October, 1934
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
362
when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks.” Only one was grateful. Jesus’ question has the note of pathos in it: “Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?” One out of ten! What a proportion! And yet it is true today. A noted minister of New York reported that many hundreds of persons who were going across the Atlantic had requested prayers for a safe voyage, but that only one had ever returned to re quest thanksgiving for answered prayers. “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” Let us cultivate the grace of gratitude, remembering that the Lord has said: “Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me.” Leader’s Helps 1. F or L ittle T h in g s Many there are who praise today For blessings everywhere; I, too, have felt within my soul The joy of grateful prayer. But I would send thanksgiving, Lord, Straight up into Thy sky, For little things some folks perhaps Would be a-passing by: For pastel shades that sweep across The lovely sky at dawn, For braggard birds that find caches Deep in my little lawn, ' r For trees that hide their naked limbs With fur and silver lace, For friendly snow that when I walk Comes down to touch my face, For kittens that have naught to do But romp upon the hearth, For plants and books and little things That build a home of worth. So as the priestly firs lift up Their praying arms to heaven, I, too, would thank Thee, Lord, for all The small things Thou hast given. — O pal L eonore G ibbs . II. T h a n k sg iv in g Thanks for Thine own thrice-blessed Word, And Sabbath rest; Thanks for the hope of glory stored In mansions blest; Thanks for the Spirit’s comfort poured Into the trembling breast. Thanks, more thanks to Him ascend, Who died to win Our life, and every trophy rend From Death and Sin; Till when the thanks of earth shall end, The thanks of heaven begin. j—F. R. H avergal . III. “I n E very T h in g . . . T h a n k s ” 1. If we are required to give thanks for everything, there must be something in every dispensation, however dark, for a Christian to return thanks for. — L ady P owerscourt . 2 . There is no music-box freighted with so melodious harmonies as is the heart of a Christian full of the promises of God. — S elected . 3. If a horse were to go up Thanksgiving Avenue twice a day for a month, he would afterward turn that way without reins. So it is with the mind.— S elected .
Hymn—“Come, Ye Thankful People, Come.” Quiet Hour. Benediction—Psalm 19:14. M editation on th e Lesson This striking incident in the life of our blessed Lord is recorded only by Luke. It brings to us one of the most important and significant of Christ’s teachings on the grace of gratitude. To fully understand the debt of thankfulness the ten lepers owed, let us look for a moment at their affliction—leprosy—the foul, dread disease, one of the most terrible of all human mala dies. Leprosy has been called a “living death” because the patient’s members decay and fall off one by one. Throughout Scrip ture, the Holy Spirit has used leprosy as the type of sin. In the Jewish economy, leprosy rendered a man ceremonially un clean, so that he was not allowed to go into the temple or spend the night in the town. He must cover his mouth, uncover his head, rend his garment at the back, walk in the middle of the road, and cry, “Unclean, unclean!” He was an outcast, and was regarded as an object of the curse of God. In Leviticus 13 and 14 are found laws governing lepers, their segregation, their cleansing, and their offerings to Je hovah. In the Lord’s instructions regard ing leprosy may be seen the parallels to His attitude toward sin. The passage for our lesson throws light upon our Lord’s method of dealing with human need. The ten lepers “stood afar off” as was required by law, and cried out to Jesus, “Master, have mercy on 'u s.” Jesus, in His tender compassion, told them to show themselves to the priests. The law of Moses required priestly observation and ceremonial cleansing before a healed leper might mingle with the company of Israel. Soon the meaning of Jesus’ command be came clear to the men, for the record states: “As they went, they were cleansed.” Their faith, manifested by their obedience, had saved them. But the story is not with out an element of sadness : “One of them,
III. A T u r n in g P o int
Abraham Lincoln’s personal influence was often exercised in helping youth to sobriety, as, for example, the little-known incident of his seeing a very young West ern recruit going into a saloon in Washing ton, putting a kindly hand on the boy’s shoulder, and saying, “I don’t like to see our uniform going into these places.” To quote the boy’s own words, “After that, we would not have gone into a saloon for all the wealth of the city. It was a means of salvation to me. Today (1909) I hate the saloon, and have hated it ever since I heard those words from that great man.” —Scientific Temperance Journal. IV. W h a t A lcohol D oes Intoxication is not increase of life, but putting the reins into the hands of the ani mal within us. Liquor changes the charac ter by paralyzing the best and highest in us. It puts the real man to sleep. He is not there. It is more than merely a life- destroyer, for it destroys the higher life and puts the spirit in subjection to what is brutish.— -J oseph H enry C rooker , in Pe- loubet’s Select Notes. NOVEMBER 25, 1934 The Grace of Gratitude (Thanksgiving ) L u k e 17:11-19 Suggestions for the M eeting “O praise the Lord, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people. For his merciful kind ness is great toward u s : and the truth of the Lord endureth for ever.” Hymn—“Praise Him! Praise H im !” Hymn—“O Worship the King!” Hymn—“Hallelujah! ’Tis Done.” Prayer. Scripture—Luke 17:11-19. Duet or Solo—“O My Soul, Bless Thou Jehovah.” Leader’s Message. Testimonies—“What have you to be grateful for?”
Booklets By LOU IS S. BAUMAN, D.D.
SHIRTS & SHEETS; or, Anti- Semitism, a Present Day Sign of the First Magnitude! (Revelation 12:3, 13) This booklet deals with the most significant pres ent day sign of the closing of our age and the coming of the kingdom of God—Anti-Semitism! It reviews the entire story of the eternal conflict between “ the seed of the woman'* and “the seed of the serpent"—between the “Great red dragon" and the earthly people of God,—culminating in the latest outburst— Hitlerism. No prophetic study is more timely or more important. Price: I5e each, 2 for 25c, 12 for $1.25 postpaid The Modern Tongues Movement In the Light of The Scripture And In The Light O f Its Fruits (2nd. Revised Edition) A booklet of thirty-six pages dealing with the subject in a most thorough, sane and Scriptural manner. Greatly in demand throughout the world. Drawn many out of this false movement. Price: 25e, 5 for $1.00 postpaid
The World's Heart Failure (Our Lord’s Own Crystalline prophecy of the imminency of His return, Lk. 21:24-33.) In this booklet of twenty-four pages is presented a graphic picture of present world conditions as foretold by our Lord should exist Just prior to His return. Price: 15c, 2 for 25c, 12 for $1.25 postpaid N. R. A.— The Sign and Its Spiritual Significance A booklet of twenty pages setting forth in a most clear and concise manner the spiritual significance of the N. B. A. Price: 10c, 12 for $1.00 postpaid God and Gog; or, the Coming Meet Between Judah's Lion and Russia's Bear. (2nd. Edition) A booklet of forty pages showing the trend of the age in which we now live. Enlightening! Illus trated with striking cartoons. Price: 15c, 2 for 25e, 12 for $1.25 postpaid
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