Middletown transcript., 1921-05-07
iNPRovEo UNIfoR1 IE.eRNATIoNAI
SUYl4YSCI100L
LESSON
(By REV. B. FITZWATER, D. Os
Teacher of English Bible In the Moody
Bible institute of Chicago)
%. 1921, Western Newspaper Union)
LESSON FOR MAY 8
REST AND WORSHIP (RECREA-
TlON).

LESSON TEXT Lev. zs:ss-4s; Deut.
S:R-15; Mark 6:31. g.
GOLDEN TEXT-The streets OF the CITY
shall be full Of boys and girls. playing IN
the streets thereof.-Zech. S:5.
REFERENCE MATERIAL-Ex. 1914:
Lev. 23:3: Neh. s:9-1s; Heb. 40.
PRIMARY TOPIC-The Happiest Day
Of the Week.
JUNIOR TOPIC-Holy and Happy Days.
INTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR TOPIC
Sane Recreation.
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOPIC
The Use and Guidance of Recreation.
The title "Rest and Recreation, az
chosen by the committee, is hardly
true to the content of the Scripture
passages. 1t should be 'test anu
Worship"
1.-The Feast Of TabernacIes uev.
q :39-43).
This was the final feast Of the series
which in type covered the great facts
of redemption.
/. Time of ". 33). 1t was on the If
teenth day Of the seventh month anc
lasted seven days. This time would
about correspond to the close OF our
September and the beginning OF Octo-
ber 1t was after the harvest had been
gathered.
2. Method of keeping wv. 40, 42).
They were to take the boughs of good
ly trees, branches of palm trees, anu
the boughs Of thick trees. and willows
of the brook, and construct booths.
These booths were placed on the nat
tops of houses, on the streets and open
places of the city, and even in tile
fields. In these the people dwelt for
the whole week.
). The significance Of it ". 49,. %
A memorial Of Israers dwelling in
booths in, the wilderness wv. AZ, 43).
It reminded them of Gods care of them
during their journey through the will
derness. (2) A ''harvest-home thanks
giving ". 39). "When We have gath
cred the fruits of the land" This was
the greatest feast of rejoicing of the
whole year, for more numerous sacri-
fees were offered than at any time OF
the others (Num. 20 :12-36). (3) 1t
| foreshadowed the final gathering Of
Gods redeemed ones from all nations
Czech. 14:16, ~.
1.-THE Sabbath Day (Deut. 5:12.
15).
l. Meaning of (Gen. 2:2, 3; Ct. Ex.
2O:S-1D. According to the etymology
of the word, sabbath" means to desist
from exertion-repose. God rested
when the work Of creation was done.
On the basis of this, God has estab'
lished the law of labor and rest. 1t is
| not only a memorial of creation. but
of redemption (Deut. 5:15). The
Jews were to keep the Sabbath in
memory Of the deliverance from Egyp-
tian bondage.
.. Obligation of wv. 12-15). u)
Kept as a sacred institution ". 1.),
God sanctified 1t (Gen. 2:3). "Sancti'
| fy" means to cOnsecrate. dedicate.
therefore holy 1t means set apart to
Gods service; therefore keeping the
Sabbath meant more than cessation
from labor-it meant to cease from la
Dor in order to occupy ones self with
God. Its supreme signification and obli.
| CATION was to remember God. (2) No
work to be done on the Sabbath (vv
IL, 14). All work was to be done in
six days. In fact, the obligation to
work six days is here made just as
binding as to keep the Sabbath day
Work was Gods primal thought fol
nun. Even before the fall he was tc
'dress and keep" the garden. Work is
the psychological solution of pauper.
ism QI Thess. 3:1O). 1t is thousand
times more gracious to provide EN-
ployment for the suffering poor than e
make gratuitOus gifts unto them. (3)
By whom should the Sabbath be KEEP,
". 14)? (a) The head of the family
He should be the example for ALL (b)
The children. The children should b.
obliged to follow the example of the
parents in keeping the Sabbath. (c)
The servants. The maid in the kitclI
en-. the servant on the farm, the chauf
feur in the city, should keep the Sab
bath as we'll as the head of the family
and the children. (d) The beasts of bur
den. The dumb animals are likewise
entitled to their rest. (e) The Stran
ger. The foreigner who comes to ou,
shores should be obliged to keep the
Sabbath. 1t should be kept in mine
that Christians are not under obiga
ton to keep the Sabbath as law (Col
2:16, ~, and especially as it applies
to any particular seventh day. Tic
first day Of the week is the proper da:
for a Christian to observe. This he
does not as law, but as glorious
and exalted privilege. He is on resur
rection ground, therefore above tn,
law. While the keeping of the Sab
bath is matter Of privilege, woe unto
the one who abuses this privilege. The
principle Of resting one day out o1
seven is inexOrable in its demands. a.
The ground of obligation was redemp
ton from bondage ". 15).
III. Jesus Invited His Disciples te
Rest MARK 6 81, ,32).
He took them apart to desert
place. This was not primarily fo1
recreation, but that they might be free
from the crowd to have fellowship
with Him, that they might be pre-
pared for the strenuous days which
were to follow.