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pearl of great cost. Of the church a pearl is a perfect symbol: (1) Pearl is symbol of unity (1 Cor. 10:17; 12: 12, 13; Eph. 4:4-6). (2) Formed by accre tion and that not mechanically but vi tally (Acts 2:41, 47; 5:14; 11:24; Eph. 2:21; Col. 2:19). (3) Christ having given Himself for the pearl is now pre paring it for presentation to Himself (Eph. 5:25-27).—Scofield. We used to say that the pearl came from the tears of the oyster but the latest scientific theory is that the pearl is a grain of sand that got into the oyster shell and so irritated the soft mollusk inside that he could not bear the wound and began to throw out a crystalline fluid and cushion over the hard intruder from day to day until it grew to be a gem of purest lustre. Sin is the foreign in truder.—Simpson. The priceless value of the pearl when exhibited would be acknowledged by all and it seems to look onward to the time when He shall come to be admired in all them that believe and when the gem He has won from the ocean of the world shall be the centre of the universe.—Habershon. n Obeying our King. Acts 8:26-40. Memory Verse: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.” Matt. 6:10. Approach: How many of you boys and girls ever had a ride in an automo bile? All of you did. Do you know of something else that people ride in which is drawn by horses? BEGINNERS Yes, carriages. Now AND PRIMARY I am going to show Mabel L. Merrill you a picture of something else that people used to ride in which was also drawn by horses, which is called a chariot. We are to hear about a man today who rode in a chariot. Prayer. Lesson Story: Our story begins in a city in the land where Jesus lived when He was down here on earth, and they are having a splendid time here in this city, for a preacher or evangelist is
offering.—Grant. Nothing evil is writ ten anywhere of meal. Does it not con sistently here represent the truth of God, wholesome and life-giving until corrupted by the world’s mixtures? Meal cannot stand for the world which is always depicted as a dead, corrupted thing. Can that which is sour (leaven) make sweet that which is already sweet? ^Needham. The whole was leavened. Jesus teaches clearly that the world will not be converted in this age. The Apostles teach the same thing. The parable shows a Christendom corrupted by false ..doctrine and it is a condition in which the Lord Himself with the an gels will take desperate measures.— Echoes. v. 44. Treasure hid in a field. The field is defined (v. 28) to be the world. A seeking sinner .does not buy but for sakes the world to win Christ. A sinner has nothing to sell nor is Christ for sale, nor is he hidden in a field, nor having found Christ, does the sinner hide Him again. Our Lord is the buyer (1 Pet. 1:18) and Israel, the lost tribes hidden in the field (Jer. 31:5-12, 18-20) is the treasure (Ex. 19:5; Ps. 135:4). Christ bought the field for the sake of the treasure (Rom. 11:28.)—Scofield. The field is the world, the hidden treasure Israel. Christ gave His life for the world but in a special sense for Israel (Jno. 11:51). What joy He will have when He takes this treasure to Himself! (Deut. 30:9; Is. 49:13; 62:4-7).—Gray. Whoever the buyer is, he buys not the treasure onlÿ but the whole field. What sinner, were it possible to purchase, could buy more than his own personal salvation ?—Needham. v. 45. Merchant man seeking pearls. Scripture declares “Ye have not chosen Me but I have chosen you.” Whether it be going after lost sheep, sweeping the house for lost coin or running to meet a prodigal son, the Trinity are always represented as seekers after souls.—Sel. The true church is the
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