Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1903-01-23
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
International Lesson Comments For
January rs.
Subject. Paurs Counsel to the Thes saionans,
Thess. ", l4.z8-Golden Test | Thess.
", 2l-Memory Verses, lois
Commentary on the Days
Lesson,

-
close connection with the last six verses
of chapter A. The two paragraphs touch
upon two different aspects of our Lords
coming, viewed first as it concerns depart
ed Christians, and then in its relation to
men living upon the earth. The former
passage supplies comfort respecting the
dead in Christ, the latter enjoins watcbiul-
ness and preparedness upon the living.
Paups teaching concerning the return OF
1. the Lord Jesus from heaven had very
deeply impressed the Thessalonians, but
his views had been greatly misunderstood.
The Nay of the Lords coming ". y no
doubt includes not only His coming at
the end of the world, but all the special
day of death and the destruction OF Jeru-
salem (see Matt. 24)."
H. Rules for the sanctihed life VS. IL
22). In verses IL and IL he urges them to
properly love and esteem their ministers.
Ia. Brethren" This exhortation applies
to ministers and laymen alike. The
weak" A man may be weak in his Judg-
ment or in his character. There may be
lack of information or lack of capacity
to understand the truth. Such people
need the assistance of those who are
strong. We can Support" others with
C) our sympathy, (2) our prayers, (3) our
example ana (4J our COuHSci
has said, civil for evil is beast like; evil
for good is devil like; good for good is
manlike; good for evil is godlike." Retail,
iation betrays a weak, ignoble and cruel
disposition. "He is below himself who is
not above an injury" "Small souls alone
hold grudges." "But ever follow" etc:
The true Christian always renders good
for evil. The line of conduct here out,
lined is to be pursued both within and
without the church. No follower OF Christ
will Intentionally harm any man.
l6, II. "Rejoice Away" He who would
always rejoice must pray without ceaslng.
Paul had learned the secret that lin sor-
row endured for Christ's sake there is hid
den new spring of JOY" See Rom. 5: 3
:: 2 Cor. -: 10, and the words of Christ in
Matt. 5: 1912. To rejoice is not only
duty, but privilege The Christian has
the fountain of JOY within him. Pray"
True prayer springs from the heart. 1t
includes (l) an acknowledgment of God,
(2) thankfulness, (3) confession, (4) en-
treaty. 1t is our duty to pray because ~
it is commanded, ~ because it tends to
impress us with a sense of Cur dependence
upon God, (3 because it is the means by
which we commune with God, (4) because
it is made the condition of our receiving
from UOQ. TTc'dluuB PioyCI ~ oPiih6
from a sense of real need, ~ is earnest,
(3) is humble, az is importunate, (5) is of.
fered for specific blessings, (6) pleads the
promises and rests in. them as the ground
of all faith.
Is. "Give thanks" Even in persecution
we should thank God that we are consid-
cred worthy to suffer for Christ. Prayer
and thanksgiving are the two wings of the
soul by which it rises upward to God"
10, 20. "Quench not" Since the Spirit
may be quenched he is fire, as appeared
on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2: 3D. This
emblem sets forth the sudden and vehe-
ment activities of the Holy Spirit, with
| His gifts of warmth for the heart and light
for the mind, and His power to kindle the
human spirit. "The gift of the Spirit was
then existing, deep and powerful, in the
young Thessalonian church, and they
were here commanded not to forbid those
vino under divine inspiration stood up to
reveal mysteries or speak with tongues
| But the command is universal. Whatever
| binders the work of the Spirit in ourselves
or others is here forbidden. The Spirit is
quenched by depreciation, neglect or sin.
q, %. prove" On the other hand, do
not accept as genuine all that may claim
to be genuine. 1t is our duty to probe.
test. try all such manifestations and hold
fast" only the good. But the exhortation
here is capable of the widest application
| We are to discern between truth and err
ror, and sift' the chat, from the, wheat
good to slip from us. sBuy the truth and
sell it not" To do this will take a strong
effort on our part: "Abstain." Not only
hold fast the good, but abstain from and
renounce the evil which may have been de.
tected as result of proving all things.
III. Specification promised Tvs. %,
24). %. "God of peace" peace is the
sum Of all spiritual blessings that man re-
ceives and experiences" The apostle
prays that the God of peace might sane
tify them wholly. The Thessalonian Chris.
tians were truly regenerated; they had had
genuine conversion see chap. y, and
"Sanctify you wholly" The work of sane.
tifcation was begun in conversion, and
it was their privilege to be made COM
plete--to be sanctifed wholly. Sanctifica-
ton signifies, l. Separation from sin. q.
Conservation to God-the setting apart
from common to holy use. 8. ut is
the act or process of making holy" a.
at denotes the result of this process-the
state of one who is made holy" Spirit
soul-body." That is, the whole man. 1T
is net necessary to regard spirit and soul
| ana DOQy as Jnree distinct logical ulNlSlOU5
of mans nature" But if it seems desirable
to distinguish between soul and spirit, then
the spirit must be regarded as the highest
part of man, by which alone man possesses
intelligence and is enabled to apprehend
God, and the soul as the seat of the affec-
tions, passions and appettes. "Yet we
are to conceive of them as one indivisible
and spiritual being, called also the mind
and the heart, but usually designated as
the SOUL" "Be preserved" etc. From
this we see that this experience of entire
sanctifcation is for this life.
"a. "Will do it." This settles the mat.
ter. The God who has faithfully called us
to holiness is ready to make us holy, and
Peter in Acts Is: tells how the expe-
rience was obtained by both Jews and Gen,
tiles. He says their hearts were purified
"by faith"
| w. Concluding words Tvs. 1928. 25
%. "Pray for u.s." st. Paul frequently
made this request. If he, in all the
strength of his gifts and his Office, felt his
dependence on the prayers of the church
how much should we? "Kiss." This, the
usual sign of affection between kindred
and near friends, appears to have been
quite universal in the primitive church.
but the custom gradually died out during
the Middle Ages. To-day we have the
"handshake," which answers all purposes
81, %. "Adjure you" Literally, I put
you upon oath to do this. ".The grace, y
: Ca IL e..