Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-05-24
SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
REPENTANCE.
= Jonah. 31-1o; Luke. 1915;
, Acts. 2.S7-Ss.
Golden text-"Repent Ye and
Believe in the Gospel."-Mark
1.15. -.
BY REV. HUGH +. STEVENSON.

BY REV. HUGH T. STEVENSON.
, Repentance is demanded of all men.
Jonah, John the Baptist, Jesus.
Peter ana Paul have made 1t a domi
nant note in their preaching. 1t is
an individualistic and universal re-
quirement for salvation. Popular
has attached to the word
repent a meaning which is decided
ly unlike it's scriptural sense, which
means primarily a change of mind,
the value of life" 1t formed the
burden of the prophets who called
upon Israel to repent. The opening
word OF the forerunner summon the
nation as individuals to repent and
bring forth the fruits Of repentance.
Jesus united His mission with that of
John the Baptist with His first SER
mon with repent as the opening
word. 1t never was absent from His
of men. Peter re-echoed
mon. 1t was one Of the fundamental
of Paul in his preach
ing and teaching.
Jonah is more than a fish story.
That is the smallest part of it's mes
sage for 1t teaches the same gospel
parable of the Prodigal Son-that
the wayward sinner can repent, re-
turn to the Heavenly Father and be
restored to service upon confession
of guilty. The account of Jonah and
his mission to Ninevah is history.
the love of God for all man
kind and calling for all to repent. In
In the prophets personal experience
can be traced seven steps that are
characteristic of repentance. His
conscience condemned him for re-
fusing to obey Gods call to become
a foreign missionary. His fears were
aroused by the storm. He was filled
with remorse at the evidence of the
trouble that he believed his sin was
bringing upon others. He manfully
his trAnsgression. He
welcomed the punish
ment that his sin deserved. He
placed himself in Gods hands to do
as He willed with him for his efforts
to God and was given the second
chance. Danger, humiliation and
transportation had fitted
him to preach the message Of repent
ance to Ninevah.
God dealt with Jonah until he real
lied the futility Of fleeing from his
work: Jonah needed the second call
terms Of his experience are express
ed IN. a miraculous event, but the
principle his personal repentance 1s
operative in our experiences IT IS
never profitable for one to nee from
a God given work. No one Is GER
given him. All should heed the first
summons. Jonah proved the gen
uineness Of his repentance. Many an
American has today tho Same narrow
nationalism Of Jonah, who laid aside
his personal prejudice and national
antagonism to assisting N1nevah
when he obeyed Gods commands.
When he reached the great and in
huential capital city Of Assyrfa Jonah
entered with energy upon his task
The time was short. His orders were
explicit, 50 he aggressively assailed
the iniuuity Of the people by proclaim
ing the certainty of its DOOM. There
Is not a line to indicate whether Jonah
told how he had been brought through
to preach unto them the
m essaEe that God commanded. It Is
probable that, he did: and that 1t was
this that gave them, with their re-
pentance, faith: in Gods mercy. Re-
pentance and faith are always found
united. They are two sides OF one
thing Their faith was not clear, be-
ing a great. perhaps. or bare hope
that God would be merciful unto them
It. was a true. revival. for, starting
with the masses. 1t finally reached the
SO that the king. recognized
One greater than himself and called
by proclamation for all to prove their
with the hope Of obtain
ing mercy. -
Three elements Of repentance can
be seen in the royal decree-sorrow,
and starting upon new
religious life by abandoning their old
sinEfuI ways. The Germans of those
days recognized their own evil way
and violence. If the Hun today re-
pented and believed in, God the prob
lens presented in winning peace
would be easier. They were sorry
for their sin. 1t was universal, for
they all recognized and prayed for
turned from their sin. Mere
of self and prayer win
not avail If there is hot a merciless
dealing with sin that will cause the
IF his life. The response Of Nineveh to
The preaching Of Jonah was more than
the prophet had expected or hoped for:
ali joined in the movement for re-
pentance. The sincerity of the people
proved that they had truly repented
toward God. SO that they were fit to
De saved. God, whose love had caused
Him to send the missionary. exhibited
His love for them by forgiving their
When. it is said that
Sod repented, 1T is vivid way of
saying that He yielded to the repent
ng confession Of the people; it is
1aring Old Testament method of de-
that He forgave them"
The reference taken from Luke's
gospel, furnishes an opportunity to
the Masters teaching upon
He had been preaching
about punishment and its necessity.
" hen some of. His hearers called His
attention to the terrible event. which
lad. recently taken place. The slaugh-
ter OF some Galileanss by the Roman
yovtrnor, plate. as they were in the
act Of sacrificing. the. people consider
I'd an evidence Of the stnfulness of the
Jesus repudiates that view.
He pointed out that suffering from
natural causes. disasters, earthquakes
md sickness were not punishment due
TO sin. They were warnings, used by
God to summon all men to repent.
God always sends, warnings and
gives opportunities to men to- repent,
20 that they may not come under con-
demnation. just as he. did when he
sent Jonah to Nineveh. Death closes
lies probation. There is not one word
IN the Bible that gives us reason to
suppose that in; the. next world we
will be- any different persons from
what we are here. The reference to
The acceptance by the heather of the
message of Jonah gave point to the
Masters criticism OF the cities that
m wi - ANRod iroo III