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THE K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
from ants to rhinoceri, bu t I would glad ly go through th e same experience again for th e joy of teaching these people to know th e Saviour, who gave His life a ransom for th em .” His zeal like P au l’s must have had some fuel to keep it burning. Bible Illu stration s Neh. 4:1-23 shows zeal for th e Lord and a forw ard movement for God in spite of opposition. In Acts 19:11-22 P aul had a conquest over spiritism and they brought th e ir occult books and made a bonfire in th e m ark et place of Ephesus. W hat a g reat fire th e occult books of our cities would make to-day. P u t them in th e fire instead of leaving them for your children to read. The Missionary Influence Archdeacon F a rra r has called atten tion to the g reat work of Christian mis sionaries in the fields outside the church. “ Is it noth ing th a t through th e ir labor in the tran slation of the Bible th e philologist in his study may have before him th e gramm ar and vo cabulary of 250 languages? Who created th e science of anthropol ogy? The m issionaries. Who ren dered possible th e deeply impor ta n t science of comparative reli gion? The m issionaries. Who discov ered th e g reat chain of lakes in Africa, on which will tu rn its fu tu re destiny? The m issionaries. Who have been th e chief explorers .of Oceanica, America and Asia? The missionaries. Who discov ered the famous Moabite stone and the H ittite inscriptions? The m issionaries.” Who opened th e ports of th e world to commerce? The missionaries. How is it th a t we ea t a t our tables products from every country in th e world? Be cause men like P au l have opened these countries to us.” The Missionary Motive P au l did no t preach only because the message w rought good results, bu t be cause Jesus commanded it. The Duke of W ellington, it is said, once m et a
not P aul opposed those w ith all his m ight th a t were for imposing circum cision upon the Gentile converts? Had he not a t th is tim e th e decrees of the council a t Jerusalem w ith him, which w itnessed against it? Yet he circum cised Timothy, not as those teachers de signed in imposing circumcision, to o- blige him to keep the ceremonial law, bu t only to render his m inistry pass able. They would shun him as un clean unless he took him and circum cised him.— Henry. When circumci sion was insisted upon, as in th e prev ious chapter, no one opposed it more stoutly th an Paul. When it served to conciliate Jewish prejudices he was will ing to concede it since in itself it' was a m atter of perfect indifference.-—Mey er. It could be no offence to the Gen tiles and would render th e labors of Timothy more acceptable to th e Jews. — Lumby. P au l showed a sp irit of lov ing concession in circumcising Timothy. There was no need th a t Timothy be circumcised, bu t to avoid all unneces sary controversy and opposition, Paul circumcised him because of th e Jews. This shows how far P aul was from th a t sp irit th a t makes a m atter of principle and conscience out of every little point of form.Js-Torrey. a » Subject Illu stratio n Knowledge and zeal—-Paul had both. There is not much conquest unless both are wedded. Fuel does no t make fire, b u t feeds it. No am ount of mission ary inform ation will LESSON create zeal, if th ere ILLUSTRATIONS b e n o Spirit of Wm. H. P ik e Christ w ithin t h e m a n . Knowledge will not take th e place of . zeal, b u t will increase it, when it is en kindled. Zeal w ithout knowledge, is like a blaze w ithout fuel. J u s t a flash, and it is gone. Zeal, w ith plenty of knowledge o f God through His Word for fuel, will evangelize th e world. Here is m issionary zeal— a m issionary in Af- r.ca w rites: “ I have dwelt forty years alone in Africa, I have been th irty times stricken w ith fever, have been attacked by rhinoceri and lions, have been am bushed by natives, have eaten everything
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