The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1888-09-21
DEATH OF MOSES. :
LESSON XIII, THIRD QUARTER, IN
TERNATloNAL SERIES, SEPT. %.

S.sAs@SS
Text of the Lesson, Deut. xxxiy. 1-1a.
Commit Verses 5-7-Goldcn Text, Prov.
iv. 1s-Commentary by Rev. d. NJ.
Stearns.
CONDENSED from Lesson Helper Quarterly by
permission Of II. S. Hoffman. Philadelphia,
publisher.
.'And Moses went up" Many time had
Moses gone up on u mountain to meet and
talk with God, but never before had he gone
up not to return. There is something SO
mysterious aboutthe going out of q person
from the tabernacle in which one has so
journed on earth, either for few or many
years, that though one may have witnessed
many such events it is ever most solemn
sight When the one called upon to depart
can cheerfully say, Even SO, Father, I ON
ready, and quietly arrange oil earthly mat
ters, then joyfully await the call, it is indeed
a glorious sight. Blessed be God that He has
taught us in His word, and by the lives of
many of Eis saints, that it is possible and
our privilege, SO to walk with Him here that
wo may lose oil fear of death and daily re-
joicor in the prospect Of being absent
from the body and present with the
Lord Whenever He shall sec that our
work hero is finished. Moses had long
ago forsakcn all the pleasures and
vanities Of this world, choosing rather to.
suffer affliction with the people of God than
to enjoy tho pleasures of sin for season; es-
teeming the reproach of Christ greater
riches than the treasures in Egypt; and for
Mt least eighty years he had endured, as see-
ing Him who is invisible lHeb. Il, a-27).
But now his work i'll a mortal body was fin
| ished; it was the eleventh month Of the for
tieth year since they left Egypt (Deut. !, 81,
and he had rehcarsed to them all the way by
which they had been led. and oil the COM
mandments Of the Lord; he had given them
another song, and had blessed the tribes (chs.
xxi, xx3iiD, both sors and blessing reach
ing on TO the time of their, to US, still future
glory ehe had appointed his successor and
laid his hands upon him, and given him q
charge in the sight Of all the congregation
| (Num. xvii, l2-25l and now he is to be gath
cred unto his people.
1-3 .Aud the Lord shewed him all the
land" he is now alone with God, the people
all left behind, his earthly work laid down;
| but before he departs from earth he is per-
mitted to see that good land which, on ac-
count of sin, he was not permitted to enter.
He he'd besought the Lord to let him go over
and see the land but the answer was, "Let
| it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this
matter; thou shalt behold it with thine eyes,
| bnt thou shalt not go over this Jordan.
| Neut iii, 223-27.) When Paul besought the
1 Lord thrice for the removal of the thorn In
| the flesh, the Lords answer was, "My grace
| is sufficient for thee" In Paul's case the de-
| nial of the request and the continuance Of
| the inflrmity was lest lie should be exalted
| above measure; in tho case Of Moses, his re-
quest was denied because of his sin Mu1n.
xvii, 14), which, although forgiven, still
left a present unpleasant result. Fourteen
| hundred years later Moses did stand in that
good land, when with Elijah he talked with
Jesus of His decease about to be accom-
| plished
4. "This is the land which swore unto
| Abraham" The promise had been made
nearly 500 years before tGen. xii, q, yet Abra-
ham had received no Inheritance in it; no,
not so much as to set his foot on (Acts vii, o.
His seed, which has grown from one to mill
ions, is now about to take possession of it, but
they did not possess it fully, nor use it well
when they got it, and now for more than
| 1900 years they have been out of it, and yet
it is their land, and God will make good to
| personal promise to them God lives, the
| persons live to whom the promise was made,
4 Jesus lives who died and rose again, all the
promises of God in him are yea and in Him
amen; one day is with the Lord ns thousand
years, and thousand years as one day; be
patient, be trustful, be steadfast, be fully
persuaded, and rejoice in hope Of the glory
of God; the resurrection will make it all
plain, see that you take part in the first ono
g. $50 Moses, the servant of the Lord, died {"
| Although before the delugo people lived
seven, eight and nine hundred years, yet in
duo time they died. sit is appointed unto
men once to die" lIcb il. 30, aud yet there
is a common saying to this effect-one thing
is SUR, we must all die-which is not cor
rect, for the Spirit says through Paul in
l Cor. xv, 81, So that we shall not oil
sleep Tor dic), but in the twinkling
of an eye DO changed at the sound
ing of the trumpet So says the Spirit
also in l Thcss. iv, 1G-ls. All true believers
who nro alive when Christ returns shall for
Ills sake be excused from keeping their up
pointment, and being instantly changed,
shall be caugbtup to meet Christ in the air.
6. And lie buried him" Most unique
death and burial over accorded to mortal;
God and angels Welcome him to tho spirit
world and the Lord bur;es his body. When
wo bury the bodies of our loved ones, though
lie
our friends with form and features lust
as real have passed beyond our rea9h;
and from the dust of the corrupt
ible body shall come ct the resurrection
an immortal, ir,corruptible body with the
same form and features, gloriied, in which
tho spirit shall again take up its residence,
bo rewarded FOR ss'vice done in the mortal
body, be nj thu marriage of the Lamb, and
SSthen with e,hrist rci ign over tho earth How
long tho body Of Moses remained buried we
are NOT tsl: butthntfs had the T;sa riser nodv
! ! 9 SSn tho Meant of TransGg Ggryation seems evi-
dent from Jude IS, for not only does the
devil h;.ye to give up q soul to Christ, but he
also hases to have to give up the body Of
saint from tho grave. And if the Man Child
Of Rev. xii, s, includes the risen saints Of
Israel, we can understand something of the
cause Of thewar in heaven there referred to
/ hot, thu two J,ortioa