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THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
ent. / ‘All grace,” always, all suffici ency, all things. The word “ abound” is derived from two L atin words which b ring to m ind th e picture of a m ighty wave foam -created, rolling shoreward w ith th e depth and power of th e ocean behind it to give it momentum . I t is in teresting to trace in th e Concordance th e frequency w ith which th e word “ abound” , or some derivative is predi cated of Divine acts and attribu tes. God will abundantly pardon. Isa. 55:7. W ith Him is plenteous redemption. Psa. 130:7. As if God could never do any th ing w ithou t over-doing it! As if He had more th a n enough grace to go around! W hat beau tifu l extravagance th e re is in th e orchards a t springtime! Every tree is an immense bouquet of flowering fragrance. Not one blossom in a thousand comes to fruition. Can th e re be a sim ilar prodigality in grace? God m ust have done all th a t He did if th ere was only a single soul to be saved. He could do no more th a n He did if every sta r was populated and depend ent upon th e redem ption th a t is in Christ Jesus. SATURDAY, May 17. 2 Cor. 6:1-10. Grace a t Work. One m ight suppose th a t it would be dangerous to deal w ith a wicked man in grace lest he m ight presume upon it and go fa rth e r into sin because of it. The reverse, however, is th e case. G ratitude for sovereign grace is the m ightiest motive to a holy life. The wisdom of God is m anifest in th e Gos pel arrangem ent. Jesus had such supreme confidence in His own Gospel th a t He- sent the healed demoniac at Gadara back into His own country alone to te ll of his deliverance and to preach th e Gospel. Human wisdom m ight suggest th a t a new convert should be placed upon probation un til his sincerity was proved, or th a t he be pu t in charge of a comm ittee of over sight, or surrounded w ith legal safe guards of a certain sort. God on the o th er hand deals w ith him in sovereign grace and the resu lt justifies the method. When one falls from grace into any system of legality, “it is as g reat as if one had fallen from heaven above even down to hell.” This is L u th e r’s comment on Gal. 2:12, where P au l rebukes P ete r for his inconsist ency. SUNDAY, May 18. 2 Cor. 12:1-10. Grace Sufficient. The difference of opinion among Bible studen ts as to th e n atu re of
P au l’s ' th o rn in the flesh, shows th a t no one knows w h at it really was. The phrase “ stak e in the flesh,” indicates some form of physical disability. N either its removal nor its reten tion is explicitely stated. While some have argued th a t it was taken away in answer to the Apostles’ thrice-repeated prayer, it seems a fair implication from the words “my streng th is made perfect in weakness,” to suppose th a t God was glorified th e more by allow ing it | to rem ain and by giving enough grace to overcome and counteract it. Nothing is too h ard for God. When a child of God comes into tria l of any kind, he will surely be saved according to God’s word. He will be equally w illing, how ever, to be saved in it or saved out of it, as may best promote th e Divine glory. The n a tu ra l effect of suffering and sorrow is to harden and em bitter th e h eart, b u t Divine grace accompany ing th e tria l sanctifies it and makes it contribute to th e highest well-being of th e sufferer. MONDAY, May 19. Jo n a h 8:1-10. Repentance. The book of Jon ah records w hat may be considered as the most stupendous m iracle of th e Old Testam ent if not of hum an history. It is no t th e fact th a t th e prophet was swallowed by a great fish and m iraculously kep t alive. That is a detail m erely incidental to th e n ar rativ e and comparatively unimportant. The Divine working recorded in the th ird chapter overshadows everything else. A m oral m iracle calls for g reater power and is far more wonderful th an a physical one. T h at a g reat and popu lous city, by th e proclamation of a single sentence through a man of God, should tu rn from sin to God, from the king on the throne to th e beggar in the streets, w ith th e most extravagant dem onstrations of sorrow , is a phenom enon so unprecedented and con trary to all experience ..as to be well-nigh incred ible. The people of Nineveh believed God and p u t on sack-cloth and tu rn ed every one from his evil way. T h at was repentance. Then God him self repented of th e evil th a t He had said He would do unto them and He did it not. TUESDAY, May 20. L uke 13:1-9. R esu lts of Impenitence. The Gallileans were restless and conflicts w ith the Roman garrison fre quently occurred. While th is particu-
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