Connecticut western news., 1890-09-17
ENTERING JERUSALEM.
LESSON XII, THIRD QUARTER, INTER-
 NATIONAL SERIES, SEPT. 21.


 Text of the Lesson, Luke xix, SPAS.
 Commit Verses, 37, 3S-Golden Text
 Luke xix, 3s-Commentary by Rev. D.
 M. Stearns.
 Compiled from Lesson Helper Quarterly by per mission of H. S. Hoffman, publisher. Philadel- phia-l
 8. "And achen He ,oas come nigh, euen nolc at the descent of the Mount of OEres." He was riding upon the ass colt, according to Zech. K, Q, thus literally fulfilling one of the last public signs that He was the long predicted Messiah, tl;e Son of David, Israel's king.
 's1he achole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God arith c loud pOtce, for all the mighty tpOrks tChtch they had. seen." They were convinced that He was their Messiah, and, notwithstand- ing the parable of the last lesson, they thought He would now surely proclaim Himself king, and therefore their joy was most exultant, their praise most hearty.
 3S. Saying, Blessed be the Ktng that cometh in the name of the Lord: Peace ta Heapen aud glory fR the highest"
 39. "And some of the Phartsees from GmOng the maltit,tde sdtd unto Hin, Master, rebllke thy disciples" The re- hgious rulers always against Him. The people who ought to have welcomed Him hating every word spoken in His favor. A little later, as the children praise Him in the temple QMatt. xxi, 15, 16), they again find fault. When there was occasion to rebuke His disciples He did not hesitate to do it (Matt xvi, 23; Mark X, 14), but there was no occasion now They were not praising any too loud.
 40. And He anslCered and said unto tltena, tell you, thot, if these should hold their peuce, the stones 1Could immediately cry out" john the Baptist told those who came to him not to pride themselves upon being children of Abraham, for, said he, God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham" (Matt. iii, 9. And as to stones crying out, one of the prophets had said that, because of their sin, the stone should cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber should answer it''
 fl. And aChe4s He aDds come 1,edr, He behcld the city and aoept Ouer t." Steir says shat SO in some sense He weeps over all cisles>s While this may be true, His weeping over this city had special signif- canoe, for this was the city of David, the holy city, the city of the great King, the city which He had chosen to put His name there, that He might be glorifed CMatt. iv, 5; V, 35; II Chron. vi, 8.
 42. "Sdying, If thou hddst kno,rn, eUel,. thou at least tn thts thy day, the things sDss9ch belong unto thy peace! but moao theU are hid from thine eyes." Thou thy day-thy peace; this was Zion that He had chosen, that He had desired for His habitation, concerning which He had said: This is my rest forever; here will I dwell; for have desired it," etc. Ps cxxxii, 13- 16). But by her unbelief she was blinded and knew not her day nor Him who was her peace. To every sinner this same Jesus is saying: "Now is the day of thy saliva tion." ''I am thy peace" But of how many Is it so sadly true that "in them the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who Is the image of God, should shine unto them" QI Cor. vi, 3; iv, 4; Eph. ii, 1l. Blessed are all who can say, thank God that whereas I was blind, now see
 43. "F'or the days shall come upon thee, thdt thine enenstes shdu cast O trench about thee, aud compass thee round, and keep thee tn on euery side" So it literally came to pass in about forty years.
 A "ARd shall ldy thee eUe1, tpttls the ground, aud thy children sotthtn thee; and they shttll not ledye tn thee one stone upon 0nother; because thou kne,Dest not the ttnae of thy visttdtion." So also did 1t literally come to pass, as He said. And as the same Spirit had said through Micah TOO years before: '"Zion shall for your sake be plowed as a field and Jerusalem shall be- come heaps" (Mic- iii, 12) When we see how clearly events have been by the Spirit foretold, and how literally they have been fulfilled, how can any believer doubt that the thoughts of the Lord shall come to pass, that as He has proposed so shall it stand, and that every purpose of the Lord shall be fulfilled? Qsa. xiv, 24; Jer. Ii, 29.)
 45. "And He ,Dent into the temple, and begun to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought" The Tabernacle of Moses and the Temple of Solomon were in some respects the most remarkable buildings this world ever saw; chiefly be- cause God alone was the architect of each, and each was made that God might dwell on earth in the midst of His people. Jesus Himself was the true tabernacle and tenn pie, and when the Kingdom comes we shall then see the full significance of each. They were never intended to be places of mer- chandise, but rather places where God might reveal Himself to His people, and where they might draw near and worship Him. The whole company of believers is now the living temple of God on this earth, in which He desires to reveal Himself to men; but the Church is largely given up to providing entertainment and amusement for the people, rather than inviting them to, the blood and water, and bread and light and incense of Gods salvation, cleans ing, food, heavenly fellowship. Every in dividual believer Is also temple of. the Holy Ghost, and it Is His pleasure that we should cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God q Cor. vi, 19; II Cor. vii D. When the New Jerusalem shall have come down from God out of Heaven we shall see more clearly.
 46 "Sdytng unto them, It Is trrttten, Mp house ts the house of prayer; but ye haue made tt c den of thteves." In Isa. Wi, ', the reading is: 'sMine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people," And the context refers to strangers joining them selves to the Lord to serve Him and love His name. One of those references to the flocking of all nations to Israel when once the Lord shall have come again to dwell in their midst. It is the exaltation of Jeho- dissertation of Ills temple. Take the Church of today and, instead of taking up the time with entertaining the people and providing food and delicacles for the body, upon God in prayer for the outRouring of His Spirit and the revelation of Himself as God of salvation, and then He would be glorifed and all worldliness would be crowded out by His presence and the man. hestation of His power.
 47 find He fought datly In the temple. But the c'.tef priests and the sertbes aud the chief of the people sought to destroy Him." The next two chapters will give us somesof His teachings during these days. but it is more fully recorded in Matt. xxx, 25. He exposed their sin, the heartlessness of their ceremonies, foretold more fully the coming judgments, and made many references to His return in power and glory. But as far as the chief of the people, either in civil or religious matters, were concerned, His teaching fell on deaf ears and hearts fun of ! batred for Him and His teachings.
 Skin of a Big Rattlesnake.
 The skin shed by rattlesnake