Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1914-09-02
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Commentary Prepared I'm An Inter-
esting Way by Rev. ID. NJ.
Stearns

! question and the record OF the widows
| two mites. The first is recorded by
Matthew and Mark. the second by
Matthew, Mark and Luke and the
third by Matthew and Luke. Having
! answered and put to silence the Phari.
sees, Herodians and Sadducees. He is
now approached by one OF the Phari.
! sees, who was scribe well acquaint-
! ed with the law. His question il.
(which is the great commandment In
the law?" or (which is the first COM
/ mandment OF allT"
! Here was another tempter. and yet
! the Lord graciously condescended TO
| answer him. II one came to us In the
/ same spirit and we knew Ii. would
we be gracious enough to make reply
/ Our Lord left us an example TO follow
Him in all things. He meekly replied
! TO this critic. quoting from Deut. vi. A.
! 3; Lev. xix, Is, the summary of the
| Ten Commandments. which His own
hand had written twice on the tables
of stone, that the righteousness which
Is required of us is to love the Lord
our God with all our heart. soul, mind
and strength and our neighbor as our
! selves, adding, according to Matt. XIII
40, ION these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophets"
| The scribe confessed that He had an.
swered well and said that 10 do this
was more than all whole burnt offer.
ings and sacrifices. to which Jesus re-
piled. Thou art not far from the
kingdom of God"
The scribe saw more clearly than
most of his fellows that God looked
for q right heart rather than any.
thing merely outward. He understood
the words OF lisa. /. 1915. and all SINH
lar words concerning the abomination
| that lsraers sacrifices were TO the
Lord because 1t was all mere form, all
outward. without thought OF the for
giveness of their sins or their need OF
il. In the first sacrifice ever seen on
earth man gave God nothing. had no
hand in it at all. The Lord Himself
did all and provided freely the re
demption clothing that man needed
tGen. iii. 21i
The law OF God. which IS so holy and
just and good that man cannot keep
II and which has been kept perfectly
only by Jesus Christ. who Is the true
ark OF the covenant and the mercy
seat, Is always intended to lead us TO
Christ. who is the end OF the law for
righteousness TO every one that believ-
eth (Rom. Y. 3. 4; xiii, l0). The great
and all important question is not what
we should do or should not do. what
we know or do not know, but what is
Jesus Christ TO us, what think We Of
Christ (Matt. xii, Az. To these Jews
who expected a Messiah, son OF
David but who did not understand
the prophecies concerning Him and
that He was TO be truly a man and
yet truly God in one person. the ques-
ton as to how the Messiah could be
David's son and also David's Lord was
what might be called poser for them.
According TO Matt. XIII ~, He ask
ed them. What think We of Christi"
Tor the Messiah). Whose son is HEP"
They replied, THE son of David"
Then came the difficult question for
them, How doth David in the Spirit,
In the book OF Psalms. call Him Lord.
saying. The Lord said unto my Lord.
Sit thou on my right hand TIL 1 make
thine enemies thy footstoolY" Cps. cx,
H. Jesus Himself answers the Ques-
ton. In John xvi, %, He said, 81
came forth from the Father and am
come into the world" AS Mimpriss
says in his harmony, the question can
only be answered Alright as recogniz-
ing the fact that Christ proceeded
forth and came from His Father I'm
heaven, and thus is David's Lord.
while, as being man, lie was "of the
house and lineage OF David" and so
was Davids son. In Him were unit.
ed the divine and human natures
John !. 1-14; / John 1. /. p. One of
the very last titles that He gives Him.
self in the New Testament is 'the root
and the offspring Of David" Rev. XIII,
49,. David came from Him as His
A%cANss hiu do blu1i iic IdHt DH-
vid. He is the Son OF Man, inheriting
all things, and He is to sit on Davids
throne luke 1, 31-33). Personally
am comforted by the fact that as per-
feet man He knows me thoroughly.
and as God He is able TO save to keep
and TO present me faultless because
have accepted Him as my Saviour.
He had taught them to beware of
Pharisees. Sadducees and Herodians.
and now He says. Beware Of the
scribes." mentioning their desire for
praise OF men. their seeming religious
ness and at the same time their op-
preston Of poor widows whose offer
ing Of as little as two mites sometimes
counted more In His sight than the
abundance Of many rich people. The
poor widow of our lesson cast in all
that she had. even all her living. This
drew her very near to Him. When any
one says This is the widows mite"
as they give some tri6e to the Lord,
II