sinfulness and eternal mis ery hangs over them.—Craik. Our Lord’s ministry is briefly set forth in His parable of the goo.d Shep herd by' which it appears He came to Israel to lead out His own sheep from that sheepfold (not to be crowned then as King). (Jn. 10:1-6.) This remnant constituted the beginning of that “ little flock” which was to em brace, all believing. Gentiles along with believing Jews. To these Gentiles He referred, saying, “ Other sheep have I which aré not of this fold” (Jn. 10:16). Lk. 4:16-21 tells us precisely the pur pose for which He had been anointed and sent. His mission was a preach ing mission, to preach the gospel to the poor, deliverance to the captives, re covering of sight to the blind, the ac ceptable year of the Lord. After read ing this last quoted clause Jesus closed the book, thus shutting out the words that follow in Is. 61 from which He was quoting.— Mauro. Saw a great light. Blessed be darkness and de spair if through them men discern the beams which shine from heaven and reveal salvation.-—Batchelor. v. 17. Jesns said, Repent. The sub ject of His preaching, Repent. ' Then men are in a wrong moral condition. Then there is something every man must do for himself. If Jesus preached repentance all true preachers will do the same and it is vitally necessary for all mankind. If repentance is the first act needed, it is absurd to attempt to make religious progress without it.— Parker. The kingdom of heaven. Same message,John gave in 3:2. He an nounced that the Christian dispensa tion was the next thing to come. John presented Jesus not as King who would at that time set up His earthly throne but as the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world, the true prophetic order. By Israel’s rejection of the Saviour they have been national ly set aside until the fulness of the Gentiles is come in after which Jesus as King will return in glory to rule. (Matt. 24:29, 25:46; Lk. 19:12-19; Acts 15:14-17).— Sum. Bible. Matthew
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alone uses the expression “ kingdom of heaven,” but he also employs the equiv alent phrase ‘‘the kingdom of God” in common with the other New Testament writers.-,—Camb. Bible. The expres sion is used in a varied sense in the New Testament. Its principal mean ings are: (1) Presence of Christ on earth; (2) His second advent; ' ( 3 ) His influence in the heart; (4) Christian ity, (a) As a church, (b) As a faith; (5) The life eternal.— Carr. Not the material kingdom promised to Israel in the Old Testament— that was to be set up on earth with the Messiah as King and the Hebrew nation as the national instrument through which the King would rule the earth. The kingdom of the heavens is the form the kingdom takes during this age. Its principles are laid down in Matt. 5-7 and its form during fhe absence of the King is set forth in the parables of Matt. 13. The kingdom of the heavens will be mani fested on earth at the appearing of Jesus Christ in glory with His saints and then it will be the kingdom of the Son of man, the kingdom promised to Israel in the Old Testament.— Pike. Is at hand. It is now in fact close at hand. It is interesting to note its first beginnings. It would be difficult to imagine any commencement that would have seemed weaker in worldly eyes, but the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men. Now that we look back upon that scene we recognize it as one of the grandest this earth has ever witnessed.— Gibson. While in one sense it was already come in His per son and ministry, the economy of it was only “ at hand” until the blood of the cross was shed and the Spirit on the day of Pentecost opened the foun tain for sin.— J, P. & B. v. 18. Jesus walking by the sea. I think Christ chose these fishermen be cause they were men who had done business in great waters and had there seen God’s wonders in the deep. Surely an acquaintance with nature and na ture’s God had been some sort of prep aration for the higher and nobler em ploy to which He was able to call' them. — T. Spurgeon. Saw two brethren. Note the kind of helpers Jesus chose. They were distinguished principally by being undistinguished in almost every respect. They were sons of the soil, denizens of the neighborhood.— Lewis. Casting a net. Jesus sees in this an education for something higher than
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