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T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
September, 1936
that grand event on the Damascus road, he has no regrets. In fact, 'He counts the things lost “but dung” if by means of their loss he “may win Christ” (v. 8) and “at tain unto the resurrection out from among the dead” (v. 11, literal translation). The latter, to Paul) was just as certain as the former. By accepting Christ, Paul had attained unto that blessed first resurrec tion. When he writes in the next verse, “ Not as though I had already attained," he changes to a totally different Greek verb which means to lay hold upon something. The apostle had “ attained" unto the res urrection, although he had not yet actually “ obtained” it in experience. The first he got when he believed on Christ; the second he will get at the coming o f Christ. (See the passage in the American Revision.) Golden Text Illustration A soldier in one of the Washington hos pitals was visited by a preacher, who saw that life was ebbing fast. “Young man,” said he, “you are soon to diej; are you saved ?” “ No, sir,” was the earnest reply. “What shall I do?” ‘“ Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved’ ” (Acts 16:31). “ Say that again,” demanded the soldier. It was repeated. Steadily and earnestly looking at the preacher, the young man re joined, “ Is that all?” “Yes, that is all. I can say nothing more; there is nothing, nothing more.” Closing his eyes for a few moments, the youth at length opened them again, and raising his right hand,'he exclaimed, “Lord Jesus, I surrender \”^ O n e Thousand Tales Worth Telling, by Pickering. Two Happy Prisoners A cts 16:16-40 Memory Verse: “ Rejoice in the Lord always” ( Phil. 4:4). Approach: W e find Paul in Macedonia now preaching the good news to the peo ple who lived in the city of Philippi. After he met with the little group who were
The enjoyment of salvation will never include the claim to sinless perfection (vs. 12-14). There will be a constant following after, an attempt to apprehend that for which we have been apprehended. There will be a forgetfulness of the things in the past and a constant pressing on to the things which are before—today’s goal will always be tomorrow’s starting point. Points and Problems 1. “Beat them and . . . cast them into prison" (Acts 16:22, 23). What an appar ent calamity! Yet out of this very cir cumstance, we should be careful to note, there came one of the most glorious con versions of all time, an account of which was to be written down as a part o f Holy Scripture, and the preaching of which has brought salvation and hope to untold num bers of sinners. Let us not be too quick to sit down and bemoan our calamities. It is better to do as these early Christians did: “A t midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God” (v. 25). In the midnight of persecution and suffering,, it is better to pray and sing than to weep and complain. 2. “ The resurrection o f the dead” (Phil. 3:11). This translation is lamentably weak, failing utterly to make clear what was in the mind o f the writer. The resur rection of which Paul speaks is not the “resurrection o f the dead,” but rather the “ resurrection from or out o f the dead.” The Greek of the passage makes this meaning doubly certain. The preposition “ek," which means primarily “ from out of” or “away from,” is put by the writer not only before the words “the dead,” but is tacked also on the front of the word “resurrection” itself. Thus the phrase might be rendered literally, “the owi-resur- rection away from the dead.” Paul is not referring to the final “ resurrection o f the dead,” but rather to that special resurrec tion o f Christian believers which will oc cur ’at the second coming of our Lord, a thousand years before the other and final resurrection. 3. “ I f by any means I might attain unto the resurrection” (v. 11). This verse is taken by some to mean that the apostle was not wholly sure that he would be in cluded in the first resurrection. Such an interpretation ignores the context entirely. The conditional clause, “I f by any means,” does not refer to Paul’s works after he be came a Christian, but back to his conver sion itself, when by accepting Jesus as the Messiah he literally “ suffered the loss of all things” (v. 8). The verb here is an aorist, indicating no continuous process, but rather pointing back to one single finished event. When, on the ■road to Damascus, Paul bowed his proud knees to Jesus as the Son of God, he lost every thing that the world counts dear, for he had risen high as a Pharisee in the coun sels o f the Jewish nation. Yet, now in the Roman prison writing this Philippian epistle and looking back over the years to BLACKBOARD LESSON THE BELIEF THAT CON VERTS DECEIVE CHRIST IN YOUR. Q ? AS Y O U / c° RECEIVE A LOVED ONE INTO YOUR^jL.
mg a way for the prisoners to escape. Aroused from sleep and seeing the doors open, the j ailer supposed that the prisoners had escaped. Knowing that the punishment for the loss of his charges would mean death, he thought of committing suicide immediately, but the voice o f Paul stayed his hand. He was at once face to face with God at His bar of justice. By suicide he could have escaped the Roman juris diction, thus meeting the tribunal o f God in death. Paul’s call presented that tri bunal of God in life. Quickly securing a light, the jailer came before the two prisoners crying: “What must I do to be saved ?” He was no longer exercised concerning the Roman authori ties but excited to know how his soul might be saved from the fearful doom of the lost. Similar to this cry was the cry of the publican: “ God be merciful to me a sinner” (Lk. 18:13). This expression is what every Christian worker should en deavor to arouse in the hearts of unbe lievers and sinners. When such conviction is born, sinners will call for, mercy from God and will cease trying to bestow some favor upon God by “becoming Christian.” Second, after such conviction, conver sion will take place (vs. 31, 32). The reply to the jailer’s inquiry revealed the simple method: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Simply believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and sal vation will come to you. Belief is essen tial ; without it there can never be a Christian. Belief is not only absolutely , essential but it is wholly sufficient as well. The grace o f God invites our belief to grasp Christ as a personal Saviour, not as a method o f reform, or a mode of life. The jailer apparently believed at once. Then Paul and Silas continued to speak the Word of God to him, and as they did so, he was brought into the assurance of his salvation. Salvation is gained by faith; assurance comes as the soul rests upon and has confidence in the W ord of God. Third, after conversion there will be confession (vs. 33, 34). The jailer’s con fession was prompted by the change wrought within, a change which expressed itself through his whole character. He became kind-hearted, tender, and thought ful of the two prisoners, ministering to them by washing their wounds. His con fession was also expressed in baptism, resulting in the mutual rejoicing of the servants of the Lord and the convert. III. T he E njoyment (Phil. 3:7-14). To have the knowledge of salvation is one thing; to enter into the joy of salva tion is another matter. This joy is found ed upon the recognition that Christ is su perior to all attainments of self-effort and to natural endowment. In thus beholding Him, we find that other things must take second place and must be allowed to slip out of the life as the Spirit leads, in order that He might fill the life (vs. 7, 8). The winning of Christ as the gain of life must become the object of the one who desires to realize the joy of salvation. With such an aim as this, one’s own righteousness must be laid aside in exchange for the righteousness of God found only in Christ (v. 9). A growing ambition to know the Lord in person (v. 10), and a purposed effort to walk as He walked, to be conformed to His likeness, to experience the sufferings He encountered as He walked on earth— these will form the heart desires o f the saved one who has laid aside self-esteem, self-righteousness.
gathered at the riv erside, he and his friends stayed on for a w h i l e at Philippi. L e s s o n S t o r y : One day as Paul and Silas were on their way to have prayer with the new Ch r i s t i an s, they passed by a young girl who was pos
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sessed o f a demon. She could tell fortunes, and in this way earned money for her mas ters. But Paul felt sorry for her and de livered her from the demon. Then of course her masters were angry, for she was no longer of any use to them. So they complained to the chief men o f the city about Paul and Silas, and immediately the city officials put Paul and Silas in jail. What a difference from a few days before, when they were rejoicing with the little group o f Christians 1. But being in prison didn’t make Paul and Silas unhappy. Even though they were beaten until the blood came, even though they were put in the dark and damp inner prison with their feet placed in stocks, they were not unhappy. No, in stead o f feeling sorry for themselves, they used this time to pray and sing songs of praise. The other prisoners l i s t e n e d eagerly. They were wondering what kind of prisoners these were who sang in the night.
ACCEPT HIS WORK ON THE
AS THOUGH
IT WERE DONE FOR YOU ALON E
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