Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1897-05-05
international gessolts.
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON VII, SECOND QUARTER, IN
1ERNATIoNAL SERIES, MAY 16.

Text of the Lesson, Acts xiv, 11-22-Mem-
ory Verses, FL, 2a-Golden Text, Acts Kill,
47-Commentary by the Rev. d. NJ.
stearns.
The power of God was 80 manifest In
His word through the apostles at Antioch
that the next Sabbath almost the whole
city came together to hear the word Of
God (xiii, AZ. This filled the Jews with
such envy that they contradicted and
blasphemed and raised such persecution
against Paul and Barnabas that they were
expelled from the city; not, however, be-
fore many believed and were filled with
Joy and with the Holy Ghost, and were en-
couraged to continue in the grace Of God.
From Antioch they went to Iconium, and
so spake that a multitude both Of Jews
and Greeks believed. But they were COM
PEELED by persecution to flee from there
also, and so came to Lystra and Derbo
and preached the gospel. During che
preaching q man who was lame from his
birth and had never walked was perfectly
healed by the Lord through Paul, and here
our lesson begins.
II. "The gods are come down to Us in
the likeness of men," These were the
words Of the people when they saw the
man that had been lame leaping and walk
ing. They saw a supernatural event In the
healing of this impotent man, and know
ing only of the mythical gods, such as Ju-
piter and Mercurius, of which Jupiter was
the supreme god of the Greeks and Ro-
mans and Mercury the god Of eloquence,
they supposed that their gods had actually
visited them. Let us alter their words just
q little, "God has come down to us In the
likeness Of man," and what glorious
truth we have, and one fully proved by
John /, IA; Tim. lii, IS; Heb. ii, IA.
/ 10. "And they called Barnabas Jupiter
and Paul Mercurius because he was the
chief speaker" Canon Fausset says that
the mythology Of Ovid represented Mer-
GURUS as having once visited Phrygia with
Jupiter, his father, and having been re-
fused hospitality by all but two old peas
ants. Hence the simple people of Lystra
supposed, from the miracle on the cripple,
that Paul and Barnabas were these two
gods again come to earth.
IS. It was the supernatural power man.
ifested through the apostles which caused
these people to attempt to worship them.
We may not perhaps have the working OF
miracles of healing seen in us, for the
Spirit divides His gifts to every one sever
ally as He will Il Cor. xii, 11), but we may
all be filled with the Spirit and manifest
in us the supernatural life of meekness
and quietness, of patience and long suffer-
ing, with joyfulncss, to the glory of God.
IA. "They rent their clothes and ran in
among the people, crying out" While we
should earnestly desire the manifestation
of Christ in us, we should also tremble
lest we get any credit for It, The Lord
alone must be exalted and no flesh glory
in His presence Most of us are too prone
to enjoy little honor and fattery, but 1t
must not be tolerated. "See thou do 1t
not; worship God" must be our word.
Is. "Turn from these vanities unto the
living God" Assuring the people that
they were but men Of like passions with
themselves, men such as themselves but
for the grace of God, they told them Of the
one true and living God, the Creator Of all
things. have been greatly interested In
noticing how often the first verse in all
Scripture is used by prophets and apostles
as, for example, in Deut. K, IA; Neh.
TX, 6; lisa. xiv, "a; Jer. <, 1912; xxxii,
II; Acts ", "a, ETC., and the connections
In which they use it, and I believe we do
not sufficiently consider 1t.
16 "Who in times past suffered all ma
tions to walk in their own ways" While
He draws us unto Himself and would have
us "set apart for Himself, ""kept for Jesus
Christ, "a special people unto Him, !"
yet If we insist on our own ways He will
suffer us, to our eternal loss in many re-
spects. While He is not willing that any
should perish, but that all should repent
and be saved, yet if people insist upon re-
jecting His love He will let them (Ps. Xxx,
lila; II Pet. iii, 8; II Cor. ii, Is, 16).
H. "Neverthelcss He left not Himself
without witness" His eternal power and
Godhead are seen in the works Of His
hands and in His great goodness to all, so
that all are without excuse (Rom. 1, 20,
21). Paul would direct their minds to the
goodness of God manifest in His daily
mercies to all, for all may truly say: 1T
Is Of the Lords mercies we are not con-
sumed because His compositions fail not.
They are new every morning" Lam. Ill,
90, 2S).
is. "And with these sayings scarce re-
strained they the people, that they had not
done sacrifice unto them" They saw Paul
and Barnabas, but not Jesus Christ. They
saw the miracle, but not God. Only tho
opened eyes can see God, but He is willing
to open the eyes of all who will turn to
Him. Only the unwilling must stay blind.
"Ye will not come unto mel" John V, 40. }
10. "And there came thither certain
Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who
persuaded the people, and having stoned
Paul drew him out of the city, supposing
he had been dead" A persevering devil
goeth about seeking to destroy. If he can
not get the soul, he will do his best to kill
the body; but this we are told not to fear
(Math. K, 2S), for the breaking Of the
body only sets the spirit free to be with
Christ. Paul was to all intents dead
though in speaking of this experience he
says twice, "Whether in the body or out Of
the body cannot tell; God knoweth" (Q
Cor. xii, 2, 81.
20. "Howbeit, as the disciples stood
round about him, he rose up and came into
the city, and the next day he departed
with Barnabas to Derbe." I do not doubt
that tho vision described in II Cor.
xii, IA, was his actual experience while
they were dragging his seemingly lfeless
body out Of Lystra, and by this experience
he was fitted for greater and better thing.
for his Lord and Master, concerning whom
he could say, "Whose 1 am, and whom 1
serve" (Acts xvii, 23).
81 "And when they had preached the
gospel to that city and had taught many,
they returned again to Lystra and to 1coni-
um and Antioch" The margin says they
made many disciples. So wherever they
went the souls were saved, God glorifled
and the devil made angry. What courage
to go right buck to Lystra where he had
been stoned, and to the other cities, from
whence they had been driven out. But they