Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1897-09-03
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON x, THIRD QUARTER, INTER.
NATIONAL SERIES, SEPT. 5.

Text of the Lesson. II Cor. tx, 1-11-Mem-
DRY Verses, 6-S- Golden Text, IL Cor.
viii, documentary by the Rev. ID. NJ.
Stearns.
l. For as touching the ministcring to
the saints, it is supcrfluous for me to write
to you The great privilege of minister
ing to Others, whether in things temporal
or spiritual, is u very Godlike one, for
"Ihc Son of man came not to be minis
tered unto, but to minister, and TO give
His life ransom for many" (Math Xxx,
2S) He is our great and only example in
all things if we have first of all truly re-
ceived Him and thus been saved by His
blood (Eph. i, 6, y. Until we are saved
by Him we cannot serve Him, but when
once we have become children of God by
faith in Him then our great work is to
serve the living and true God.
2. your zeal hath provoked very
many. As we consider Him of whom it
is written, The zeal of thine house hath
eaten me up ops. Xix, 9; John ii, ~,
and who, though He was rich, yet for our
sakes became poor that we through His
poverty might be rich Oh Cor. viii, y, we
will be increasingly filled with His spirit
Then rs Others see Him in us they will ad-
mire Him and want to be like Him.
When once we are saved by Him, He asks
us to hand over to Him our bodies that
He may dwell in us and walk in US to the
glory of God the Father (Rom. xii, l, q
ii Cor. vi, 16; viii 81.
B. yet have l sent the brethren lest
our boasting of you should be in vain in
this behalf; that, as l said, We may be
ready. There is often seeming rcadi-
ness that does not always result in per
Torrance, either through lack of sincerity
or some temptation of the adversary.
Hence Paul sent Titus and "a brother whose
praise was in all the churches I'll Cor.
viii 1918 designating them both as "the
messengers of the churches, the glory of
Christ. ~ To these brethren. and through
them, the believers at Corinth were to
show the proof of their love-
!. Lest haply if they of Macedonia
come with me and find you unprepared,
we should be ashamed in this same conf.
dent boasting. If we trust in people and
in their promises, we will he very apt to
be ashamed, for the best intentions of PEG.
pie may come to naught John, by the
Spirit, eXhorts us so to abide in Christ
that we shall not be ashamed before Him
az LIS NblIlIlB u JOlll II, -OG II goa L.
working in us, His thoughts and works
are sure to be fulfilled Qsa. xiv, pa; Jer.
Ii, 29). But if we are, apart from Him.
seeking to accomplish somewhat, it will
be very at to fall through
8. Therefore l thought it necessary &c
eXhort the brethren, that they would 90
before unto you and make up beforehand
your bounty. l here seems to me to be a
little more of looking to men than to God
III all this cXhOrtatiOn and fCarfulnoss on
the part of Paul 1t seems a good deal |
like the way things are done today, rather |
than when, in the days of Moses, the people |
gave so willingly and abundantly that
they had to be restrained from bringing
(Ex., xXxvi, 6. y.
g. But this l say, He which sowetl |
sparingly shall reap also sparingly, and he |
which soweth bountifully shall reap also |
bountifully. Or, as it is written in Prov. |
xi, "a, There is that scattereth and vet
lncreaseth, and there is that withholdeth |
more than is meet, but it tendcth to poV. |
erty. " And again in PROV. xiii T. "There |
is that maketh himself rich, yet hath moth.
ing; there is that maketh himself poor
yet hath great riches " No farmer expects |
II great harvest from "A small sowing; how |
can Christian think otherwise?
z. Every man according ms he purpos.
eth in his heart, so let him give; not !
or Of necessity, for God loveth
q cheerful giver." All service to be ac.
ceptable must lee heart service unto God.
in the name of the Lord Jesus and in the
power of the Spirit. Those who worship .
God must worship Him in spirit and in
truth. NO mere outward form counts for
anything Cod so loved that He gave. The ,
son of God loved me and gave Himself for
me and unless we ChCCrfully give we
have not His spirit. The Greek word hi.
laros, here translated cheerful, is not found
elsewhere. You can easily see in it our
word hilarity, suggesting Gods pleasure
in one who gives with laughter because he
is so glad Of the opportunity.
5. And God is able to make all grace
abound toward you; that We always, hay
ing all su1iciency in all things may
abound to every good work. - However
close one may be naturally, and not in
clined to give, the exceeding, abundant
grace of God is able to transform even
such one into IA hilarious giver, and
such a miracle OF grace brings great glory
TO God. 80 in every other phase of the
Christian life God is able to make mani
Test IN the most unlikely person the very
spirit of Christ Not that we are sniff
ourselves, but our sulcicncy is Of Gcd"
(lI Cor. Iii, 81. A very little Christian
living and Christian work seem to satisfy
many who bear His beautiful names
pennies for God, but dollars many for
bicycle, or spring suit, or cigars, or a
pail dress; few moments for Him, but
many hours a day for recreation which
must be had.
8, 10. This parcnthesis is quotation
from psalm (cXii), which speaks of the
blessedncss Of the upright man who lives
in the fear of the Lord; 10 such God will
give the power of doing good beyond their
utmost thought. He will not only provide
that which we are To scatter, but He will
bless it as we scatter it and cause it TO in
'rease and multiply like the five loaycs of
The lad which fed the 5000 The seed to
be sown is His, whether it be seed in the
form Of His word or money or good deeds
The seed is the word of God, 1.-The sill
yer Is mine and the gold is mine saith