T HE K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
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swept away before th e unbridled pas sions of un regenerate man. THURSDAY, Dec. 18. Luke 2:25-35. Simeon And The In fa n t Jesus. In tim es of apostasy, when th e official leaders are degenerated, th e sp irit of tru e religion frequently m anifests itself among the humble members of the low est class. Simeon and Anna are such unofficial agents. The song of Simeon rem inds .us of the Davidic Psalm s. Its concise p regn an t sentences summarize th e history of fu tu re ages. He infuses a drop of bitterness in his message which no joy ever lacks in a world of sin. The h atred which will be vented upon Jesus will pierce th e h ea rt of Mary like a sword and bring out th a t hostility to God which th è people hide under an out w ard show of devotion. W ith prophetic insight th is aged sain t saw w hat was in the h e a rt of th e Jew ish nation and also th a t the holy child would prove the occasion, for th e hidden h atre d to be poured fo rth against God and man in th e person of th e Messiah. FRIDAY, Dec. 19. M atthew 2:1-11. The V isit Of th e Magi Scripture is select as to th e number and names of th e Magi. Their gifts are typical. Gold stands for .the world’s wealth, frankincense for th e world’s worship, m yrrh for th e world’s b it terness. All were offered to Christ. The visit of. th e wise men was a t least fo rty days afte r the b irth of Christ. He was born in a stable, Luke 2:7, bu t the Magi found Him in a house. Matt. 2:11. The flight into Egypt imm ediately fol lowed th is visit. Circumcision took place eigh t days afte r b irth and th e pre sen tation in th e Temple, th irty -th ree days a fte r th e circumcision. The crush of passing pilgrim s would soon be over and we may be su re th a t ju st as soon as th e virgin m other was able to be moved, the faith fu l Joseph would tran s fer her to some o ther place, humble in
deed for th e ir means were lim ited, but where rest and com fort could be secur ed. SATURDAY, Dec. 20. M atthew 2:13-23. Caring F o r The Child Jesus. Prophecy is intentionally obscure th a t Satan and wicked men may not be able to und erstand it and thw art th e purpose of God. Satan m ight have been taken by surprise a t the first advent. Be th a t as it may, he lost no tim e seeking the destruction of th e new born babe, caus ing every child in th e vicinity to be put to death, to make sure of his prey. God is never taken by surprise.- H is preve- nien t mercy provided a way of escape and when th e mercenaries of blood th irsty Herod slaughtered th e innocents of Bethlehem , th e holy fam ily was far on its way to Egypt, where they found asylum as long as th e cruel ty ran t lived. SUNDAY, Dec. 21. Isaiah 9:1-7. The Glory of th e P rin ce of Peace. The Old Testam ent prophets p ain t a glowing picture of th e Messiannic reign. His Deity is clearly indicated in the titles th a t are applied to Him. The an cients conceived th e globe to rest upon the bowed shoulders of th e m ighty At las. So strong is th e P rince of peace, however, th a t one shoulder is sufficient to su stain th e government of th e world, vs. 6 . The Davidic glory reached its climax in th e reign of th e super-splendid Solomon bu t th e seventy-second Psalm shows the glory of Messiah’s reign as far transcending Solomonic splendor. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will bring th is to pass. MONDAY, Dec. 22. 1 Jo h n 1:1-9. W h at We Have Seen And Heard. John w rites of th a t which was from th e beginning. It was not anything th a t came into existence bu t which already existed from eternity. He joins etern ity to life and life to God. The life was
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