The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1904-11-16
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON VII, FOURTH QUARTER, IN
TERNATIoNAL SERIES, NOV. 20.

E1SS0N VA, EoonlFl SOSH GpJ 1i<-
TERNATIONAL SERIES, NOV. 20.
Text of the Lesson, lisa. 1, 10, 1920.
Memory Verses, lS-2o-Go1den Text,
lisa. 1, 16, documentary Prepared
by Rev. d. NJ. Stearns.
[copyrsht, 1904, by American Press Association
Our lesson is called "ISaiah's Message
to JUDAH" which is all right as to the
last two words, for it is indeed mes
sage to judah and not to all Israel, and
1t is a message to Judah and not osthe
church This is the primary truth, but
we must not forget that there are les
sons here for all believers at all times.
But then, we must notice that It IS not
Isaiah's message, but the message OF
the Lord through His servant Isaiah.
"Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O
earth, for the Lord hath spoken!" Verse
q This is the truth to be emphasized.
'AThe mighty God, even the Lord, hath
spoken" CPS. !. u. God. hath spoken un-
to US by His Son (Heb. /, l, p. This IS
the great fact Of the Bible, and surely
it becomes His creatures to hear, but
that is the very thing they refuse todo,
as He says, II have nourished and
brought up children, and they have re-
belled against me- (verse p.
He.says that the dumb brutes,such as
tie OK and the ass have more regard
for their owners than bis people have
for Him. In Jer. viii, I, he says that
the birds seem to have more intelligence
than His people. When on earthsin the
days of His humiliation, as He .wept
over Jerusalem He said, IF thou 'hadst
known the things which belong to thy
peace, but now they are hid from thine
eyes" duke xix, Al, 42). They have
forsaken the Lord, they have provoked
the holy One Of Israel unto anger, they
are gone away backward (verse4,swa
true Of them in the days Of Isaiaheand
Jeremiah and also when our Lordwa
on earth, for He had to call them. hypo-
critics and a generation Of v1pers, and
finally to tell them that their house
would be desolate till His return. Matt
xxiii).
Our lesson says that individually, and
nationally they were sick and unsound
from head to foot, their country desc
late and overthrown by strangers, ;aad
that but for very small remnant OF
godly ones in their nidstShey:wousdsbe
Ike Sodom and Gomorrah. Then He
calls them Sodom and Gomorrah and
SAYS that He cannot tolerate their sac
rifces and their feasts; that they weary
Him with them (Verses 11-15). From
this and similar language elsewherem
the prophets some have boldly affirmed
that the Lord never Instituted sacrifice,
but such do not know what they; say,
nor do they understand Gen. il, q, the
first Of all sacrifices and by the hands
Of the Lord himself.
When He was on earth N human
form the feasts Of the Lord which. BE
had ordained had become mere ifeasts
Of the Jews, all form and ceremony 10
be seen Of men (Matt vi, LIS; xii,
1-S. This sort of thing He hatesstoday,
as much as He did then, for Hesde-
sires worship only from such as Wor-
ship Him in spirit and in truth See
John iv, %, a. It may not befor us-to
Judge, but very little consideration
will lead one to think It possible that
there may be In the church today
very similar state Of affairs to that de-
scribed by the Spirit through Isaiah
All we need say is that whatever In the
form Of worship is not from a redeemed
soul in the power Of the Spirit and IN
the name Of the Lord Jesus cannot be
worship at all. The precious blood Of
Christ, the great sacrifice, is the only
foundation, the Holy Spirit the only
power and the word Of God the only
revelation by which we can know God
and worship Him
BE who would worship-God mnstArst
be clean; hence Wash you;~ ;~make you
clean" (verse 16), and how tdsfs.to be
done isplainly set.forth both In Genesis
and.ReVeiaion and all the way through
Nothing can cleanse from sin but the
blood. aThe life Of the heshis in>the
blood, and I have given It 10 you upon
the altar to make an atonenent for
your.souls, for 1t is the blood atnaS-
eth an atonement foF the SOUP QeT.
xvii, ~. The doings Of verses Is and
II follow the cleansing. There can be
no acceptable doing TIL we are cleansed,
for '4they that are in the flesh cannot
please God" Rom. viii 3.
How, then, Is the cleansing accom-
pIished? God must do it When VIII
he do it? Come, now; how thoroughly;
will he do it.! The sins as scarlet shall
be white as snow and the crimson Ike
wool, for the blood Of Jesus Christ
cleanseth from all sin, so that It IS re-
membered nc more. ''I, even I, am He
that blotteth out thy transsresslons
for My own sake and will not renem-
Der thy sins" Qsa. xiii, 25). The van1-
ty Of all our efforts to cleanse ourselves
is set forth in Jer. II, %, but God does
it instantly and thoroughly. Then fol-
lows the secret Of all acceptable service,
for where there is redeemed soul who
zs.willing and obedient God will work
ar that one both to will and to do OF
HIS good pleasure CPhil. Ii, 13), and
n on one can know the power and
eo@ fort Of these words, Lord, Thou
wilt, ordain peace for Us, for Thou also
last wrought all our works in US"
segar5Salng according to His working,
whicrsworketh in me nightly" "Work-
ing In you that which is well pleasing
sn His.aght" Qsa. XVI, II; Col !, 9;
Heb. xNi, 20, 2D.
All. rebealing against Gods will and
Gods way; (and there is 8 lot OF it on
the part Of Ills people, only causes sor-
row totShensefves and brings no glory