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THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
August, 1941
Points and Problems X, “Unto the angel, of the church’* (Rev. 2:1). There are two main views concerning these angels of the churches. Some students of Scripture regard the angel as a literal angel, in support of which they point to passages such as Hebrews 1:14 and 1 Corinthians 11:10 to show that the New Testament teaches some connection between cer tain angels and the churches) For further discussion of this view, see Alford, who gives eight arguments in favor of it. Others regard the angel as only a name for the human minister of the church. J. A. Seiss argues for this idea. Devout commentators, both ancient and modern, have been divided between these two views. To me, the first seems more plausible, but “let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind’’ (Rom. 14:5). 2, “The church of Ephesus’’ (v. 1). The. seven churches of Revelation 2 and 3 should be regarded from three stand points: First, they are literal churches. This should never be forgotten. The original messages from the glorified Lord were addressed, not to idealized churches, but to congregations which existed historically. This fact must be the starting point in all interpretations. But second, the seven churches should also be considered as symbolical. That is, we should see in these seven churches a composite picture of the whole church in every place and in every era. In every country, in every city, in every denomination, in every century, you will find these seven types of churches. In fact, we may frequently find the seven tendencies in a single church. In the third place, the seven churches are prophetical in meaning. That is, in these churches taken in the order of their mention, we may see the whole church on earth in its seven great periods. Each of these three viewpoints will be found valuable in teaching the lesson. 3. “The sevqn golden candlesticks” » (v. 1). Note that these are not candles, but candle sticks; not lamps,- but lamp stands; not lights, but light holders. In Matthew 5:14, our Lord said to His own, “ Ye are the light of the world.” Then He explained, in the next verse, “Neith er do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but oh a candlestick.” Now this distinction involves a very important doctrinal point. Each Chris tian, indwelt by the living Christ, be comes a “light” in this dark world. But just as the candlestick raises the lighted candle to a conspicuous place so that men may see its rays, so it is the busi ness of the Holy Spirit to gather be lievers into Churches-where, by our col lective life and works, the light of Christ may be seen more clearly by men. Thus the candlestick is a perfect symbol of a church; The church, is not the light. It functions as a light holder. Any at tempt to live our Christian lives in
isolation from other Christians will not only cause us to lose somethng very precious, but will also hinder the testi mony of God to a lost world.
given over to the telling of them. John saw Christ enthroned in such glory as he had never seen before; and he heard Him speak as He had never spoken before. The Lord Jesus gave him some very important messages for the churches, and He told him one thing that thrills the heart of every one of us when He said, “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore” (Rev. 1:18). Our friends may desert us, our families may fail, but Jesus Christ is alive today, and the Lord has said; “Behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest.”
Golden Text Illustration R evelation 2:10
The first Victoria crosses were awarded in Hyde Park, London, in 1857. The following is a description of one of the incidents of their awarding: “A veteran, terribly maimed, came up to receive his medal, and the Queen, flinging down the medal, turned her back upon the troops and covering her face with her hands, burst into tears. “All the while the maimed man stood still; then the Queen recovered her composure and pinned the medal to his coat. As she did so she spoke some words to him, and the soldier’s answer was: ‘God bless Your Majesty; we’d bear it all again for Queen - and country.’ ” ' It was not the medal itself that brought joy to the soldier’s heart, but the fact that his service for the empire was recognized at the hand of his sov ereign. Likewise it is not the reward of the Christian that will be his chief delight, but rather the Lord from whom he receives the “crown of life,”—Sel ected.
Object Lesson L ives T hat G ive L ight
OBJECTS: A small rock, a piece of carbide the size of the rock, a thermos bottle filled with boiling water, a pie pan, and a match. (The carbide can be secured from a hardware store. Place the rock and the carbide in the pie pan at the beginning of the lesson.) LESSON: Who can tell what is in this pie pan? “It looks as if there were two rocks.” Yes, that is the way it looks, but you cannot always tell by looking. Often you can tell only by testing. This thermos bottle has hot water in it, and we will use it in testing these two things. We will nour the hot water over both. This lighted match is also used in the test. The rocklike substance to my right gives forth a light. The rock to nrv left just steams and refuses to give light. This rocklike substance reminds me of the true church of Jesus Christ in all ages. Many and fierce have been the persecutions through which the true church has gone, but in them all, she has given out the light of the gospel of Christ. In Revelation 2:9, 10 we read, “I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty . . . Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer-: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and*ye shall haye tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” In this verse we find that the Lord wants us to be faithful to Him, no matter what the trying circumstances may be. If we are true to Him, He
In a Strange Place R evelation 1:1-18
MEMORY VERSE: “Behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest” (Gen. 28:15). APPROACH: A little girl was spend ing a week in the country. It was her first experience away from home. At
first there were so many new things to see .that she enjoyed herself very much, but as night came on, she began to grow homesick and to wish she were back with her moth er. She was crying as s he undressed,
for bea, but when she put on her pa jamas she found a note in the pocket. It read: “Mother will be missing you, too, but she will be with you every moment in herthoughts.” Suddenly everything Was all right again, for the little girl realized that distance could not separate her from the loving heart o f her mother. LESSON STORY: Distance cannot separate us from the loving heart of God, either. When John, who was often called "the beloved disciple,” was ban ished to the isle of Patmos, no doubt he was lonely, too. But it was in this isolated place that he received a great revelation from God. The Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him and toid him things of such amazing importance that an entire book in the Bible has been
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