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TH E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
December, 1939
a favor of Him. What she wanted was this: “Grant,” she said, “that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.” LESSON STORY: How little she understood about true greatness! It is only natural that mothers should want the best for their sons, and that is what this mother wanted; only she didn’t know what was best, Jesus had to show her. “Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And who soever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” The Lord Jesus left His heavenly home to come to live and die for us. No matter how much we should give up, it would be as nothing compared with this. God wants us to be thinking, “What can I give?” and not “What can I get?” He has given us eternal life. What are we going to give in return for that great gift ? God asks us to give our lives back to Him to use in His service. OBJECTS: A cardboard cipher (one side of it white or covered with white paper) and a red cardboard cross. (The THE KING'S BUSINESS Artistically Colored 1940 Calendar A beautiful reproduction of the Plotkin picture of David painted especially for the Bible Institute of Los Angeles^ produced in rich col ors and mounted on soft buff mat to contrast, 9"xl5^4'V Scripture reference Psalm 22. Calendar Only r t P g Postpaid Price....... ..... Combination Offer, Object Lesson C ounting for C hrist
his own. He was bought with a price. The price paid was the blood of Christ. There is no way to “rub off” or erase the price paid by Christ Jesus for His purchased possession. The blood bought are blood marked. The mark of the pur chase price is on you and to remain. You need not be ashamed, O Christian, at the price paid for your redemption. —The Wonderful Word. MEMORY VERSE: “The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28). APPROACH: Jesus had talked a great deal to His disciples about the kingdom of heaven. He had come to this earth to be the King of the Jews, but If You Want to Be Great M atthew 20
Points and Problems 1. “Grant that these my two sons,” etc. (Matt. 20:21). The request of this mother has certain good points about it. First, it shows that she believed that Christ’s death would not be the end of Him, that He would rise again as He had predicted. Second, it shows that she believed in the reality of a kingdom be yond the cross. Third, it shows that she believed He could answer prayer. Fourth, it shows that like a true mother she was more interested in her children than in her own personal interests. 2. “Ye know not what ye ask” (v. 22). I can hardly see any justification ior saying that what the mother requested was not good. Is it not legitimate to covet for our loved ones a place near the ,Lord Jesus in His kingdom? But the trouble was that she had little or no conception of what was involved in the granting of the petition. So we often pray for legitimate things, great things, things that God loves to give. But we forget that the divine answer always includes the means as well as the end. How carelessly we pray, “I would be like Jesus.” Do we really know what we are asking for? To make us like the Son of God may require us to pass through the fire and the deep waters. He learned obedience by the things He suffered. Shall .we be taught the lesson by an easier path? Let us not cease to ask great things. But let us also give more serious thought to the import of our petitions. 3. “Is not mine to give, but It shall be given to them for whom it is pre pared of my,Father” (v. 23). The reader should notice that in the Authorized Version the words “it shall be given to them” are placed in italics, thus indicat ing that they do not occur in the Greek text. The words supplied in this par ticular passage spoil the true meaning Instead of helping it. They create the impression that our Lord was unable to give what was asked. If we leave out the italicized words, and also the comma, we shall have exactly what He said: “But to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but [i. e., except] , . . for whom it is prepared of my Father.” In other words, Christ is the the Giver of the special places of honor in the kingdom, but He gives these places only to those for whom they have been prepared. All judgment has been committed unto Him (John 5:22). And the giving of places in the kingdom is distinctly a work of judgment.
the Jews would not receive Him; so the kingdom was not going to be founded at this time. His disciples did not q u i t e understand, and neither did the rest of the people. That is the reason, perhaps, that the the disciples, James Jesus one day to ask
5 - D i v i s i o n mother of two of and John, came to
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Golden Text Illustration R omans 5:8
During the holiday season when you were purchasing gifts, how often did you hear some one say, “Be sure to rub off the price mark” ? Certainly you did not care to have the price paid for the article left visible. It was proper to erase it. The believer in Christ is not
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