370
August 1932
T h e K i n g ’ s B u s i n e s s
BLACKBOARD LESSON b o u n d /
left unbroken may be the ruin o f another life. The Evil of Drunkenness I saiah 5:11, 12, 18-23 Memory Verse: “W e will drink no wine” (Jer. 35:6). Approach: Once, a great many years ago, there lived a very wise man. He was not only a wise man, but he was a good man as well, and a servant of God. He
the pride that congratulates itself on its control o f appetite. Drunkenness and so berness may be equally used by Satan to keep one from God, and it is necessary that we do not look upon avoidance of strong drink as the saving grace for men. One will never be truly sober before God until he has accepted Christ as his personal Saviour and, by so doing, has entered a life pleasing unto God. While judgment is sure to fall upon all who pursue intemperance, the righteous ness o f God will be seen in that judgment (v. 16). Then it will be recognized that God is the holy One, and that He is sancti fied in righteousness by the judgments. If people will not honor God by the proper use o f His gifts, they will be forced to manifest that God is righteous when He judges the misuse of those gifts. III. T he C orruption of I ntemperance (22, 23). A fter pronouncing “ woes” upon other sins, the prophet returns to the sin o f in temperance, but he approaches it from a different angle. In the previous verses, it was the sin itself o f which he spoke; in these two verses, it is rather what the sin leads to that is in view. “W oe to them that are mighty to drink wine . . . and to mingle strong drink.” Here the reference is to those who boast themselves o f an ability to drink much without becoming drunken. They can drink large quantities o f strong drink and still believe they retain their proper senses. But this is nothing but self-deception. Such persons do not retain their senses, but rather their senses are so perverted that they descend to bribery and to deceit. They are turned from the proper sense o f justice, and thus they defame the righteous God in justifying the wicked for reward. Bribery and graft and in justice, which are hateful in the sight of God, find fertile soil in the minds and are manifested in the actions of all intemper ate people. There is something in strong drink, so subtly undermining to the moral sense, that otherwise honest men are turned into dishonest grafters and bribe takers. While teaching the evils of intemper ance, we must be on our guard lest we, too, become intemperate in the very teaching o f temperance. The cause of the sin o f in temperance should be emphasized more than the sin itself. And, as we have seen, the cause which underlies this hideous sin is that forgetfulness o f God which turns from His person and misuses His gifts. The spirit o f independence so widespread in our day is to be avoided as one would avoid the plague; and the spirit o f rebel lion against God’s authority, which ever rises higher and higher among the people, is to be looked upon as the festering cess pool from which rises the terrible miasma of intemperance. Nothing but a humble and obedient walk before God, acknowl edging His supreme authority and taking with thankfulness His gifts to be used ac cording to His Word, will maintain us in a path 'acceptable unto Him and one in which He will be able to walk with us through the present scene and so bring us to true temperance in all things. Lesson Questions V. 11. Whom do the verses o f this les son primarily concern, Israel or the church? Who was in mind in Isaiah’s par-
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St Stino'etfi. li^e an crfdder, IF THE SON SHALL M AKE YOU F R E E - Y E SHALL B E FREE INDEED ! B was called a prophet. His name was Isaiah. One of the books of the Bible was written by him. L e s s o n S t o r y : S o m e o f the wise things which he says in this book are about the evils o f strong drink. He paints a word picture of the man who drinks, li able of the vineyard (Isa. 5 :l-7 ) ? What abuses existed among the great landhold ers in Israel (Isa. S :8-10) ? Is it proper to apply the term “intemperance” only to the use o f strong drink, as is so often done? I f not, what does the term include? V. 12. What was the use for which musical instruments were originally in tended? T o what debasing use were they later placed? What would you say is the underlying cause o f all intemperance, as giv.en in this verse? V. 13. Cite some instances where for getfulness o f God led to “captivity.” Vs. 14-16. Discuss the terrible leveling power o f intemperance. Vs. 22, 23. How guilty would you say the person is who can indulge in intem perance “with moderation” ? Is he better than the most.debauched? Golden Text Illustration Three Indians in the vicinity o f Green Bay once became converts to the temper ance cause, although previously given to much drink. Some white men resolved to try their sincerity. They placed a canteen of whiskey in their path and hid them selves in the bushes to observe the motions of the rgd men. The first saw the flask in the pathway, and with an “ugh!” made a high step, and passed on. The second laughed, saying, “Me know you,” and walked around the flask. The last one drew his tomahawk and dashed the canteen to pieces, saying, “ Ugh! You conquer me—now I conquer you.” There are three ways in which sin may be treated; the only safe way is its de struction. A flask undrunk by you and quor. He says, “W oe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink: that continue until night, till wine inflamed them.” He says that they forget about God and the works of His hands. Everything becomes mixed up in their eyes. They call evil good and good evil. They put darkness for light, and light for darkness; and bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Even in those days long, long ago, strong drink hurt not only the people that used it, but it brought whole nations to ruin. Strong drink does just as much harm in the world today. When a man drinks, he makes his body become sick and diseased. His mind becomes unclear. Just as he cannot control his movements, so he can not control his thoughts. Soon he cannot tell what is right and what is wrong. Surely there can be no good in a drink if it makes this happen to a person! But even though this is true, many people think that to take a little will not hurt them; or even if they do not wish to drink it themselves, they say, “ let other people drink if they wish it.” So they do not want laws made about it. If we want our country to be a good country to live in, we must make good laws and see that they are kept. desolate waste o f sand which fades into the purple haze o f the distance. It is ab solutely impossible for anything living to remain in this region. Beyond this stretch o f sand to the east, there is a dry, desert region similar to the western part o f the United States. Dur ing the winter and early spring, there is sufficient rain to bring out a few scattered bunches o f grass, and to furnish suste nance for some scraggly shrubs. But with the coming of summer, and until late in the fall, these few enlivening patches o f vege tation are seared to a russet brown, and rustle like dried paper beneath the steps o f a passing traveler. There are a few springs in this region, but one needs a guide fa miliar with the district to find them. I f he were traveling alone, he w ould. surely famish. There is no doubt but that there was more water and vegetation in Sinai in the SEPTEMBER 11, 1932 ISRAEL JOURNEYING TOW ARD CANAAN N umbers 10:11-36 Lesson Text: Numbers 10:11-13; 29-36. Golden Text: “ Come thou with us, and we will do thee good” (Num. 10:29). The Wilderness of Sinai O ne of the most desolate places which one can imagine is the stretch of territory between Palestine and Egypt through which the train passes to day. After leaving Gaza, the remainder of the trip to the Suez Canal is through trackless w a s t e s of gleaming sand. T h e sand has been tossed into small hillocks by the wind; but aside from this slight un dulation, t h e r e is h a r d l y a speck of vegetation, water, or habitation to b r e a k the monotony of the
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