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THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
to the attainm en t of all pure, tru e and holy things. A passage of Scripture prayed over and m editated upon may open the heavens above us a t any time. Obedi ence is always the gatew ay to blessing. Bom. 6:16-17. SUNDAY, NOV. 20. I Oor. 1:21-31. The S anity of F aith . The worldling always accuses the Chris tian of insanity. They said Jesus was crazy. H is own fam ily sought to confine him as a lunatic. Festus said th a t Paul was insane. Who was th e real madman on th a t day, P au l who believed on Christ and was living w ith etern ity in view, or Festus who sat and sneered? Who is mad today, the earnest child of God who loves, serves and follows Christ or the scoffer, skeptic and unbeliever? There is no mad ness like th a t which rejects the love of God and refuses H is offer of eternal life. The great insanity is living -for th e pres ent world regardless of eternal realities. A man really comes to him self when he eomes to God as a lost sinner confessing his need of salvation. Sin is dementia and imbecility. The sinner is a madman and a fool. Luke 15:17. MONDAY, NOV. 21. Acts 27:1-13.. P a u l’s Voyage to Borne. P a u l’s voyage to Borne was interrupted by a furious storm. The elements ap peared to be fighting against Paul. We must not be guided or governed entirely by circumstances. We should never sup pose th a t difficulty or opposition is an evidence of D ivine disapproval. We often face contrary w inds even when obeying the commands of Jesus. M att. 14:22-24. This ship was conveying God’s servant to his destination and y et a terrible storm arose. The people of God meet many trials and hardships in th e way of duty. God only knows why storms are sometimes b e t te r fo r us th an sun-lit skies. I f th is ship had had smooth sailing rig h t along, we should have had no story of P a u l’s sub lime heroism and God’s wonderful deliv erance. This is one of the most wonderful chapters in P a u l’s career. “ Ye fearfu l saints, fresh courage tak e The clouds ye so much dread, Are big w ith mercy and shall break In blessing on your heads.’’ TUESDAY, NOV. 22. Acts 27:14-19. Sacrificing th e Less for th e G reater. As th e storm increased in Severity, they threw the cargo overboard and still later the very fu rn itu re of the ship th a t the
lives of those on. board m ight be saved. Valuable and necessary as these things were, they sacrificed them th a t something more im portant m ight be saved. I t is sometimes necessary in the voyage of life to lighten the ship in order to save it. This is one of the blessings th a t come to us through the storms of life. They com pel us to sacrifice the non-essential to the essential, and the m aterial to the spiritual. Many of the things th a t are most highly prized on earth can not be tak en to heaven. A ship returning from A laska was wrecked upon a lee shore. A miner had the fru its of toiling years in a belt about his waist. W ithout a mom ent’s hesitation he took off the belt of gold and threw it into the sea, th a t he m ight swim unimpeded to the shore. We ought to be w illing a t all times to sacrifice anything and everything to gain the favor of God. Phil. 3:7. WEDNESDAY, NOV. 23. Acts 27:20-24. The P eril of N eglecting Gocd Advice. I f thè m aster of the vessel had taken P a u l’s advice and remained in the safe shelter of the harbor, no harm would have been suffered. Probably they laughed P a u l’s counsel to scorn. W hat did a landsman know about seamanship? Bye and bye they wished th a t they had taken his advice. I f they had only stayed in the quiet harbor of Crete all would have been well. The w eather bureau saves thousands of lives and millions of dollars by fore casting a coming storm and setting danger signals a t every h a rb o r’s mouth. How foolhardy it would be for some fra il craft to put out to sea w ith the warning signals flying and nigh t and storm coming on! There are young people who scorn th e pro tection of the church and flout the influ ence of parental love. D isregarding all ad vice, they p u t out to sea and suffer ship wreck and disaster. Then they learn w hat a fa ta l m istake it was to insist on having th eir own way. THURSDAY, NOV. 24. Acts 27:25-36. Assurance in Danger. A fter gently rebuking them for then- failure to heed his counsel, Paul spoke words of encouragement and cheer. An angel of God brought him an assurance of safety from th e throne. He shares the comfort of th e message w ith his fellow travelers. God will always find a way to help H is children in time of need. The sailors did not know where they were but God knew where H is servant was and the ang el''h ad no difficulty in finding the
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