The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1877-09-06
The sunday School.
Part AT EruKsrs
80. -. :. lsl. a.. II. l.l9

- tNA AAlA@f8 tel kAe FfNsfAt 80 ~
bofs IN Eafope. chprchos having heta
iofmed Al PhHippi ThessAlonicA. Beres
Ceschrra and possibly in ether parts q
Achsis. a. welt a. IL Coriaih. ths apos-
uc tarns With 3 iongisg heart 70 Jef.
us&em and Antioch. Having CON.
pleied his vow AZ cepoheA be sailed
with AqalIA AID Priscilla for Epbesus.
where be leii them. probably to work
a, their trade. while he went 90 20 Jer.
( usalem, bat promising. Il God viii 70
rctorn. From Jerusalem be went do~u
70 Antioch. and remained there some
time. reheArsing. no doubt. the won.
deroos blessings which bad attended
bis latos Leaving Antioch in she
autumn oi A. D 50 and going over all
+ The county Of Galaiia and PhrygiA ia
order. strengthening the disciples, be
came down. going by the upper coasts,
o. The Phrygisn uplands to Ephesus.
/ In The mean time the eloquent Apollos
had come 60 Epbesus from Alexandria,
a wonderful man. and destined to create
20 little stir ia The church. He bad
failed, however. in bis study Of the
Jewish Scriptures. to grasp the whole
truth concerning Jesus de Was fer-
veut 10 The spirit. aud bad evidently 70.
ceiyed the baptism Of John. He was
not silent member Of The Jewish
church bat spoke boldly, aud no doubt
with power. 10 the synagogue In or.
der that be might know the whole truth
| Aquila aud Priscilla took him TO their
house. and eIpounded the v ord of God
unto him. Willingly receiving instruc'
ton at their hands. bis heart turned
toward Greece, and with letters Of
commentator from the brethren at
Ephesus be entered upon his work al
Corinth, nightly convincing the Jews,
and that publicly, showing by the
Scriptures that Jesus was Christ. This
was the state Of affairs when Paul came
back TO Ephesus from bis visit to Jer.
usalem and Antioch. How he must
have rejoiced as, repairing to the house
of Aquila and Priscilla he heard frum
their lips tue story of the conversion OF
Apollos and the report Of his success
with theonce hardened Jews Of Corinth.
Uninstructed Disciples - But. il
gratfed with what he heard Of Apollos
the condition Of certain disciples in
Ephesus pleased him less. For though
they claimed TO be disciples, and were
evidently sincere believers, they were
ignorant Of even the existence OF the
Holy Ghost, The question, Have ye
received the Holy Ghost since ye be:
lieved is more accurately expressed
by the use of the imperfect instead OF
the perfect, /. e., Did ye receive the
Holy Ghost when ye believed Their
answer is proof that one can begin the
Christian life with very little accurate
knowledge. But this ignorance is not
allowed to continue; for, it being ev.
dent, upon further inquiry, that the
name Of toe Hely Ghost was not even
mentioned at the time of their CONVEX.
sion, and that the baptism then received
was simply Johns baptism. baptism
q baptism Of repentance, and not a
baptism Of life, the ceremony was re.
peated in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Ii may be difficult to account for the
ignorance Of these disciples, but Of the
fact the record does not permit US to
doubt The lesson is clearly this, that
J il we follow the light actually given
more will come, and as il is needed
The Baptism of the Spirit. Having
been baptised in the name of the Lord
Jesus, having learned TO look to him
! rather that TO John the Baptist as the
| object Of faith, Paul laid his hands on
them aud they received the Holy Ghost
and spoke with tongues and prophesied
This gift Of the Spirit does not imply
that they bad not been previously con
veIted but that there were higher and
richie, blessings in store for them than
they had imagined The power to
, speak with tongues and TO prophesy
was plainly miraculous. II is easy &c
see the wisdom Of miraculous maniies
tations at this time. 1t is equally clear
that they wcre-not designed 10 be per
manet Even the persons so signally
blessed are heard OF no more. Al
Hackett says, The twelve men who
came forward go abruptly 10 our history
disappeared as suddenly. leaving us il
doubt whence they came. where they
had been, and 10 some respects what
|, particular phase Of religious belief they
represented, And yet it is for thu
!, church, into which these men were
doubtless organized, that Paul after
wards offers the comprehensive prayeI
recorded in Eph. iii rs 81.
8 Bold wosk This consisted Il
: preaching the gospel Of the kingdom
e Paul spoke IN the synagogue as Apollo
q had done before him. The theme IL th'
e same a. that OF John the Baptist anC