The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-05-13
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson vII.-Second Quarter,
For May Is, 1910.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.

Text OF the Lesson Matt. XII, 2Z-S2, So
42-Memory Verse, 41--GoIden Text,
Matt. xii, 3o-commentary Prepared
by Rev. o. M. stsarns.
We have today the option Of the
regular lesson or a special lesson on
the Holy Spirit. but as the lesson for
the day gives opportunity for a study
of the Holy Spirit we will continue
regularly. First we see Him healing
a demon possessed man who was both
blind and dumb, and the man both
spake and saw. The people were
amazed and said, as not this the son
Of DavidP perhaps recalling the
words of lisa. xxxv, 5, 6, "Then the
eyes Of the blind shall be opened and
he ears of the deaf shall be unstop-
Jed; then shall the lame man leap as
IN hart and the tongue of the dumb
ing" Recently we saw Him heal n
lemon possessed dumb man dx, 30,
33l, but in this case the afflicted man
was blind as well as dumb. But moth
ing is too hard for the Lord. Can we
imagine a kingdom without sickness
OF inflrmity or suffering of any kind?
Yet that is what we expect and shall
surely see in His time lisa. xxxiii, "a /,
Rev. xxi, Ia.
The blind Pharisees madly accuse
Him of casting out demons by the
power of the devil himself, as If Satan
would cast out Satan and work
lgainst himself. How foolishly the
devil does cause people TO talk! They
talk much more foolishly today when
they say and teach that there is no
devil at all and no hell. 1t would seem
from verse q that unbelievers were
permitted by their ruler to do some
wonderful things, even as the magi
clans Of Egypt counterfeited the mir
acles of Moses up to a certain point
We know from ii Thess. ii. 8; Rev
xiii, Ills, that at the end of this age
the devil will specially deceive man!
by his miracles and signs and lying
wonders. Our Lord Jesus said tina.
If 1t were possible they would deceive
the very elect Matt. XIV, pa, so We
must not be deceived by the wonder.
wrought by the adversary in the name
of spiritualism, Christian Science and
other false teaching Of our times
These things will continue and In
crease until the devil, the strong maj
Of verse 20, shall have been bound
and shut up In the bottomless pit for
1000 years (Rev. Xxx, 1-3). The truth
Of God, just as it stands in His word.
is the only power that will ct US free
rom all decisions John viii. 80, 36).
We are either with Christ or against
Him, either taught by the spirit Of
God or the devil verses 2S, 30. If
people resist the Holy Spirit and listen
to the teaching of demons it is, as
Jesus said, impossible to escape the
damnation Of hell Matt. xiii, 33). AS
understand it the objectionable sin
Of verses 81, 80. and ] John V, 16, is
the persistent turning from the Holy
Spirit to the devil and attributing to
the latter the works of the Spirit Let
1t comfort and encourage any who
fear they have committed the unpar-
lonable sin to remember that the very
act that they have a fear of such
guilt is evidence that the Holy Spirit
has not left them, and, however far
they may have wandered. IL they will
only turn to the Lord the word stands,
Him that cometh unto me | will in
nowise cast OUT John vi, 81.
That words are an evidence of the
condition of the heart verse 34) should
make us covet to have the word OF
God dwelling in us richly in order
that our words may SAVIOR Of Christ.
1t would be well to be like Elihu in
Job xxi, 1920, and that would be
the case if our experience was that Of
Job xiii, II; Jer. XIV, 16. II we kept
verse SO of our lesson in mind 1t
would make us more careful in view
of Rom. xiv, 10, Il.
In verse 3S see these blind and fool
ish Pharisees asking for a sign after
lie had already wrought in their pres
ence all the signs which the prophets
had said would be done by the Mes.
:iah. No wonder that He called them
N evil and adulterous idol worship
ing world conformed) generation
verse 39l, generation of vipers (verse
"a; xiii, 33), of their father the devil
John viii. Az, for He knew them well
md knew what was in them.
See in verses 40, Al, His Endorsement
# the story of Jonah and the great
ish and Nineveh and her repentance
md no doubt He looked onward to the
lime when Israel, cast up on theii
;hores by the nations, would become
truly penitent at His appearance in
glory and carry His message not tc
one city, but to all nations for theil
good. See in verse AZ His indorse
nent of the story Of the queen O.
Sheba and the wisdom of Solomon, an(
doubtless He looked onward to thu
fulfllment Of lisa. TX. is he to US q
greater than Jonah or Solomon OF
Noses or Aaron? Do we say, witt
great gratitude and gladness, eve
nave such an High Priest CHeb. viii
1; vii. 90; iv, 15), and have we as be
iievers entered into rest? Heb. tv. Q,
Those who profess to be His friend
and yet talk down the things that II
believed are no friends of His, BIZ
rather belong to the company reprt
sented by the Pharisees Of His da.
3eing rejected by the nation, who's
.ulers had determined TO kill Hi
verse IA, He LIS led, by visit froi
lis mother and His brethren, to d
lare. whatsoever shall do the wi
4 my Father. which Is in heaven. ii
n1ne is my brother and sister nj.