The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1892-03-09
SABBATH SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON FOR
MARCH 13.
Lesson Text: promise Of New
Heart" Ezekiel xxxvi., 25.3S-
Golden Text: Ezekiel xxxvi.,
20-Commentary.

| 25. s'Then will I sprinkle clean water upon
you, and ye shall be clean; from all your
cleanse you" Six lessons in Isaiah, four in
jeremiah and one in Ezekiel give us but the
merest glance at the 1876 chapters of those
three books. and yet the teaching of these
lessons is in perfect accord with all prophecy.
| The words Of this verse refer primarily to
the yet future cleansing of the nation OF Is
rael verses 22-24; Jer. xxxii., Z, g, and yet
| may apply in sense to every true believer.
| 26. "A new heart also will give you and
new spirit will put within you" The
seat of all our difficulties being within us,
there must be change there before anything
can be right.
q. And will put My Spirit within you
and cause you to walk in My statutes" The
same spirit who spake and wrought in
Christ, and in prophets and apostles, God
will give to Israel, and gives now to every
believer. Our part is to welcome Him, and
surrender to Him our whole being and He
will do the rest John xiv, 16, IT, 90; xv.,
| 20: xvi, 49,
2s. "And ye shall dwell in the land that
! gave to your fathers; and ye shall be My
people and l will be your God" There is
no way of applying the first part of this
verse to the church or to believers now; it
is peculiarly and only for Israel in the
future. The church has no special land, her
inheritance is heavenly, the New Jerusalem
| from which she shall reign with Christ over
the whole earth. The last part OF the verse
may be spiritually applied to the church.
See II Cor. VI, 1918.
90. II will also save you from all your
uncleannesses; and lay no famine upon you"
| No good thing will He Withhold from them
that walk uprightly (Ps., lxxxiv., III, AMI
while Jesus, by His great work of atone
ment, saves from the wrath to come, He also
| saves by His present power and by His word
| and Spirit in us, from daily sins (Math. l.,
81; Rom. ", 10; Judge xiv, R. w.
30. "And will multiply the fruit Of the
tree, that ye shall receive no more reproach
among the heathen." Peculiarly for Israel,
| and yet when believer is seen longing for
aud enjoying the things of this world that
| are not of God Il John H.. 1910, then it is
| as If he said, "Jesus cannot satisfy me: 7
must have the world too and thus the man.
ifest famine in such'a soul is reproach to
God.
| 81. Then shall ye remember, and shall
loathe yourselves in your own sight for your
iniouities" The Lord will pour upon them
the spirit Of grace and Of supplications, and
there shall be trle repentance when they see
their long rejected King (zech. xii, 1Oy. The
sight Of the King in His glory always causes
loathing of self Elsa. vi, S; Job xiii, 5, 6;
Dan. T.. 81. Pride or self esteem is q proof
that we have not seen Jesus.
SO. mot for your sakes do this saith the
Lord God, be it known unto you" Israel
was not in the first place chosen for any
good that was in them, but all was done for
them because Of Gods promises to Abraham
and to David (Deut. ix., 5, 6, "a: King xi.,
so, "a; Mic. vii, 90. Jesus Of Nazareth is
Son Of David, Son Of Abraham, the promised
seed (Math j., /; GAL ILL.,, 49,, and all who are
in Him have all things made sure to them
for His sake lGal iii, 29).
33. THUS saith the Lord God, will also
cause you to dwell in the cities and the
wastes shall be builded." Compare Zech.
viii, s.. Cleansing first and then restora-
lost fellowship with God through sin, the sin
must be confessed and forgiven before the
communion can be restored.
| "a. And the desolate land shall be titled,
whereas it lay desolate in the sight Of all
that passed by" Its desolateness was re-
proach to God, and a constant advertise
ment of Israeps sin. We as believers
John 1v., -. If our lives are selfish and
self indulgent we are then like Israel in her
rebellion and sinfulness. Hos. <, L.; xi.,7l
IS. And they shall say, Th land that
was desolate is become like the garden Of
Eden" That will cause people to praise the
God OF Israel, and thus other nations will be
drawn to God, even as the Queen OF Sheba
was drawn to Jerusalem by the fame Of
Solomon.
SO. Then the heathen that are left around
about you shall know that l, the Lord, build
the ruined places. !, the Lord, have spoken
and will do it," Multitudes out Of the
nations shall perish in the judgments pre-
ceding Israefs national conversion, or in
connection Herewith, but some shall be left
and these shall go up to Jerusalem from year
to year to worship the King, the Lord of
Lord shall be so manifest that all shall
see 1t.
81. Thus saith the Lord God, will yet
| for this be inquired Of by the house Of Israel
to do it for tnem." He will prepare their
hearts to pray for the blessing he is about
to give. This is His way. While He isever
ready to give every good thing, He will
have US feel our need and ask Him. When
we are specially led therefore to pray for any
thing or for any one, we may safely con-
clude that the spirit is leading US to ask for
that which He is ready to give us.
| 81. las the flock Of Jerusalem in her SOL
emn feasts, so shall the waste cities be filed
with locks OF men, and they shall know that
am the Lord Or, according to Zech. l.,
II, my cieies through prosperity shall yet
be spread abroad; and the Lord shall yet
| comfort Zion, and Snau yeG cnoose Jeru.
salem" And Zech. H., 4, Jerusalem shall
be inhabited as towns without walls for
the multitude of men and cattle there
in." These days are already dawning, and
| the full accomplishment must be near. Oh,
believer, make full surrender to and have
perfect trust in the Lord, that He may make
the most Of you this little while and make
himself known through you. One OF the
clearest evidences that Israel will soon be re-
stored to her own land is that the restora-
tion has already begun, and even now the
population Of Jerusalem has overhown the
walls of the city, and numerous buildings
are being erected on the very lines men
toned in Jer. XXI, 3S-40. Jesus said that
Jerusalem shall be trodden down OF the
! Gentiles until the times Of the Gentiles be
| fulfilled" luke xxi, PA. When city is
visibly being built up and about to become
| railroad center, it cannot we'll bo said to
be trodden down any longer We there
| fore know without doubt that the times
| OF the Gentiles are about fulfilled, lsraers
redemption is near (though the tribulation
must first come, and the elect church must
be we'll nigh completed. Let us be con-
| sumed with zeal to bring in the remaining
/ few and hasten the kingdom.
Helper.