The Tupelo journal., 1909-11-19
Paul's Story Of
His Life
Sunday School Lesssa for Nov. II. 1909
Specially arranged for This Paper

LESSON TEXT.-Cor. Hops; 12:1-10
Memory verses. "a, Is.
GOLDEN TEXT.-.'He said unto me
Ny grace is sufficient for thee; for my
strength is made perfect in weakness.
"a Cor. 1928.
TIME.-Autumn Of "A. D.. 81 to late II
62 or early in So.
PLACE.-In Macedonia. where the Sec
ond Epistle to the Corinthians was writ
ten.
Suggestion and Practical Thought.
/. The church in Corinth was very
young, not seven years old, from thu
first coming of Paul, who remained
with them only a year and a half
Since that time they had grown II
numbers with but little outside hell
from Paul and those who represented
him.
2. The young church was surround
ed by intense worldliness, and heather
immoralities and principles, which
were like an intense moral malaria
an unhealthy atmosphere.
8. There was in the city a consider
able colony of Jews who were opposed
to the whole Christian movement.
4. An anti Pauline mission of Chris
tian Jews from Palestine came tt
Corinth with views opposed to Paul.
teachings concerning the Gentiles
and insisted that all Gentle Chris
tians should conform to the Jewish
ritual.
5. Cases of immortality had ariser
in the church for which Paul hai
been compelled to reprove them.
6. There were divisions among
them, one being for Peter, another
for Paul, and another for Christ, as il
all were not for Chyist.
Z There were attacks upon Paul.
character and authority.
Speaking of those who claimed tt
be the real leaders and apostles, anG
who condemned him, Paul says:
%. Are they Hebrews" of pures'
blood, one of the nation and Ian
guage?
$50 am l."
Are they Israclites," of the true re
ligion, worshiping the n God?
so am l."
ART luey lue SCeu VI AUIdIdUu. III
heritors of the promises, of the Mes
sianic hopes, and the kingdom of God
$50 am l."
"a. Five times received l forty
stripes save one" from the Jews. None
are mentioned in the Acts. The Jews
were forbidden to inflict more thar
forty stripes (Deut. $3.50, and lest
they should break the law by a mis-
take in counting they inflicted only
~thirty-nine.
IS. Thrice was | beaten with rods
Once mentioned in Acts 1922. A sim
liar instance is given by Cicero
against Verres, V. 81.
"Once was I stoned" At Lystra
(Acts 14:19). Stoning vas planned
once before at Iconium, but the plar
was not carried out (Acts 14:5).
Two.-The second test of apostle
ship.-12:1-6. Vision. Insight. Com
munion with God. Realization of the
spiritual. Paul's second answer to OBJ
%jectors is that he has a right to speak
in the name of God; for though he
had not seen Jesus in the flesh, he
had seen eternal things. he had re
ceived revelations from God.
2. II knew" DIETER 81 know") "a
man in Christ" That he is referring
to himself is proved by v. Z; and the
whole argument implies it. How it
came, he could not tell, but he knew
the fact. Caught up to the third
heaven" beyond the visible heaven,
ito the highest heaven where the
throne of God is" to Paradise the
abode of the just. and of the angels.
Whatever place it may have been, 1t
was into the Utmost spiritual realities.
Note the several visions which are
recorded in the Acts from this vision
of Jesus at his conversion, to his
vision in the storm on the way to
Rome. In his letter t the Galatians
Oil, 12) Paul declares:
Il certify you, brethren, that the
Gospel which was preached of me is
not after man.
For / neither received it of man,
neither was l taught it, but by the
revelation of Jesus Christ"
Something of this vision, Of this
communion of God with our spirits,
of this realization of heaven and its
life, of this insight into spiritual
truths, is necessary to u best useful
ness and our highest life.
Three.-The third test of Pauls
Apostleship was his sanity life
12:7-10. Paul shows that the signs of
an apostle were wrought among the
Corinthians Gin signs and wonders and
mighty deeds,' every one of them for
the good of the people and the glory
of God. 81 seek not yours but you,'
Il will very gladly spend and be spent
for you, though the more abundantly
I love you, the less / be loved"
The Thorn in the Flesh. One special
form in which his saintliness was cul-
tivated and manifested is described in
VS.. ITO.
What Paul's ". y thorn in the
flesh was we cannot tell. But it APP.
pears to have been something which
he feared would lessen his power
among them and hinder his work.
Paul prayed that the thorn in his
flesh might be taken away. He prayed
till an answer came.
The nswer to Pauls prayer was
not by taking away the thorn, but by
giving him grace to bear it, and by
making what seemed to be a hindrance
the means of "a greater blessing than
could otherwise be his.
If a person bearing a burden that