October 1924
T H E
K I N G ’ S
B U S I N E S S
638
International Series of Sunday School Lessons expos ition of the lesson , - 1
Frederic W. Farr Fred S. Shepard John A. Hubbard V. V. Morgan Mabel L. Merrill
BLACKBOARD OUTLINES, - - ~ ~ DEVOTIONAL COMMENT, - - - COMMENTS FROM THE COMMENTARIES, ELEMENTARY, -
buked, but vain repetition, not much praying, but much speaking,— the mere saying of prayers apart from that state of the heart out of which true prayer is born. The Saviour not only tells what prayer ought not to be, but He shows what it ought to be. The disciples’ prayer which He taught them to say is a model of form, showing simplicity, directness, brevity and order, and especially the plain expression of a true heart’s desire. A whole volume on the form of prayer could not have served so well. It is a model as to the substance of prayer. We are taught to rise above all personal and selfish considerations, and seek first the things of God. When we reach our own needs we are to ask for only what our Father judges to be suf ficient for the day, putting deliverance from the guilt and power of sin above all else. It is a model of the spirit of prayer. The first words sug gest a fraternal spirit, the invocation implies a filial rev erence, and the spirit of forgiveness breathes through the very terms in which we ask it for ourselves. In this disciples’ prayer, the disciple prays first as a child; “ Our Father, which art in heaven;” then as a wor shipper, “ Hallowed be Thy name;” then as a subject, “ Thy kingdom come;” then as a beggar, “ Give us this day our daily bread;” then as a sinner, “ Forgive us our trespasses;” and finally as a sinner surrounded by temptation and evil, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” The prayer closes with a three-fold plea: Do this Lord, for it will help in Thy kingdom,*i-“ Thine is the kingdom;” do this Lord, for Thou art able,— “ Thine is the power;” do this Lord, for it shall be for Thy glory,-^-“ Thine is the glory forever.” This prayer, like Jacob’s ladder, has its top in heaven and its foot on earth. It begins with the highest and comes down step by step to the lowest, embracing the whole circle of our duties, wants and desires, and expressing all the relations in which we stand to God. V. 5. “ Standing,”— this was the usual posture of the Jews in prayer. The early Christians followed a more uni form practice of kneeling. (See Acts 9:40 ;‘ 20:36). The posture is not essential. So far as the act is significant, kneeling is assuredly the more rever- COMMENTS ential.—Whedon. FROM THE v. 6. In addition to the opening COMMENTARIES salutation, “ Our Father who art in V. V. Morgan heaven,” the Lord’s Prayer consists of six petitions. These are arranged in three equal parts. In the first part, the thought is directed toward God and His great purposes. In the second part, the attention is directed to our condition and wants. The two sets of petitions are closely related, and a line of pro gress runs through the whole prayer. The petitions of the first part are inseparable, as each includes the one which follows. As the hallowing of God’s name requires the com ing of His kingdom, so the kingdom comes through the doing of His will. Again, the first part calls for the second, for if His will is to be done by us, we must have sustenance, forgiveness and deliverance from evil.— Inter. Bible Ency- clo. Shutting out even the dearest and most intimate
OCTOBER 12, 1924 THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT Golden Text: “ Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.” Matthew 6:10. Lesson Text: Matthew, Chapters 5 to 7. (Read Luke 6:20-49). Devotional Reading: Psalm 65:9-13.
The righteousness of the kingdom is the outstanding theme of the Sermon on the Mount. The reading of the Revised Version of the first verse of this chapter is undoubt edly the correct one. “ Take, heed that ye do not your righteousness before men to be seen of LESSON them.” EXPOSITION Our Lord never sanctions any separa- F W Farr tion of morality and religion. Morality without religion is a flower without root, which speedily withers away. Religion without morality is a humbug and a sham. It is worse than nothing at all. The great word “ righteousness” means far more than truth and honesty. No man can be considered righteous who is not fraternal to his fellow men, who is not filial to God, who is not master of himself. In connection with this great principle, caution and coun sel is given successively on almsgiving, prayer and fasting. Giving must be without ostentation. Everything depends on the motive. Hence the injunction to secrecy. Two cautions are given concerning prayer. The first cor responds with the preceding case. There is little tempta tion today to this extravagance. The danger now is all the other way. The children of the kingdom today are tempted not to parade their devotion but to hide it for shame. Never theless, the caution still has weight against affectation in public prayer or the assumption of earnestness beyond what is really felt. The other caution is directed, not against pretence, but against superstition. The sin of the formalist is that his heart is not in his worship. The sin of the vain repetitionist is that his heart is not in his words. Repetition is proper if prompted by earnestness. Our Lord encouraged importunate and .persistent prayer, and Himself in Gethsemane offered the same petition three times in succession. It is not repetition that is here re
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