Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1904-01-08
THE SABBATH SCHOOL
international Lesson Comments ro'
January 10.
Subject: The Preaching OF John the bap's''
Matt. ILL.,, i.lz-Golden Text, Matt Ill., Z
Memory Verses, 4'6-Commen'
tary on The Days Lesson.

ThS Roman emperor was despotic and
cruel Herod and PLATE were little bet
fer, The priesthood was filled with cor
runt men, and even Caiaphas, the high
nriest. was coarse and brutal. Under
such leaders the people had sunk INTO
very low and degraded moral CONDITION.
It had been four hundred years SINCE they
had heard prophetic warnings, when SUD
denly John appeared upon the scene.
and Luke and by Josephus, who mentions
his great influence and speaks OF the
crowds that focked to hear him preach.
preaching" Heralding, a word suggest
iny the proclamation of king. John was
great reformer. "In the wilderness.
John preached in the wild, thinly in
habited region lying west OF the Jordan
and the Dead Sea az far north as EnonT,
two-thirds of the way to the Sea OF Gan'
1ee and on both sides OF the lower Jor-
dan"
2. "Repent ye." Repentance includes
!. Conviction. 2. Contrition. j. Con-
fession.. 4. Reformation, and leads p TO
conversion. John, Jesus, Peter and Paul
all preached repentance. Kingdom OF
Heaven" As Jesus is the Messiah, that Is,
the Amounted. the King, so His gospel is
a law and His dispensation, q kingdom;
The kingdom of Heaven and kingdom OF
God in the New Testament mean one and
the same thing and generally have refer
ence to the spiritual KINGDOM which Christ
sets up in the hearts of His followers. AT
hand" The Jews expected great national
deliverer. The meaning here is that the
coming of the Messiah to begin His domin-
ion on earth, under the Christian economy,
is at hand.
3. "Esaias." The Greek form for Isaiah.
mi 4 L. oh O.. n
see Luke s: 4-6. "The Voice" The pro,ph-
ecv draws attention to the work rather
than to the worker. The voice of the
prophet was loud and distinct. Prepare
ve" The idea is taken from the practice
of Eastern monarchs. who, whenever they
took Journey, sent harbingers before. them
TO nrepare the way. The Jewish church
was the desert country. paths straight"
This is fgurativc language. The words
illustrate the Strengthening force OF the
gospel There must be thorough prep
aration before God, our King, will come
to us. The self-line must be brought
low" The crooked. dishonest life, must
be Strengthened" Let us remove the OBJ
4. "Had his raimcnt." etc: The 1ap-
pearance of john was like that of the
great prophet Elijah in the popular mind.
He was clothed in the coarse, rough cloth
called sackcloth in the Scriptures. it
was cheap. but admirable for keeping out
the heat. cold and rain. This mantle was
rirded around him with leather gird;e OF
nndrcsscd hide. His food consisted OF
iUcusts, closely resembling oua grasshop-
pers, and of wild honey: Az this, was
natural as well as simDle Lode OF NvinS
in those days in the Wilderness Meat.
Food. Tocusts" The law OF Moses gave
nu | J..
John here represents the symbols or the
penentance he breaches, according to an
cient customs. The hair or sackc.oth,
the fasting and the solitude. were the
ordinary outward signs of deepest humlila-
IL Many confessions made Tvs. 5. g.;
( event out" Left their homes and
went to the desert, where John was
preaching He was very successful ana
the heart of the whole nation was stirred
Even Herod, the King heard him giadi!y,
tzE "did many things" Mark g., 2O). All
We region" The crowds must have been
enormous. John was very popular, 9 h
opularitv had no effect upon such az he.
3 "Confessing." Confession of sin is one
Of the marks of true repentance. See
John /: g.
III. A thorough reformation demanded
Tvs. 7.lO). 7. "When he aw." Men
honor lofty and fearless SOU; seeking
no selfish object, but Drawing all OPPOSE
ton for the MODEST ends. John had moth
ING to lose but his life, and cared for moth
ing but the faithful discharge of his duty.
''Pharisees." The name signifies sep
aratists. They held tenaciouslly to lit
eral obedience of the written law, and an
nnwritten tradition. "Sadducees." They.
adhered to the written law of Moses, but
refused to give much weight to tradition.
| Thev did not believe in future life, an
| peis or spirits. "Said unto them" The
three leading religious sects at that, time
| we're the Pharisees, Sadaucees and rs.
senes. and he handled them with terrible
severity. He came into the forest OF bad
| laws. absolute customs, social Inequalities,
religious bigotries," RIGHTEOUSNESS and IN;
temperance, swinging his gospel, ak and
crying, "Reform Repent we brood OF
! vlpers" The reformer was thorough.
| There was no compromising with the
lion Of yipers." Brood" of vipers. This
| denotes persons deceitful and malicious;
9. '1'hink not to say" etc. The natural
impulse of the unregenerate heart is to
seek out excuses and subterfuges when
the conscience is touched. John skaters
two common errors: The first, that pap.
| tism would be sufficient to turn the wrath
| Of God away, and second, that because
they are children of Abraham, therefore
| thew are safe "These stones" Undouot'
edly reference to the calling of the Cen
| tiles. Out of these hard, unregenerate
hearts God is able to make hearts OF flesh
and children of Abraham. 10. The ak
is laid" "There is an allusion here to
a woodman, who, having marked a tree
for excision, lays his AK at its roots, While
| he laws off his outer garment, IN order that
he may WELD more powerful blows. The
Jewish nation is the tree, and the Romans
the ak, which, by the just judgments OF
| God, was speedily to cut it down."
". John points to Christ Tvs. IL, ~
II. Unto repentance" John was re-
pentance preacher. This was "a baptism
recurring and representing an inward splr
final change" "He that cometh'" The
preaching Of John was preparing. the minds
of the people for the coming OF the mes.
siah, and they began to ask themseiye:
whether he were the Christ. But Johr
was not slow to undeceive them regarding
himself. SIS mightier:" John clearly out
lined the work of the coming Messiah
! His baptism will effect what mine Is pow
| erless to do. Not worthy John show:
! his greatness by his establishment. II
Whose fam" The fan, or the instrument
for the purging, is the gospel. 'Floor.'
His church. "Wheat." True believers
hGarner." The kingdom Of grace here
and of Heaven hereafter. "Unquenchablt
FIRE" Nothing will be able to extinguist
the awful fires that will kindle arount
the feet Of the finally impenitent.