Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1897-03-12
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON xl, FIRST QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, MARCH IA.

Text of the Lesson, Acts TX, liz, 1870.
Memory Verses, 15-2O-Golden Text, i
Tim. i. 15-Commentary by the Rev. ID.
NJ. Stearns.
1, O. We last heard of Saul making
havoc of the church at Jerusalem after the
martyrdom of Stephen. We still find him
in the same spirit of enmity against
Christ and His followers, but now he is
reaching out to other cities, even to Damas-
Gus, with authority from the high priest
to arrest and bring 70 Jerusalem all such
disciples of the Lord as he might find
They are spoken of as men and women OF
the way (see margin), reminding us Of
Christ's own words, II am the way
John xiv, g. God thus far suffers Saul
to be satans agent in purifying His
church Not even satan can touch child
of God without Gods permission dob /,
10; Zech. ii, 81, and when the adversary
is allowed to try the people of God, either
directly or by human instrumentality, we
are to see only the hand of God and re-
member Rom. viii, 2S, go See Ps. xvii,
IA; lxxvi, 10; Dan. XII, So; xii, 10; Rev.
IL, 10, as very helpful.
8, 4. "Saul Saul, why persecutest thou
Me?" Thus far and no farther is heavens
decree for Saul, and now He who loved
him in all his sin and who had suffered
him thus far in his devilish work arrests
Him as be is about to enter Damascus. The
light from heaven smites him to the earth,
and the voice from heaven enters his soul.
The light was bri liter than the sun at
monday, and the voice spake in the He
brew language (chapter XVI, 10, 14). All
the party saw the light and fell to the
l. To-, h,,N Il al op1 fla
words which were spoken, for they were
only for him.
g. "Who art thou, Lord? 1 am Jesus,
whom thou persecutest" In one of Saul's
accounts of this he gives the Lord S answer
as 81 am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou
persecutest" (chapter xxi, 81. In all Saul's
life he had never heard anything so star
Ting or upsetting as this. He verify be
lieved that he was doing right in the sight
of God in prosecuting these followers OF
one whom the highest authorities had put
to death as a blasphemer. See his own
testimony in chapters xxi and XVI.
6. Lord, what wilt Thou have me to
do?' He is full of trembling and astonish.
ment, but in u moment he sees that he has
been all wrong and the prosecuted ones
have been right. He seems sincerely hum.
bled and by the spirit confesses that Jesus
is Lord q Cor xii, 3D. He is told to &c
on to Damascus and await orders. The
"What wilt ThOu?" of this verse and the
"Whcre wilt IhouY' of Luke xii 9, when
sincerely addressed to the Lord, will not
fail to obtain sure guidance.
T. 1t is evident that those with Saul
heard a sound of words, but it is also e7i
dent from chapter xxi, 8, that they hearo
not the words spoken. Something of tht
same kind is written in Dan. X, 10. l,
is sometimes asked if those who are left
when the church is taken shall hear the
Lords voice or see the event. Perhaps the
records concerning Daniel and Saul may
give some light.
s, 8. Three days in Damascus, blind anc
fasting and awaiting u further message
from the Lord What remembrances, what
persistence what screenings OF heart, what
humbling before God, what light from
heaven must have shone in his soul dur
ing those days of outward darknessl How
he would think of what Stephen saw anC
said and of the patience and faith Of 9th
ers who had suffered for Christ through
himl The Lord was dealing wondrously
with him, but, oh, SO lovingly, by Hi
Spirit and His word.
10. The Lord knOweth them that ar
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