Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1907-04-17
TIE SUNDAY SCHOOL
LESSON III, SECOND QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, APRIL 81.

all dispelled by lne Soou noAu
mon him in his meeting with Esau, MS
brother. We have also the record OF
the purchase of the field where 10
senb's body was afterward buried and
where Jesus talked with the woman
Of Samaria ((Josh. xiv, 80; John iv, T.
and for the first time the name FL
elohe.Israel, God the God of lsraeD'
The next chapter is a record of the
DEVILS work. for he is ever going ABOUT
seeking whom he may devour. rs.
xviii. 80, is a good verse for every day'
"As for God, His way is perfect
In the first verse of our lesson chap
ter the promised land is called the lana
of soiournings (see margn), ana we
are reminded by Stephen thar Goa
gave Abraham none inheritance IN IT,
Though He said that He would CActs
vii. 40, and in Heb. xi, o, 10. that ne
soiourned in the land Of promise as IN
a strange country, dwelling in taDer-
nacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs
with him Of the same promise, for he
looked for a city which hath founda-
tons"
Believing the promises of God makes
us strangers and pilgrims on the eartn
(Heb. XII, 10; 1 Pet. ii, III waiting Tor
the kingdom when we shall share His
glory and reign with Him. Of all the
typical persons who in their lives fore
shadow the Messiah Of Israel, Joseph
Is one of the most remarkable and IN
this and the next lesson illustrates the
snfferings OF Christ-loved by his ia
ther. but hated, envied and prosecuted
nv his brethren because he testified oil
their evil deeds. See John vii, Z; XIV
1921. In all the sufferings Of Joseph
God was working out His eternal pur'
pose, overruling the wrath Of his broth
rem, but yet allowing the innocent one
TO suffer and the father to suffer also
1 wonder how many give much thought
to the suffering of God the Father IN
giving up His beloved Son to die fol
our sins, and do we in any sense seek
to enter into the sufferings of Christ as
our sin bearer, or can we!
God has a way Of strengthening HIS
Deople to endure suffering and be pa
tient, as when He sustained Abraham
by the glory of the city, Moses by the
recompense of the reward, and in this
case He sustains Joseph by the
thoughts of future pre-eminence an(
glory which He presented to him ID his
dreams. While neither his brethren
nor his father took any stock (as W.
say In his dreams, yet he could no
forget them and must have been man!
time sustained by them in his sor
rows.
ANY talk even now concerning INT
glory Of the kingdom and our relgl
with Christ in bodies like His glorifie(
body too often provokes a smile O.
pity for the simpletOn who believes
such things and even produces in SOM
believers that which looks like hatred.
When one day Jacob called his be
loved Joseph to send him to find hi
brethren and see if it was well wit
them, how promptly he said, Here an
Ir oversees 1910 reminding us VIII
have the finished story of Sam. Iii,
6. 8: lisa. vi, 8, and leading up to tn
question, Am saying that to God! l
not, why not? Why unwilling to see
the welfare of those who know Hill
not? Is it nothing to me? Oam. l, u
Joseph perseveringly sought his brett
rem till he found them Q5-10. So ais
the shepherd and the woman Of Lux
XIV. Those whom the Spirit Of Chris
fills are not discouraged Qsa. xiii, ~.
See the conspiracy and unbellevln
mockery Of verses 1920 and compar
Matt. xvii, /. 1912: xxi, SO, 30, an
he their own brother, their fathers sol
So the learned unbelief of today scoff
at prophecy and at those who believ
it, but He that stitch in the heaven
snail laugh. the Lord shall have thel
In derision, and lie shall yet set III
king upon His holy hill of Zion FPS.
4, 81. Reuben, the oldest brother has
softer heart and a plan for Joseph's d.
liverance. His name, which NEAR
"see a son" xxx, 80 margin), may pc
sibly suggest that he saw something
the future in Joseph's dreams. Ho
terrified Joseph must have been at II
| faces of his cruel brethren and the
treatment of him, their rough handlin
stripping him Of his beautiful coat an
casting him into the pit! The angus
| Of his soul and his earnest entreati'
they remembered for twenty yea
xiii, 81, 22). The saying stands al
has many an application, BE sure vol
sin will find you out" (Num. xxi, .;
Study the reference in Zech. tx, IL, to
pit without water and consider aga
the unity of Scripture.
With the anguish of his entreati
ringing in their ears and the agony
his face still before their eyes, they
down to eat bread as if it was nOthiI
70 them. Compare Matt. xvii, SO.
Next Judah's heart is touched f
him, he who twenty years later b
came surety for Benjamin, and fearf
lest Joseph should be slain he prOpos
that they sell him as slave to q pas
ing company of Midianite merchar
men OH their way to Egypt. This tn
do for twenty pieces Of silver, and
Joseph was taken to Egypt. How bri
the saying, but, oh, the untold agony
1t! Was God in all this? Listen to j
seph years afterward: God did SCI
me before you to preserve life. 1t W
not you that sent me hither, but Go
xiv, 8, s.. The guilt of the brethr
was marked and ineXcusable, but G
made the wrath of man to praise HI
and Overruled it to work out His pl
pose. And so it is always Rom. viii, 2
Jacobs agony as the lying Of his so
made him believe that Joseph was k
ed was heavy reaping of seed SOY
IL.