The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1906-02-22

(Copyrignt, 1906. by Joseph II. Bowles) |
Golden Text: "The Son of Man
hath power on earth to forgive sins"
Mark 2:10.
Lesson: Mark 2:1-12.
"And they came unto Him bringing
one sick Of the palsy, which was borne
of four. And when they could not
come nigh unto Him for the press,
they uncovered the roof where He
was; and when they had broken 1t
up, they let down the bed wherein the
sick of the palsy lay. When Jesus
saw their faith, He said unto the sick
of the palsy: Son, thy sins be for
given thee But there we're certain
of the scribes sitting there, and rea
soning In their hearts: Why doth
this man thus speak blasphemies?
Who can forgive sins but God only.
And Immediately when Jesus perceived
in His spirit that they so reasoned
with themselves, He said unto them:
Why reason ye these things in your
hearts? Whether is II easier to say
to the sick of the palsy: Thy sins be
forgiven thee; or to say: Arise, and
take up thy bed and walk? But that
ye may know that the Son Of Man
hath power on earth to forgive sins,
(He saith to the sick OF the palsy
Arise, and take up thy bed, and go
thy way into thine house. And i'm.
mediately he arose, took up the bed,
and went forth before them ALL"
Sickness type Of Sin.
recognized a very intimate connection
between sickness and sin. Leprosy
is typical of sin in It's beginnings,
growth and consummation. Palsy,
like sin, paralyzes the faculties Of
man. natural blindness Is symbolic Of
the spiritual blindness caused by sin.
In a spiritual sense people may "have
eyes and see not; ears and hear not"
The Palsied Man Is Type Of the
Sinner.
The sinner has certain faculties
which cannot be used until he is cured
of the disease Of sin. Sin blights the
spiritual eyesight. deafens spiritual
hearing; darkens the understanding
so that 1t cannot grasp nor under
stand divine things. Sin paralyzes
the faculties OF the soul. The sinner
Is as helpless to walk In the way OF
Gods commandments as this palsied
man was to walk the streets OF Pales-
tine. Paul, that deep student OF hu.
man nature. said: II know that in
me dwelleth no good things; for to
will is present with me, but how to
perform that which Is good I find not
The good that I would, do not
What a confession of human inability.
Sin and Sickness Closely Connected.
While II is not true that in every
case sickness Is the direct result of a
special sin committed by the one af-
flicted, yet the Bible distinctly teaches
that ofttimes such Is the case Jesus
taught His disciples in the case of the
man born blind John 81 that this
sore affliction came not because of any
special sin on the part Of the blind
man. Nevertheless by addressing his
spiritual before his physical condition
by saving first "Thy sins be for
given thee" and afterward: Rise,
take up thy bed and walk" the Master
distinctly taught us that In this case
at least (as well as in John 81 the af.
Fiction was the result of some par
ticular s'1. "Sin no more lest a worse
thinr come upon thee, words like
IT, emphatically set forth the close
/ .l,N kAtu eli, nj
How Can Sin Be ForgivenP
| How can punishment for sin be
averted? II has been said that there
are three ways. First, inasmuch as
suffering and punishment is the result
of sin, let us stop SHINING. and then
we shall cease suffering That sounds
well. But 1t is cold, comfortless logic
| Who can stop SHINING; where is the
man in all the earth that doeth good
, and sinneth not. This Is law without
love. Secondly, II is acknowledged
! that there Is sin and there is punish
ment for sin. but then God is kind
loving, and compassionate that He will
| say to MS at last. well. It Is true
you have been pretty bad, but I will
look over II; come right into Heaven
/ That Is love without law. If this were
the real status of the case, Heaven
would not be a place long secure from
the attacks OF sin. Unless holiness
and righteousness be the center OF
Gods throne, safety and security can
never be its circumference.
Forgiveness Through Christ.
There remains Just one other way
of forgiveness. and that is the true
way. There Is sin, and there is pun
ishment and condemnation for sin
But CO. ,'s laid all our sins on Christ
who bore then in His own body on the
tree. Forgiveness then is by faith In
the redeeming sacrifice Of Christ We
have forgiveness through His shed
blood. Here is law and love combined
thus allowing God to be Just and tn,
justifier of the sinner who believes II
Jesus.
Sin Must Needs Be Forgiven.
Man must be forgiven or else h,
will be lost. II there is such a thins
as sin in the world, then there is sucf
a thing as punishment and condemna
ton for sin. II there be no sin, theI
we need have no worry with regarC
to the thought of punishment. Jesul
Christ taught very definitely that sir
was real, and II unforgiven was tn,