St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1938-01-21
Lesson for January %
/. MINISTERING TO PHYSICAL
NEEDS

that were sick-Mark 1884.
PRIMARY TOPIC-When Jesus Went
to Peters House.
JUNIOR TOPIC-When Jesus Went to
Peters House.
INTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR TOP
IC-Helping the Sick
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOP
IC-Christianity's Concern for Physical
Health.
1.-THE Mystery of Painlessness' is
the title of a book published some
years ago, in which the author
pointed out that instead of bemoan-
ing the physical ailments Of man
we should thankfully recognize that
much Of life is without pain. There
is point to the suggestion, but one
who has reached the years of ma
turity and who has stood shoulder
to shoulder with suffering man.
kind is very conscious of the never
silent cry of those whose bodies are
in need.
Our Lord was tender and solicit
tous Of man. It was to him that
the great host of impotent folk
the lame, the halt, the sick, and the
blind-came for healing, and they
came not in vain. Note, however,
that in the midst of his works Of
mercy he did not forget his real
objective, which was to deal with
mans sin.
I. Healing. ". 29).
First, we find our Lord tenderly
sharing the sorrow of the home Of
a friend. One can picture the anx-
ious hush that lowered over the
home as distressed relatives and
friends sought to alleviate the suf-
fering of the one with fever. They
knew the possibility of serious
outcome of the illness. Many of us
have gone through that dark valley.
All at once there was new hope,
and soon there was joy. Jesus had
come and had brought healing.
Many of us have also had that
blessed experience.
Note that the healing was instan-
taneous and the restoration COM
plete. She arose to serve. This
typifies Gods healing of the sick
ness of the soul. If you are saved
you are ready to stand up and
serve.
Christianity is not a selfish faith,
if it follows its Lord. We see in
verses 80 to "a that all the city
came to his door with the diseased
and demon possessed, and he
healed them all. The account of
the kindly and intelligent care Of
the sick is written large on the
pages of the history of the Christian
church.
II. Praying ". $50.
The Son of God sought out place
and a time for prayer communion
with his Father. How often we who
profess to follow him fail to pray
at all. Certainly we need the grace
and power that prayer can bring
far more than Jesus did. But, we
say, we are so busy. So was he.
We are tired. So was he. People
will not let us alone. They also fol-
lowed him. We make excuses, but
we have no real reasons for our
unfortunate delinquency.
III. Preaching wv. $500.
Jesus said, Let us go that I
may preach for therefore came
1 forth" 1t bears repetition in this
age when men magnify the doing
of mighty deeds, that while Jesus
did many miracles land not for
moment would we detract from
their worth and glory yet he re-
peatedly, by word and act, empha-
sized the importance of preaching.
Foolish though it may seem to
the natural man (read l Cor. 1913
25), preaching the gospel in the
power of the Holy Spirit is now, as
it has been through the centuries,
Gods chosen means of turning the
world upside down (Acts 1870.
What pity that churches and pas
tors are forsaking it for book re-
views, dramas, social hours, TO-
runs, community centers, and what
not! God give us a revival of great,
humble, and fearless preaching of
the Word!
Nv. Cleansing (vv. 40-45).
There is a sense in which the
cleansing of the leper was another
act of healing, but leprosy is such a
striking type of sin that the incident
calls for special consideration.
Leprosy is like sin in that it is
destructive malady that pursues its
insidious way without revealing its
true nature until it is far advanced.
1t renders man unclean, loathsome
to himself and dangerous to others.
At least such it was in the days Of
our Lord.
Is there no hope for the leper?
Yes; Jesus has come. The smitten
man cries out, "n thou wilt thou
canst make me clean"
So, also, may the sinner be
cleansed, for "whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved" (Rom. 1919. He will.
not turn the vileSt of sinners away,
for he came Ito seek and to save
that which was lost" duke 19:1O).
The man who was cleansed dis
obeyed the instructions of Jesus
". 44), with the result that the
Lords ministry in that place was
greatly limited. We should obey the
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