The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1893-12-16

Doctrfncs OF the Church In Its Struggle
with Ignorauce. Unbeiief aud Evil. ss
uafslded by the Beloved Disciple St.
John.
Golden tcat: Wherefore God also hath
highly cxalsed him and given him name
which Is above every name
Lesson: Revelation l. 0-2O
This book has been received by the
church as the work Of SC. John. the be-
/ loved disciple; aai it unfolds the destinies
Of the church ia its struggle with ignor-
norance, unbelc: and evil, until the final
trinmph OF Christ and His cause. The
revelation is given TO Jesus 20 be com
municafed TO Hia servants, through John.
(Sce verse L. Spiritual realities. actual or
70 come, are represented by sensible pic
fures. fSee chapter XII. 81 First OF all, is
shown the form OF Christ, as Lord and
head of the church.
/. THE VOICE TEARD tVerses ell)
/. The narrator of the vision. h) Il
John"--this Is alter the example OF Daniel,
who is the Old Testament apocalyptist as
John is that If the New Testament. 0see
Daniel vii. 10; viii. 1, 10. "a; TX. 2; x. D. z;
xii. Sd The writer wishes his readers TO
/ know that he IS tho wefi-known Jehiir Civ
ing his name as authority for the accuracy
Of his report (b) He is anxious to
identity himself with his Christian read
ers as ''brother," child OF the same
Heavenly Father bound by brotherly ties
20 Jesus and TO all His people, having
brotherly love 20 them, engaged In the
same gospel work, and living for the same
end, the promotion Of Christ's cause and
Kingdom on earth
II was a hard time for Christians A
cruel emperor was ruling over Rome's
vast territories. He had prosecuted the
Christians. They needed something to
cheer them. In sending this revelation
Of the final triumph of Jesus and His
church. John claims TO be sharer in the
aufferings of the Christians of his day. as
he wishes them tn be sharers In his hopes
and ioys--the effect of his visions of the
church's destlnivs. "Sharer" is good
translation Of the word used by John.
.Partaker'' has the same meaning.
:. He is sharer of ''the trbulation"
we'll known tribulation. This may mean
either s'the tribnlation" that Jesus fore
told that His followers should suGer (see
John xvi. 33): or else the actual persecu.
fion which John was then sharing with
his fellow-C Ii ristians; or it may mean
both. Compare 2 Timothy Iii. IL; Rev.
vii o: Matt TX. 22) To be like Christ
John had 10 suffer, in the spirit that
Paul Expresses when he desires to
know Christ and the fellowship OF
His suffer,ngs. "In afiliction" inti-
mates the sphere OF this fellowship.
4. "Sharern in the kingdom-John was
lust as rcaiiy la the Kingdom of Christ
then as he was in "affllction"-partaker of
Its blessings--its graces here and It's hopes
of glory hereafter. 3. "Sharer in en-
durance' enabled by grace to endure
af1liction 10 as to inherit the kingdom.
Notice, this patience, or endurance TO the
end. upites the sufferings with the king
dom in which glory is TO be at last fully
enioyed. I'm Jesus"--afIliction kingdom.
patience--are all three in that spiritual
sphere in which Jesus lives aud reigns
aud blesses His people. The Revised Ver-
sion rightly reads-"In the trlbulation
and kingdom aud patience" which are lin
Jesus" Only ''in Jesus" are affliction,
the hope OF glory. aud endurance OF suffer
ing blessed TO us. (c) "The island called
Patmos" this manner Of describing
the place proves that the island
was of no great Importance. IL
was of small extent, being about
eight miles long by one broad. barren
spot, where convicts were banished to
work in the mines and quarres, about 6O
miles west of Ephesus. Victorlnus, a
bishop and martyr, writing about 100 years
later, says that john was banished To this
ISLAND by Domitian, the emperor OF Rome,
land was released when Domitian was
slain. John was an old man when sent to
live and toll there among robbers and
murderers. He was condemned, as he tells
us here, for being a preacher OF the wCrd
Of the Lord and for confessing and wit
Messing in connection with Christ's gospel;
and was therefore sent to Patmos as q
Christian martyr.
2 In the Spirit. (a.) The mental state
IN which John was when he saw the
visions recorded in this book is described
as being ''in the Spirit" THIS was not
merely the spiritual life of Christian,
John, though spiri t,snlly minded man
was not always in that state. The Greek
verb used intimates that he came into this
unusual state-that he was in an extraor
dinary state Of spiritual exaltation aud
perception. He was raised above him
| self f-fo The days called -"the Lords
Dayn--the day OF rest and worship, the
Christian Sabbath, held in honor of the
risen Christ. In one other place only Is the
word translated Lords" found 1t is an
adjective signifying belonging to the
Lord Jesus Christ" In / Cor. xi. 20 1t is
applied to the Lords supper; but
here II describes "the Lord's
Day. = the well-known weekly feast
celebrating the resurrection OF our Lord
Jesus Christ. fc.l John heard, while in
this exalted state, on the holy Sabbath
held in honor OF Christ. a trumpet-liks
voice, rs il announcing the presence of a
king; it was the voice Of the glori1et
Saviour. The vile companions. the slave
like tasks, the sorrows OF the aget
apostle, were all forgotten for I
while. 1t was the Lords Day; tn,
Lords people were met for worship
away across the blue Egean sea. in dis
tant Ephesus: and, as John remembers
this, he is raisei above himself, while the
rocks and robbers in Patmos seem tc
vanish. and heaven is oper and the glori
fed Chris appears
B Authority. (a) The voice reveals
the speaker. IL is a royal voice. He com
x<anfis ae .,no having autborifv Christ