Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1914-08-20

LESSON TExT-Matt. 2z:1-H.
GOLDEN TExT-"O Jerusalem Jeru-
salem. that killeth the prophets, and ston-
est them that are sent unto her how often
would / have gathered thy children to-
getner, even as a hen gathereth her own
brood under wings. and ye would not"
Luke 1874 r. v.
To catch the full significance OF this
parable which is alone recorded by
Matthew we need to be more or less
familiar with the Jewish pride of race
and their feeling of superiority over
all heather" or outsiders, and the his
tory of their treatment OF Gods rep
resentatives, the prophets.
Following upon the parable referred
to in our last lesson the Pharisees per-
ceived that Jesus spake of them and
they sought to arrest him (ch 21:46).
In this lesson the figure of the king
dom is changed from vineyard to q
feast.
Relation to His People.
!. The Kings invitation Rejected.
W. ~. The change Of figure just re-
ferred to suggests not alone an occa-
sion of festal joy Q4uke 14:16), but
also Christ's relation to his people.
which Is that of husband to his wife
(he being the son referred to, see !
Cor. 11:12; Fsph. 5:24-32; John 1921.
These Jewish leaders and their nation
were first to be invited to the mar
riage. This had been done by the
prophets of old and later by John the
Baptizer Under this figure of a mar
riage our Lord speaks OF three differ
emit invitations. The first one was re-
ceived with Indifference, but indiffer-
ence never removes responsibility.
The second invitation was received
with hostility. Nothing more fully
reveals the foolishness and hardness
of the human heart than the way in
which men treat the gracious invita-
tons Of Gods love.
Wonderful indeed is the forbearance
of God. The sin of rejecting the cross,
Gods offer Of grace. is immeasurabIy
greater than that incurred by those
Jews who rejected the Man OF Cali
lee"
Question Of Worthiness.
II. The Kings Invitation Accepted,
Wv. $40. Those invited had judged
themselves mot worthy Now go to
the parting of the ways where people
ngregate and gather them In" Our
worthiness is in that we accept, and if
we reject we are mot worthy" This
command to go outside was prophecy
Of the time when the Gentiles should
likewise be "partakers of grace"
Those who finally accepted the
kings invitation were both good and
bad ". 10), but the act Of acceptance
was not an assurance of position as
we can see from the last part of the
parable. 1t is sad to think of the many
servants of the king who have neg
7lected his command thus to go forth
and recruit the banquet feast. Final
ly ". 100 we read that the wedding
was filed" Heaven will not be an
empty place, Rev. 7:9-14.
III. The Unprepared Guest, w. 11-14.
Every guest was scrutinized by the
king 1t was strange sight to see
one who had neglected to avail him.
self OF the garment freely provided in
which to appear on such an occasion.
This robe is symbolical of the robe Of
righteousness with which God will
clothe all who accept his invitation,
lisa. CLIO; Rev. 1877, s; Eph. 4:24;
Rom. 1874. For this man to present
himself clothed in his own garment
was to insult the king, so our own
righteousness is as filthy rags" in his
sight, Isa. GAS; Phil SO r. v. When
questioned about this act of insolence
the guest was sspeechless." So like
wise will all unbelievers stand one
day before the great king.
The Teaching of this parable en-
phasizes our privileges in the king
dom of God. A full realization of that
kingdom means joy, gladness and per-
feet satisfaction. On a previous occa-
sion Jesus gave up the parable OF the
Great Supper which SO much resem-
bles this. Both Of these parallels have
to do with the attitude of men to the
Gospel invitation. There is the further
emphasis upon the nature of the an
swer of men to this invitation. The
first Is that OF men who are blind to
the glory and beauty of that which is
offered to them, though their refusal
| was not final. Men, still blind, treat
this invitation contemptuously and
turn to their own interests, seeking
| satisfaction, while others shamefully1
| treat the kings messengers. Thu
treatment is followed by swift ju
nent. Once more the invitation and
and a mixed company are gathered.
some with worthy and some with I'M
worthy motives.
The Masters final words ". 14) en-
phasize service and responsibility.
The call was an open, general univer-
sal one. Those chosen were not only
those who came but t'sose who accept
ed the conditions laid down. The in
different, or hostile, and those who &C
cepted unworthiIy were rejected.
The Golden Text reveals the heart
| rf tho r ord Hin doo1o IN o,.w, -