T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S
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(9 ) It was the h and of th e Lord th a t helped P ete r; not P e te r’s hold on Him. (10) W ith Him w ithin, every storm is stayed, every doubt dispelled. (11) Well m ight they worship Him, for surely He is the Son of ■God. (13) A ship in the sea is all righ t, bu t th e sea in a ship is all wrong. In Circumstances— T ru st. An unbeliever w alking th rough th e woods one day, in Texas, and reading P lato came to th e word, “ geom etry.” He though t, “ If I could only see plan and o rder in th e LESSON world, I could ILLUSTRATIONS believe.” J u st a t W. H. P ik e th a t moment he picked a little flower a t his feet called “Texas s ta r ” and began to count the petals. There were five; he counted th e divisions a t th e base of th e flower, th e re were five. As he saw a m u ltitude of these little flowers all alike, th e c o n v ictio n deep ened upon him th a t h ere was though t and design back of it all. So in all the Universe and in all our circumstances, th e re is th e though t and plan of a g reat C reator, a loving God. J. Hudson Tay lor said, “God is th e Christian’s g reat A fter one of his exploits, the famous tight-rope w alker noticed a lad gazing a t him w ith amazement. Going up to th e boy, he said, “You saw me carry th a t big man across; do you believe I could take you?” “Of course you could,” replied th e boy, “ he was a big man and I am only a little chap.” “Well, jum p up, my lad ,” said Bloudin, and suiting th e action to th e word, he bent down tor the boy to climb up. “N-o-o, th a n k you,” said th e lad, and he was off as quickly as his feet could carry him . The boy was w illing to say he believed, bu t he dare no t tru st. T h at circum stance— tru s t H im .” “Believe” Means “Commit.”
beat h ard and high, lean h ard on th e Arm th a t is underneath. All else may fail, b u t H e never. (5 ) Welcome and Worship— The Apo calypse, vs. 32, 33. “ Thou a rt w orthy.” Gogether they walked to th e ship. Leaning on Jesus, it is so easy to press th e powers of the world beneath our feet. How good it seems to have Him in th e boat! Wel come, Lord Jesus! The riotous wind is quiet. Every storm -tossed soul finds re st when Jesu s comes in. W h at rest and security! They came and worshipped Him, and well they m ight. He receives it as th e Son of God. He m ust be divine or it would be sacrilege for Him to accept it. P ity those who will not give it to Him. How graciously He condescends to come to the help of such as we. “And imm ediately th ey w ere a t th e land ,” says Mark. Storm s over! Journey over! Haven reached! So may it be when life’s voyage closes. May we be a t home w ith Him. PRACTICAL POINTS (1) Our H igh P rie st perceives our danger, and prays for our deliv erance. (2 ) H ere is a paradoxical picture— the C reator, in prayer! (3 ) If it is rough sailing and h ard row ing for th e saints, w hat must it be for th e sinners? (4) Satan sees our struggles and seeks to sink us, b u t the Lord rallies to our relief, (5) Y esterday they were in high spir its, feeding th e people. Now they are in deep distress, fearfu l of per ishing. (6 ) W hat a welcome sound is th e word of th e Lord “ I t is I ” ; “No man shall pluck you out of My hand .” (7 ) You can w alk on th e w ater, if you w ait for H is word. (8) When th e Lord boards the boat, you can look upon th e land.
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