Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1890-04-04
CHRISTS LAW OF LOVE.
LESSON I, SECOND QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, APRIL 6.

Compiled from Lesson Helper Quarterly by per.
mission of H. S. Hoffman, publisher Philadel.
phia.
After the healing of the palsied man, as
recorded in our last lesson, Jesus called Mat
thew to be one of His disciples, aud was en-
tertained by him at Capernaum. He then
visited Jerusalem, healed the man at the pool
of Bethesda, and uttered the discourse re-
corded in John V. We next find Him heal
ing a man with IA withered hand in the syna-
gogue at Capernaum on Sabbath day, thus
greatly provoking the Pharisees who deter
mined to kill Him Matt. xii, 10, a. Shortly
after this lie went out into moSintain and
continued all night in prayer to God, after
which He called His disciples to Him and
from them chose twelve apostles, that they
should be with Him. and that He might send
them forth to preach, and to have power to
heal sicknesseS and to cast out devils Mark
iii, A. Is, Luke vi, II, 49,. Then follows the
discourse of which our lesson today forms "A
part. 1t is a repetition of portion OF the
sermon on the mount Matt. v-vD, but deliv
cred under different circumstances
y. "But | say unto you which hear, Love
your enemies, do good to them which hate
you" See this in the Old Testament in Elk
xiii 4, 3; Lev. xix, l., is; Prov. XIV, 81,
lesson, with the encouragement that our re-
ward shall be great and we shall be "Sons of
the Most High" r. W, or. in other words, as
Christ Himself luke i, 81, R.V) Observe
that these precepts are not for any who are
not Christians as if thereby they might vim
heaven for "by the deeds of the law there
shall no flesh be justified in His sight Rom
iii, 20 but for those who profess to be His
followers, having received Him as their
Saviour and Lord; that thus they may prove
the sincerity Of their discipeship.
2S. BLESS them that curse you, and pray
for them which despitefully use you Put
ting together the four precepts of this and
the preceding verse, we have only to say
with the poor Indian to whom a missionary
read these words: This Indian can't do it;
if God will make a now Indian perhaps he
can" Tho natural man cannot do these
God-lilie acts. but the Spirit of Christ in any
man, woman or child can do again what the
same spirit did in Christ Himself.
! 20. "Unto him that smiteth thee on the one
cheek offer also the Others and him that
takcth away thy cloak forbid not to take thy
coat also The previous precepts may in
clude only thoughts, looks and words ON the
part of our enemies, but here is personal VIC
lence and the spelling of personal property,
| and are we still TO be quiet, Peter reminds
us that Christ suffered for us, leaving us an
example that we should follow His steps; and
! Paul says, why do ye not rather take
wrong! Why do We not rather suffer your
selves to be defrauded:n He also commcnds
those who took joyfully the spelling of their
goods Il Pet. ii, 21 Cor. vi, y.
so. Give to every man that asketh OF
thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods
| ask them not again" Ster, in his Words
of the Lord Jesus says that we are to say
with our hearts as well as with our lips to
the impetuouS maker of these demands: AL
though am not bound by any obligation of
| external right or law, yet am |, according to
the spirit and law of love, both willing and
obliged to serve thee and every man; that
which thou art disposed to enforce from me,
| | will do for thee in free will and double
measure, preventing thy sin by my kindness. -
! Yet it is not the Lords will to impose it upon
His disciples as an absolute necessity to rem
der every service that may in this evil world
be demanded of them, any more than lie re-
: quires them to allow all their property to he
taken from them, or to tolerate every kind
OF personal insult. He enioinS only the requi-
site disposition of mind We must. Of course,
oppose the sinner such, and his sin. even
as resist the devil, the wicked one, whose
malgnity shows itself in each individual sin
nor.
81. "Aud as We would that men should do
to you, do ye also to them likewise In
Matt VII, T., He adds, For this is the law
and the prophets To love ones ncighbor a,
ones self is the sum of our whole duty to our
fellow man, but back of this lies the command
to love God with all our heart and soul and
strength and mind; and yet farther back, and
first of all, a knowledge of the love oil God tC
US in giving Himself for Us.
81 For if We love them which love YOU
what thank have We; for sinners also love
those that love them" Yet many people
give as a reason for thinking thcmselve,
Christians that they love the brethren moi
considering this verse, or that unless THEN
love extends to their enemies they have moth
ing to boast of i'll the way of evidence. Al
these things are traits of love which has nt
native origin i'll human hearts, but emanate
from the being Of God, descending into tA'
hearts of His own and passing back through
them to Him again.
33, a. What thank have ye.1 Here is thu
same question asked second and third time
} emphasizing the fact that if we seek here il
this life return for all we do, we are moth
ing different from the sinners about us VIII,
| know nothing of a better life an endless life
an age to come. Jesus said to the Pharise
INTO whose house lie went one sabbath Gay
; to eat bread, that when He made feast III
should invite the poor and such as could no
recompense Him again, content to he rec
ompcnsed ut the resurrection of the jus
luke xiv, l3, IA. II we seek a present re
ward, riches for their own sake. and tn
praise of men, and obtain it, that is all Their
is to it and with this life il ends; but if W
seek the approval Of God, we shall have Hi
blessing in this life aud eternal rewards Il
the resurrection.
} 81, 30. BE We therefore mercilu, as you
: Father also is mercful" We shall ever hav
to do in this world with unthankful and eVi
people, and if we expect meet reward from
those whom we serve we shall often he sadl,
= disappointed. Many time we shall fail I.
) receive common gratitude. We may oftel
be abused for our well doing and have tn
most selfish motives attributed to us: but al
this will only give better occasion TO prov
the reality OF our love Mercy includes no
only kindness but loving kindness, as it
often translated in the Old Testament; AN
when we by the Spirit of God are able t
show loving kindness to the unthankful an
! evil we will prove ourselves to be children O