The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1904-08-05
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL,
LESSON VI, THIRD QUARTER, INTER.
NATIONAL SERIES, AUG. 7.
Text of the Lesson. ! Kings xvii,
I-i6-Memory Verses. IL. 14-Golden
Text, Pet. v, documentary Pre-
pared by Rev. ID. VI. stearns.

spend SIX weeks WITH Elijah. the
Tishbte, who was OF the inhabitants
OF Gilcad. This first record of him
contains all that we know of his birth
place and parentage. Like MelchiZedek.
he stands before us on the pages of
Scripture without any record Of father
or mother or ancestry, and he appears
as suddenly He is spoken Of by some
rs one of the grandest and most rO-
mantle characters that Israel ever
produced. Ills name signifies My God
is Jehovah" and before Jehovah he
stood and unto Him he lived. The
first recorded sentence from his lips,
"The Lord God of Israel iveth before
whom | stand" Verse u. gives us his
constant attitude. The rule of his life
was TO please God, not fearing the
frown nor seeking the favor of mortal
man. His opening words are repeated
in xviii, II, and make us think Of
Gabriels words in Luke /, 10, Il am
Gabriel that stand in the presence OF
God" They also carry us back To the
Lords word to Abram in Gen. xvii, l,
walk before Me and be thou perfect
(margins-upright, sincere). This Is
the only way for those who would be
the Lords messengers
Concerning his message TO Ahab,
There shall not be dew nor rain these
years but according to My word" we
must consider Jas. V, II, where 1t is
written that he prayed earnestly that
ii might not rain, and also Deut. Xi, IL,
where we have the authority for such
prayer, the Lord having threatened
TO shut up the heavens and withhold
rain if they turned from Him to wor-
ship idols That the heavens were
thus shut up i'm the days of Elijah is
confirmed by our Lord in Luke iv, %.
Believing prayer must be based upon
some plain assurance in the word of
God or some clear revelation from God
concerning His will, George Muller
has called the former the grace of faith
and the latter the gift of faith. In one
way or the other God will guide us.
Verses to give us the story OF
the brook Cherith and the ravens, and
all was according TO the word or the
Lord. which both Elijah and the ravens
Obeyed. The first time this title or ex-
preston. "The word of the Lord" is
used is in Gen. XIV. /. 1t may mean
message from God or ii may mean the
Son of God, who is called THE Word
John t. /; Rev. xix, 80. Either way
il is God controlling, and our part is
"willing and obedient" Qsa. j. 19). The
toll 10 A
he has delivered his message and that
is all that is required Of him ut present
Nav the life Of every child OF God
be summed up in this: Striving ac-
cording to His working, which work
eth in Me nightly" Col /, 30, for
unless it is God working in us it can
not stand. But when we thus seek first
the kingdom of God and His righteous
ness we may he sure that all temporal
things shall be added. even though
ravens feed us or poor widows minis
ter to us. In these days OF unbeller
and soothing. If any should hear 1t
said that Arabs, not birds, fed Elijah,
Just ask what kind Of an Arab flew out
OF Noahs ark for the word raven In
our lesson is the same in the Hebrew
as the word raven" in Gen. viii, Z. BY
whatever instrumentality the Lord
NAV minister to us. while truly CRATE
full to Him and to His ministering
servants. we must be stayed upon
Himself alone. lest some Cherith dry
ND and we thereby grow discouraged.
Uab. iii. II, Is, is a fine word to APP
propriate, for whoever or whatever
may fail us we can always truly say,
Thou, o Lord. remainest forever
liam. V, 10; Heb. l, IL.
1t was not for Elijah to think out
some new place to go to. for the Lord
who sent him TO Cherith and hid and
sustained him there had his eye upon
him I'll Chron. XVI, ~, and saw all the
| circumstances, and doubtless EllJan
talked with Him about it. Well. at the
right time. not too soon nor too late,
the same word of the Lord who sent
| him to Cherith commands him to go
TO n widow woman at Zarephath, or
i according TO Luke iv, 26, Sarepta, ana
there is our Lords confirmation or this
| part OF the story also. Zarephath sig
nifies q place Of refining, and, while NJ
| Cherith he was cut off from all human
help. he is now to be refined still
more by most unlikely human minis
tration. Safely he journeys, for the
Lord can hide us while journeying as
well as while abiding, and when he ar
rives at the gate OF the city the widow
is there gathering few sticks to make
n cake. for herself and her son, OF the
last handful of meal in the house, ana
after that they expect to die. What
a boarding house! What welcome FOR
a weary traveller And yet ii Is the
Lords way.
Listen to Elijah: Fear not; go and
do as thou hast said. but make me o
little cake first" Verse 49,. Had this
been all. the woman might nave
thought him some crazy tramp. But
listen yet: after that make for thee
and for thy son. for thus saith the
Lord God of Israel, the barrel or meal
shall not waste. neither shall the cruise
of oil fail until'' . And so IL came
TO pass according TO the word or the
Lord. and the meal and oil were multi
| piled for full year oversees 1O-l6 and
| margin OF 15). This poor widow gave
~