November 1931
511 bed, and he was, often hungry and cold. But he was glad to have been able to suf fer these things for the Lord Jesus. When he was an old man, sick and in prison, he was able to think back over the hard life which he had lived and to remember how God had taken care of him so that, in spite of all of his troubles, he had been able to go on and on telling the story and seeing people believe it. He knew in his heart that he had been a good soldier of Jesus Christ, and he knew that, when he reached .heaven, God would say to him: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Golden T e x t: “Fear not; I am the first 1 “1 , 0 ast: 1 am he that liveth” (Rev. 1:17, 18). * * * The Isle of Patmos is now known as Patmo or Palmosa. It lies in the Aegean sea, about fifteen miles from Ephesus. I he Apostle John had been banished to this island, but as has so often happened the imprisonment of God’s prophet re sulted in profit to the church. Witness the imprisonment of Bunyan, in Bedford jail or of Rutherford in the jail at St. An drews. J ohn ' s S alutation (4, 5 ). After the inscription (1-3), in which he states that the book is the revelation of Jesus Christ, or to Jesus Christ, and. is written to His servants (this indicates the relationship which we must assume and hold if we would understand the book) utters the salutation. He addresses the seven churches in Asia. These seven churches were truly historical, but they were also representative of the church through the years that have followed. He sends grace and peace to them. Until the grace is accepted, there can be no peace, nor can there be true service for the Lord! In many modern churches, there is a ceaseless activity on the part of people trying” to be saved by what they do and how they live. Such people probably never read this particular book of the Bi ble; they say it is unimportant, or that * cannot be understood. The reason for , this is that they are not the servants of Jesus Christ, but servants of themselves. All that they do is done in order that they may be tsaved, or that they may escape punishment due to evil living, or that they may at last gain entrance into heaven. But all this is self service and not the service of'Jesus Christ. Note also that grace and peace are from the triune God: “From him which is, and which was, and which is to come.” This God is the “I AM” of the Old Testament, the unchanging and eternal Deity. Then the seven Spirits before the throne” are men tioned, by which is meant the fulness of God in the perfection of energy, the Holy Spirit being the Executive of the Godhead and having His place before the throne. Then Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, is named. He is faithful in word and deed. He is the first begotten from the dead. He is the ‘prince [or ruler] of the kings of the earth.” The latter rule now by His permission, all being His vassals. DECEMBER 13, 1931 John’s Vision on Patmos Lesson: Rev. 1 :1 to 3:22. Lesson Text: Rev. 1:4-18.
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K i n g ' s
B u s i n e s s
III. P aul ' s A ssurance (16-18).
BLACKBOARD LESSON
There was no one who stood with Paul at his first arraignment before the Roman court. But he was not alóne. This was his own testimony: “The Lord stood with me, and strengthened me.” Paul ap parently cared little for his personal dis comfort,, but he did desire that the mes sage committed unto him should be sent forth. Hence, even when his friends had deserted him, he could glory in the fact that, because of the sustaining grace of God and the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, the gospel was extended to the Gentiles. Not only did he bear testimony to the fact that the Lord had stood by him, but he was fully assured that the Lord would stand by him and would deliver him from every evil work. He was confi dent also that, whatever the future held for him, the Lord would preserve him unto His heavenly kingdom. The past ex perience, the present strengthening, and the confidence for the future all con tributed to Paul’s assurance and enabled him to send forth a triumphant clarion call from the darkness of his prison cell. From that dungeon there comes to us, in spite of the intervening years, the secret of Paul’s joy at the prospect of his death, of his exultation as he reviews his life, and of his. full confidence as he stands de serted by his friends and surrounded by his foes. That which made Paul great was the consciousness that the living Lord was with him, that he was fully surren dered to Him, and that the One in whom he trusted would be with him to the very end of the journey, crowning him at last with the laurel wreath that only victors wear. According to the measure of our surrender to this same Lord will be our delight when we come to the time of our “departure.” Lesson Questions Vs. 6-8. Where was Paul when he wrote thjs letter? What was his outlook upon the future?. Why could he exult in present circumstances? What two mean ings^ are contained in the word “depar ture” ? How did they apply to Paul’s ex perience? As Paul viewed his life retro spectively, what reasons for rejoicing did he find? What future glories loomed be fore him? Vs. 9-13. Explain Paul’s desire for companionship. Who was with him? What pathetic comment is given concern ing Demas? What is implied in the mention of Mark? Vs. 14, IS. Who was Alexander ? Did Paul advise Timothy to seek revenge? Or was he content to leave Alexander in the hands of the righteous Judge before whom he himself expected to stand? Vs. 16-18. At Paul’s first arraignment before the Roman court, who stood with him? What testimony to the past, pres ent, and future faithfulness of the Lord did the apostle bear ? What do you think was the secret of the apostle’s exultation as he faced death? Golden T ext Illustration We are told that, in old Vienna, there lived a young musician named Rudolph. He had conceived in his soul a great sym phony, and he longed to give it to the world. For months, he gave himself to its composition. Over and over again he
wrote it. Finally he called his friends to gether and rehearsed it before them. They were loud in their praise. . “Rudolph,” they said, “it is great 1 It will establish your fame as a musician.” The composition was then given to the orchestra. After much rehearsing, an nouncement was made regarding its pub lic presentation. People came by the hun dreds to hear it, and they were not dis appointed, for the music, in billows of harmony, swept the vast auditorium. The listeners seemed to catch the inspiration which the artist had felt, and they be came uproarious in their enthusiastic ex pression of approval. They crowded about the young musician and showered upon him their congratulations. He thanked them, but their plaudits did not move him much. At last; however, there came one and stood before him; and when he had spoken, the young musician’s face lit up with joy. He was an old man with white hair, and he took the youthful artist by the hand and said, “Rudolph, it was well done; it was well done.” The old man was Rudolph’s master, and with these words from him, the, young musician was satisfied. The world may say, “Well done,” but if we have not received the Master’s ap proval, we have not, after all, succeeded. Paul Finishes His W ork . 2 T imothy 4:6-18 Memory Verse : “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21). Approach : Paul was right when he felt in his heart that his journey to Rome would be the last one which he would make; for he stayed a prisoner there until he died. Lesson Story: From the time that Paul was a young man, he had been making journeys. The first one that we know about was to the city of Damascus. When he started on that journey, h i s heart was full of hatred, but Jesus, met him on the way and c h a n g e d his life so that, from that time on, his journeys were made because of the love in his heart and the message of the gospel on his lips. Up and down through many countries he went. Sometimes he walked, some times he went in boats, but always he was telling the people about the Saviour who loved them. He suffered many, things while he was doing this work. He was put in prison, he was beaten, he was stoned, he was shipwrecked, he was rob
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