December, 1933
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
434
COMMENTARY Golden Text Illustration Object Lesson B y ; A l a n S. P earce B y E lm er L. W ilder
LESSON - Children’s Division B y H elen G a ile y
Outline and Exposition B y B. B. S u tcliffe
Blackboard Lesson B y B essie B. B u rch
Herod will yet meet this King, whom he professed to be ready to worship, but whom he was all the time desirous of killing. It is a tremendous fact that all men will meet this King one day, and then it will be seen whether they have been wise, like those men from the East, or unwise, like Herod. III. .T h e W o r sh ipin g M e n (9-12). As the wise men left the presence of Herod, the star which they had seen in the East again appeared to them, leading them to the place where the young Child was. Evidently, the star had disappeared after they saw it in the East, and so they naturally had come to Jerusalem, “the city o f the great king,” expecting to find Him there. For some reason, they were allowed to go to Jerusalem. When one follows what light is given, more light will be granted as it is needed. The wise men were therefore once more guided by the star. They were filled with joy when at last they stood in the presence of the young Child and Mary His mother. The Child was not a Babe o f days, as most of the religious pictures present Him, because the long journey these men had taken cer tainly required months to accomplish. The men saw no royal trappings, no regal splendor, no retinue o f servants, but only a seemingly ordinary Child, with an ordi nary mother—wholly unlike what they must have expected to find. But in spite of appearances, their faith told them that here was the One they had come to seek. They acknowledged the deity o f the Babe by falling down and worshiping Him. In the Babe, they beheld the One to whom all worship belongs. Here was the grand est mystery of all the universe, God mani fest in the flesh, the “mystery of godli ness.” Their worship was inarticulate; they simply bowed in adoring speechless ness before the Babe in whom the living God had become incarnate. They then offered their gifts o f gold, frankincense, and myrrh—proper gifts for a King who was also God. These things belonged to God as His right, and now they were offered to the Babe as being His right. These old men o f the East were wise indeed in their simple faith and un derstanding worship and magnificent gifts. We might well follow their example. As they began their homeward journey, they were warned by God not to return to Herod, but to go another way. God knew the murderous intention of Herod, and He would protect the Babe by sending Him to Egypt and thus bring to fulfillment an other prophecy, the very actions of His enemies accomplishing this. In this lesson, three ways of treating Jesus Christ are presented for Our study. There is the way of Herod, paying no at tention to Him as long as possible, and then, when He must be acknowledged, attempting to destroy Him. There is the way of the scribes, giving heed to Him, knowing all about Him, but being utterly indifferent to His claims. And there is the way of the wise men, seeking Him diligently, at great
JANUARY 7, 1934 BIRTH AN D INFANCY OF JESUS M atthew 1 :1 to 2 :23
Lesson T ex t : Matthew 2:1-12. Golden T ex t : “ Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). Outline and Exposition I. T he W ise M en (.1, 2 ). r a d it io n gives the names of these wise men, but Scripture does not, so we need not trouble about their titles. They represented the very best of the old-world culture, learning, and religion. They were students of astronomy and kin dred sciences, and were men of wealthy rank, and influence, forming the privy councils of their respective governments. Daniel was possibly one of their presidents (Dan. 2 ), , , , , . Their earnestness was revealed by their undertaking the long, dangerous, and costly journey from their far-off homes to the city of Jerusalem. In those days, such a journey was a stupendous undertaking, re quiring a large retinue of servants, a cara van for supplies, etc. But they had good reason for engaging in such an enterprise. Balaam,; the prophet to the Gentiles, ; had spoken o f a “ Star” which would rise, and whose rising would indicate the birth of a great King, One coming from God (Num. 24). When these men beheld the peculiar star in the East, they assuredly gathered that now at last the prophecy was fulfilled, and they hastened to greet and to offer their homage to the new-born B I T h e W icked M e n (3-8). When the wise men arrived in Jerusalem and inquired concerning the new-born King, the whole city was “troubled.” Herod, the king, was troubled because of the danger to his position. The wise men asked, “Where is he that is born king of the Jews?” They were asking concerning One who had a right to the throne by birth. Herod was an Idumean, of Edom and Esau, with no kingly right of birth; he was really only a usurper on the throne; hence he was troubled. The people were troubled because of their condition, en slaved to a foreign power, but satisfied to go on in disgrace and dishonor for the sake of avoiding further difficulty. Both king and people were troubled, because of deeper causes; they knew their own sin fulness.; Herod called for the Pharisees and the scribes and asked them concerning this King of the Jews'.' The scribes readily answered his questions. They were familiar with the prophecies, and they repeated to Herod just what the prophet had spoken. These scribes knew the place of the King’s birth, who the King would be, and the purpose o f His coming, They knew what the letter o f Scripture said, but alas! “the letter killeth, but the, Spirit giveth life” (2 Cor. 3:6 ). It is, one thing, to know what the. Scripture says; it is another
Belter Lesson Helps T HOUSANDS of readers turn to THE KING’S BUSINESS for light on the International Sun day School Lessons. For their benefit, every effort is being made to increase the value and useful ness of this department. During 1934, two new features will be added. Alva J. McClain, Associate Dean of the D epartm en t o f Theology and Apologetics, Ash land Theological Seminary, Ash land, Ohio, will give to teachers each week the value of his scholar ship and knowledge of. the Word, through the unique treatment of the lesson which he will furnish. Look for the January number. Elmer L. Wilder, pastor of the Trinity Congregational Church, Los Angeles, arid a graduate of the Bible Institute, will offer sug gestions for a weekly object les son. Whenever possible, this ma terial will be coordinated with the International lesson for thatweek. Not only Sunday-school teachers, but all workers with young peo ple will find that these object les sons, systematically filed and prayerfully used, will often prove an effective solution for the prob lem of inattention among their young pupils.
thing to believe what it says, . Having learned from the scribes the truth concerning the promised King, Herod sent for the wise men and diligently asked when the star had appeared, and in answering, they settled the responsibility o f Herod before God. He might have been guiltless before, but now he knew, and thus was responsible. Instead of bowing to the authority of God, he dissembled and sent the wise men to Bethlehem with in structions to come back and inform him where the young Child was. He did not intend to go and worship, but to slay; he would get rid of this threatened danger to his position, even at the cost of murder. BLACKBOARD LESSON
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