Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1890-11-28
RISEN FROM THE DEAD.
LESSON TX, FOURTH QUARTER, IN
TERNATlONAL SERIES, NOV. 80.

]
Commit Verses 6-9.-GoIden Text,
Cor. XIV, 20-Commentary by Rev. ID. NJ.
Stearns.
compiled from Lesson Helper Quarterly by per-
mission of II. S. Hoffman, publisher, Phadel-
phia.l
L Nov upon the first day of the week,
very early in the morning, they came unto
the sepulcher, bringing the spices which
they had prepared, and certain others with
them" On Friday afternoon His body
wrapped in linen, with about hundred
pound weight of spices which Nicodemus
provided, was by him and Joseph of Ari-
mathea laid in Joseph's new tomb, where
in was never man yet laid John xix, 3S-
42). According to Matthew and Mark,
some of the women of Galilee who fol-
lowed Him, ministering unto Him, saw
Him die as they stood afar off, or
rather were standing afar off when He
died, and also saw where Joseph and Nico-
demus buried Him. Then they returned
and prepared spices and ointments and
rested the Sabbath day according to the
commandment (XXiii 56) These are they
who come so early to the sepulcher. With
sad and heavy hearts they come to add one
more kindness to the many which they
have already bestowed on Him whom they
loved so we'll He will no doubt give them
full credit for all their loving kindness,
but if they had only believed Him they
would have been spared this labor and ex-
/ pense We often mean well in our desire
to serve Him, but like these women do
much fruitless work because of unbelief.
;. And they found the stone rolled
away from the sepulcher" They said as
/ they csme, "Who shall roll us away the
stone from the door of the sepulcherf"
/ Mark xvi, 81 But they find that difficulty
/ removed ere they come to it.
3. And they entered in and found not
the body of the Lord Jesus" Putting the
various accounts together, it would seem
that Mary Magdalene was the first to find
the sepulcher empty and the stone rolled
away, and that she, too, was the first to
! tell Peter and John John XXX, /, q. Then
it would seem that the other women came
and saw an angel sitting upon the stone
which had been rolled away, and also an
angel sitting in the sepulcher, and that
each told them to go and tell His disciples
that He was risen Matt. xviii, 2, Z; Mark
xvi, 5, y. Mary Magdalene seems to have
fingered after the others, so blinded by
| grief and tears that she either did not know
]
the tomb, or did not care to know; neither
did she know Jesus himself when He first
spoke to her until He called her by name.
So binding is unbelieving grief.
4. And it came to pass as they were
much perplexed thereabout, behold two
men stood by them in shining garments"
! These are probably the same two men
toned by Matthew and Mark. Jesus sent
the seventy, two and two before Him luke
Y, y: the Spirit sent forth Paul and Barna-
has, then Paul and Silas, Barnabas and
Mark acts xiii, .; XIV, 80, 40J. In the be-
ginning of the church's history, and also
in Jesus last days, we read of Peter and
John rs fellow laborers duke xxi, S; Acts
iii, /; iv, 10. So also we often find the
angels two together, as when two accom-
panied the Lord to visit Abram and two
/ appeared at the ascension Gen. xviii, |, .;
/ Acts i, lUl.
B. And as they We're afraid, and bowed
down their faces to the earth, they said
unto them, Why seek We the living omar
gin, Him that liveth) among the dead?" See
His own words to John long afterward: Il
am the first, and the last, and the living
one; | was dead and behold am alive for
evermore" (Rev. i, II, 49, r. W We learn
from this verse that unbelief causes fear
and turns our faces earthward. The rene
dy is to look up and see Him who is alive
forevermore, and who has the keys of hades
and DEATH who has all power in heaven
and on earth; who says Fear thou not, for
| am with thee" There is a word here,
too, for those who think too much of the
spot where the mortal bodies of our loved
ones are laid. Rather let us look up to
where they are alive and well, if so be that
they have died in Christ.
6. "IIe is not here, but is .isen: remem-
Der how He spake unto you when He was
yet in Galiee." 1t would not do for us to
say of our dead in Christ that they are
risen for "risen" refers to the body, and
the body remains in the grave till the res
direction of the righteous at the coming OF
Christ; but we may truly say as we look
into the grave, They are not here; they
are with Christ"
Z. Saying, The Son of Man must be de
livered into the hands of sinful men, and
be crucilied, and the third day rise again.
Many times had He said these very words
just as plainly as these angels now said
them Matt xvi, 81; xvii. %; XXX, 10; see
also John ii, 10; Matt. xii, 40), but they had
never believed them.
s. And they remembered His words. u
That was the right thing to do. If they
had remembered sooner they would have
saved themselves much sorrow.
8. "And returned from the sepulcher
and told all these things unto the eleven
and TO all the rest" Remembering Hi:
. word makes us forget our sorrow. ant
turns us away from the dead to minister
unto the living.
10. at was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna
and Mary, the mother of James, and othel
women that were with them, which told
these things unto the apostles" Accord
ing to the word of the angels, go quickly
and tell His disciples that He is risen from
the dead" they departed with fear anC
great joy, and did run to bring His dis
ciples word" 1t was then that Jesus me
them and said, BE not afraid; go tell my
brethren" Matt. xviii, 40. The ex
! PLANTATION of any seeming difficulty in tn,
various accounts is that some of the evan
gelists summarize matters, while Others
give certain item or items more in detail
There are no contradictions.
3 IL. and their words seemed to them a
idle tales, and they believed them not.
Paul preached Jesus and the resurrection
Mt Athens soma mockad and nj hers said