of money. The master was planning to punish the man until he paid the money, but he decided to forgive the poor man and not make him pay the debt. The poor man went to one of his friends to collect the money that the friend owed him. When the friend asked for a longer time to repay the debt, the poor man cast him into prison. The master became very angry with the poor man and pun ished him severely because he had not been willing to forgive his friend even as his master had forgiven him. So it is with ourselves and the Lord Jesus. How many times He has forgiven each of us! Yet, when a relative or friend says or does just one unkind or thought less thing, we refuse to forgive and to forget. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can cause us to truly forgive from our hearts those who sin against us. Paul reminded the Christians that they were not to return evil for evil. He reminded them, also, of other ways in which they could show their Saviour’s love to those who were ever watching their lives. “ Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks.” No Christian can obey these commandments in his own strength and wisdom. The Holy Spirit living within those who have received the Lord Jesus as their Saviour can cause God’s chil dren to show in every part of their lives that they truly love the Son of God. Oct. 8, 1950 GIVING OURSELVES TO CHRIST Matt. 16:24, 25; Mk. 1:16-20; Phil. 1:19-26 Pointers on the Lesson Receiving Christ as Saviour is one thing; committing the life completely to Him for service is quite another. Before a person can do the latter, he must do the former. However, it is possible for one to do the former without doing the latter. It is possible for a person to be truly saved and firmly fixed upon the Rock without being fully yielded and without building^ upon the Rock. The lesson today has to do with one’s life after he has been saved, with the privi lege of living every day in harmony with His will. The context shows Christ speaking of His soon coming cross (21). Peter sought to turn Christ’s attention away from His sufferings thereon (22). The Lord stern ly rebuked Peter for his words (23) and then told him that it would be better for him to face squarely his own cross and to bear it after Jesus. The disciples were familiar with cross-bearing as a figure of speech because of the cruci fixion of criminals in Jerusalem. They had to bear their own crosses. The cross referred to in this passage was something which could be taken up TH F K I N f i ' S BUS I NE S S Denial of Self Matt. 16:24, 25
Pointers on thé Lesson, H omer A . K en t , T h .D. Helps for the Children, A llison A rrowood
Lessen material is based upon outlines of the International Sunday School Lessons copyrighted by the International Council of Religious Education; used by permission.
Oct. 1, 1950 WHAT IS CHRISTIAN LIVING? Matt. 5:13-16, 20; Phil. 1:27-30; 1 Thess. 5:15-23; Jas. 1:22, 26, 27 Pointers on the Lesson
The believer’s life should correspond to the dynamic gospel which has been re ceived so that men may see that it is a powerful factor. Christian Living Particularized 1 Thess. 5:15-23 From these very practical verses, we learn some of the particulars wherein the Christian life should be manifested-. Christian living consists in lack of vin dictiveness (15); rejoicing (16); prayer fulness (17); gratitude (18); yielded- ness to the Spirit (19); careful consid eration of prophecy whether as /ore- telling or forthteWing (20); wise dis crimination (21); total abstinence from evil (22); blamelessness (23). This is a good place to take stock of our actual state. Christian Living Emphasized James 1:22, 26, 27 James is a very practical writer. He believes that faith ought to be put into action. He says “faith without works is dead” (2:20,26). The Christian life is more than a mere profession. Thus he states in verse 22 that right hearing of the Word by all means should issue in right living. It is inconsistent that the two should be divorced from each other. The one who thinks he can truly have the Word of God in his heart and go on living as formerly is utterly deceived. True Christian living will show itself in such practical things as suggested in verse 27. Helps for the Children Jesus Answers Peter’s Question Matt. 18:21-35; Acts 11:19-26 Memory Verse: “ By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:35). Someone had wronged Peter. When Peter saw the Lord Jesus, he asked the Saviour how often he should forgive one who had sinned against him. Peter won dered if seven times would be sufficient. The Lord Jesus told Peter a story of a man who owed his master a large sum
The lessons of this new quarter are on the subject of Christian living. They have to do with the kind of people be lievers ought to be in the world. Growth in grace will be emphasized. Once a per son has entered by faith into the realm of God’s grace, then the normal thing for him to do is to grow spiritually. The practical aspects o f the Christian life will be considered. Christian doctrine is like the strong foundation of a building; Christian living is like its superstruc ture. We will be studying the superstruc ture this quarter. Today the nature of Christian living is the subject. Christian Living Symbolized Matt. 5:13-16, 20 Two very familiar things are used to set forth the nature of Christian living: salt and light. Salt is a preservative hindering corruption; a seasoner making food appetizing; a symbol of friendship. So the believer ought to be an influence for purity in the community. His pres ence should retard the forces of corrup tion so prevalent in the world. There should be a winsomeness about his char acter that will point men to Christ. Moreover, his friendly, helpful attitude should be suggestive of Him who is the supreme Friend and Helper of mankind. Light warms and purifies; it dispels darkness and gives direction; it produces energy and growth. In a spiritual sense the Christian should do all of these things for the world, remembering that the light he radiates is but thè reflected light of the Light of the world. Christian Living Harmonized Phil. 1:27-30 The thought of this section is that the believer’s life should be in harmony with the gospel he has embraced. The gospel gives a rock foundation for one’s faith; it unites men’s thoughts on the things which are true ; it casts out fear ; it fur nishes a basis for salvation and gives the believer the privilege ®f suffering for Christ’s sake. The word conversation (27) is better translated manner of life.
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