The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1897-06-02
THE SABBATH SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON COMMENTS
FOR JUNE I3.

Lesson Text: "PauPs Advice to timothy,
II Tim. l., II; ILL.,, 14-17-Golden
Text: II Timothy ILL.,, 15- Com
mentary by Rev. DR.. D. M. stearns
The second epistles are all suggestive Of
the last days when the world shall have
CORFU pied the church. and contain special
instructions to Gods servants for times OF
disorders, confusions, formality, etc. The
faithful witness is taught how to deal with
those who turn away FROM" ''err con-
cerning" and "resist" the truth, or twill
not endure second doctrine" QI Tim. l., Is;
H., 1S; ill.,, 8; iv., 81.
l. paul, an apostle Of Jesus Christ by
the will of God, according to the promise
OF life which is In Jesus Christ" He
loved to think OF himself as one sent forth
by Jesus Christ and chosen for this honor
by the will Of God. Why God should choose
any Of US is certainly great wonder, but
II we have truly received the Lord Jesus
Christ as our Saviour, resting wholly and
only on His finished work OF atonement,
We need not fear to believe that We were
chosen in Him before the foundation Of
the world Eph. l., ~; that we should be
holy before Him, and that He might send
US forth In His name, even as the Father
sent Him (John xviii, 18; Xxx, 2D. The
life that God gives is in Christ, and apart
from Him there is no life Q John ", 12).
2. ''To Timothy, my dearly beloved son:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the
Father and Christ JESUS our Lord" In
Tim. l., 2, he calls Him "My own son in the
faith," and in Phil. H., 20 (margin), He
wrote that he had no man so dear unto
Him as Timothy. We first read Of him in
Acts xvi. /, as disciple living as Lystra,
his mother Jewess, his father Greek.
And Paul on his second missionary tour
i'm, ,pif 10 hut q n
deserved favor Of God through Jesus Christ
that we are saved.
8 ri thank God, whom serveS from my
forefathers with pure conscience, that with
out ceasing I have remembrance Of thee in
my prayers night and day" Before the
council he also said that he had lived in all
good conscience before God (Acts xiii, ~
or as he puts it In Acts XVI, 5, "After the
most straitest sect Of our religion lived q
Pharisee." He does not attempt to excuse
his great sins against Jesus Christ and His
redeemed, but says that he verify thought
that he ought to do these thing (Acts XVI.
81.
"Greatly desiring to see thee, being
mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled
with JOY" Paul prayed much for those
whom God had given him, but he would
pray, especially for such a one as his son
Timothy. II Paul had the Philippian and
other believers in his heart phil. l., y and
prayed much for them, how much more
does our Lord Jesus carry love and pray
for His redeemed ones. We are not told
the cause OF Timothy's tears, but II Paul
was mindful Of them how much more is
our Lord Of ours. There Is comfort to hu-
man weakness in the thought that the joy
Of such one as Paul might be increased
by Timothy.
S. "When I call to mind the unfeigned
faith that Is In thee" Not In him only but
in both mother and grandmother; not that
faith is hereditary, but children may be 80
taught and trained that from earliest In
fancy they may be true believers. in the
Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed are the moth
ers and grandmothers who so train the
children. Unfeigned faith makes US think
OF the "most surely believed" and "knoW
the certainty" OF Luke 1, l, 4.
6. "Wherefore put thee in remembrance
that thou stir up the gift Of God which Is
In thee by the putting on Of my hands"
He refers to this also In I Tim. iv., A. The
Spirit bestows gifts upon people severaily
as He, the Spirit, will, and God places the
members In the body as 1t hath pleased
man his work and something to work with,
aad says, Occupy till come" MARK xiii,
"a; Luke xix, 13). Then at His coming he
will reward every man according to his
works.
Z. "For God hath not given US the spirit
Of fear, but 81 power and Of love, and Of a
sound mind" Judging from the portion
OF the epistle following, such as l., 8, IL, 16;
H., 5, 10, u; ILL.,, Il; w., s, 16, We would
infer that the fear referred to Is fear OF
what one might be called upon to endure;
but thoughts OF the perfect love OF God cast
out all fear q John iv., 1S).
a n,k In ho Ou
which thou hast learned and hast been as
sured Of" Our Lord said, Continue ye in
My love,' eff ye continue In my word, then
are ye My disciples indeed" Oohn xv., 9;
viii., S1). like to remember that Luke
said in the beginning Of his gospel that he
wrote concerning the things which were
''most surely believed" that his friend
might know the certainty" OF these things
duke l., /, 4), and that Abraham was fully
persuaded that what God had promised He
was able to perform (Rom. iv., 20, 2D.
Is. "And that from a child thou' hast
known the Holy Scriptures, which are able
to make thee wise unto salvation through
faith which Is In Christ Jesus" These could
be none other than what some desptse as
the Old Testament writings, In which Paul
testifles there was wisdom unto salvation
and the wey Of faith in Christ Jesus. Think
the way Of salvation Gods way, is nowhere
In all the Bible more simply set forth than
in Gen. ILL.,, 81. The Lord Himself provided
the clothing by the shedding OF blood, and
Adam and Eve had only to drop as useless
their own works, the fig leaf aprons, and
accept Gods provision. Blessed are the
children who from their youth are taught
these things.
16. "AIl Scripture Is given by inspiration
Of God and is profitable for doctrine, for re-
proof, for correction, for instruction In
righteousness" While the Bible contains
the very words Of God and some Of the very
words OF the devil, as we'll as some words
OF good and bad men, yet the whole book,
from beginning to end, was written by the
Spirit OF God, He giving the men whom he
used the very words to write, as 1s plain
from such texts as Ex. iv., IL; II Sam. kill,
q; Jer. l., T. 9; xxxvi.. 2, 6, 8; John Kill, 4S.
The Spirit who wrote the book Is still In the
book, and its words are spirit and life John
vi, 63).
II. "That the man Of God may be per
feet thoroughly furnished unto all good
works." man of God is one who Is first
a child Of God by faith In Christ Jesus, and
then fully yielded to God as His purchased
property for His service, the Lords nes-
senger with the Lords message, receiving
his orders from God and responsible to
God, seeking In all things His approval.
While we are saved freely by grace, 1t is
that We may walk In the works. He has
prepared for us CEph. H., 10), and the
Scriptures alone are sufficient to qualify
fully for all good works. II we will only
yield fully, God will work in US both to
will and to do His good pleasure (Phil. H.,
10; Heb. kill, 2D.-Lesson Helper