June 1931
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International £esson (Commentary Wesson O utline a n d Exposition (Blackboard O utlines B olden TSext Illustrations C hildren's (D ivision (By JTOR the next six months, the lessons will be found in the Acts, the Kpistles, and the Revelation, but mainly in the Acts. The aim of the International Com mittee in this series of lessons is “to lead the pupil to an understanding of primi tive Christianity, and to beget in him a desire to live the Christian life and to win others to faith in the Lord Jesus.” * * * July 5, 1931 The G ift of th e Holy Spirit Lesson: Acts 1:6-14; 2:1-47. (Lesson Text: Acts 1:6-9; 2:1-8.) Golden Text : “Ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you : and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jeru salem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). * * * I. T h e N e c e ssit y for t h e G if t o f t h e S p ir it ( 1 : 6 - 8 ) . 1. Its relation to the kingdom (6, 7). • During the forty days following His resurrection, the Lord had been speaking of the kingdom, but He had not referred to thé time when the kingdom would be set up on earth. The disciples knew that the kingdom had been taken from Israel, and that it would be restored when Mes siah should come, according to the proph ets. They also knew that the rejection of the Lord did not and could not make void ' the promise of that restoration. Hence, they had every right to ask the question that they did: “Dost thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel ?” The Lord did not rebuke them for it, but He answered in such a way as to confirm rather than to contradict their expecta tion. His reply revealed that the king dom was sure to be set up, but it implied also that the disciples did not know all that their Lord was to do. These disciples knew nothing as yet of the church into which they were so soon to be formed; therefore, they were occupied with the only thing of which they had any knowledge, that is, the kingdom. Our Lord told them that it was not for them to know the “times and the seasons.” These térms are related to the kingdom and not to the church; to the earth and not to the heavenlies. 2. Its relation to their immediate busi ness (8). The disciples were to be Christ’s wit nesses, or witnesses unto Him, in all the earth. He said nothing about converting the world, but only of evangelizing it. For this work, the witnesses required a power beyond any provided by nature, or any which they might have acquired through their three years’ fellowship with the Lord as He had wrought and taught among them. Their power was to be found in the Holy Spirit who would be given unto them ; it was not in learning, money, numbers, and so on—the things upon which the modern church so frequently relies. Their work was to witness, not to a church, or a religion, or a code of morals, but to a Person—the Lord Jesus Christ. What is most needed today is not so much a pas sion to save souls as a passion to make Christ known (cf. John 16:7-13; 2 Cor. 2:14-16; Phil. 1:16-18). The disciples in this lesson were to witness by their word —Christ needs the Christian’s tongue; by their work—He needs the Christian’s hands; and by their warfare—He needs Christian soldiers. He knows where He wants each one of His followers to bear witness; and wherever there is a yielded life and an open mind and a willing sur render, He will direct the believer to that place of service which He Himself has chosen for him. If we are not witnessing where we are, then He must desire to have us somewhere else. All believers have the same business, although all do not have the same place in which to work. The Lord would have one in China, an other in Africa, and another at home; but wherever we are, we are in that place for the one purpose of witnessing unto Him. The Holy Spirit is.the only One who knows the Lord Jesus sufficiently to bear true witness of Him. Our Lord told the disciples that they would receive power (the power to fulfill their ministry of witnessing) when the Holy Spirit came upon them (cf. John 16:7-13). II. T h e P o s s ib il it y of t h e G if t ( 9 ) . The possibility of the Holy Spirit’s be ing given is included in the ascension of our Lord. The cloud that received Him out of the watchers’ sight was probably that cloud which some of them had be held on the Mount of Transfiguration— the cloud of the Shekinah glory. The great truth here is that a Man was re ceived up into heaven (cf. Heb. 1 :3 ; S:10; Psa. 110:4; 16:11). Not until the Lord Jesus was received at the right hand of the Father was the Holy Spirit sent forth to equip His followers for witness ing, for working, and for warring. III. T h e P o ss e s s io n o f t h e G if t ( 2 : 1 - 8 ). We do well to remember that in the early chapters of the Acts (1 to 8) there are two classes in view, and that God is dealing with both of them. He is deal ing with the nation, Israel, as such, and with individuals in that nation who may accept the testimony. Similarly, when Jesus was on earth, the nation as such rejected Him, but certain individuals in the nation accepted Him. In the first chapters of the Acts, the kingdom was being offered to Israel by the Holy Spirit; but the nation continued to reject the of fer, while individuals accepted it. Those who accepted were formed into the church, 'although they did not at first know anything about the church, but t h o u g h t t h a t t h e y were merely another sect among the Jews, such as the Pharisees or Sadducees. The failure to discern this double testimony running through these chapters has given rise to numerous errors, especially in the teach ing concerning the person and work of the Holy Spirit. 1. The coming of the gift (1-3). It should be noted that the scene is wholly Jewish. The day of Pentecost was a Jewish feast with which the Gentiles had nothing whatever to do. Those who are said to be “with one accord in one place” were all Jewish disciples. They had no inkling of what the church was, nor did they have any thought that Gen tiles were to become fellow members with them of the same body. As they waited, doubtless for the ful fillment of the Lord’s promise that they should receive the Spirit, suddenly the Spirit* came. At once, where there had been a number of separate units, there was now just one unit, and this was the church, the body of Christ, in which each member was bound to every other mem ber, and all were united to the Head in heaven by that indissoluable bond formed by the Holy Spirit. It is not to be un derstood that the Holy Spirit had never been in the world before, but' that now He has come in a special sense, not as when He came upon men in a temporary manner, but now as an abiding presence within men. It is in this abiding presence of the Holy Spirit that the Christian finds the power to witness and to work, and by it he is assured of his own position in Christ. 2. The effect o f the gift (4-8). They were all filled, and they all spoke with tongues. Peter later (v. 16) identi fied this occurrence as the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy (Joel 2:28-32). He said, “This is that” which Joel spake. He was not identifying the events, as though Joel’s prophecy had anything to do with the. church, but he referred to the power, that is, the Holy Spirit. Only Jews heard the speaking with tongues, and to the Jews the testimony was given. The whole of Peter’s sermon should be carefully studied in order to get the message of this event. He ad dressed the company as “men of Judaea” and “men of Israel,” and reminded them of their Scriptures which bore out his own teaching concerning the offer of the kingdom to the nation. This was a mi raculous manifestation given by the Holy A Glance, Then a Subscription Please send me T h e K in g ’ s B u s in e s s for three months. I have had only a glance at your paper, but it has impressed me. —From Holland, Mich.
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