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THE KING’S BUSINESS
Holy Spirit is working in every heart (Eph. 2 : 2 ) , and the one who shuts out the Holy Spirit opens the door for the entrance o f Satan. ‘And oh, to think o f it, this Judas was “ one of the twelve." How solemn that is; it shows how one may fall from the highest office in the church to deepest infamy if he leaves a door open for Satan to enter. But the other apostles would not have been warranted in leaving the apostolic company because there was a Judas in it. So is no one warranted in leaving the ministry, or cutting himself off from the fellowship o f the church, because there are Judases in the ministry and in the church membership. A little while before Judas had been in the solemn gathering at the house o f Simon o f Beth any, and now we see him eagerly com muning with the bloodthirsty enemies of Jesus. Note the unholy joy o f the relig ious leaders o f the day, “ they were.glad, glad to find a traitor infamous enough to conspire with themselves. They consented to pay Judas his pitiable price and from that time Judas had but one thought,'that was to get his fifteen dollars and thirty cents. Friday, March 3. Luke 22:7-13. This is the third time in our daily Bible studies that we have an account o f the disciples preparing the passover for the LordJesus, but one does not tire of-read ing it again and, again. Our Lord had a great longing to eat the Passover with His disciples before He suffered (v. 15), but as we learn from John’s gospel, He was to be crucified on the day before the Passover supper (John 19:14), therefore, it was necessary for Him to eat this Passover with His disciples one day in advance. Jewish days begin with sunset. In the early evening then o f the day on which the paschal lamb was to be slain and on which Jesus Himself, the true Paschal Lamb, was to be slain, He sent Peter and John to make ready the Passover for Himself and the. disciples. They asked no questions about this apparently premature keeping o f the feast, other than, “Where wilt thou .that
may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming” (1 John 2:28). That day, is coming upon all that dwell upon the face of the earth as a snare, and if it is not to overtake us as a snare, we must'take careful heed to ourselves that our hearts are not weighed down with oner-eating, over-drinking, and with the cares o f this' life, and we must watch at every season and make earnest prayer that we may prevail to escape all the predicted things that are coming to pass, and that we may stand-before the Son o f Man when the days o f awful judgment that are surely coming, visit this earth. Thursday, March 2. Luke 22:1-6. The predicted end o f our Lord’s earthly life is fast approaching. The passover is nigh. On the very day and at the very hour that the paschal lambs are being slain in the temple, Jesus, the true Paschal Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7), that Lamb o f God that taketh away the sin o f the world (John 1 :29), will be slain on Calvary. The Passover lamb that- was slain on the fourteenth day was taken up on the tenth day (Ex. 12:3) and the chief priests and the scribes Uncon sciously fulfilled the- type o f making their arrangements for the death o f Christ four days before slaying the Passover lamb, i. e., on the tenth day o f the month. It is an appalling sight to' see these recognized religious leaders o f the most favored nation o f the earth plotting the murder o f the Son o f God. What a commentary on human nature and the hatred o f the unregenerate heart against God, yes the hatred o f even the religious heart when unregenerate. Yet these men who were so fearless as regards God and Hjs Son, were cowards toward men, “they feared the people.” Satan is the unseen but principal actor in this tragedy.' He finds an instrument for his awful work in Judas. He “ entered into him.” The door through which Satan gained access was covetousness and injured pride (John 12:4-6; Matt. 26:8-16). In anger at the rebuke he had received for his criticism o f Mary o f Bethany, Judas hurried away to betray his Lord. Either Satan o f the
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