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The Sunday School
A VISIT TO NAZARETH.
A11 ifust -"s 1912. Luke 4:16-30.
Golden Text: "He came untx> his own,
and his own received him not."?John
1:11.
HOME DAILY BIBLE READINGS.
M.?'Luke 4:16-30.
T.?Isa. 61:1-9.
W.?Jer. 26:16-24.
Th.?Acts 5:17-32.
F.?Acts 4:13-21.
S.?Acts 16:19-34.
S.?PBalm 91.
TOPICAL OUTLINE.
Jesus Visits His Old Home?
'Preaches in the synagogue, vs. 16-21.
Is rejected by the people, vs. 22-30.
SHORTER CATECHISM.
Q. 12. What special act of providence
did God exercise towards man in the
estate wherein he was created?
A. When God had created man. He
entered into a covenant of life with him.
upon condition of perfect obedience, forbidding
him to eat of the tree of knowledge
of good and evil upon pain of
death.
LESSON COMMENTS.
The Sources Imke's Gospel alone records
the incidents of this lesson, unless,
indeed, we believe that there was
only one vIbH. to NazaTeth, and that
Matthew's and Mark's accounts refer to
the same matter as does Luke's. Luke's
account, however, does not refer so
much to a visit as to Christ's return, in
the beginning of his ministry, to his
own home in little Nazareth and to the
treatment he received from his fellow
townsmen, resulting in his changing his
residence to Capernaum.
Time and Place: Very early in
Christ's ministry, if Luke be followed
and the "two visits" interpretation is
taken; a few weekB after the incidents
of the last lesson if the "one visit"
theory be accepted. Luke's declared
purpose of giving an orderly account
clearly substantiates the first named
date. Nazareth, the home of Joseph
and Mary, and of their large family, in
the southern part of Galilee, a little city
still flourishing. It has had no history
apart from its association with Christ.
was a place of mean reputation at the
t me of Christ's birth.
At Home: Adopting Luke's account,
and 'making it a Teturn after his baptism
rather than a visit nearly two
years later, we see Christ at home.
Here he had dwelt and had been known
for nearly thirty years. His manner of
life, his sincerity, the strange circumstances
connected with his Infancy and
youth, the occurrences at his baptism,
the miracle at Oana. near by, and the
miracle wrought for the sick boy at
Capernaum, were known. But because
they were Bo familiar with him, his own
townspeople treated him with indifference,
and when he turned the Scriptures
upon them become angry. Later on, In
the other accounts, it is related that not
many in Nazareth believed on him.
Even his own brothers did not believe
on him.
Christ's Klnspeoples In the later accounts
of Mathew and Mark, telling of
the visit made near the close of the
second year of Christ's ministry, we are
given a full account of the fa?mdly in
which Christ grew up. They were still
living at Nazareth, though Christ had
then been away nearly two years. The
people exclaimed, "Is not this the car
THE PRESBYTERI
penter's son? is not his mother called
Mary? and his brethren James, and
Joses, and Simon, and Judas? and his
sisters, lare tiiey not all with us?"
Thus it appears that it was a family of
some size, including at least live sons
and several daughters. The notion that
Jesus was Mary's only son has no warrant,
and is as much man-made as is the
related notion of "the immaculate conception,"
that is, that Mary's mother
was sinless and Mary's birth was lik?
that of her Son.
The Synngogue: Up to the Dispersion,
the Jews had but one worshipping place.
the temple at Jerusalem. Shortly after
the Great Captivity they "began to assemble
in the various places of their
exile and eventually there came to toe
regular meeting-places and religious
organizations wherever the Jews were
found. If so many as ten could be
brought together a synagogue was organized.
No sacrifices were offered in
them. It was not necessary that priests
or Invites direct them; They were
places and organizations for the preaching
and study of God's Word and for
prayer and praise. They were always
under charge of "rulers." and had other
officers, much as the Presbyterian
churches of today. The reading and
hearing of the Scriptures were their
outstanding features. Devout and faithful
believers attended their services
regularly. They became also centres of
school work for the young.
"As His Custom Was:" It was Christ's
habit to go to church regularly! That
is the meaning of these words. He did
not count himself as above the need of
regular attendance upon God's house.
He regarded worship as the highest duty
and as of the very essence of religion.
He knew that the soul needs Its diet
regularly. He knew the power of habit
In fixing and helping character. His
careful observance of the Sabbath and
faithful attendance on the sanctuary's
services are a perpetual example to us
In these days of loose thinking and
loose doing. And evidently, from the
story here and references elsewhere,
hp was reared to it. It was the family
way. He never thought of doing differently
because In his childhood no such
thought was allowed to enter his mind.
Joseph's and Mary's pious household is
an example to families today.
Old Testament Testimony: The centre
of all observation and thought in the
Synagogue was the Bible. From Ezra's
day down it was needful that there be
official reading and explanation of the
Scriptures. These were written In Hebrew.
The vernacular was the Aramaic.
It was necessary, therefore, thatmuch
attention be paid to the proper
interpreting of the "Word. There was
usually no regular reader, hut the chief
ruler of the synagogue would call up
any godly man present, known foT the
propriety of his walk and life, to read
Jesus had doubtless, in the last eight
or ten years of his life, been often the
reader, as in this case. We read from
Isaiah, a book which is so full of messianic
thought that it might well be
called "The Gospel According to Isaiah."
There was a regular "course" of reeding.
That for the day proved to be
closely related to the Tx>rd's work. It
was a beautiful gospel message which
he read.
The Proof of Truth: Truth either
convinces or angers, it has such snarp
cutting edges that on can never come in
contact with It without feeling Its
efTects. The ftrst result of Christ's
reading was to arouse the wonder of
all his hearers. They had often before
"heard him, but now grace seemed
to be poured In unusual measure Into
is lips. It looked, at first, as If there
(Continued on page 21.)
AN OF THE SOUTH
[Young People's SocietiesI
SOUTH AMERICA AND THE ISLANDS.
Topic for Sunday, August 25: Missionary
Progress in South America and
the Islands. Acts 16:16-84.
DAILY READINGS.
Monday: Religious opposition. Acts
4:1-4.
Tuesday: Commercial opposition.
A 1 ft. OO OA
Wednesday: A kind reception. Acts
28:1-10.
Thursday: Hungry souls. Acts 10:
31-35.
Friday: Superstition overthrown.
Galatians 6:1-7.
Saturday: The need of prayer. Ephesians
6:18:23.
The Protestant faith had hardly hecome
established until efforts began to
evangelize the darker parts of the
world.
The names of John Calvin and Admiral
Coligny will be forever linked
with effort .to give the gospel to "The
Brazils." in South America.
The failure of this effort, through the
persecutions to which, as with like efforts
ever since it was subjected does
not render any less glorious and praise
worthy the attempt that was made.
The South American States and the
Islands with which our country is closely
related are all nominallv Christian.
and it may "be asked why we should
seek to send missionaries to them.
The reason for missionary work there
is that there is a crying need for a pure
gospel, a simple faith, and an open
Bible. There is need for the removal
of superstition and credulity, and foi
the breaking of the power of priest,
craft
Had the teaching of Romanism; long
In. possession of those lands, been according
.to the truth of God's Word and
instinct with the life of that truth, they
would long ago have been like those
other lands where the Bible has been
put in the people's hands.
The experience of Bible distribution in
Peru and Chile has been hard and bitter,
but a better day has dawned. In the
past decade or two the advancement
of the people has been such that the
priests and bishops have not dared to
set themselves in the way and to arouse
the mob against the colporteurs.
The ignorance in which the Roman
Church Tias kept the people has been
the chief difficulty in the way of missionary
effort and success. A great
amount of teaching has been needful
Schools had to be established. A large
part of our own church's work in Brazil
has been this foundation work. It has
amply justified its purpose.
In Brazil our church began work
with Lane and Morton as its first representatives,
followed soon by Boyle and
Smith, a very few years after the war.
The Northern Church had entered the
field a little while before. Now a strong:
independent National Presbyterian
Church, with its Assmbly, Synods, Presbyteries,
theological seminary and en- ,
tire equipment successfully occupies the
field.
As to the Islands, the Hawalan Group
has for sometime been regarded as practically
evangelized. Porto Rico Is open,
as a pant of the United States, to the
freest teaching and preaching of the
gospel, and evangelical missions are
popular and rapidly growing. The sam?
is true of Cuba. In this Island there
has been a judicious distribution of the
territory, with a view of preventing con(Cohtinued
on Page 21.)
[August 14, 1912
1 The Prayer Meeting |
PAUL'S APPRECIATION OF OTHERS.
2 Thes. 1:1-4. Week of August 18.
We sometimes think of Paul as a
great theologian or doctrinal teacher,
and forget for the time that of all the
inspired writers not one dealt: more
intimately with practical religion. From
his letters we may get a thorough in;ht
into the spiritual and practical, as
well as doctrinal state of the Church in
his day. The various problems with
which the churches had to deal, the
outside influences which affeoted them,
their internal dissnsions and doctrinal
controversies are brought vividly before
U8.
From his epistles we discover that
srxTip r?f the minimi,-. ? *
?. ? ~ wiuivun woie coia ana aeclimng,
while others were fervent and
prospering. The church at Thessalonica
was of this latter class. The apostle
accordingly held her in high esteem and
the two epistles .that he was inspired
to write might appropriately be called
sacred love letters, for they are the
expression of over-flowing affection and
personal approval. He did not hesitate
to commend the church and to indicate
that it was eminent in the possession
and exercise of Christian grades. In
the opening words of his first letter he
expresses his gratitude to God for all
in the Church and that he is ever mindful
of their "work of faith and labor of
love and patience of hope in our Lord
Jesus Christ."
The first of the excellencies mentioned
here was their increasing faith:
"Your faith groweth exceedingly." He
had known the church from the beginning
and knew its faith and patience
and hope. He knew its infirmities and
mentions these, but he first rejoices in
the fact that their faith was growing
exceedingly. He was pursuing the
right course as well as the tactful
course. He recognized the abounding
grace of God In them and gloried In It.
It would have been ungrateful to God
and cruel to his brethren to have been
harsh and censorious to those who had
Just emerged from paganism and had
everything to learn. He had an eye to
what God was working and would not
let that be obscured by the remaining
failings and faults of the little flock.
Wihen faith was becoming more vivid
and triumphant it was a time for rejoicing.
A people until recently without
God and afar ofT, now see Christ as
their sovereign, bestowing spiritual
gitfts and controlling the affairs of the
kingdom which had been prepared for
them from the foundaboin of the world
Such momentous facts called forth the
apostles gratitude and praise.
Next. Paul praised their abounding
love. In the churches generally there
had been discords arising from conflicting
views of doctrine or duty. But in
this church the love of each one of them
toward one another was abounding.
There was fellowship and unity. They
were living spiritual lives, taught and
led by the Spirit. Wben people believe
the truth they all believe alike. When
they work according to Scriptural
methods they all work in harmony,
"love makes aune." It gets increasing
light which brings Increasing gladness
ft is wonderful how the Christian graces
help one another.
Another thing the apostle rejoiced 'n
was their patience associated with the'1"
fai-th in all their persecutions and tribulations.
Faith and patience are closely
associated in the Scriptures. We
readily see that they are closely joined.
Christian patience is dependent on
the effect of steadfast faith.
* 1