Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1891-03-05
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
AN INTERESTING AND NsT7Uc-
TIVE LESSON.
Reflections of nm Elsvating Charactor-
Wholesome Food for Thought = study.
ing the scripturai Lesson IntsllisentiJ
and Probably.

Wholesome Food for Thought : study.
ing the scrfptural Lesson IntslIigontiJ
and Probably.
The lesson for Sunday. March 9, m y be
found In III. Kings 8; IA.
Golden text-Who forgiveth all thine
lniquities; who healeth all thy diseases
Ps 103; 3.
INTRODUCTORY.
We have before us a beautiful lesson; nc
difficulty In interesting both young and old
In its inci1ents. And the spiritual teach
ings, too, are quite apparent 1t basi
strong Calvinistic flavor, tho Douay verpfon
especially bringing this out (Sco Varia-
tions). In the latter we read that he was
Al valiant man and rich,n and yet his valoT
and r.ches could do nothing for him. We
read also that IL was bbersn who had
brought this little serving ma into their
midst. And so our part In the transaction
of the cross which brought the world saliva
tlon was only violence and murder. More
over, we read the directions, "Wash and
thou shalt be clean" Furthermore. @Ano
he was made cleann Surely, IL is "not by
might nor by power, but by my Spirit,
saith the Lord of hosts"
WHAT THE LESSON SAYS
Now. Introducing another incident from
the life of Elisha, probably one OF the ia
miliar folk-stories of the time--a true folk
story. meaning pleasant; from
the word signifying grace, favor. 1t is this
same word that occurs in the well-known
passage, "Her ways are ways of pleasant
ness" prov. 3: 17)-With his master.
Literally, Before his master, or I'm the eyes
OF, 1. g., he was a favorite
Hebrew, salvation. 9With an everlasting
salvation.n lisa. 45:17 has this same word.
At Samuel 10: the word is again used ne
here. MIR. Lumby of the Cambridge Bible
suggests that this was the Hebrew way Of
putting II, |. O., @the Lord had given. "A
.t.-N.A
the word as used here In the sense accepted
at Gen. "a: 20, renders 1t valiant man and
rich. See Variations A leper Hebrew.
smitten.
With his horses. In ceremony.-And
stood at the door. More ceremony,
Sent a messenger. The healing was not
through the person of Elisha. Wash.
From the word meaning to overwhelm.-
In Jordan. or course implying entrance 60
the stroam.-And thou shalt be clean.
Imperative form, Be thou clean. So at
Matt. 8: 3.
WHAT THE LESSON TEACHES.
A leper. Here are "a succession of sug-
yestive pictures in this lesson. And the
first is representation of the sinner. Sin
Is moral leprosy, and IL has taken hold OF
all tho race. Leprosy spreads through all
the body, step by step. So sin. Says DIR.
Guthrie: "Sln is like the descent of a hill.
where every step we take increases the diff
aculty of our return. Sin is like river in
its course; the longer IL runs IL wears q
deeper channel and the farther from the
fountain 1t swells In volume and acquires a
greater strength. Sin is like tree In its
progress; the longer It grows it spreads its
roots the wider; grows taller, grows thicker,
till the sapling which once an infants arm
,ould bend raises its head aloft defiant of
the strong" Sin Is very cancer for hide
)us growth.
A little maid. Here was the instrument.
God uses agents, and here IL is, u little
child again that leads. She found her cry
where the prophet could not They tell us
that company of di,solutc and wicked
men used To meet to exchange ribald. skep-
tical words In a certain drinking club
George Whitfield was preaching near by, but
II course had no access to this vile throng
But negro boy had. And one night they
had him exercise his unusual power of MIN
icry by "taking otfn the great preacher
He protested, for his own heart had been
reached, but they compelled him. their
slave, to go on. He did 50: aMe speak do
truth in Christ, me lie not" Then, forget
ing himself and his African patois. he ut
tered enc OF George Whitfcld's great texts:
Except ye repent ye shall all likewise per-
ish" 1t went like an arrow TO their hearts
and the club was broken up.
/ will send a letter. Such, indeed. is
prayer-a letter sent unto the king. The
king here was the wrong person, but IL
found right destination when 1t reached
Elisha. the servant of God who is the true
king. That letter was n small thing, but IL
led to Naaman's recovery. Prayer seems
a little thing, but 1t sets mighty engines In
operation for us. "Nhat can that little boy
loYn said the thames when they tried to
take his fathers estates away from the
young King Alfred. al can pray to God I'm
Heaven" was the truly royal reply.
And stood at the door. Here is personal
resort, IL properly accompanies prayer.
~
20 the Lord" Some OF us are satisfied with
sending on the words; we do not ourselves
turn TO the Lord. III so the words arO
meaningless. They go not higher than our
heads. The Lord wants us to come our
selves to the door. Prayer is but the meth
Cd OF approach the roadway, as it were.
McCheyne, we hear, was accustomed TO say
that he spent great part OF his time In
getting in tune for prayer, ]. O., for the per-
sonal presentation. Says Gunnell: alt is
harder to get bell up than 1t Is to ring Ii
when IL Is up.n
Go and wash. Our part is cleansing. The
healing is of God, but he acts through our
activity, not through our inactivity, God
working In us of his good pleasure. The
trouble with men to-day is in their failure
to live up to these two words, CO. wash.
The way is open, the fountain lies broad.
IL we fail of salvation it is because of
something we fail to do. God can do no
more for us than he has, until we accept
what he has done. On the pavement of
cell across the water is written the word
aResist.p 1t Is the word that tells the
secret OF impenitence in every sin-receptive
heart.
Wash and be clean. Why not? Our leprosy
seems past this cleansing Of this water, but
so he bids us; respond In faith. "Everything
Is clear to me now,p said some one to the
pastor; al do not know how nor why IL is so.
But you read hymn the other night with
these words:
IA guilty, weak. and helpless worm.
On thy kind arms / falls
Be thou my strength and righteousness,
My Jesus and my ALL"
al saw then at once I had nothing to do
but to trust Jesus =. Why, sir, don't you
think that the reason why we do not get
out OF our darkness soonas is that we don't
believefn
And he was clean. w. clean, that was
all He hadn't cleansed himself. This was
the Lords doing, and marvellous In HIS eyes.
When Mr.. McLaren, of Edinburgh, lay dy-
ing his ministerial associates said to him:
aWhat are you doing. brotherS" Said he,
II will tell you what am doing, brother,
am gathering together all my prayers, all
my sermons. all my good deeds, all my evil
deeds; and / am going TO throw them all
overheard. and swim TO glory on the plank
Of Free Grace"