The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1896-02-13
SABBATHEScH00L LESSON.
dsRNATIUNAL LESSON FOR
, FEBRUARY t6.
son Text "Tbe Great Helper
Luke Will, ,2-16--Goiden Text.
Luke VIII, 16-Com-
mentary.

" There being so many verses In this ics-
III we will omit quotations from the text OF
III Nlesson. We now find Him ia Capernaum,
\ich In Math. lx.. 1. Is called Ills own
|f&-y, probably because when reject I'd at
lc1W Wzareth He made Cnpernaum His Gallean
he>hter and there wrought so many OF His
htxNghty works The flrst fact OF this lesson,
II xt 20 the presence OF Christ. is that a Ro-
I'm centurion had a servant who was very
Y ar to him. and this servant was at this
q me very sick, and II seemed as IL he would
y ie. Math. viii. Q, says that his sickness was
!, he palsy, and that he was grievously tor
a 1entod. He was n helpless man.
a- 3. This centurion seems TO have known
. l1omewhat OF Jesus. either having heard or
II zen some of the things which He had done,
II, nd hearing that He was In the city he sent
tj1apme OF the elders OF the Jews to ask Him to
pine and heal his servant. We may imagine
cat the centurion lost no time. His dear
oo ryant seemed TO be dying; there was no
'Nope for bin, no human helper; the only one
Tho could help was In the city; the ono
iing TO do was to have Him come quickly.
III ssus is the very same to-day. II helpless,
,lll Him.
4, 0. When the elders came TO Jesus. their
| plea was that the centurion was worthy be-
l cause he hau shown his love FOR the Nation
by building synagogue. The same thought
Is In many minds to-day. for there are many
VIII thluh lhbt II lncN Duliu n cnNrcn, or
| give 80 much 60 the church. or to the pcor
or TO missions, or to some good cause. they
! will thus merit the favor cf God, Vhereas
, the fact IL that grace means favor for the
undeserving, the poor and tho helpless and
even those who are rebelling against God.
Consider well Rom. W, Z, 3, and kindred
passages until you sen the meaning Of grace.
. u. Jesus at once went with them, not be-
cause the centurion was worthy, but because
g OF the need OF the poor, sick and helpless
servant, but other servants met Him, IRON
the centurion, with this message; III aul not
a worthy that Thou shoudest enter unie- my
! roof" The grace OF God was doing some
/. thnc Tor this man, for IL Is only by grace
that we get true humility. Job thought u
great deal OF himself till he saw God; then
he abhored himself and magnned God.
Compare job xxx. with xiii. , 6, and see also
Isa. VI. 5. and Dan. y, g..
2. Not only did the centurion feel unworthy
tohave Jesus come into his house, but ho
also felt unworthy even TO come to Jesus aud
now sends by these servants this message:
"Say IN word, and my servant shall be
healed" or, as in Math will, 8, "Spcak the
word only" Is 1t possible that he had be-
come familiar with these words OF Scripture,
"By the word OF the Lord were the heavens
made, He spake, and IL was done" "He
sent his word and healed them?" (ps. xxxiii.,
q. Q; evil. 20.) And was he thus led TO have
such Tnbounded confidence IN this One
whom he evidently believed TO be God or
sent OF God?
S. He knew what ii was to obey and 20 be
obeyed, and somehow he had faith In this
Nan that He could command diseases and
demons at pleasure. 1t is written in the
Psalms, from which book we have already
wanderngly quoted that "flre and hail. snow
q and vapors and stormy wind fulnll His
word" and that the angels who excel In
strength do His commandments. hearkening
unto the voice of His word ops. cxlvii., &;
Cit. 20), and that, though the Lord be
high, yet hath He respect unto the lowly (Ps.
cxxxyii., ~. Did this centurion learn his
faith and humility frou this book?
9. 6ucA n 'ssh .was,sU pleasing z :, ~,
that He spe, % OF II TO the peopleA lscel ~.
any faith that He had seen In Israel. W,air
out faithit is impossible TO please God "a /,
XII, G), but by believing Him and having cnd
iidence in Him we can please Him. That
the disciples receivedthe words OF the Lord
made Him so glad that He spoke OF 1t TO His
Father in His prayer on the night before His
crucihxion (John xvii, 81. Consider also
the faith OF the Syro-Phoenician in Math.
XIV. 2S.
10. When the messengers returned the ser.
want was well. 1t would appear from the
account in Matthew that, having sent the
elders and then the servants. he afterward
went himself &c meet the Lord, and that the
Lord said unto him, Go thy way, and N
thou hast believed so be it done unto thee"
We are reminded OF the nobleman of Caper.
naum whose son WAS sick, and TO whom
Jesus said. "Go thy way; thy son liveth,
The man believed the word and went and
found rs Jesus had said (John iv., 5O) As.
surance and Joy aud peace all come by be.
levng (Rom. XIV, 13).
IL. We now find Him entering the city OF
Main, accompanied by many OF His disciples
and much people. Being sent of God and
filled with the Spirit, He went about doing
good and everywhere taught and healed. He
was truly the Comforter In the power OF the
Spirit, He has given us 4 same Holy
Spirit, whom He calls "the Comforter" that
He in us may still go about doing good In
His name. for we are here In Christs stead
TO magnify God.
IL. As He entered the city the body OF
dead man was being carried out for burial.
and he had been the only stay Of his poor
mother. and she a widow. In q very short
time the body would be laid away out OF the
sight OF that broken hearted widow.
13. The Comforter, the Almighty Helper,
the Resurrection and the Life, meets ner He
is sorry for her, and He says, ''Weep not"
The time Is coming when He will wipe away
all tears and there shall be crying no more
even on this earth (Rev. VIII. II; xxi, ~,
but until that time the tears come, and come
again even though We wipe them away. Yet
there might be fewer tears II there was more
faith In Him.
IA, Is. At His word the procession stops.
He speaks to the dead man, the man lives,
sits up and begins to speak, and Jesus, In.
stead OF saying TO him, "Follow Me-" gives
him back to his mother. What word is this!
1t Is even the same that created the world;
that spake and II was done; the same word
that at the appointed time will bring all dead
bodies from their graves (John W, 2S), the
righteous at the beginning and the rest at
the end OF the hour, or thousand years CRev.
Xxx, 8, 81.
16. They acknowledged Him as a great
prophet and glorifed God saying that He
had visited His people. by and by He will
come in power and glory, and Israel shall
say: "This Is our God, We have waited
for Him, and He will save u.s." Then will
He swallow up death In victory and wipe
away all tears Qsa. XIV, 8, 9). Let His
word enter US now and give foretasto OF
these things. Lesson Helper.
The Wife Barred