The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-11-29
SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson lX.-Fourth Quarter, For
Dec. I, 1912.
THE INTERNATIONAL SERIES.

Text of the Lesson, Mark TX, 1920.
Memory Verses, %, 2s--Golden Text.
Mark tx, % (R. V.)-commentary
Prepared by Rev. .. M. Stearns.
For a little while heaven and earth
had touched In a new way, by those
who had once lived on earth, but had
been long absent from it, n by death
and one by translation. When the
risen and translated saints shall be
reigning with Christ in His kingdom
Rev. v, 8, 10; Xxx, ~ this will probably
be the ordinary, everyday occurrence
everywhere, the New Jerusalem from
heaven and the one on earth in per-.
feet accord, the gloriied church and
redeemed Israel the heavenly and
earthly centers of His kingdom, when
a king shall reign In righteousness
and the work Of righteousness shall
be peace and the nations shall learn
war no more Qsa. xxi, 1, IL; IL, A..
AS the devil was In control at the
foot Of the mountain when Jesus and
His disciples came down and the dis
ciples there could not conquer him, so
It shall be when Jesus Christ shall
come in His glory; then He shall bind
the strong man, whom the church can
not cast out, and shut him up in the
pit and take control Of his property,
for till then the whole world shall
continue in the wicked one as the
prince Of this world. Let those who
would understand take the trouble TO
ponder, with prayer and meekness and
submission to the word OF God, the fol-
lowing passages, for it is all important
to understand this present age, it's
ruler and his doom: I John v, 10, r.
"; John xiv, 30; III Cor. iv, 4; Eph.
ii, 2; II Thess. If. ITO; Dan. vii, 25;
II, So, SO; XII, /, 10; Rev. xiii, Z, s;
xvii, ID; xix, 10, 20; Xxx, 10.
Turning back from this faraway
look to the particular Incidents of the
lesson, we note that It is not in order
for us to continue too long in any place
Of special privilege when there is work
to be done and people in distress need
ing us at the foot Of the hill. Special
times and places of special revelations
Of Himself to US are to at us to be bet
ter witnesses unto Him with increas-
ing victory over the world, the flesh
and the devil. If the prayer meeting,
the Bible class, the Bible conference
and such times and places Of fellow
ship with Him do not enable US, in the
days following, to show more of His
presence and power in the home, the
place of business, the social life, where
is the benefit? People say, 81 was S %
blessed, I had such an uplift, it did
me so much good" Well, thank God,
but now show it in your life and you
won't need to tell it, and, IL your life
does not show 1t, better say nothing
about 1t. The spirit through James
teaches us that faith that is mere
talk amounts to nothing; there must
be works corresponding TO our faith
for the. sake Of those who do not
understand.
John says, "My little children, let
us not love in word, neither in tongue.
but in deed and in truth GAS. ii:
/ John ii). The story of this demoniac
boy is written briefly In Matthew and
Luke, but most fully in Mark. Luke
tells us that he was an only child and
that when he was healed Jesus de-
livered him again to his father duke
TX, SO, 42). An only child given to
Jesus hands is given back better than
when He received him, made perfectly
whole. He is the same yesterday, to
day and forever, this same Jesus.
Take in this scene as well as you
cana great multitude. a distressed IA
Their, a sorely afflicted only child. some
disciples of Jesus truly saved who had
on other occasions wrought miracles.
but now are helpless. '"They could not
cure him."
Did you ever see yourself, a true fol.
lower of Jesus, yet powerless to show
something of Him to those who know
Him not and unable to help those who
need help? Did you say from the
heart, "Why could not TT And did
you hear Him say, Because of your
unbeliefT CMatt. xvii, 2o) And have
you been wondering since If you really
knew what it means to "havc faith in
God?" Then what about the prayer
and fasting necessary in some cases?
oh, how much there is to learn. and
how many seem to have a dumb spirit
or an evil spirit OF some kind, that
seems too often to control us.
Bring him hither to me" is about
what He said concerning the bread
when He fed the thousands. Come
unto me- is His cry to all the weary
and heavy laden. and we may well
say, Lord, to whom shall we go but
unto Thee?" (Matt. XII, %; John vi.
49, This evil spirit had long sought
to destroy this child, and now he made
a last effort. The devil has always
been and still is a destroyer, n de-
vourer, a murderer, but the Lord is the
life giver, the ~deliverer, the Saviour.
Hear the fathers cry, "If thou
canst do anythingy" His disciples
failed. Gould He do better? People
who do not know the Lord Judge Him
by His followers. Are we bringing
Him honor or reproach? Jesus said
unto him, ''If thou. canst believe. all
things are possible to him that be-
heyeth" (yerse 23). Lord, I believe
cried the father. Jesus rebuked the
spirit and commanded him to come out
OF him. Ere he did so he rent him o
and left him as one dead, but he de-
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