Agrippa, visited the town where Paul was in prison and wanted to talk with Paul after he had been told about the prisoner. Paul bravely and joyfully told the king how he had agreed with the Jews in per secuting the Christians until the Lord Jesus had saved him as he was traveling along the Damascus road. The Holy Spirit gave such wisdom to Paul as he spoke that King Agrippa said, “Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.” Paul answered that he wished that all those who had heard his testimony would receive the Lord Jesus as their Saviour. The king would have freed Paul if he had not already asked that he might'be sent to Caesar in Rome for his trial. If your life depended upon your testi mony for your Lord, would you proudly testify for Him, or would you try to hide the fact that you were His child so that your life might be spared? Some people think that only “ sissies” are Christians. Really, just the opposite is true. A Chris tian is more courageous in the face of danger, sorrow, persecution, suffering, etc., than those who do not have the Saviour’s strength and power and wis dom. Although people may scoff at Chris tians sometimes, in their hearts they really respect them for living for their Lord at any cost. Pray that you, like Paul, may be always proud to tell others why you are a Christian. Agreement, dreams of travel at leisure in later years, and other dreams, too, do come true. B a sed u p o n th e e x p a n d in g m is sionary enterprises of the conserva tively managed pioneer Sunday-school organization o f the United States, such an agreement insures a liberal income for life on the amount invested. It is fire-, burglar-, litigation- and depres sion-proof, and yields^ elderly people a some what more generous income than other safe securities. Assure your tcorry-free future NOW— Clip the coupon» B ox M Gentlemen:- Please tell me, without obligation, how I may provide an income for life, for myself or a survivor. . ■— City and State_____________________________________- Date of Birth________________________________________ AMERICAN SUNDAY SCHOOL UNION 1816 Chestnut Street Philadelphia 3, Pa. Name-------------------------------.— Street and No._________________________
Living the Life of Faith Heb. 12:1,2
March 19, 1950 THE FAITH THAT SUSTAINED THE CHURCH Acts 26:19-23; Rom. 5:1-8; Heb. 12:1,2 Pointers on the Lesson Something happened in the lives of the disciples after the resurrection of their Lord. After the crucifixion they were a sad, discouraged group. It seemed that the light of life had gone out. They felt that they had nothing to live for. Their hearts were filled with fear and the fu ture looked hopeless. They had not real ized the blessed truth that Christ would rise from the dead. Then suddenly the risen Lord appeared to them and all life was changed. Night turned to day; cour age took the place of fear; defeat was turned into victory. A mighty conviction motivated all their living. They served a Christ who was alive forevermore. Paul’s Transforming Vision Acts 26:19-23 One day on the Damascus road, Saul of Tarsus came face to face with the risen, glorified Lord. For the first time he realized that he was a poor, undone sinner and needed the Saviour whom he had been so persistently denouncing. From that time on there was a right about-face in his life that cannot be ex plained except in the fact that a new power had entered his life making him a new creature. Verse 23 tells us what kind of a Christ it was who saved his soul. It was the Christ who suffered and rose from the dead. No other Christ can avail to transform men’s lives. Telling the lost about this Christ is the heart of the gospel. See 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. Everywhere possible Paul told this story (19). He urged men to repent and turn to God (20). This fact argues against the idea some expressed that re pentance has no place in present-day preaching and testimony. God “ com- mandeth all men every where to repent” (Acts 17:30). Furthermore, Paul indi cated that the message that he pro claimed was in no wise contrary to the Old Testament message; only a fuller light (22). It should always be remem bered that there is a perfect harmony be- tween the Old and New Testaments. It took Christ however to reveal the fuller meaning of things in the Old Covenant. The Blessings of Justifying Faith Rom. 5:1-8 In his epistle to the Romans Paul tells _s what are the blessings that come into the life of the believer. These things sus tained the early church even as they will sustain believers today. The passage be fore us lists a number of them as fol lows: justification (1), peace with God (1), access, standing and joy (2), an un derstanding of the meaning of suffering (3, 4), the assurance of the love of God in our hearts through the Holy Spirit (5). We also have the proof of God’s love for us in Christ’s Calvary experi ence (6-8). The realization of the pre ciousness of these things made the early disciples willing to suffer anything if only others might hear of Him who makes such blessings possible. F E B R U A R Y , 1 9 5 0
In view of the “cloud of witnesses” presented to us in chapter 11, believers should have no hesitancy in putting everything they have into the life of faith. This life is built upon solid foun dations. It promises a rich reward. This life of faith is likened to a race. To run it successfully the participant must rid himself of all hindrances which slow his pace. Every particular sin which can only sap his strength must be put away. He must not easily become discouraged, but must keep his eye on the goal, even upon Christ who for him has obtained a marvelous victory. Helps for the Children Paul Tells Why He Is a Christian Acts 25, 26 Memory Verse: “ Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house” (Acts 16:31). Paul was a prisoner because he would not stop preaching the gospel. He had been taken to the royal court for his trial. When one of the rulers learned that the Jews were demanding that Paul be killed just because he differed with them about religious matters, he was greatly surprised. The Jews had caused such a disturbance that the ruler had thought that Paul must have done some unusually wicked thing. The king,
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