Crawford avalanche., 1892-09-15

The lesson for Sunday. Sept. IS, may
be found ID John 20: 22-3O.
"a, INTRODUCTORY.
A lesson Is here introduced from the
Gospel Of John. It takes US back into
the life OF Christ and to his own say
ings, a resort which needs often to be
made. Who was Jesus? Who is Jesus2
1t Is the worlds query still, And how
refreshing It Is to come away from
mems surmises and specutations 20
Christ's own word regarding himself.
! Surely we can make no mistake here.
the outline is SO plain. Il and my
Father are one" On this central prin-
ciple OF the deity OF Christ Is based all
Christian doctrine, all Christian benefi-
cence, all Christian hope. Study II
well.
WHAT THE LESSON SAYS.
At Jerusalem. This Is the beginning
OF new paragraph and might well have
marked the opening of another chapter
That which goes before was in connec-
tion with the Feast of Tabernacles, sew
eral months earlier.-The feast OF
dedication. Greek: imitation or conse-
Grafton. 1t was much like the Feast Of
Tabernacles, and was instituted to COM
memorate the rebuilding of the sacred
place under the Maccab@ans b. G. 164.
Like the feast OF Purim 1t was of po-
litical character and was added to the
older sacred festivals Of Passover, PEN
tecost and Tabernacles.
Jesus walked. Better, was walking.
Imperfect tense, of frequentative or
customary action. Suggestively, the
word peripatetic is from this verb. Jesus
was the great peripatetic teacher.--
6olomon's porch. On the northeastern
side Of the temple.
-
AS II anxious to learn. The word means
sometimes to besiege. us to
doubt. Apeculiar expression, literally,
hold up our souls, |. g., in suspense.-
Plainly. The word elsewhere rendered
boldly. Heb. A: 16; 10: 10. Confidence
! at Heb. 10: 35 is the same word. 1t
signifies here strong. free utterance.
l told you; g. g., 8: So. In recent
conversation. Ye believed not. Rather,
believe not, present tense.-Bear wit
ness, 1. e., give the plain declaration of
his divinity for which they were asking.
Not of my sheep. The essential quail
ity of lamblike discipleship, then, is
faith. ~
Ny sheep hear. Faith affecting all
the faculties. The word here signifies
to hearken.@I know them. They
recognized in the accent of his voice one
Faith guiding the foot as we'll as the
ear.
/ give to them eternal life. very
plain. answer to their question:
Neon. Greek: into the eternities. No
man. Better, no one (tis) Pluck.
AS used OF the forcible seizure that
would mark the violent action of wild
beast.
My Father. Rather, the Father
Greater than ALL The reference Is here
to his might Fathers hand. One
OF the sweetest expressions of all the
word.
/ and my Father are one. Greek: I
and the Father, one are. They have
their answer. What will they do' What
will you?
WHAT THE LESSON TEACHES.
told you and ye believed not? It
was not more information they needed,
but more faith. He had told them over
and over again, and yet how many we're
still unbelieving (the verb is In the
present tense, ye believe not). Indeed
all Christ's works kept clamoring of his
divinity, and yet they kept saying, tell
us again, tell US plainly. How like wit
less, petulant children we all arei
Christ's early miracles are still before
US, his latter day works, more wonder
full still, press upon US, his words Of
eternal life, his wonderful career are
known to US and yet we say, How long
dost thou make us to doubt? II thou be
the Christ tell us plainly" What is the
matter with US? The DEVILS unfaith.
give unto them eternal life. Iheard
a famous preacher of the West giving
his conception of the Christ He had
come out into q new light. The words
"atonement, substitution" and "the
blood" were left behind. Christ was
merely the reconciler, no punishment
borne, no debt paid. Jesus Christ came
to show the way back to the Father and
to declare the love Of God and eternal
life. No wonder the artless and ingenu-
Gus young Christian to whom he was
talking in his large way, but happily in
vain, startled him suddenly with the
query, Doctor, you believe that Jesus
was divine, do you not?" He paused,
why do you ask me such a question:"
Nay, good doctor Of divinity, the ques-
ton Is not strange; we common people
look for an atonement that pays some
thing and Christ that gives some
thing. Alas for the pulpits that read
no deeper than Il show unto them eter-
nal life.
Neither shall any man pluck them out
Of my hand. How about devils? Sup
pose we leave III as written, nelCner
sholl any one-man, angels. princi-
palities, powers. God is able to subdue
them all and bring his own of more
than conquerors. 1t was Whitheld's
last text preached from English soil,
and with 1t he bade defiance to all the
powers of the world and to death itself.
Surely 1t is well with those who put
their trust in Christ. have just been
reading that marvellous Fifty-third of
Isaiah as it tells of him who for this
humble Offering of his soul shall be
made TO divide his portion with the
strong" and / have dropped my head
on the book and said, prayerfully,
Lord Jesus, my portion with thinel"
Say il again, IF God be for us. who Is
he that is against us?" r O., what care
we, who are kept. Kept by the power
of God, through faith unto salvation"
Duncan Matheson saw death approach
ing, and he ordered this word of min
gled defiance and confidence placed upon
his tombstone, this and nothing more
kept"
) Next Lesson---The Lords Supper