Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1891-08-20
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
SERIOUS SUBJECTS CAREFULLY
CONSIDERED.

Time Well Spent
The lesson for Sunday. Als-ea, may DO
toubd In John 8; 1910
INrRODucroRY.
This h lesson linking two worlds to-
gether Chrtst's presence. as bread OF life,
or the hereafter. to be assured, and gives
us much OF heaven now. Into many a home-
during these days OF summer, has come the
angel OF death. Has this scripture been so
real and meaningful as 20 make life TO be
swallowed up OF death2 Across the stormy
sea. In the verses that just precede. We
descry. the Lord Jesus approaching his
wave-eossed disciples They cry out al
first In apprehension and dread Then
speaks the sweet, reaSsurtng voice, at Is j.
be OF sfraid.r o 70 hear " tn sickness,
loss. bereavement 9All thtngs work to-
gether for good to them that love God"
There comes no visitation 10 US, as the
children OF God. out OF whose depths there
speaks not the voice Of Jesus Christ. who
could turn water into wine and stone to
bread. can take any experience OF the soul
and make IL to mean the pastures green
and wetecs still by which he feeds his own
WHAT THE LESSON SAYS
Te seek me. To search for. They had
just come 20 the other side Of the sea. look
Ing for him-Ye saw the miracles. With
true apprehension They saw the mira
cles and yet they did not see them. L O..
understand their sign Language. Were
filled strong word. gorged. satisfied.
So much otsthe flesh Is there In our best
seeking
Labor not II is better to render this as
In the verses which follow. work. The word
means 70 be occupied with---.Sieat. Food.
Or anything TO be eaten-Perishes Or
Is brought TO naught 1. O.,
does not come TO naught,-Into everlast-
ing life Or into life eternal. The same
food on earth and In heaven.-Give %
you. Christ as self-giving. Him hath
God the Father sealed Literally, ~This
one hath the Father sealed. God,r as II
with the name OF God Christ bears the
mark and stamp of God. The. same word is
used OF Gods people la Rev. vii ("sealed
the servants OF our Godr).
Work the works. Same wocd as labor In
v. 27.--Of God. And so have Gods re-
ward for doing Gods work.
The work OF God. The source and center
OF all service In faith.-Believe on. A
large idea. embracing acceptance, appro-
priat!on and trust---Hath sort. Or simply
sent Aorist tense From this verb comes
the word apostle, one sent.
What sign showest thou tbesa2 Literally,
What, therefore, doest thou. as sign. See
Revision. Thou, emphatic Believe
thee Not. as our Lord directs In the verse
bafora- .-aAslI lave on. .---sVh.sg -siost -uhou
work? Or, How do6t thou work? AS IL to
say, allow do you conduct yourself TO prove
this divine seal Of which you speak?n
Our fathers. The our ssems, emphatic
Mama. This was their seai from God.
From heaven. more inmiuOHsiy. as In Re-
vision. Out OF heaven (See 'Variations.C
Moses gave you not. The English form
Is ambiguous. Greek. Not Moses gave you.
The emphasis Is placed on the word Moses,
In the Revision. See Variations. m the
Bible Union (Dr. Conant) the emphasis is
kept on the word bread or possibly the word
rfxy
from heaven This letter, on inc Whole,
seems more In line with the whole thought
of the context, T. e., that Christ himself Is
the bread of God.-The true bread mark
ing the point of emphasis.
WHAT TIE LESSON TEACHES.
That meat which endureth- Such meat
my soul Graves. There 1. something ten
derly pathetic about the cry Of that woman
at the well when told OF the ever spring.
ing fotTutain. @Sfr, give me this water
that thirst not, neither come hither TO
draw.r She was so tired. so worn with the
re urreBt thirst, TO which she must daily
minister with her weary marches across the
hot sands. Our Lord would give TO her
living water, the water OF everlasting life
And now he promises living bread. the food
of life eternal aMaster, eat,n his disciples
cry. Jesus: al have meat 60 eat that ye
know not off, Master, evermore give US
this meat And such he gives. aHath any
man brought him aught tn eat?" Is the
query. No, this Is meat purchased at no
market-place on earth AMY meat Is to do
the will Of him that sent me and to finish
his wcrk.r And here he says; "The Son of
man shalt give unto you" Christ teaches
Us that God has a will and work in US.
When we yLe.d to that will our souls are
daily fed. when we bend TO that work there
is ceaSeieSs strength within. And why
does that meat endure? Because the will
continues and the work Is an everlasting
work. Indeed IL takes both earth and
heaven to "fnishn 1t
Lord, evermore give us this bread. IL is
the highest cry Of the soul as yell as the
humblest Here speaks the spirit within.
the spirit that teaches US to say. In. child
accents abba, Father 1t asks and keeps
on asking. sEvermore give- Is fits cry.
AFor the bread OF God Is no which comethi
down from heaven" He comes and keeps
on coMinc; In this sense, too, we call,
enough for to-day We need to call upon
heaven for fresh supplies OF grace. New
manpa. new manifestations of Christ's
presence and power There Is bread for
adversely and bread for prosperity, bread
for the sunlight and bread for the night
Seasons bread for Jerusclem's happy hill
tops and for Babylons gloomy banks.
Christ COMES anew to us in all our expert
ences. He n living bread Thus 1t Is that
he @giveth life unto the worlds
This Is the work of God, that ye beiinve.
And so faith itself is work. Faith without
works Is dead; because true faith hc;u o.
work, IL Is work. And yet how this humbies
our human strivingsl We think 10 work
out our own salvation. But how shalIit be?
IL is God working In us OF his good pleasure
We come to the Master and we say, 9Lord,
what shall we think?n HIS answer Is,
sOnly believe.~ But Lord. what shall we.
say? -Only belteve.- Not that we are to
sit with folded hands In indolent acquies-
IN (.Qe k I.fat T.
tive. active virtue. aThis IS the work OF
God that ye believe on him whom he hath
sent" 10 believe on one sent Is To accept
the sent one, to believe on one sent Is to
enthrone the One who Is sent Ia the heart.
so that benceforth Il may be said of US. -As
thou hast sent me into the world. even SO
have also sent them into the world" Faith
does it all o to have faitht No fear then
for the Lords work.
Him that cometh unto me will In no
wise cast eat Who are the cast-aways OF
earth? Assemble. IL you can, In thought,
the souls cast out into outer darkness Who
put them there1 What Was the force that
thrust them away? Is Judas onea He
went b his own place. self-cbosen- self
furnished. Was Dives onef He had Moses
and he prophets whom he woald nos hear.
whose COUNSEL he himself cast away. Was
the young man whom Jesus loved one?
He was entreated To come nigh. but he
turned hts back on such riches for he Lad
sgreat possessions" o the cry that rings
through the pit Of the lost is one aud the
same. AVE are, by Ourselves. cast out, we
put God from US. our own sins thrust us
frcm heaven aud heavens ds,fghts.- 1t Is
truth Of all scripture, corroiso~ated by all
cxperience. Christ casts forth no man. He
sti ! speaks kind Of pathetic word, Of
which there Is no gainsayiRg- sfe will not
come unto me that ye might have life.r
will raise him up at tho is~t day. Here
Is faiths rencccst confidence Not yet has
this word been fulfilled. fo~ net yet Is the
last day. But already IL is pat ~ the test