1067
THE KING’S BUSINESS
Friday, January 7.—“Families, Colleges, Schools and the Young.” Prayer: For the sanctity of family life, the recognition of parental authority, and the wider observ ance of family Worship; for teachers and taught, that all education may be influenced by faith in Christ, in accordance with the Word of God; that the result may be the building up of Christian character mani festing itself in private and public life; for Sunday schools, Bible classes and study bands; for children’s services and missions and all other efforts on their behalf in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
Scripture Readings: Deut. 4 :5 -9 ;'Psalm 128:1-6; Luke 2:41-52; 2 Tim. 1:1-7. Saturday, Jaunary 8 .—“Home Missions and.the Jews.” Prayer: That all classes of people may be more deeply impressed by the fear and love of God; that efforts for social welfare may be more united with spiritual motives and methods; that all Christian people may take a deeper interest in the Jews, and in the fulfilment of God’s promises concerning His people and their land. Scripture Readings: Deut. 23:6-16; Isaiah 19:21-25; Romans 13:8-14; 2 Cor. 3 :7-18.
How are you going to explain I Tim. 5 \ 23 , when a man comes to you and says it is all right to drink ' because Paul told Timothy to ? I would explain it as I would explain every verse in the Bible, by taking it as meaning just exactly what it says, and taking it in its context. It would be all right for Timothy to “use a little wine” for his stomach’s sake and for his infirm ities, because the water that he could ob tain did not agree with him, and it would therefore be better for . him to take a lit tle wine. But because it was right for Tim othy to do this—Timothy who needed it— does riot imply that it is right for somebody else to do it who is in entirely different cir cumstances frpm Timothy. Furthermore, the wine that Timothy was urged by the Apostle Paul to' drink was quite different from the wine that one ordinarily gets to day; and using wine for medicinal purposes is quite a different thing from using it as a beverage. Furthermore, it is not. at all sure-that the wine that-Timothy was told to take was fermented, and it certainly was totally unlike the “fortified” wines which we have in our own land.
The writer of the above question adds: “Also explain Eph. 5 : 18 ; Titus 1 : 7 , 8 ; 1 Tim. 3 : 3 ,” saying, “they all have reference to the wine subject.” In regard to these passages we would say that we cannot see that Eph. 5 :18 needs any explanation. It is plain, as plain can be, and has no direct bearing on I Tim. 5:23. Titus 1:7, 8 , and I Tim. 3:3 are fully explained in the Revised Version, where the translation is quite different. What does God mean by saying “Re pented the' Lord, ” in Gen. 6 :6 ? We can give no better answer to that question •than that already given in our book “What the Bible Teaches,” page 22. That answer is in two parts: (I) Man’s wickedness was so great and so abhorrent to God that his very creation was an object of great grief to God. This does not nec essarily imply that God wished, all things considered, that He had not created man, but only just as is said, that He grieved that He had. Many things that we do are a grief to us, and yet,- everything consid ered, we do not wish that we had not dorie them. (2) By God’s repenting that He had made man is meant (as the context,
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker