The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1906-01-24
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
LESSON ~, FIRST QUARTER, INTERNAL
TlONAu SERIES, JAN. %.

LESSON ~, FIRST QUARTER, INTERNA-
TloNAL SERIES, JAN. %.
Text of the Lesson, Mark /, LII.
Memory Verses, 10, 11-GoIden Text,
Sam. vii, documentary Prepared
by Rev. d. NJ. Sfearns.
Copyright, 1906 by American Press Associate a.
4 few words about the man used to
write this gospel may not be amiss in
connection with this our first lesson in
it this year. If the name always refers
to the same Nark-an1 it seems to-
then we gather from the references to
him that his surname was Jc;an, that
he was the SOP Of Barnabas' sister
Mary and lived n Jerusalem. He start
ed with Paul and Barnabas on their
first missionary tour, but left them and
yet afterward went forth with Barna-
bas. Although Paul refused to take
him on the second tour and quarre!ed
With Barnabas about him, he after
ward found him profitable, and we see
him at Rome with Paul and at Baby
lon with Peter (Acts xii,;25, 49, n, SO;
XII, IL; Col. IL, 10; II Tim. ", II; Pet.
=, 49,. Neither he nor any: one else
counts for anything apart from the
Lord Jesus. il whom alone are redemp-
ton and life eternal. Having Him, we
have life, but apart from Him there is
no life q John ', 1G. The good rdtngs
concerning Him are called the gospel
Of God concerning His Son, the gospel
Of the grace Of God, the gospel Of sal
vation, the gospel Of peace, Ihegospel
6T the kingdom Of Cos, the gospel of
the glory Of the blessed God, etc. Rom.
i, /, 3: Acts *, q; Eph. j, IS; vi, Is;
Mark !, Il: Tim. LID.
Each Of the four gospels tells the glad
tdings, and In that all are alike, but.
each has somewhat different story to.
tell Of Him, as the King, the Servant;
the Son of Man and Son Of God. al
though the drst verse Of our lesson
calls him the Son Of God. 1t IS the Son
of God becoming the Servant Of Ged
that BE may be also the servant of
men. Sonship means services.ior God
said 70 Pharaoh, Let my Son go that
He may serve Mes (ES. ", 2S), and
sn Thes$. !, 8, We ind that we
turn to God from idols"to serve the lfV-
ing and true God,
John the Baptist was the Lords
messenger, just I, voice for Him, pre-
pairing His way, So should we now be
the Lords messengers with Eis mes
sage preaching repentance and the re-
mission aof sins through Jesus Christ
luke xiv, A.: Acts x, 43; xiii, IS. 39).
Any so called gospel that does noe pro-
claim, forgiveness Of sins through Je-
sus' blood as the free gilt Of God is
notSthe gsopel Of God, but another gos-
pei, concerning which see Ga!. i, S, 8.
There must bss conviction Of sin and
confession ef2sfn, then there will be
forgiveness, for If we confess He is
faithful and just to forgive q John !,
g.. The true messenger Of God does
not think much Of himself nor seek
great things for himself, but is ever
meek and lowly, seeking honor only
from God and glory for God.
John the Baptist came in the spirit
and power Of Elijah Nuke i, 10 and
was like him In many ways. EllJahs
are needed now, having as their motto,
''The Lord God liTeth, before whom l
stand" q Kings xvii, u. We know that
the real Elijah will come. before. the
Lord comes back in Els glory fMal. ",
5; Matte:xvii, I'D. but every believer
should now, be. filed with the spirit and
by Hse and testimony praclsim the gos-
pei that the elect church. may be gath
cred out and the long postponed king
dom become a reality,
We shall: never be the witnesses we
ought to be. until alled with, or bap-
tied with; the Holy Spirit (Acts /,
5, ~, but, ,inasmuch, SIS He who SENDS US,
whose messengers. I'VE are, is the one
who baphzes with the Spirit, and BE is
more willing to do this than parents
are to give good gifts to their children,
why should we not be filed, and filled
again, for each new act Of service as
the apostles were? Matthew and Luke,
who also record His baptism, speak Of
IRE AMI point on to the harvest time,
but there may be some work Of the ire
needed now, for which we are not
ready. in connection with being filed
with the Spirit. When Jesus came to
John to be baptized Of him, John at
first refused to do it saying that be
had greater need to be baptized oy
Jesus, but wher Jesus said. Suffer it
to be so now, lor thus it becometh Us
to fulfill ali Righteousness" (Matt. -.
15), then John baptized him, and Jesus
began to be numbered with transgress-
ors, for He was no sinner and had 10 !
sins to confess, but perhaps here He
began to be made sin for us ID some !
sense, although it was on the cross that
BE bare our sins in His own body u !
Cor. V, 21; I Pet. ii, 24).
In these words Of Jesus to John we
have Els second recorded utterance, as
In last weeks lesson we had His first.
and. while there is breadth snd
length and depth and height here
which we may not comprehend, can wo !
not appropriate the words Suffer It to
be 50 now" and for His sake submit to !
many things which seem to US unneces-
sary and uncalleG FOR and even unjust
thst He may be glorifed and His right,
eousness made manifest? Let US take /
as our constant motto, About my sa-
Tiers business, suffering all things for
Jesus sake" and we shall have many
q realization Of our Fathers approval
Learn from the opened heaven tie inter
est manifest there in all that concerns
Him here. See the dove which founc |
no perfect rest anywhere else on earth
{r. 1Nby