Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-10-26

|
halteth, nation, but sin is re-
preach to any people.
A sense of loyalty to the Word Of
God compels me to enter again
protest against the abuse of Gods
! Word by forcing into it an interpre-
tat-on which every fair consideration
of it shows to have been entirely for
eign to the mind of the writer and
also Of the context. When we use
Gods Word in that way it ceases to
be a sure word of prophecy and be-
comes only what the last man who
reads wants it to be. Isaiah was
speaking about the great theme of
Zion redeemed and lions redeemer,
and had no thought whatever of pro
hibition or Incorporate drinking.
| With this said, let us study the
passage to get the truth God would
have us know. The first reading of
it will remind us at once of the use
which Jesus made of it, as Luke
records it in chapter four. He, there
| fore, will be our best interpreter of
this passage in Isaiah.
| 1t was on the occasion Of his visit
to Nazareth after his public min
listry had begun. You will recall
L1ie1I AC ASIL 4NdEdT6lH 10 go TO the
Jordan, where John was baptiz:ng.
After his baptism he was led of the
spirit into the wilderness to be
tempted of the devil When He re-
turned He gathered the first six dis
ciples and then, otter three days,
went to the wedding in Cana Of
! Galilee, where He made the water
wine. Leaving there He and HIS
disciples and HIS mother and breth-
rem went to Caperaum to establish
their residence. The passover being
! due, He went to Jerusalem and there
cleansed the temple, talked with
Nicodemus, worked in Judea for a
few weeks. and then. because of the
jealousy Of Johns disciples, He went
! back to Galilee, going through Sa-
maria to win one woman first and
her whole town from sin. When He
returned to Gal'lee, He went first
to Cana again, there healing the no.
bleman's son who was sick at Caper-
naum.
From Cana He went to Nazareth,
and as His custom was vert into
the synagogue on the Sabbath day:
The minister asked him to read, for
already the homefolks had heard
something of the wonderful things
He had been doing in the last few
weeks since He left them. This was
His first visit back to His home
town, and the officers Of the syna-
gogue extended Him the courtesy of
reading the Scripture lesson.
Words of Grace
He opened the Book and found
this passage in Isaiah and began
reading: 1.-THE Spirit of Jehovah is
upon me, because he hath appointed
me to preach the gospel to the poor!
He hath sent me to heal the broken
hearted, to preach deliverance to the
captiVes, and recovering of sight to
the blind, to set at liberty them that
are bruised, to preach the accept
able year of jehovah" and there He
closed the Book, gave it again to the
minister and sat down.
The eyes of ever yone Of His for
mer toWnsmen were upon Him-Ee
sat down, not. in the congregation,
but in the pulpit, as though He in
tended to speak to them He sat
down, as the custom was to teach
them! Then He began to say to
them, "This day is this scripture
fulfilled in your ears" And as He
expounded that scripture to them
and how it was fulfilled in Him,
they wondered at the words of
grace that proceeded out of His
mouth. They were astonished as
He told them that He was the
source of all blessing, and that the
character of the blessings that
would come to them in Him would
be healing Tor broken hearts, de-
liverance for captives, sight for
blindness, liberty for them that are
bruised-that this is the acceptable
year of Jehovah, because God was
IN Him reconciling the world to
Himself. You see, He puts the en-
phasis on the Me" Read it again
that way, and if you can get into
the minds of the people of Nazareth
as they heard Him speak.
They had known Him all Of His
| life; until a few weeks ago, He had
been working in the carpenter shop
there, making ploughs for them and
other agricultural implements. So,
they wondered and said among
| themselves, us not this J6seph's
SOM"
All! but there was the rub! 1t
| took faith to see that He was not
Joseph's son, but the Son of Cod
He was (as was supposed the son
of Joseph! He was really the Son
of God. This man was the man
whom God had annointed; He was
the One of whom Isaiah had been
speaking. He had come to his own
veal His real identity, and to bring
To III l.