534
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
November 1930
BLACKBOARD LESSON
L esson 6 . “Thomas.” John ll :14-16; 14:5-8; 20:24-29 ; 21:1, 2. Golden Text; John 2 0 :28. Thomas is a type of the man who wants to believe but demands evi dence. When such an one is sincere, the Lord Jesus meets him in his doubts and leads him to the highest pinnacle of faith. The lesson also teaches, negatively, that a w ilfu l skeptic can never be convinced. L esson 7. “The Believing Centurion.” Matt. 8:5-12. Golden Text, Lk. 13:29. From the story of the centurion we learn that faith may appear in unexpected cir cles. This Gentile, outside the camp of Israel and untaught regarding the law, was, nevertheless, remarkable in his grasp of the meaning of faith and his reliance upon the power of Christ. Lesson 8 . “The Rich Young Ruler.” Mk. 10:17-27. Golden Text, Lk. 9:23. The rich young ruler had an attractive per sonality; he was upright in his life, as men judge; he had had unusual privi leges ; he was an eager seeker after truth; he was almost in the kingdom, but he would not pay the price of entering. The lesson is : come to Christ, yield all to Him and become rich; or go away sorrowful into eternal poverty. L esson 9. “Zacchaeus the Publican.” Lk. 19:1-10. Golden Text, Lk. 19:10. Un like the rich young ruler, Zacchaeus was an earnest seeker who, when he found Christ, yielded all to Him, enjoyed fellow ship with Him, and went on to serve Him. Lesson 10. “Stephen.” Acts 6 :7-10; 7:54-60. Golden Text, Acts 6:5. Stephen was anointed by the Spirit to witness as well as to “serve tables.” He was faithful in his service, in his testimony, and in his suffering— even unto death. There ret mained for ljim the reward of the crown of life. Lesson 11. “ Saul of Tarsus.” Acts 22:3-15. Golden Text, Phil. 3:8. W e have the portrait of Saul both before and after his meeting with Jesus Christ near Damas cus. Before that event, he was an earnest zealot, a persecutor, a murderer. Trans formed by the vision of his living Lord, he became a man of prayer, a preacher, the apostle to the Gentiles, yet in it all, as he himself would say, a sinner saved by grace. The lesson teaches us that great sinners may, by the power of God, be come great saints. L esson 12. “Timothy.” 2 Tim. 1:1-6; 3:14-16. Golden Text, 2 Tim. 3:15. What a heritage Timothy had— as the child of a Christian mother by the natural birth, as a son of God by supernatural birth, and as a “son” of Paul in the Gospel! Further, what a training he had— as a boy, by his godly mother and grandmother; as a dis ciple and helper, by his “ father” in the faith, Paul; as a son of God, by the Holy Spirit through the Scriptures. G olden T e x t I l lu str a tio n The badge of a Christian is not one that the world can see. One has for his badge a crosier; another has a crucifix; another has a tonsure; another has a robe of some color or shape. A Christian’s badge is not a tonsure, nor a crucifix, nor a crosier, nor a shibboleth, nor a robe, nor a phylactery; but it is, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye love one another.” This is the badge of the Christian.— D r. Cumming.
fear of death, or of the judgment, or of dny approaching calamity. Good tidings o f great jo y . W e have seen that the word angel means “messenger.” Evangel means “good message.” So, in a sense, these an gels were evangelists, telling out good news to a sad world. The Gospel removes fear and brings joy. Shall be to all the the people. Not to a favored few, but to high and low, rich and poor, wise and foolish. To any who will receive it, the joy of the Lord will be given. Vs. 11,12. A Saviour. He is a personal Saviour— “born to you.” He is a present Saviour— ¡“this day.” He is the Saviour whose coming to the city of David was predicted (cf. Micah 5 :2 ). , He is a priest ly Saviour—-Christ, the anointed one. He is an omnipotent Saviour— the Lord. Fi nally, He is a lowly Saviour— born in a stable, laid in a manger. II. The H eavenly Chorus (13,14). V. 13. A multitude. One angel had been speaking. The "shepherds soon recog nized the presence of a great angelic host, who burst forth suddenly in praise to God. The incarnation of Christ and His birth in Bethlehem were to them a great mystery which they sought to understand (cf. 1 Pet. 1:12). V. 14. Glory to God in the highest. Either “in the highest degree” or “in the highest heaven.” Possibly both ideas can be united in this outburst of praise. This grand hymn has been called the Gloria in Excelsus, a title taken from the open ing words of the Latin translation. On earth peace. There is a difference here between the rendering of the Authorized Version and the Revised Version. The change hinges upon the presence or ab sence of a single' Greek letter. The best manuscripts favor the rendering, of thé Revised Version : “Peace among men in whom he is well pleased.” III. The Shepherds’ Search Rewarded (15,16). A n gels w ent away. Having given their message, the angels disappeared from the sight of the shepherds. They never ceased to be present with Jesus. Angels minis tered to Him in the wilderness (Miatt. 4:11). An angel strëngthened Him in the garden (Lk. 22:43). H e had the right to call twelve legions of angels had He so wished (Matt. 26:53). Angels guarded His empty tomb (John 20:12). L et us now go. Literally, “Come, let us go,” sug gesting eagerness, excitement. These hum ble men believed what they had been told. When they went with eager haste to in vestigate, they found Mary and Joseph and the babe, just as they had been told they would find them. IV . The Shepherds’ Testimony (17-21). The shepherds did not seem to imagine it possible that any would fail to believe and gladly receive their message. They counted it a blessed privilege to spread abroad the knowledge o f . the wonderful things they had seen and heard. Having told the glorious news, they went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God. V. M ary’s Faith (19). K ep t all these sayings. She fixed them in her memory. It is quite possible that this also means that she preserved a writ ten record of the strange events, from which Luke obtained the information about the birth and childhood of Jesus which is found in his gospel alone. The full meaning of the events she may not
C h r i s t (t h e P a t t e r n .
C r
Y
% A. ; If U M
A 0-0. /
N ot D but CHRIST
“
-
INDWELLING out flo w in g .
I. 0 .H- Dec.28.
l^uiniN G .
have been able to take in, but in quiet meditation and prayer she received from God day by day clearer and clearer un foldings of the truth. — o— December 28, 1930 The Pattern of Christian Living (Review Lesson) Having in mind the subject assigned, it may be sufficient to look at the prominent characters in each of the lessons of the quarter and to discover, if possible, how they are “patterns” to the Christian of today. Golden T e x t : “Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2 :5 ). * * * , Lesson 1. “Zacharias and Elisabeth.” Lk. 1 :5,6,57-66,76-80. Golden Text, Lk. 1 : 6 . Zacharias and Elisabeth were pat terns in their walk. They were righteous before God and blameless before men. They exhibited that faith and patience which are required of those who would “inherit the promises” (Heb. 6:12). As a reward, they received from God more than they had asked. L esson 2. “Mary, the Mother of Jesus.” Lk. 2:15-19; John 2:1 -5 ; 19:25-27. Golden Text, Lk. 2:19. Mary stands out as a pure, chaste young woman who as sub missive to the will of God and who fully trusted God. She was honored above all women, but God’s honors were not be stowed apart from a life of trial. The shepherds point out the path that every humble believer should take. They ac cepted light without hesitation, as far as it was given. They received more light than the wise and the great men of their day. L esson 3. “Simeon and Anna.” Lk. 2 :25-39. Golden Text, Matt. 5 : 8 . Simeon and Anna were remarkable for their atti tudes of waiting, trusting, and worshiping. They were rewarded by a vision of the Lord’s Christ. They furnish an example also in their songs of praise. L esson 4. “Spiritual Weapons in a World War.” Gal. 5:13-26. Golden Text, 1 Cor. 9 :25. This is a lesson that teaches temperence or, better, self-control. The central lesson is that self-control is im possible to the flesh but divinely possible when Christ dwells within. Then Chris tian character is not the result of struggle, but it is the “ fruit of the Spirit.” L esson 5. “Simon Peter.” Mk. 8:27-29; Lk. 22:31-34; John 18:25-27 ; 21:15-17. Golden Text, Acts 4:13. Peter tells us of the weakness of natural strength and the strength of natural weakness plus the power of the Spirit of God. He also shows how humility may be learned through failure and how Satan'is foiled through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ, our intercessor.
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs