King's Business - 1921-07

THE K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S proves the power to have been of God. The seemingly impregnablewalls of Jewish tradition and hate were broken down . and the proud Pharisee became a great servant of the despised Nazarene. What could produce such a marvelous change? No hallucination of mind or mental vision can account for the splen­ did life of self-sacrifice, suffering and triumph, and for the wonderful letters written by his hand, (Acts 17:3,4) "Opening and alleging, th at Christ must needs have suffered , and risen again from the dead; and th at this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ. And some of them believed, and con­ sorted with Paul and Silas; and of the de­ vout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women, not a few .” Paul is a pattern, (1 Tim. 1:16) “ Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, th at in me first Christ Jesus might show forth all longsufferlng, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.” Of the Unbeliever, pursuing his own course, opposed to the will and way of God, out of harmony with God. < Of a convicted man, fighting against the conscience quickened by the Word. Of the Jewish Nation, which Will be brought to the feet of Christ by His personal appearance—Him whom they have pierced. Of the Church, called to be a chosen vessel, and to suffer with Christ. He proved his conversion by his zeal, boldness, aggressiveness, by the sweet­ ness of his life of suffering, by his tri­ umphs in trial, by a fully proven min­ istry guided by the Holy Spirit. PRAC T ICA L PO IN TS (1) The human heart is capable of hellish * hatred. (2) Saul sought to silence his conscience by slaughtering the 'Christians. (3) One revelation of the risen Christ rev­ olutionized Saul’s life. (4) Christ and His Church are one. (5) The haughty persecutor became the humble penitent. (6) Saul laid all his deadly doing down, all down at Jesus’ feet. (7) “ Who art thou?" and "W h a t w ilt thou?" are the determining ques­ tions of the soul. (8) God’s directions are definite: "Saul of Tarsus;” "Straight Street;" "Stop­ ping with Judas." (9) From persecution he turned to prayer.

690 tenderness of the treatment accorded the violent rebel against the cause of Christ. There is a revelation of the suffering heart of the Man of-Galilee. He had for Saul no bitter denunciation, no repri­ mand, no condemnation for his awful crimes. He is called from the most heathen persecution to the chief place among the apostles. How simple were the words, “Arise and go, and it shall he shown thee.” We are commarfded to go, and as we go, we get our instructions. 4. THE COMMUNICATION TO ANA­ NIAS, vs. 10-17. “Arise and go.” 'As the Lord prepared Peter to go to Cornelius by a vision, so the Lord now appears in a vision to Ananias, and pre­ pares him to minister to Saul. He was loath to leave on such an errand, for he knew Saul by reputation, vs. 13,1A. Ana­ nias is an unknown disciple. We hear of him but this once, but he was a devout man and ready for service. (22:12) “ And one Ananias, a devout man accord­ ing to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there.” How many obscure disciples there are whose love will be manifest to us in the coming: revelation of Christ. Tha Lord knows the names of streets and the num­ ber of the houses where needy people # * V are. The meeting between Ananias and Saul is picturesque, “Brother Saul!” How strange it must have sounded to the per­ secutor! The scales fell from his eyes, he was filled with the Holy Ghost and was baptized. 5. THE CHANGE IN SAUL, 18, 19a. “There fell from his eyes as it had been scales.” The conversion of Saul is one of the most remarkable incidents in all the Scriptures, and ope of the strongest proofs of the inspiration of the Word of God and of the reality and power of the new birth. The suddenness with which it was effected, the complete transfor­ mation of character which it wrought,

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