The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-12-05
PASTOR RUSSELL'S
 WEEKLY LESSON
By PASTOR RUSSELL

hold the face of My Father. ". 10. Perhaps it was the fact that Peter, James and John had been favored more than the others on several occasions that led to the query which opens to- days study: Who, then is the great est in the kingdom of heaven?"
 Jesus calling to Him a little child, set him in the midst of them and safe, 'Verily I say unto you, except ye tuin from this spirit of self-seeking) and be- come as little children, ye shall in no
 wise enter into the kingaom of heaven you will have no part in it. Whoever
 would be greatest in the kingdom Of
 heaven should therefore become as
 humble as this little child. A little child
 asks questions; it seeks instruction; it
 does not profess and boast wisdom OF
 knowledge-it is candid, it is truthful. It
 is in later years that it learns from It's
 parents and others, untruthfulness, prid
 bombast and various qualities which it
 did not possess at first. It may have
 possessed the disposition to pride and
 arrogance and haughtiness, etc., by her
 edity, but at first it was guileess.
 The Masters lesson is that whoever would become child of God and be
 taught of God, and be developed for the
 glorious position i'll the kingdom to which We were called, must become ohildlike -
 must turn away from all pride, from self ish ambitions and hypocrises and pre- tentions. They must confess their little ness and ignorance, and go humbly to the Lord for the necessary instruction Any who refuse to adopt this proper, chidlike spirit will thus be refused the | s.F I-s.. Tr..l 1 will have none others-none others can l be taught of God, they will not learn
 the lessons necessary, under the arrange | ments of this present time. Here then i is the standard of simplicity and artless
 ness which the Lords people shou1 | adopt and should allow to control them, regardless of their years and experi- ences.
 ''One Such Little Child"
 We are not to understand that little children, however guileless, are members of Christs Kingdom class, nor that the 1 dear little ones dying in infancy will be members thereof. The Lord is seeking for mature men and women, who have a | childlikeness of mind, readiness to re- ceive the Heavenly Fathers message, and who in gladness and simplicity of heart accept it. "Whoso shall receive one such little child in My name receiv-
 eth Me- .Whosoever shall offend,' or injure one of these little ones that be- lieve in Me, 1t were better for him that | u millstone were hanged about his neck
 and that he were sunk in the depths of the sea-
 If some one were thus drowned in the sea, 1t would indeed terminate his pres ent life, but it would not at all endangcr
 or influence his future life. A future life, by d restitution awakening, is as
 sured to Adam and every member of his race. Neither drowning nor any other form of death could possibly inter- fere with it. But he who would injure one of the Lords little ones would there by come under such a measure of Di- vine displeasure that 1t would affect his future interests beyond the grave, be- yond his awakening. lie would be held l responsible for his deeds, even in the next life, in proportion as he realized what he was doing when he injured the | Lords saints The Lord declares that | His faithful ones are as precious to Hin. as the apple of His eye, that all their | interests are under His supervision. He | will allow nothing to harm these 1 troubles permitted to come upon them
 will be only such as He has foreseen ard | is able to make work out some blessing I in connection with their preparation for | the kingdom But even this tact wli
 not excuse wilfulness in those who do evil to the members of the body of JesuS. l We remember the persecution of the | saints by Saul of Tarsus, Jesus said D | him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou
 Me-" T am Jesus, whom thou persecut-
 est" In prosecuting the saints Saul had been prosecuting Jesus, but because he did it ienorantly God had mercy OF I him.
 l Doubtless many saints from Jesus day down have been persecuted ignorantly,
 and the Lord will have mercy upon those | prosecutors; but some of the prosecutors
 have had such light, such Knowledge, as
 to make them responsible: and it is of
 this class that our lesson speaks. Our | Lord added a warning: Woe unto the world because of offenses, It must needs l be that ofteIses come. but woe to that
 man by whom the offense cometh.'
 Cut Off Hand or Foot
 Here the Master brought in saying
 which has perplexed many: If thy foot cause thee to stumble, cut it off, and cast | maimed, or halt, than having two hands | or two feet to be cast into everlasting 3 | fire. If thine eye offend thee, pluck {: l out and cast it from thee; 1t is better I to enter into life with one eye, than tha, i having two eyes thou be cast into G~- l hennN fire"
 Those who fail to remember that Jesus | | without parable, will be liable to stun.- hle ever these words. His teaching is
 this: If you have anything in your | makeup dear to you as a right hand or ! a foot or an eye, that is likely to cause you to stumble and fail to enter the !, kingdom, you would better cut of that l tendency, no matter what 1t costs, m | matter how precious, no matter how l great hold it may have upon the very 1 tendrils of your life. Would 1t not le | better to enter into life than to go into 1 Gehenna fire, destruction, the second
 death? Surely Having but our hands 1 to the blow, having become followers | of Jesus we must either 20 on and tc | ccnquerors, or must perish
 There will. of course, be none in the Kingdom with but one eye, but the illus | tration is the same. If it should cost US 1 the cutting of of some of our members, | 1t would surely pay us to gain the eter-
 life in glory oven flIS mlimpfl.