Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1896-12-11
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON xl, FOURTH QUARTER, IN
rCRNATlONAL SERIES, DEC. 10.

Prov. xiii, 21-Commentary by the Rev.
ID. NJ. stearns.
Is. my son, il thine heart be wise, my
heart shall reioice-even mine, " In listen
Ing to this father entreating his son we
must think of our Heavenly Father en-
treating His children, for all the love Of
parents to children is but the faintest shad-
ow Of the love of our Father in heaven. AS
physically, so spiritually, the heart is ev-
erything, and without healthy heart the
body cannot have perfect health, so with
out new heart we cannot have spiritual
health. Out of the heart are the issues of
life prov. iv, 49, Out of the abundance
of the heart the mouth speaketh (Math. xiii
8D. Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts
and all uncleanness, for 1t is desperately
wicked (Math. XIV, 10; Jer. xvii, 10).
10. "Yea, my veins shall rejoice when
thy lips speak right things" The sub
stance of our conversation indicates the
condition of our heart, and If we thought
of this we might be more careful Of our
words The Lord looks upon the heart
and not only so, but upon the Imagination
of the thoughts of the heart Il Sam. xvi,
z; 1 Chron. xviii 81, and perhaps this
may help us to understand the veins. q"
Parents may we'll rejoice in their inmost
being when their children speak right
things.
II. LET not thine heart envy sinners,
but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the
day long" A new heart is a heart in
which God dwells; it is put In us by God
Himself that He alone may occupy it. 1t
is a new spring to our actions, W, 5 and
thoughts, new motive for everything,
even God working in us those things which
are pleasing in His sight. Such heart
will not envy sinners, but will rejoice in
the Lord Away, and, abiding in His love,
satisfied with His goodness, will fear to
grieve Him lest it lose this fellowship,
which is heaven on earth.
IS. For surely there is an end, or re-
ward, and thine expectation SAIL not be
cut off" See this repeated in chapter
xiv, IA, and add Jer xxx, II, Il know
the thoughts 1 think toward you, saith
the Lord, Thoughts of peace and not of
evil, to give you an end and expectation.
The expectation of the return of Christ, and
the righteousness that shall then be seen,
the wrongs that shall be righted and the
glory that shall be revealed, is the most
helpful truth which 1 as u redeemed soul
have ever seen. Do not the words END
"reward, " expectation" all point to it2
Well has it been written, He that hath
this hope in Him, purifeth himself even as
He is pure" Il John iii, 3D.
10. Hear thou, my son, and be wise,
and guide thine heart in the way" Our
Lord said, " BE wise as serpents and harm
less as doves" (Math. Y, 16). And in Jas.
! iii, II, we read of the nature of true wis
/ dom, that it is first pure then peaceable,
gentle and easy to be intreated full Of
mercy and good fruits, without Partially,
and without hypocricy" Surely this is
none other than Christ Himself, and as to
the way, there is none but He. He is wis
dom, and He is the way, and Christ in US
is the hope of glory, the glory which recti-
fies our life here and purifics from all un-
cleanness.
90 BE not among wine bibhers; among
riotous eaters of flesh " This sort of thing
belongs to the wisdom of earth, which is
sensual and devilish GAS. ill., 49,. The
kingdom of God is not meat and drink,
but righteousness and peace and joy in the
Holy Ghost G2om. xiv, ~. The word for
the believer is BE not drunk with wine,
but be filled with the Spirit" (Eph. V, 49,
Any method Of reform short of that which
looks to new heart, new fountain with
in, will prove unavailing. The old nature
is incurably corrupt in the sight of God
(Rom. viii -, and though it may be made
moral and somewhat temperate, it never
can enter the kingdom. Only that which
is born from above can enter (John iii, 3,
margin).
2l For the drunkard and the glutton
shall come TO poverty, and drowsiness
shall clothe n man with rags. " Whatever
may become of the drunkard as to this life
1t is written that drunkards cannot inherit
the kingdom Il Cor. Vi, l0) AS to the
glutton he was according to law, to be
stoned with stones (Deut xxi, 90, 2l).
90. "Hearken unto thy father that begat
thee and despise not thy mother when she
is old. " One would think such commands
wholly unnecessary if we did not know the
wickedness of the human heart, but God,
who knows the heart, has written it. Let
each one ask himself, Gam l clean before
God in this natter" Then how much
more should we hearken to Him who has
of His own will begotten us with the word
of truth GAS. i, 1S), who pitch like ia
ther and comforts as mother (Ps. Gill, ID;
lisa. Xvi 13), who says, Incline your ear
and come unto me, hear and your soul
shall live" Elsa. ", -.
90. buy the truth and sell it not; also
wisdom, instruction and understanding, "
Omitting the word also" which is in
! lldllCSg We learn llldb Nllc biulll 10 OhOSS
three things, or that Jesus Christ, who is
the truth, is the sum of all wisdom and
understanding. lisa ", l, says we can buy
without money and without price. We Ger
tainly cannot in any sense give an equiva-
lent for what we get as we do in ordinary
buying and selling, but there is "A giving
up or laying down of our own thoughts
and opinions that He may be our wisdom
and our righteousness. Lay thou thy
treasure in the dust and the Almighty
shall be thy treasure" dob xxi, "a, 20,
r. W.
"a THE father of the righteous shall
greatly rejoice, and he that begetteth a
wise child shall have joy of him" just
as with earthly parents some children are
great joy and some are IA great sorrow, SC
among the children of God some are JOY
, 10 Him and others a grief. We read OF
some who "rebelled, and vexed His Holy
Spirit lisa. xiii, 1O), and of some who