Middletown transcript., 1899-05-20
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LEssoNvIIl, SECOND QUARTER, INTER
NATIONAL SERIES, MAY 81.

/ Text of the Lesson, John xviii, rs, ~.
Memory Verses, 23-25-GoIden Text,
John 1, 11-COmmentnry Prepared
by the Rev. d. NJ. Stearns.
copyright. 1899. by D. M. Stearns1
Is. "And Simon Peter followed Jesus. y
| In Math. XVI, IS, it is said that Peter
| followed Him afar off, and when any fol-
| low Him that way instead of following
! fully we may expect to see some work of
| satan in such a one The dogs do not need
\ to run after the sheep which keep close by
| the shepherd. 1t is only the wanderers
| which need to be barked in. Matthew also
says that Peter went in and sat with the
servants. He put himself in bad company
He is in great danger.
16. HPeter stood at the door without. Z"
| John went out and spoke unto her that
kept the door and had Peter come in a
little nearer Before this and Immediately
after His arrest all the disciples forsook
Him and fed, even as Jesus had said,
''Ye shall be scattered, every man to his
own and shall leave me alone" John xvi,
32) But Peter and John must have soon
returned. Peter in his great weakness
and John in his great love seemed In
many ways the nearest to Christ of all the
disciples.
H. cart not thou also one of this mans
disciples? He saith, am not Thus
spake the damsel that kept the door, and
thus Peter replied. Peter, who had said:
Although all shall be offended, yet will
not I. If / should die with Thee, will
not deny Thee in any wise" Mark xiv,
30, 81. How little we know our own
hearts or realize how weak we are and
what we might do if left to ourselves.
49, Peter stood with them and warmed
himself" 4" He stood with the servants
and officers who had made fire of Goals
to warm themselves, for it was cold.
The expression lit was cold" seems to
me to go along with that in chapter xiii,
30 "It was night. If they call to mind
any time in your own life when with you,
either literally or figuratively, or both, it
was night-so dark and cold and lonely
you will better understand To our
Lord it was from the earthly side SO dark
and lonely, but His comfort was His
Fathers presence and approval.
10. ''The high priest then asked Jesus
of His disciples and of His doctrine" AS
If it had been some friendly call that Jesus
had made upon him, while all the time
there was murder in his heart and he was
probably rejoicing that at last he had this
man in his power who had set aside their
traditions, broken their Sabbath days, de-
fed their power and plainly told them
that they were hypocrites, blind guides,
whited sepulchres. Our Lord Jesus had
proved that He was Israels Messiah, sent
of God, and that God was with Him, and
the high priest knew, as Nicodemus knew,
that no one could do what Jesus did un-
less God was with him (chapter lii, p.
90 Jesus answered him, spake open
ly to the world; 1 ever taught in the synaasi
gogue and in the temple, whittier the Jews
always resort; and in secret have I said
nothing" Even the people had said:
'Lo, He speaketh boldly, and they say
nothing unto Him. Do the rulers know
indeed that this is the very Christi" John
vii, 26.) The. officers also said to the chief
priests and Pharisees, "Never man spake
like this man" John vii, 46).
21. "Why askest thou Me? Ask them 4
which heard Me what I have said unto
them; behold they know what said"
Yes, and the high priest himself knew
enough of what Jesus had said, for many
a time had he and the other priests and
the Pharisees talked of the sayings of |
them; the light was too strong for their 1
eyes; they could not bear it. They |
taught the commandments of men, but |
Jesus taught the word of God. They pre-
ferred their traditions to the word of God. 1
%. lone of the officers which stood by /
struck Jesus with the palm of his hand"
The margin says with rod" How
difficult it is to understand all this, and l
to see the true High Priest standing as a /
criminal before the legal high priest, who |
was in reality no priest of God at all, and /
then to see this Officer of the law lift his /
hand and smite his Creatorl But they |
did not know what they were doing.
23. "Jesus answered him, If I have /
spoken evil, bear witness of the evil but L
if well, why smitest thou Me2' 1t was
mild protest to great wrong and to most
unjust treatment Even great criminal /
is by the law and the officers of the law
protected till his case is heard, and no
one dare touch him. Against our Lord
nothing was proved yet; He was not even
properly on trial.
"a. "Now Annas had sent Him bound
unto Caiaphas the high priest. John
does not dwell longer upon His i'll treat
ment before Caiaphas, the false witnesses,
the blindfolding and splitting and buffet
ing. Perhaps, like the agony in Geth- |
selnane it was more than he could write |
about Matthew, Mark and Luke saw it
not; they only heard it from others; but ]
John saw it all, it was very real to him,
he could not forget it, and to write it l
would be to live it all over again. He
could not stand it; it was not required of |
him, else he would have done it. Do not |
fail to notice what Jesus said to the high
priest about His second coming, foIit will |
surely come to pass (Alath. XVI, "a;
Mark xiv, e2; Luke xii, 69).
25. As Peter warmed himself at the SER
wants fire one said unto him, Art not
thou also one CT His disciples2" And the
second time he denied and said, II am
not. +" The steps in Peters downfall |
seem to be self confidence and boasting,
following afar off, keeping the company
of the ungodly and enjoying the warmth
of their fire. They are written for our
warning that we may avoid them all.
They are partly summed up in Ps i, 1,
26, 81. A relative of the man whose ear
Peter cut off said, Did not see thee in
the garden with Hnn?" Ard for the third
time Peter denied, and Immediately the
cock crew. The Lord had told Peter that
he would deny Him thrice ere cock crow
(Luke xii, 34), and so it came to pass.
It was satan sitting Simon, but with |
God rs permission for Simon's good, for
satan had to ask for it, but Jesus prayer
prevailed for him duke xii, 81, 82R1
Matthew says that Peters second denial
was with an oath and his third with ours
ing and swearing (Math. xvi, 70, 74). |
At the third denial the Lord turned and
looked upon Peter, and Peter remembered
the word of the Lord, how He had said
unto him, 'sBefore the cock crow thou
shalt deny Me thrice And Peter went
out and wept bitterly Guke xxi, 81, 62)
No word had our Lord for Peter and no
message ha Peter from Him till that
kind word Ter the resurrection from tt
angel by the women, go your way, tel
His disciples and Peter MARK xvi, ",
Peter being the only one mentioned by
name.