April, 1940
T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
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INTERNATIONAL L E SSON Commentary Outline and Exposition 1 Blackboard Lesson Childten s Division Object Lesson Golden Text Illustration By B. B. S utcliffe By G retchen S ibley By M ildred M. C ook By E lmer L. W ilder By A lan S. P earce Points and Problems B y A lva J. M c C lain , President of Grace Theological Seminary, Winona Lake, Ind.
abundant pardon offered by God— turning from sin, and turning to the Lord. III. T he O ffered P rosperity (8-11) God’s ways and thoughts are alto gether mysterious to the natural man (cf. vs. 8, 9). God’s Ways are governed by His thoughts; He sees all the past and all the future and everything con nected with the present. Given the gov ernment of world affairs, human beings would bring chaos quickly into the uni verse because of their ignorance of the causes leading to, and the outcome of, conditions at any given time in histo.rjr. God sometimes appears to be very slow in correcting conditions that we call evil. But His slowness is likened to that of nature (cf. vs. 10, 11). There must be the rain and the snow, the plowing and harrowing, and then the long waiting days before the earth brings forth seed and bread. But at last the harvest comes, with its joy and satisfaction for those who wait for it. In like manner, it sometimes appears to believers to be a useless waste of energy and time to sow the Word of God among the people. But we have the assurance that His Word goes forth to do what He pleases to be done. Whether the sower sees the results or not, those results are sure. God’s Word will do what He pleases and prosper in the thing whereto He sends it. Here is full encouragement to all who mourn the lack of visible results from their sowing of the Word of God. Points and Problems 1. “Ho, every one that thirsteth” (Isa. 55:1). In this glorious invitation we find the sole condition of God’s salva tion. Are you thirsty? Do you want to be saved? Are you dissatisfied with what you are and what you have ? Then come. It is hard to see how God could open the door any wider. But suppose you have no “thirst,” no desire to drink of the water of life. Well, it would seem impossible to find any one like that. But if there should be such a one, pro vision has been made in the Word. In the last chapter of the Bible we read, “Let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17). If any one finally goes out into the eternal doom of the irrevocably lost, it will not be because God was unwilling to give, but because man refused to take. 2. “Buy . . . without money and with out price” (v. 1). Because of man’s
MAY 5, 1940 ISAIAH GIVES GOD’S INVITATION I saiah 55
money and without price.” Its abun dance is indicated in the word “waters” ; its joy is likened to "wine” ; its nourish ing power is like “milk” ; and the soli tary condition for its acceptance is that the one who would benefit by it shall have “thirst.” Instead of spending money and labor for that which satisfied them not, the people were invited to hearken to the Lord and to cease their vain attempts to secure satisfaction by human means. A promised result of accepting the invitation was the enjoyment of the “sure meroies of David” (v. 3). As a type of the Lord Jesus Christ, David stands as the one in whom all blessings for the people are to be found. n. T he O ffered P ardon (6, 7) As though the gracious invitation were not enough, the people were offered also full pardon, whatever their sins and iniquities might have been. But there is a hint here that the time would come when the Lord could not be found,‘ nor His pardon accepted. He is now nigh, ready to hearken; men are to seek Him now. Many, alas, pre sume upon the grace of God until a day comes wherein they find it impos sible to cause Him to hear. The pas sage does not mean that the Lord de parts or turns a deaf ear to men’s cry, but it means that continuous rejection of His invitation gradually hardens the heart until one cannot seek nor cry to ,the Lord. The obstacle to accepting pardon from the Lord is the natural love of sin and evil ways. This principle character izes all Scripture: “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy” (Prov.' 28:13). There are just two simply steps to securing the ~uo, Ævé/erovf that rn/jesrerH"Msn ) ftflD \ r DR.mKE.TH n I k -— mn ■ V 1 BLOOD.-} « HRTH ETEanflL UFE- joh . .. .. *5£EK SIETHE LOUD while he may & e fouîid , call ycupon Him WHILEHE IS HEAD." « . » i t BLACKBOARD LESSON
Isaiah 55 ;1 Ho, every one that thirst- eth, come ye to the waters and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; 'yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself $n fatness. 3 Incline your ear, and come unto met hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. 4 Behold, I have given him for a wit ness to the people, a leader and com mander to the people. 5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee, because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he. hath glorified thee. 6 Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is neart 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. 0 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater; 11 So shall my ^rord be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper iu GOLDEN TEXT ; “Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near»» (Isa. 55:6). DEVOTIONAL READING: Matt. 11:25-30. Outline and Exposition I. T he O ffered P rovision (1-5) H ERE the Lord invites His peo the invitation; it is addressed to “every one.” The provision is free—“without [ These lessons are developed from outlines prepared by the Committee on Improved Uniform Lessons of the Ink temotional Council. The outlines are copyrighted by the International. Coun cil of Religious Education and used by permission. Scripture portions quoted are from the King James Version un less otherwise stated .] the thing whereto I sent it. LESSON TEXT : Isa. 55:1-11.
ple to accept the provision He has made for them. The first verse reveals the comprehensiveness of
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