December, 1937
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
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in the following of the business of fisher men. They knew, moreover, that obedi ence to principles was needed. To all of these matters Christ was now giving a spiritual significance. The disciples’ response to the call was full and immediate; they left their nets and followed Him (vs. 18-20). What lay before them they could not tell, but they trusted Him and surrendered to Him, and He straightway began to fulfill His prom ise to them. Their after life was one filled with amazing experiences, with heavy bur dens and numerous trials, but through it all He was present with them, training, teaching, and imparting the knowledge they needed. Thus will He be with those who follow Him today. III. J esus and the S criptures (21,22) Jesus practiced attendance upon services of the synagogue (v. 21). He might be aware that, apart from the Scriptures, He would hear little that would be for His own profit, and He might know He would find hypocrites in the meeting. But there He would be found, nevertheless, because the service was ordained by God, and His great desire was to please His Father in all things. Here is a lesson needed by many Christians today. “He entered into the synagogue, and taught” (v .21). We cannot but believe that He taught from the Scriptures (cf. Lk. 4:16-22). There must have been a certainty and an illumination in His exposi tion that astonished those who heard Him, He taught, not as the scribes, but as One having authority in Himself. Christ’s mes sage was the direct teaching of the Scrip tures themselves. It would be well if we as teachers were heard quoting the Scrip tures more often than we repeat the sayings of Dr. So and So—no matter how learned and trustworthy Dr. So and So might be. No human words can affect a man—for time and for eternity—as can the Word of God. But the result of even such teaching as Jesus Himself gave was mere astonish m ent, (v. 22). There followed no action on the part of the people to accept and follow the teaching. These hearers could recognize the authority with which Christ spoke, but they could not, because they would not, yield obedience to Him. This was their guilt, as it is the guilt of un believers today. IV. J esus and S atan (23-28) While He was teaching, there came to the Lord Jesus one who was possessed by an unclean spirit. This unclean spirit recognized in Jesus the “Holy One of God” (vs. 23,24). What Satan desires is stated in the words of this unclean spirit, “Let us alone” (v. 24). Let Satan alone and he is content; he is enraged when he is opposed. The compassion of Jesus was aroused by the poor sufferer, and He gave the man the relief he needed (vs. 25,26). But once again, the only effect upon the hardened hearts of the people was mere astonish ment (vs. 27,28). Satan and demons hear and obey the voice of the Son of God, while man with his self-sufficiency and in
dependence dares to refuse to obey I How shamefully willful and ignorant is man!
Points and Problems 1. ‘‘Preaching the gospel of the king dom.” (Mk. 1:14). It is quite astonishing to consider the many doctrines and notions, as different as day is from night, which are heralded by modern prophets as “the gos pel of the kingdom.” Even those Who truly believe the Word have become confused upon this matter. Fortunately Mark not only tells us that Christ preached the gospel of the kingdom, but also tells us exactly what He said: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand” (v. 15). We should notice here that our Lord says nothing regarding the nature of the king dom of God, but evidently assumed that His hearers were familiar with it. The Jews had the Old Testament which prophe sied of the coming kingdom, and they took it for the most part literally. Therefore, our Lord had a right to assume that the Jews knew what He was talking about. But there was one thing which needed to be declared, and that was the time when this kingdom would be set up. The gospel (or good news) of the kingdom has to do with the time of its establishment. The good news that Christ brought was that “the time is fulfilled,” that God was ready to estab lish the long predicted kingdom if the Jews would receive their King. 2. According to the New Testament rec ords, only John the Baptist, our Lord Him self, the twelve apostles, and the “seventy,” ever preached the “gospel of the kingdom.” In other words, this particular message can be preached only by specially chosen and accredited messengers. Compare Matthew 3:2, 4:17, 10:5-7, and Luke 10:1-11. By the very nature of the message, it is evi dent that we cannot preach the “gospel of the kingdom” today. We may preach “the kingdom,” that is, tell men about the com ing kingdom as revealed in the Scriptures,' but we cannot preach the “gospel” of the kingdom because we have no way of know ing ‘when God will set up this kingdom which was delayed on account of the Jews’ rejection of their King. For remember that the “gospel of the kingdom” has to do with the time. We cannot-say today that “the kingdom of Good is at hand,” for we do not know this. The hour of the coming of the King is not revealed, and all date-setting is a waste of time. But, of course, after the rapture of the church, it will be possi ble to know that the kingdom is “at hand.” Therefore, during the judgment which fol lows the rapture of the church, the gospel of the kingdom will be preached once more by specially chosen messengers, and the testimony will be world-wide (cf. Matt. 24:14).
HARD WO RK makes strong men. When a boy has the inspiration that comes from common pur pose—many boys facing similar college pre paratory problems—when he has the benefit of expert instruction from friendly, experi enced masters; when he lives an orderly life with plenty of time for study and plenty of time for play, then he may be amazed at his own progress 1 Stpny Brook has a new booklet, “What Parents Say.“ >=In it parents themselves tell of their joy in the achievements of their boys at Stony Brook and in the strengthen- ing of their boys' Christian 3- e=- faith. May we send you copy? Please Business. mention The King's ¡ (^ ftonuß ro okJchool Frank E. Gaebelein,, Litt. D„ Headmaster Stony Brook, Long Island, N. Y.
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