The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-09-23
SUNDAY. SCHOOL.
Lesson XIII.-Third Quarter, For
Sept. rs, 1910.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.


Gal. " documentary Prepared by
Rev. .. NJ. stearns.
What is the use OF all our Bible
study If it does not assure to us at
! least three things-salvation and the
assurance of it, a daily life to glorify
God, consuming desire to give the
gospel to all that Jesus may come again
and set up His kingdom. If we take
the beginning and end of this epistle
we learn that the Lord Jesus Christ
gave Himself for our sins that He
might deliver us from this present evil
world; that in the power of His cross,
we being crucifled to the world and
the world to us, we might live as new
creatures q, 4; vi, IA, 15).
The epistle then covers specially the
second of the three things just men,
toned, the daily life to Gods glory
H. 24). 1t must be the Son OF God re-
vealed in us, not /, but Christ living in
me, and never weary In well doing
q, 16; Ii, 20; vi, 81. This life will not
be manifest unless we are clear upon
the first topic above mentioned, the as
surance of our salvation, wholly upon
the ground Of Christ's having been
made curse for us and that we by
faith in Him are considered as having
been crucified with Him and thus re-
deemed from the curse Of the law.
In Romans we learn that we have no
righteousness, in l Corinthians that
we have no wisdom and in II CORN
thians that we have no strength, but
that in Christ and in Him alone we
have all three, righteousness, wisdom
and strength, and all wholly of grace,
without any desert on our part or by
any works of ours whatever Now,
these Galatians were being taught by
false teachers that grace was not suf-
ficient, but that there must be a GER
tain keeping of the law. And Paul
tells them that this is not the gospel
which he preached to them, but anoth-
er gospel, a perversion of the gospel
of Christ, and that those who give
heed to it are fallen from grace; not
lost. but losing the joy of that saliva
ton which is wholly of grace q, 60;
v, ~.
In Christ not only is there deliver
ance from the curse Of the law, but a
freedom in His service which is i'm
possible to those who are working for
salvation instead of working because
they have salvation as the free gift of
God oh, how great is the love of Him
who gave Himself for our sins! We
should mediate upon it and upon Him
until we are consumed by it and by 1t
constrained to live wholly for Him.
Who shall accomplish this in us? Even
the Spirit who is mentioned in the few
verses Of our lesson seven times The
disciples under the teaching of Christ
for two or three years never became
what He intended they should be I'M
til at Pentecost they were filed with
the Spirit. Then we see such change
that even their enemies were compel
led to acknowledge that they had been
with Jesus Notice. then. in our lesson
that we are to walk in the Spirit, be
led of the Spirit and live in the Spirit
nc, IS, 25) and manifest the fruit Of
long suffering. gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, temperance. Each of
the eight may be said to be a mani
festation of the first, for love covers
all, love is the fulfilling of the law
verse IA; Rom. xiii, 10). Some one
has said that joy is love exulting, peace
is love In repose, and so with all the
others, each being some manifestation
Of love. God is love, and love is kind
Il John iv, 8, IS; Cor. xiii, A.. If love
always ruled us. how manifest the life
Of Jesus would be and how greatly
God would be glorifed In us! When
we remember that the Spirit who
dwelleth in us as the children of God
yearneth for us even unto jealous envy
GAS. iv, s, r. ", margin), desireth US
far more than we desire Him, what can
be the hindrance to the manifestation
of this love except the power Of the
flesh described in our lesson, which re-
mains in every believer and is so di-
rectly opposite to all that is of the
Spirit? While the work or fruit OF
the Spirit is summed up in nine all
inclusive words, note the seventeen
words which describe the works of the
fesh, with the concluding expression
land such like" as il they were too
numerous to mention
In Cor. vi, Q. 10. there are ten forms
Of flesh manifestation mentioned with
the same conclusion as here, Shall not
inherit the kingdom of God" but with
the comforting assurance that even
such had been washed, sanctihed, JUS
tilted. in the name of the Lord Jesus
and by the Spirit of God. If the devil
can work such beastly works in a hui
man being, how much more can the
Spirit of God work His beautiful
works If He is allowed to do so. Hear
PauPs cry in Rom. vii, "a: 20 wretched
man that am! Who shall deliver me
from the body Of this death? 2" or as in
the margin. "this body of DEATH" But
hear his exultant cry in the next verse,
Il thank God, through Jesus Christ our
Lord" Then in Rom. vi see how he
dwells upon our being crucifled with
Christ, buried with Him, risen with
Him and that now we are to reckon
ourselves dead indeed unto sin. but
alive unto God. through Jesus Christ
our Lord, yielding ourselves unto God
as those who are alive from the dead
In the freedom from condemnation and
assurance of no separation Of Rom.
will we may let the Spirit of Him who
raised up Jesus from the dead dwell