The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1897-12-29
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON Z. FIRST QUARTER. INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, JAN. 2.

DRY Verses. 1917 Golden Text, Math.
nj, i7-Commentary by the Rev. ID. M.
stearns.
Let me at the beginning of our study of
the gospel by Matthew, in which we are
TO continue for six months quote few
pregnant sentences from "Studies In the
Gospels" by Rev. Henry g. Weston, ID. D.
1.-THE Bible is a history Of the contest be-
tween Christ and satan for man and his
dwelling place; of redemption provided by
God proceeding from His love, with love
determining the method and the end. Tho
gospels are the history of that part of re-
demption which was wrought by the Lord
Jesus Christ in His earthly life, death,
burial and resurrection. The point of view
of and the purpose in each gospel deter
mine in every case what shall be inserted
and omitted The Old Testament closes
with the Jewish nation looking for the
fulfillment of the prophecies of king who
shall reign in righteousness under whom
the earth shall be filled with the glory of
the Lord Matthew Is the gospel of the
Jewish king rejected, resulting in the re-
lection of the nation, until the church, His
body shall be gathered out of all nations.
Pile; in the gospels He is with His people;
in the Epistles He is in His people. These
three, God for us, God with us, God in us,
are the method and the end of the Divine
dealing, holiness eternal i'm the heavens,
incarnate on earth. embodied in the
saints
z. 20 generation of vipers who hath
warned you TO flee from the wrath to
~ (fhantar 4 ,rix no Of
the King from Abraham to Joseph, the
husband of Mary, who was of the royal
line through Solomon, son of David. Luke
iii gives the genealogy of Mary, who was
also of the house of David, but through
Nathan, the son of David. Math. i, l, de-
clares that Jesus Christ is the inheritor
and fulfiller of all things promised to Da-
vid and Abraham
8. Bring forth therefore fruits meet for
repentance, or, as in the margin, AN
swerable to amendment of life. " Paul's
preaching also was, Repent and turn to
God and do works meet for repentance"
(Acts XVI, 20). The teaching of all Scrip
ture is that by nature we are away from
God; God is calling us to come TO Him,
even as He called Adam from his hiding
place in the garden, and has ever since
been seeking lost sinners When we turn
to Him. He receives us graciously, for
gives us freely and makes us His children
through Jesus blood Then He asks us
to walk worthy of our calling.
9 And think not TO say within your
selves, I've have Abraham to our Father. 4"
Even to our Lord Himself these people
said proudly, I'VE be Abraham seed, but
He replied, IF we were Abraham s chill
dren We would do the works of Abraham, ="
and then He told them very plainly "Ye
are of your father, the devil (John viii,
33. 80. 44) 1t will not do for Us To say, Il
am a member of the church. / have been
baptized. my people are all Christians, |
do the best can, etc, as If any of these
could save us There must be a true recep-
ton of Jesus Christ as our own personal
Saviour and "a whole hearted reliance
upon His merits only
10 Every tree which bringeth not
forth good fruit Is hewn down and cast
into the fire Both i'm the Old Testament
and in the New the believer is compared
TO tree See Ps. i, 81 .Jer xvii, 8, and
compare our Lord words in Math XIV ID,
Every plant which my Heavenly Father
hath not planted shall be rooted up"
IL He shall baptize you with the Holy
Ghost and with fire " John sought no
honor for himself, but he loved to point to
the mightier than he. whose shoes he was
not worthy TO bear We have not the
right spirit if we ever seek any glory for
ourselves Repentance and the forgive
ness of sins are Gods free gift and make
us to be surely saved, but being saved we
must be filled with the Spirit in order TO
serve Him and bear the fruit which will be
TO His glory and make manifest that we
are His
10 Whose fan is in His hand, and He
will thoroughly purge His floor and gather
His wheel into the garner, but He will
burn up tie chaff with unquenchable fire. F."
May there not be some reference here to
the fire of the last verse; Compare the
harvest time of chapter xiii, 40-43. l have
heard people pray for the fire, and have
wondered if they were even ready for the
Spirit.
10 "Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to
Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. v
Consider where He had been for the last
IS years since He said to His mother at
Jerusalem, Il must be about My Fathers
business. He had certainly been about
that business but how and where9 In
the humble home and carpenters shop of
Nazareth, subject to Joseph and Mary,
Wiling ana ODeulenG ana waiting OOu
time for public work We need to lay this
10 heart also.
IA But John forbade Him. saying.
have need to be baptized Of Thee, and
contest Thou to me" So John was ever
humble and ready TO lay himself at Jesus
feet When they told John a little later
that all men were following Jesus, he re
piled, Il am not the Christ, but sent be
fore Him; the friend Of the bridegroom re
joiceth greatly because of the bridegroom
voice; this my joy therefore is fulfilled
(John iii, $500 Just voice; anything
or nothing If only Christ is magnifed
10 And Jesus answering said unto
him, Suffer it to be so now, for thus it be
cometh us to fulfill all righteousness " This
was His conservation TO His public work,
life of constant and manifest death to
self that He might glorify God, manifest
and declare His Name and fulfill all that
had been written of Himself i'm the law,
the prophets and the Psalms. As His wit
nesses there is no other way for us than
self remuneration.
10 10, the heavens were opened unto
Him. and He saw the Spirit of God de.
scending like dove and lighting upon
Him " Heaven is always witnessing what
is going on on the earth, and, though
there may be no outward manifestation as
here, yet it is even so. / believe it firmly