I Dail}) Devotional Home Readings Connected with International Sunda;? School Lessons Bj> FREDERIC W. FARR, D. D. SATURDAY, April 1. Isaiah 60:15-22. God Our Saviour.
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All we can do is to perceive it and re ceive it. MONDAY, April 3. 2 Kings 11:1-12. How a Boy Became King. How must the faithful in Israel have felt when it was spread abroad that all the royal seed had been slain-. What had become of the promises of God? No one knew of the rescued baby who remained hidden for six years. . Then it was secretly announced to a chosen few that the heir to the throne was alive and a covenant was made to bring him to his own. At the appointed time he was brought forth, recognized and sa luted, and the crown was placed upon his head. Is not this ancient history a parable of the prqpent age? Jesus is the legal heir to the throne of His father David. The world supposes Him to be dead, but a chosen few to whom the fact of His being alrive has been revealed, have entered into a -covenant to bring Him back and place Him on the throne. This is the Gospel of the king dom which is being proclaimed today. O believer, whisper this heavenly secret into some listening ear, that the King’s Son is alive and is shortly coming to claim His own. When Jehoiada the priest brought Joash the prince into full view, no wonder the people clapped their hands and shouted with one accord, “ God save the king.” ■ TUESDAY, April 4. 2 Kings 11:13-20. How God’s Priest Helped. The infant Joash was hidden in one of the chambers which ran around the temple and which were used as ward robes or as dwelling rooms. These were in charge of the high priest Jehoiada and would be a safe hiding place, for the wicked Athaliah never visited the tem ple, which under her reign fell into neg lect and disrepute. When the lad was about seven years old the good priest planned to place him upon the throne. Having enlisted the chief captains of the army on his behalf, he brought the boy out before the people upon the Sabbath, gave him the law of Moses and anointed him as king. It was a bold coup d’etat but a righteous and a suc cessful one. Popular acclaim ratified the act and the revolt of Jehoiada the
Our first need is that of a Saviour rather than a helper. A Saviour is one who saves us, not merely one who helps us save ourselves. The God who created us is the God who saves us. Is. 45:21-22. There can be no question of His power, and we may commit our souls into His keeping without fear. He saves us from our sins, Matt. 1:21; from our tempta tions, 1 Cor. 10:13; from our cares, 1 Pet. 1:7; from our troubles, Ps. 32:7; from all bondage, Ps. 116:16; from our fears, Ps. 34:4; and from our enemies, Luke 1:70-75. He saves lost, helpless sinners, 1 Tim. 1:15, and in the present tense, 2 Cor. 6:2*. He saves by his mighty power and loving mercy. Tit. 3:5. He saves because He loves us and to show to the universe the exceeding riches of His grace, Eph. 2:4-7. Our part in this great salvation is to yield, trust and obey. These are inseparably connected and we cannot do one with out the others. There cannot be fire without light and heat. When we yield ourselves to Him, we also trust and obey. Hallelujáh, what a Saviour! SUNDAY, April 2. 1 John 4:1-10. The Love of God to Man. Scripture does not merely say that God is loving but that He is love. Love is not an attribute of God, it is His nature. His love has neither beginning nor ending, it is everlasting. Some have the idea that God loves us because we love Him and He does not begin to love us until we first love Him. It is exactly the other way. We love Him because He first loved us. He does not wait till we become good before He loves us. He loves while we are yet sinners, though he hates our sins. Sometimes a child is told, “ God will not love you if you are naughty.” This is a libel on God. A mother would not allow herself to be so misrepresented. It is the strength of mother-love that enables her to punish a naughty child that it may become good. Heb. 12:5-10. Chastening is lit erally child-training. Love is inexorable, for it must have its loved ones lovely. God’s love was not caused by the work of Christ. It was thereby manifested.
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