Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-05-20
international gesson5.
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON TX, SECOND QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, MAY %.

Text Of the Lesson, John xviii, 2s, 40.
Memory Verses, 3S-4O-Go1den Text,
John xix. 4-Commentnry Prepared
by the Rev. d. NJ. Stenrns.
Copyright, 1899. by D. NJ Stearns.l
2S. "Thcn led they Jesus from Caiap-
has unto the hall of Judgment. In
Math. xvii. 2. it is written that they led
Him away and delivered Him to Pontins
PLATE, the governor. Some of these self
righteous people, with murder in their
hearts, would not enter Pilates house lest
they should be dcfiled, for they desired to
eat the Passover They did not know
that the true Passover Lamb was being
put to death by them and that their Pass
over, like their Sabbaths and all their
feasts, was mere form-a husk without
a kernel, chaff to be burned up. What Is
your religion? In what do you trust? Is
it in some church or creed or ceremony, or
is it in Jesus only and His precious blood?
80, 80. "If He were not a malefactor,
we would not have delivered Him up unto
thee" This from them in reply to
Pilates question, "What accusation
bring ye against this man?" 1t is easy to
call Him an evildoer, but impossible to
prove it. They must, however, say some
thing, and having yielded themselves to
the devil he will suggest many a lie to
them. In all His life He never said or
did a wrong thing except in the eyes OF
those who hated Him. He knew no sin.
81. "Take We Him and judge Him ac-
cording to your law" Thus said PLATE,
to which they replied sit is not lawful
for us to put any man to death" So
they confess that they have determined
that He must die, and they only desire
that PLATE will attend to it for them 1t
would not do for them to say how long
ago they had made up their minds to kill
Him as soon as possible. 1t might show
their hearts toward Him too plainly. If
it was unlawful for them to put any one
to death, how was it that only little
later they found no difficulty in stoning
Stephen9
80. THAT the saying Of Jesus might be
fulfilled, which He spake, signifying what
death He should die.' The Jewish mode,
according to their law, was stoning, but
Jesus had said that He should be crucified
(Math Xxx, 19). This was typifled by the
serpent of brass lifted up on pole (Num
xxi, 9; John iii, 14) and was plainly de-
scribed in Ps. xxi, 16, "They pierced My
hands and My feet" The law said,
Cursed is every one that hangeth on a
tree" and Christ hath redeemed us from
the curse of tho law being made a curse
for us (Deut. xxi, 90; Gal iii, 13).
49, Art Thou the King of the Jews?''
Pilates question to Jesus when He en-
tered the Judgment hall again. The wise
men from the east came with the inquiry,
Where is He that is born King of the
Jews?" The prophets had foretold Mes
siah who would sit on David's throne az
King of Israel (Math. ii, 2; lisa. tx, &, q;
Jer. xiii, 5, 6; Eek. xxxvii, 22), but
what did PLATE know of these things and
why did he ask this question? Were not
the Jews subjects of Caesar?
81. Jesus answered him, Sayest thou
this thing of thyself, or did others tell it
thee of Me?" Of course Jesus knew why
he asked it, for He knew what is in man.
He knows the things that como into our
minds, every one of them John ii, 25;
Eek. xi, 81. He had reason for asking
Pilatc, for He does nothing without q
cause (Ezek. xiv, 23).
35. 'Pildte answered. Am I q jew?
Thine own nation and the chief priests
have delivered Thee unto me. What hast
Thou donc?" 1t is unusual to have a
prisoner and have no charge against him,
and unusual also to see the Judges, as in
the case of Caiaphas and PLATE, asking the
prisoner to tell what he has done. Was
ever seen on earth such q travesty on
justice rs in this cascp
36. Jesus answered, My kingdom is not
of this world" How often this word of
Christ is used to try to prove that our
Lord shall never have kingdom on this
earth except that which He is now said to
have in the hearts of men-a very poor
sample of kingdom truly, judging from
the lack of subjection to Him everywhere
manifest! But one might Us we'll say that
the believer has no business on earth be-
cause he is not of this world. That is the
very reason that he is herein the world,
but not of it, that he may glorify God in
it. His origin is not earthly, for he is not
child of God until born from above, and
Christ is here speaking of the origin OF
His kingdom, as He Himself explains in
the last clause of this verse, Now is My
kingdom not from hence" 1t will be as
truly kingdom on this earth as was
Babylon, Mcdo-Persia, Greece or Rome,
but it will not be set up by force of arms,
but by the mighty power of God, the
same that brought Israel out of Egypt, di-
vided the Red sea and the Jordan and sub
dued Canaan before them.
81. ITO this end was I born, and for
this cause came l into tho world, that /
should bear witness unto the truth.
Every one that is of the truth heareth My
voice" Thus Jesus replied to Pilates
question, Art Thou king, then?" He
was the truth. sent by the God Of truth,
filed with the spirit of truth. Yet we are
called upon to spend three weeks in this
eighteenth chapter Of John, full Of record
of the works of the devil through Judas
and the rulers Caiaphas and Pilate and
even Simon Peter, and the wonderful
words of truth in chapters 16 and II,
some of the most wonderful words on
record, we are asked wholly to omit.
3S, 80. Il find in Him no fault at all. 4"
Such was Pilates testimony again and
again. Judas also confessed that he had
betrayed innocent blood (Math. xvii, d.
Pilates wife called Him q just man and
urged her husband to have nothing to do
with condcmning Him. But PLATE had