Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1909-02-24
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL,
Lesson Ix.-FirSt Quarter, For
Feb. %, 1909.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.
Text of the Lesson, Acts viii, 4-25.
Memory Verses IA, 15-Golden Text,
Acts viii, documentary Prepared
by Rev. D. M. Stearns.

copyright, 1909, by American Press Association
The parting commission of our LORD
was to go into all the world and give
the good news to every creature, those
thus going being assured of His pres
ence with them all the days until the
end of the age, and the special endue-
ment of the Holy Spirit was to the
end that they might be witnesses unto
Christ not only in Jerusalem and Ju-
dea and Samaria, but unto the utter
most part of the earth Matt. xviii,
10 20: Mark xvi, 10; Acts 1, s.. Lest
the apostles might think that they
alone were the ones to do this GOD
seems to have overruled even such
seemingly grievous thing as the MUIR
murinG of the Grecians to bring forth
other than the apostles and send them
forth-humble men who were willing
to serve on q committee to supervise
the distribution Of aims and yet men
full of wisdom and faith and OF the
Holy Spirit, for we cannot truly serve
God even in the lowliest office except
by the Holy Spirit. In our last lesson
we saw the first Of the seven most
highly honored of God not only as a
witness, but as a martyr, sealing his
testimony with his blood. In today's
lesson we see the second of the seven,
Philip, so preaching Christ in Sama-
ria that the people with one accord
gave heed unto his message, and there
was great joy in that city oversees $50.
The Lord also wrought miracles OF
healing through Philip, for the lame
and the palsied were made whole, and
demons were cast out Of those pos
sessed by them.
When we see men like Stephen and
Philip thus used by the Holy Spirit
and consider that even the apostles
were accounted as unlearned and ig-
norant men and when we hear Paul,
who had some learning, having been
taught by Gamaliel, renouncing all ell
ticing words of mans wisdom lest the
cross Of Christ should be made of none
effect q Cor. i, II; Ii, a, we cannot but
wonder If there is anything of God in
the long years Of preparation which
are thought to be necessary to fit men
to be preachers or missionaries. Then
when we consider the discourseS OF
Peter and Stephen and Paul in Acts Ii,
vii and xiii and see them to consist
largely Of quotations from the Scrip
lures centering upon crucifed and
risen and returning Christ we cannot
but ask in all humility and sincerity,
Since the Holy Spirit thus uses His
own word 10 accomplish the work He
has been sent to do, is not the one
great need more of the word of God
and the one essential for minister or
to be filled with the word
Of God and the Spirit Of God? 1t GER
tainly does seem so to us.
In Simon the SOrcereT we see the
contrast to such as Stephen and Phil
ip, for while they magnified the Lord
Jesus he gave out that himself was
some great one (verse 81, like Thendas,
who boosted himself to be somebody
(Acts V, 36). This is the spirit of him
who will yet exalt himself above all
that IS called God and will attempt to
show himself to be God Oh Thess. Ii,
A.. All the world will wonder at him
and will worship him and the dragon
who will give him his power, all ex-
cept those whose names are in the |
Lambs book Of life Rev. xiii, 8, s..
We need not wonder, therefore, that
all the people in Samaria for time
gave heed to Simon the Sorcerer
See the multitudes who today are |
bewitched and deluded by the many |
strange doctrines which are being |
taught, and the reason is simply stated |
In II Thess ii, 10. II, for we have
of the last days. 1t Is
a fearful thing to turn away from any |
thing that God has written by His
Spirit, but human nature seems prone |
to listen to the devil rather than to
God, yet God is not discouraged, and |
there is no reason for us to be. The |
kingdom will come, and the name of |
Jesus Christ will be hOnored in all the |
world. The zeal of the Lord Of Hosts |
will bring it to pass Rev. XII, 10; Ps. |
xxi, II; Isa xiii, 4; TX, 6, y. When
this Simon professed to believe In Je- |
sus Christ there must have been great |
rejoicing on the part of many that
such a one should have come also, but |
not all professors are real possessors,
and in one place we read that our |
Lord Jesus did not believe in all who |
protested to believe in Him, for He
knew what was in man John Ii. 1920 |
The special gift Of the Holy Spirit
granted to these believers through Pc
ter and John, who had been sent up |
from Jerusalem, stirred Simon to de-
sire the power Of communicating this J
gift, and for it he offered to pay, not |
the freeness of the re-
demption that is in Christ and all that |
It included. In this matter his heart |
was not right with God, and IN this he
had neither part nor lot (verse 2D. |
The next two verses may indicate pos
sibly that he was not truly saved, and |
verse "a may merely show fear of
some judgment that might come upon
him from the Lord. After such truths |
as are set forth in l Cor Ill. 10; v, 8.
md the testimony Of Peter that Lot
was a righteous man 1t does not seem
becoming III US to judge any one but
Rom. xiv, %; Cor. ", 81.
1t is ours to proclaim the word Of the
Lord concerning Jesus Christ and His
sufferings and glory In full confidence
that mo word of God is void of pow
er," that He will watch over His word