108
February 1928
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
O f course, we must be prudent. We must not spend something that is not even in sight. Yet as a rule o f Christian en terprises, there is a mischievous fallacy in looking at things from the standpoint of business men and leaving the infinite God out of it. Like the disciples, we for get what we’ve, seen with our own eyes and heard with our own ears. W e take an altogether insufficient view o f our re sources in Christ. Often, the thing which looks impossible would iook differently if we stopped to figure Him in. Get Jesus’ answer: “H ow many loaves have ye?” That’s a searching question for all o f -us. W e say the thing can’t be done. What have you that is not working for God? He notes not so much what you have given as what you have left. Are we ready to risk what we have in His hands? W e cannot expect blessing when we neglect the resources that are within reach. .: It is cooperation that Jesus asks. Give Him that and He will take care o f the needs. The workings o f Omnipotence have usually been mingled with the open hands o f human beings. The widow’s oil increased not in the vessel, but in being poured out. The bread multiplied not in the whole loaf but by the breaking and distributing. Grain brings increase not by lying in a heap, but by being broadcast. Spiritual blessings multiply in their distri bution, not by being kept. “Five loaves and two fishes” were handed over to Jesus (v. 41). It was all they had, but in His hands it was more than enough. W e often forget that God helps us through those very things that we possess. If we would but use the gifts we have diligently and according to His laws, we would see wonderful results. But something occurred prior to the distribution to the multitudes. “H e looked up to heaven and blessed” (v. 41). In all our hurrying to get the Gospel to a fam ishing world, we’d best take time where He did. After prayer, we can prosecute the work to far better advantage. Having presented and prayed, take your bread basket and start down the line. “H e gave to His disciples to set before them” (v. 41). “ No,” you say, “we’ve hired a sexton to- ring thé church bell— let the folks come after the Bread of life.” That’s not God’s order. Jesus says to every one o f us : “ Go ye . . . pro claim and teach?’ Today we have multiplied methods of distributing. Modern inventions are giv ing wings to the Gospel as we near the end' of the age. The printing press, the telephone, the radio, the automobile, even the airplane, carry the good news. It seems that God has left no Christian with an excuse for not doing something to reach others. There’s not a ' man or woman who cannot at least hand out a tract. An outstanding lesson o f this incident is that the church has to deal With indi viduals. “H e gave to His disciples to set before them." He did not deal with so ciety in bulk. How foreign is the modern idea of the salvation of society, to the method of Jesus! Imagine advising a gardener to confine his attentions to culti vating plants as a whole, rather than in dividual plants. The soil must be just right for each plant and attention must be given to every one, if it is to do its best. The only way to save society is to dis tribute the Bread of life to individuals.
FRED S ? SHEPARD ’S BLACKBOARD OUTLINE
ties, and this is a good time to make their personalities stand out, so far as the New
T e s t a m e n t tells a b o u t them. The main teaching o f the lesson ist that Christ calls each boy and girl as truly as he called the Twelve, and that there is a place for each of them in his service. (Peloubet’s Notes.)
C
ALLED Matt. 4 :19 COMMISSIONED Mark 16:15 ON STRAINED 2 Cor. 5 :14 The impelling power of love.
M arch 11, 1927 Jesus Feeds th e Multitudes Text : Mark 6:31-44; 8:1-10
Lesson S tory: Last week we heard about a dear little girl who had a lovely home and a father and mother who loved her dearly, but she .became very ill, and the loving parents and doctors could not save her, and she died. How very sad this happy home was now with the little girl so quiet, and the parents and friends w;ere in great sorrow. But something wonderful happened. Who can tell us? (Review, emphasizing Christ’s mighty power even over death, and show the boys and girls He is just the One to whom they can come with all their troub les and trials, ho matter how great they may be.) You know boys and girls some times think because they are not grown up they can not do very much, but you know there are so many things you can do that we grown-up folks can not do at all. Then, too, grown-up folks who would not listen to us at all will listen to you when you tell them about Jesus: In our story today we learn that Jesus needs helpers. How many of you would like to be a helper? Jesus was a very busy man when He lived here on earth, and at the time o f our story He had been healing many sick ' folk, and great crowds had thronged about Him. So Jesus went up into a mountain (Luke 6:12), and spent the entire night in prayer. I f He felt the need, o f 1 strength and wisdom from His heavenly Father, how much more should we.. Jesus called unto Him whom He would. Many disciples were present (Luke 6:13), for Christ’s preaching and miracles had drawn large numbers to follow Him. Then Jesus chose twelve men as helpers to be;with Him. Our Lord loved compan ionship. No one ever lived who was bet ter able to do the work all by himself than our Lord, but He would not do it by Him self, but let others share His wonderful work o f telling others the way o f salva tion. Are you glad you can be a helper, and tell other boys and girls and men and women about such a wonderful Saviour as Jesus our Lord? He needs helpers to day, just as much as He needed them then, and He has a place for every boy and girl who loves Him and wants to help others to know Him too. When Jesus chose the twelve disciples, they were will ing to serve Him. Are you? You can be a wonderful helper in your home by obey ing father and mother, for the Bible tells children to obey their parents. You can help by being kind to brothers and sisters. If we have the love of Jesus in our hearts, it will shine out in our living, and that will make others want to know our Sav iour too. (Prayer.) Bishop Denny, at Methodist Conference: Wear a mustache. That’s all the wo men have' left us. . . It is your badge of masculinity.
T N this lesson we bring together two A stories that are much alike—the feed ing o f 5,000 and the feeding o f 4,000. The attempts of critics to make out that these
. are conflicting ac counts. of the same event, are frustrated by the fact that arche ology has produced so much evidence that the two events were well known in ‘ the times of the Apostles.
W e may be sure there are special rea sons why these two miracles, ■so much alike, were wrought by Jesus, and were recorded in such detail in the Gospels. It certainly reminds us, that the bounty ,Of Christ is inexhaustible and His favors are renewed as are our wants and necessities. Jesus and His disciples Shad sought to depart privately to a desert pla.ce, but many knew Jesus and surmising where He was going with His workers, “ outwent them and came together unto Him” ( 6 : 33). When the day was far spent, Jesus was “moved with compassion / ’ for many o f the people had journeyed far in the heat and had brought no food with them. " This is a desert place/’ His disciples informed Him. If we think it strange that they should be telling Him the geography of His own world, let us recall how many times we have attempted to give Him in struction. Dr. Henson was once supply ing a pulpit, when one of the elders who was offering the morning prayer, favored the Lord with considerable information about the visiting preacher. When finally the preacher was introduced, he said : “ I hesitated to interrupt the brother while he was talking to the Lord ; nevertheless, some of the things he told the Lord about me are not so.” \ Now, remember, that the infinite Christ was present and He had set a task before His disciples. What is. their reaction? “Send them away that they may buy for themselves” (v, 36). That’s quite often our first thought. Get rid of the respon sibility if possible. Let George do it. A man saw a girl pushing a baby carriage perilously near a steep curb and warned her. She replied: “ Tain’t our baby.” There aré many who claim to be saved, yet never seem to feel any responsibility for others. He has never had the bread of life himself, who never has any. to share with others. “ Give ye them to eat,” the Saviour com mands. “ It would cost 200 pennies,” re ported the financial committee, “ and that would be out o f the question.” Doesn’t that sound quite modern? How often a great spiritual enterprise has been cramp ed and ruined because men have pinned Christ down to their own little estimates!
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