The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1917-12-13

GOLDEN TEXT-Rcmernber tne Shp
bath Day to keep It holy.-Exod. 2O:S
Nehemiah remained In Jerusalem
twelve years, from B. G. 444 to Is. u
432. He was then recalled and was
In Persia some years, perhaps hve or
seven, but returned about B. q. 42o,
the year Artaxerxes died, for we know
that he returned by permission OF that
king. Therefore, the date of this les
son would be sometime In the summer
Or early autumn of 426 or 427 B. C-
10 or IS years following last Sundays
lesson.
In the section, w. 1914, we see that
the gifts for the house OF God ana
the Levites, who led in worship, had
been neglected. Whenever the house
of God and its service Of worship Is
neglected. we may expect that the Sab
bath day and the worship Of God VIII
also soon fall into contempt. Ezra has
dropped out Of our history without
hint as to his end. He may have re-
turned to Babylon, seeing that MS
work was completed, or have been re-
called by the king. Perhaps he brought
pack information to Nehemiah at the
Persian court, Of the declenslon which
had already started In the city OF Jeru-
mlem. Three times in this chapter
the word remember" Is emphasized.
Perhaps that offers suggestion as 10
our outline.
l. "Remember" ". 14) the Neglect
of Gods House. wv. 1-14). The neg
lect of Gods house grew up out OF the
lncursion of heathenlsm into Jewish
,ife. Nehemiah realized that the pur-
ity of the race depended upon absolute
separation from the mixed multitude.
". 81. Nehemiah also confronted the
difficulty of having priest ,(vv. 4, %,
who had defiled himself and also desc
Grated the temple, and finally the por-
ton for the support Of the priest ana
the temple worship had been withheld.
". 10Y. This was the state Of things
with which Nehemiah had to contend
II. "Remember" ". 12) the Sab
bath Day. (vv. 1929. Nehemiah's
next and most difficult reform was re-
gardlng the fourth commandment he
nt once set about to learn the facts |;
then relates what he saw ". 15). The
record also tells how he TESTIFIED
against them in that they were selling
merchandise on the Sabbath day. lie
contenaed with the mobiles that they
had done evil on the Sabbath day. ".
lT. He testified against them that
the merchants and sellers of ware had
lodged about and within Jerusalem
wv. 20, 21). The root Of the trouble
with Judah was that they forgot Gods
J word and followed the devices ana de'
: sires of their own hearts. The Jewish
Sabbath In its outward form on the
J exact day of the week Is not binding
0 upon Gentle Christians (Col. 2:16, III
!. II was given to Israel as people
Deut. 8 Il, y, as memorial OF theii
0 deliyerance out of the land OF Egyp'
md the house of bondage. Deut. D '0)
The Christian, by the death of Christ
A is made dead to the letter of the law
| of Moses, (Deut. 7:4), but the prin
a ciple of the Sabbath Is older than ever
A the law of Moses and is as binding
upon the Christian believer as are thu
many other principles which underli'
the Mosaic law. In its exact FORM tn
seventh day, the observance OF TN
Sabbath belongs to the old order ant
; not to the Christian order. Christ, WHIT
rose from the dead (Rom. 7:N, ros'
y on the first day Of the week, ana we
: as ioined to Christ are not under ob
legations to the Mosaic law, but q
Christ. Therefore, the Lords day, tn
resurrection day, the first day OF tn
i week, tRev. 1:10; John 2l 20; l:l9
+ 90: Acts 27), is the day Of privilege
+ not of obligation and Is more sacre
3 TO us than the Sabbath day OF thes
IL Jews. The Jews In Nehemah's tim
c showed their contempt of the LORD
: day BY making 1t a day Of profit, henc
:. this exhortation which we see set fort
9 In this section. This should be war;
ing and an exhortatlon to us In thes
days of n secularlzed Sabbath.
7. III. "Remember" ". 2e) the HoI
'g Prlesth ood. (vv. 33-31). In this sectio
u we see that the priesthood had eve
Ie defiled themselves with women, an
IN again this Nehemiah entered UPON
N cleansing process, wv. 30-3D. The us
4 of this word "remepber" in verses L
ID % and 70 gives strong emphasis to tn
u three cardinal sins against which N
III hemlah was battling.
w. Summary: AS in Nehemiah
time. SO now, Sabbath desecration
~ the surest road to national ruin, and
., large proportion Of our present calar
:" ity can be traced to growing irreve
ence for the Lords day. Jesus swel
!. away tho cobwebs of Sabbath irreve
W. ence. but did not tear down the hous
- He kept the principle, but removed Il
We barnacles with which the Pharise,
IN, and Jews had encumbered It, Jes'
III taught that the Sabbath was made #
man and not man for the Sabbat
us mark 2 :27, 2S), and he set himself
:, an example in this regard, for he
g, Lord Of that day as well as the 9th
days Of the week.
The Sabbath is day of rest and
a'' observed, workmen without excepti'
will produce more than is possible II
ne Is not observed. Recent confirmati
of this principle can be found In t
report of the British ministry of mul
tIons. To observe the Sabbath or a
In other divinely ordained principle ten
nal to prosperity Il Tim. 4;s).
'be The chief value Of the Sabbath, no