Owingsville outlook., 1921-06-30
LESSON FOR JULY 3
THE EARLY LIFE OF SAUL,

THE EAHIN LIP OF oNOG'
LESSON TEXT-Acts 2l:39; Deut s:4-S;
CT. IL Tim 3:l4. 10.
GOLDEN TEXT-Today II ye will hear
his voice. harden not your hearts.-Heo.
81. s.
REFERENCE MATERIAL-Deut. a.
10: 6:3-25: Josh. 4:2O-24.
PRIMARY TOPIC-When Saul was
Boy.-Acts 2::3; Deut. 6:4-9.
JUNIOR TOPIC-When Timothy was
Boy.-II Tim 3:14-15.
INTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR lOFlO
Jewish Boy Life.
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOPIC
-Saul's Early Training and Education
We are now entering a six months
study of the life and teachings OF one
Of the greatest men who ever lived.
I. Saul's Birth (Acts II :39).
His parents belonged to the tribe OF
BENJAMIN and were Hebrews of the
/ Hebrews" that is, Jews who have not
| become contaminated in their ancestry
through intermarriage with the Gen
tiles (Phil. 3:5).
/. Time of. II is impossible to deter
mine the exact year of his birth, but
| the probability is that 1t was practi-
cally the same as that of Jesus. de
was a young man" when stephen was
/ stoned (Acts :5S). Young man. may
mean any age from twenty TO thirty.
| About 60 A. ID. in the Roman prison
| he calls himself Paul the aged" (Phl-
| lemon %. This distinction would hardly
be appropriate for a man under sixty
=. Place of (v. 39). Tarsus, the cap
ltal of the Province of Cilicia. Repre-
sentative business men came here from
all parts of the world. II was a self
governing city which male citizenship
therein honorable. Besides, it was one
Of the three great educational centers
Of the Roman empire. Gods proyi-
dence ordered that the apostle to the
Gentiles should be born in a city where
he would encounter men of every class
aud nation, making him broad in his
sympathy and tolerant in his dealings
with others.
u. sauPs Home framing (Deut. 8:
40; cf. IL Tim. 3:14, 15).
He was brought up in piOus home
(Phil 3:5). In the passages cited
above is given the responsibility OF a
Jew in the training of his children.
l. Central truths to be taught wv,
4, 81. Q) Unity of God. The Lord
our God is one Lord" This was tes-
timOny against the pOlytheism existing
among the Gentiles Of that day. He is
God alone, therefore to worship an
other is sin. The word translated
God" is plural in form, giving room
for the doctrine of the Trinity-t'ather
Son and Holy Spirit. The great neeC
of the world is a recognition of the
fundamental doctrine of the unity ant
trinity of the GOdhead. There can bC
no established order until God is giveI
His rightful place; neither can ther'
be any moral health. (2) Mans su
preme obligation ". 81. God should
be loved with all the heart, soul anC
might, because He is God alone anC
supreme. This being the first and grea
commandment, we know what is mans
supreme duty.
=. How these truths are to be KEEP
alive wv. 6-9). The place for Gods
Word is in the heart. In order that Il
may be in the heart U) teach 1t dill
gently to thy children" ". -. Th'
most important part of a child's educa
ton is that given by parents in thu
Word of God. (2) Talk of them in th'
home ". y. How blessed is tina
home where Gods Word is the topic o
conversation. (3) Talk of them whel
retiring for the night ". y. The las
J thing upon which the mind should res
before going to sleep should be Co
and His truth. (5) Talk of them whel
rising in the morning (v. -. How hi
ting that God should speak to us tn
first thing when we awakel (6) Bin
them upon thine hand ". -. This wa
literally done by the Jews, even to tn
wearing of little boxes between thei
eyes. (O Write them upon the post
of the houses and on the gates ". 81
, Doubtless Timothy's home trainin
, was similar to Saul's I'll Tim. 3 IA, Isl
] From a child Timothy was taught tn
J Holy Scriptures I'll Tim. 1 :5). Thi
was done In the home by his mother.
III. Saul's Educa alton (Acts 22 ~.
} l. In college at Jerusalem. A JEWS
child became a child of the law at tn
age of thirteen. Most likely at thi
age he went TO Jerusalem to enter VpO
his course of study. Here he sat a
the feet of Gamaliel. one of the mos
, eminent teachers that ever blessed Il
rael. The course of study here wa
restricted to the Holy Scriptures.
.. A trade at Tarsus. Perhaps afte
. finishing his college course at JerusI
lem he returnedtO Tarsus and learne
a trade. One rabbi said, "He that teacl
eth not his son trade dOeth the sam
: as If he had taught him to steal" III
trade he learned was tent making. Thi
came in very good in his later life, er
abling him to support himself Will
preaching the gospel.