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T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
July - August, 1934
INTERNATIONAL LESSON Commentary Outline and Exposition Blackboard Lesson Children’s Division Golden Text Illustration Object Lesson B y B. B. S utcliffe B y B essie B. B urch B y H elen G ailey B y A lan S. P earce B y E lmer L. W ilder .. Points and Problems B y A lva J. M c C lain , Ashland Theological Seminary, Ashland, Ohio
o f emptying must precede the infilling. When the human vessels are empty o f all that would hinder His working, the Spirit o f God will come in to take possession and to supply every need of the individual and of others whom his life touches. To be filled with the Spirit is a constant need of all saints, in order that they may fulfill their obligations to God and to man. II. I ncreasing the B read (42-44). The man from Baal-shalisha brought a sufficient supply of food for Elisha’s pres ent personal needs, and the prophet could have satisfied his wants with what was presented (v. 42). In bringing the food, this man was following the directions of the W ord for taking care of God’s prophet. Israel was instructed to thus supply the requirements of the prophets. The work o f the Lord would never lie brought into disrepute along this line, as so often it is, if the Lord’s people were_ diligent in car rying out their instructions concerning contributions to the temporal well-being of the workers in the Lord’s vineyard. 5yBut Elisha could not sit down to eat and Jq. drink while others were in need. He gave his servants orders to set before the multitude that which had been brought to him (v. 42). To issue such a command must have involved a test of Elisha’s faith, but he was assured that he served God, who could multiply the bread then and there as easily as He could cause the grain to grow for man’s consumption. Every thing then, as well as now, was in the hands o f the miracle-working God whom Elisha served. Elisha’s servant, like the- disciples of our Lord at a later time, was, astonished to re ceive such an apparently foolish command. “What, should I set this before a hundred men?” the servitor asked—as though such an action would bring upon him the ridi cule of the crowd. It is to be feared that we, too, sometimes miss opportunities for being greatly used o f God through o u p re luctance to appear foolish in the eyes of our fellows. But Elisha repeated his com mand, with the added explanation: “Thus saith the Lord” (v. 43). Here again Elisha’s faith shines forth. He had only the word of the Lord to trust for the ful fillment o f something that surpassed all hope o f fulfillment, unless a miracle should be wrought. But Elisha had had experi ence with his God, and he was ready now to stand and see yet another miraculous manifestation of the power of God. The outcome was as he expected. The multitude was fed, and there was plenty o f food left (v. 44). This Old Testament incident reminds us o f what our Lord did while He was upon earth, when He fed the multitudes. The power that made possible the feeding o f these men in Elisha’s day was the same power which multiplied the loaves and fishes in our Lord’s day; it was the power o f God. And He is “the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.” The Lord’s people are safe and secure while they simply trust their living God. The fact that, in the record, the multipli- ' f & L C 2 . X l 9 . 7 -? )
5, 1934 TH E NEEDY 4:1-44
AUGUST ELISHA HELPS 2 K ings
Lesson Text: 2 Ki. 4:1-7, 42-44. Golden Text: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one o f the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me” (Matt. 25:40). Outline and Exposition I . I ncreasing the O il (1-7). A w id o w whose husband had been one of the sons of the prophets appealed to Elisha for aid (v. 1). She had a right to appeal to him, because Elisha was then the representative of the Lord ih the nation, and the Lord had promised to re lieve “the fatherless and widow” (Psa. 146:9). The widow’s need was a revelation of s p i r i t u a l conditions in Israel. There would have been no such need, had Israel been walking in the ways of the Lord—• especially since the woman’s husband had been one of the recognized servants of God. This man had been one who “ did fear the Lord.” At that time, as in the present, the workman was worthy o f his hire. But Israel had kept back that which belonged to the Lord; hence, this widow was in need. The action o f the creditor also revealed the spiritual condition in Israel; he would sell the widow’s children, in spite o f the prohibition of the law (Lev. 25:39; cf. Matt. 18:25). In other words, the condi tion in Israel was such that only the inter vention of the Lord would suffice to change it. The widow wisely appealed to the Lord’s representative, Elisha the prophet. She was at the end of her material re sources. She had nothing but a pot o f oil —but she had faith in the living God (v. 2 ). Relief came to the woman when she obeyed the word of the prophet (vs. 3-6). His directions may have appeared to her to be foolish, but she was nevertheless de termined to do exactly as he directed. In our dgy, blessings are frequently missed because believers hesitate to follow the Lord’s directions given in His Word—in structions which may appear foolish to them. W e should remember that “the foolishness o f God is wiser than meh,” and that which man’s reason would dictate is seldom in accord with the mind o f the Lord (1 Cor. 1 :25-31). Elisha’s orders were very plain and easily understood. The widow immediately secured empty vessels; and then, shutting the door upon herself and her sons, she began to pour out the oil into the vessels which ¿ a d been brought from the neigh bors. [Finally, the last borrowed pot was full, and then the oil ceased to flow (vs. 5, 6). A miracle is recorded here. Blind unbelief would deny the truth of the Bible narrative, but surely the God who made the oil in the first place could cause it to increase, as He did in this instance, with out the aid of natural processes. To hold
A “ Precious” Dollar The writer of the following touching message is a graduate of the Bible Insti tute of Los Angeles of the class of 1917: “ I have been planning to send this ‘pre cious* dollar to B. I. . . . I am so sorry I have so little to give these days. I have kept this for almost a year, from a trade or sale I made. The rest of it went up in smoke when the lightning struck my barn, burning it to the ground. . . . I am passing it on to B. I. as a love gift.** It has been by means of such love gifts —that bear also the marks of sacrifice—that it has pleased God to continue the ministry of the Bible. Institute of Los Angeles to this day. The house is filled with the. fra grance of the love to God which is expressed in 'the giving of every “ precious dollar.”
any other view would be a denial o f the historicity o f this incident, and that would be a denial of the truthfulness o f our Lord Jesus, who set His seal o f approval upon/** all that is written in the Old Testament!) 7 ^ The widow went at once to inform /1-’ Elisha o f the outcome o f her obedience. However surprised she and her sons may have been, it was no surprise to Elisha to know that the oil had been increased. It was not by the power of Elisha, however, that this miracle had been accomplished. He had simply repeated to the widow what the Lord had directed him to say. In both Elisha and the widow are examples o f the manner in which Christians should treat the Word o f God. I f we have any doubt concerning the utter sufficiency of the W ord of God, and if we attempt to make the Word reasonable to the natural man, the result is that the natural man will invariably turn from it without re ceiving the benefit he needs. Following the woman’s recital o f the glorious facts, Elisha told her what to do. She was to sell the oil to pay her debt and to meet her further needs (v. 7). The Lord not only provided for the immediate present, but He took care o f the future as well. “ Oil,” in thjs lesson, as elsewhere in the Scriptures, is doubtless a type of the Holy Spirit, and the “vessels” typify believers. They must be empty vessels. The Holy Spirit will not enter and fill a life that is occupied with other interests. The process BLACKBOARD LESSON
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