The Tupelo journal., 1904-04-29
THE SUNDAY H o
lesson in the International Series fol
May l, 19O4-Prayer and
Promise.
H LESSON TEXT.
Guke 11:1-13.)

THE LESSON TEXT.
duke 11:1-13,)
/. And it came to pass, that, as He was
praying In a certain place, wnen lie ceased,
one of His disciples said unto Him: Lord,
teach us to pray, as John also taught his
disciples.
2. And He said unto them: When We pray,
say: Our Father which art In Heaven,
hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom
come. Thy will be done. as in Heaven, so in
earth.
8. Give us day by day our daily bread.
4. And forgive us our sins; for we also
forgive every one that is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation; but de-
liver us from evil.
6. And He said unto them: Which of you
shall have a friend. and shall go unto him
at midnight, and say unto him: Friend.
lend me three loaves.
6. For a friend Of mine in His journey Is
come to me, and / have nothing to set be-
fore HIM
z. And he from within shall answer. and
say: Trouble me not; the door is now shut.
and my children are with me in bed; l can
not rise and give thee.
s. / say unto you: Though he will not rise
and give him, because he is his friend, yet
because of his opportunity he will rise and
give him as many as he needeth.
8. And l say unto you: Ask, and 1t shaM
be given you seek, andye shall find; knock.
and it shall be opened unto you.
10. For every one that asketh receiveth;
and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that
knocketh it shall be opened.
II. If a son shall ask bread of any of you
that is a father, will he give him a stone?
or If he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him
a serpent?
u. Or If he shall ask an egg will he offer
him a scorpion?
10 7 E VIC than hcjnn evil knnW hnu, m pi,a
good gifts unto your children: how much
more shall your Heavenly Father give the
Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?
GOLDEN TEXT.-Ask, and it shall be
11:9.
OUTLINE OF SCRIPTURE SECTION.
Parable of Good Samaritan. Luke 10:25-31
Jesus Visit to Mary and Martha........
l0:3S-42
Discourse on Prayer............Luke I1:1-13
TIME.-Soon after Jesus Return from
the Feast Of Dedication and about four
months before His death.
PLACE-Not known, except that it was
somewhere in Peraea.
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
GAS he was praying" One of the
most important phrases in the whole
section for any to-day who are troubled
by the philosophical problems of pray
err. Jesus prayed. He needed to pray.
At all the great crises OF His life we
find Him spending not minutes but
hours in prayer. Lord. teach us to
pray" etc: The request was prompt
ed Cd by Jesus example and (2) by
by the custom of John the Baptist.
The rabbis frequently taught prayers
to their followers. when We pray,
say" etc: This does not mean that
the disciples were always using the
same words, but rather indicates the
the spirit of prayer. The time devoted
to this lesson is not long enough to
make a careful study of each phrase
of the Lords Prayer and also of the
teachings which follow it. We give
here Stevens and Buttons analysis of
the prayer and then go on to the next
paragraph. The elements and objects
of a Christians prayer, judging from
Jesus model are: "Q) A universal rec
ognition Of Gods presence ard charac-
ter; GU the establishment of fraternal
human relations through the better re-
lations of men to God; (3) the satisfac-
ton of legitimate physical needs; ca
personal fellowship with God through
the forgiveness of sins; (5) protection
from temptation" Compare this pray
er with the similar one given in Matt.
6: 9-13.
The first of Jesus Illustrations
caches by a contrast. not by a compari-
son; if the lazy-and lazy almost always
means selfish-neighbor would grant
his friends request because of his ear
nest and Dersistently expressed desire,
was it not reasonable to think that the
Infinitely kind and infinitely thought
full Father of us all would regard the
earnest prayer of His children's hearts?
ASK and it shall be given you seek,
and We shall find" etc.: A truth that
applies to all life as well as to answers
to prayer. The ones who win are those
with noble purposes and indomitable
wills, who ask till they do receive. who
seek till they find, who knock till the
door. is flung open to them.
The thought of God as a father was
not Jewish. The common names for
Him had always been those that spoke
of His power, majesty, Righteousness
or His special relation to the one ma
ton. Jesus knew God as no one else
had ever done. Others had had partial
views of Him; some had seen m thing
and some another; Jesus saw Him as
He was. HI saw that the relation of
God to men was more like that of the
true human father to his children thar
any other relationship known to men.
"If We then, being evil. know how to
give good gifts" etc: Is it reasonable
to think that God is less loving or less
able to do for His children tlan the
earthly father? "How much more
shall your heavenly Father give the
Holy Spirit to them that ask Him"
The Holy Spirit is spoken of as the
best of all the good things that the
Father could bestow.
Wheat and Chaff.
Success at the price of the soul is
failure.
Prayer for others leads to care for
others.
Without eternity life is an eternal
enigma.
God never forgets the man who can
forget himself.
Better an honest Lazarus than a sue
cessful Dives.
n..4. 80 Co+op mo bo ,,coS - Jr;ro