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The Sunday School |
THE FEEDffNG OF THE FIVE
THOUSAND. *
September 22, 1912. Mark 6; 30- 44.
Golden Texts "Jesue said unto them,
I am the bread of life."?John 6: 35.
HOME DAILY BIBLE READINGS.
M.?Mark 6 30-44.
T.?Matt. 15 32-39.
W.?Ex. 16: 4-15.
Th.?1 Kl. 17: 8-16.
F.?(Pa. 34: 1-10.
S.?John 6: 32?40.
S.?Matt. 26 : 20-30.
TOPICAL OUTLINE.
Jean* MeetiUjc the Wants of a Needy
Multitude?
Teaching aand healing them, vs. 3034.
Compassionating their hunger, vs. 3537.
Miraculously satisfying it, vs. 38-44.
SHORTER CATECHISM.
Q. Did all mankind fall in Adam's
first transgression?
A. The covenant "being made with
Adam, not only for himself, but for his
posterity, all mankind, descending from
him by ordinary generation, sinned in
him, and fell with him in his first transgression.
LESSON COMMENTS.
The Place: Across the upper end o'
the sea of Galilee from Capernaum; or,
rather, across a kind of bay of the upper
end, at an uninhabited spot not far
from the little city of Bethesda. The
people ran around the shore to the
place while Christ and the apostles
went aerruiB In ? .K/\ot
The Time: Just after the return of
the twelve from the round through Galilee,
on which the Lord had sent them,
and after they had reported to him.
They needed rest, and Jesus hade them
go to this place privately by boat. The
people, however, "outwent them" and
thronged the Master and the twelve all
day. Jesus dealt kindly with them, and
as the day wore on, finding that they
were without, wrought thiB notable
miracle.
The Sources: The sources of information
as to this miracle are all the
Gospel's. Even John, who deals little
with the GaMlleean ministry, records
it. The several accounts are very similar.
Mark's is, perhaps, the most picturesque,
as one would expect. By careful
attention, and very little attention,
one will see that this miracle is not to
be confounded in any way with the
mier similar miracie or the reeding of
the four thousand.
The Natnral Aspect*: Jesus might
just as easily have fed the multitudes
with nothing to start from as with the
little barley cakes and two dried fishes.
He might have multiplied the Httle
store by some other means than the distribution
through the twelve. But he
did not. He probably wished to emphasize
the agency of man and the
fact that, though he was omnipotent,
he had a part for them to perform. So,
also, at the close of the miraaole. he
laid it upon them to gather u-p the fragments.
The Lad: Nothing is known of him,
not even hie name. He was possibly
just some ordinary boy out for a day's
fishing, with a little lunch, which his
mother had prepared for him. We
hear of no demur on his part at the
taking of his little store. The agency
which God uses need not be large or
well-off or mature. That, boy's lunch
was large enough for rhrist"* purpose.
Doubtless the little fellow often wondered
at the deed which converted into
food sufficient for a multitude of thous
THE PRESBYTERI
ande, and it was a proud day in his
own memory and that of his friends.
The Divine Multiplication: God
knows how to multiply when there is
need, or where his grace suggests it.
Jt is his power that enlarges our little
offerings into enough to Bend his
gospel to the ends of the earth. To
him the widow's mite was not one
whit smaller than the gifts of the
rich men who cast into the treasury.
God does not care about the amount.
It is the heart that is in it that he is
concerned with. He attends alone to
the multiplying.
"Bring Them to Me:n These were
significant words in one of the accounts
of this miracle. The secret of
the multiplying of the loaves and fishes
was to be found in Christ's -order,
quickly obeyed, "Bring them to me."
The lad's supply was put into his hands
first, and those same hands held it, and,
after his blessing and prayer, brake
the loaves. Put what you have into
his hands and he attends to its becoming
all that he desires. Christ is not
concerned about what you have. His
concern is that you bring it to him.
Rr rAiniionlou /iwi i ?
?j , --.v. vrvu 10 uui me mn nor
of confusion. Mark's vivid picture of
the multitudes sitting upon the green
grass, in companies of hundreds and
fifties, shows us what God wishes, in
the way of decency and order. The appearance
would be better. The serving
would be more expeditious. There
would be less tendency to mob rudeness.
The apostles could reach all the
hungry people better. There is nothing
unworthy in good order. What
God does in nature is altogether becoming
in grace.
>'o Waste: He could provide tons cf
food, by a word, but he would not have
a pound thrown away or wasted. This
was not niggardliness. It was a lesson
to everybody to "be careful with
God's gift. The answer to this question,
Why twelve baskets full? is easy.
It was doubtless because there were
twelve men to gather up what was left
over, and there was a basket to a man.
And what became of that gathered up
material? It will not be hard to believe
that a large part of it went to
the little fellow, whose whole store
was taken. If so, how prooid he must
have been as he went back home loaded
down!
Lessons: The apostles came and told
Jesus of all they had wrought in his
name. They gave him the credit of the
power and themselves only of the service.
It was a busy life that all of
them led. The people were crowding
him and then more than ever. With
genuine solicitude for their welfare,
he directed them tr? trr% nut tn o nlooo
where all of them might find rest. It
would also give them an opportunity
for communion "with him and for meditation
and prayer.* But the works of
Christ had attracted so much attention
that he and his disciples could not
escape notice, and so a throng of people
ran around the shore and arrived
as quickly as they at the spot where
the landing was made. The Master
could not, for his heart of love, reprimand
them or drive them away. On
the contrary, he "was moved with com
passion towards them, because tfiey
were as sheep not having a shepherd."
Instead of resenting the bold Intrus'on
upon his own and his disciples' needed
rest, he turned and taught them and
healed all that had need of healing.
As the day wore on, the disciple sought
an excuse, a good one as they thought
and tried to do what probably had been
In their mindg all the day. They ask-?d
Jesus to dismiss the people because
thev could find no food there. Jesus,
instead of sending them away, fed
them, and thus once more showed them
the greatness of his heart.
AN OF THE SOUTH
[Young People's Societies!
BELIEVE!
Topic for Sunday, September 22nd.:
Believe! Believe niucli! Believe strongly!?John
11; 17-27; 41-46.
DAILY READINGS.
.Monday: Trembling faith. Mark 9:
14-24.
Tuesday: Astonishing faith. Matthew
8: 5-13.
Wednesday: The mountain-mover.
Mark 11: 20-26.
Thursday: What faith can do. James
5: 14-18.
Friday: Faith's heroes. Hebrews 11:
1-8.
Saturday: Believe on. Hebrews 3:
1-6.
Believe! What does it mean? To
trust; to rest upon; to confide in; to
dpnPnH nnnn Tf io o? nvot./?ia?
- upw*>> *v ID -an V/AV/I V^IDC ou Olt.Upie
that a child can do it; yet, so profound
that a philosopher cannot analyze
it.
Belief, in some form, lies at the basis
of every act We credit history, and
avoid or follow what it tells. We accept
the findings of scholarship and
science and build upon them and do not
lay the foundations anew.
We ship our goods, send our bills,
make our contracts, in faith, never having
seen those whom we trust, or the
place where they dwell, or the bank ou
which they draw, but believing that
they exist and that they may be trusted.
"He that cometh to God must believe
that he is, and that toe is a rewarder
of them that diligently seek
him." Belief is more than mere confidence
in a fact- it ia npHnir nnn? that
confidence, "banking" on it, drawing
upon the divine resources.
Believe! What does it bring? Salvation!
"Believe in the L/ord Jesus
Christ and thou shalt be saved." "He
that believeth in me, though he were
dead, yet shall he live; and whosoever
liveth and believeth in me shall never
die." "By grace are ye saved, through
faith; and that not of yourselves; it is
the gift of God."
It brings crucifixion of us to the
world and of the world to us, and with
this death it brings life. '^1 am crucified
with Christ; nevertheless, I live;
yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and
the life which I now live in the flesh I
live by the faith of the Son of God, who
loved me, and gave himself for me."
Believe! Upon what are the call and
the answer based? "Come now, and let
us reason together, saith the Lord."
"Be ready always to give an answeT to
every anan that asketh you a reason of
the hope that is in you with meekness
and fear." fV?d linlia nnt oi,?nniKiir? on
unintelligent faith. "I know whom I
have believed, and am persuaded that
he is able to keep that which I have
oommltted unto him."
What, then, are the grounds of faith?
God's word. Christ's perfect righteousness.
The substitution of Christ for the
believing sinner. The Spirit's work.
The resurrection of Christ. The Redeemer's
intercession. The possession
of an advocate with the (Father, What
more than these could man or God demand?
"By one offering he hath per
fected them that are sanctified thereby."
Relieve! .What will be Its final reward?
"Come, ye blessed, Inherit the
Kingdom prepared for you from the
foundation of the world." ">1 shall be
satisfied. when I awake, with thy likeness."
"We know that, when he shall
appear, we .shall be like him; for we
shall see him as he is."
r September 11, 1912
The Prayer Meeting ] |
THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. I
John 8. 12; Matt. S: 14?Week of
KonTomKoM "IK ?I
Light reveals to our natural eyes the
reality and qualities of material objects.
Sight is the principal medium
through which we know the nature of
objects by which we are surrounded,
and we are dependent on light for the
use of the power of vision. Hence light
is an appropriate emblem of that which
enables us to perceive spiritual realities,
because it makes vision possible
and displays the objects of vision.
The world needs spiritual lights as
truly as when our Master said of Himself,
'II am the light of the world," or
of His followers, "Ye are the light of
the world." Mankind will never become
so enlightened through merely
human sources of wisdom as not to
need the true light that liehteth pvorv
man that cometh Into the world. Present
experience and the experience of
the past are insufficient guides. Discovery.
the advance of science, knowledge
of the errors of the past and tendencies
of the present are all in vain.
There is a realm of reality which lies
beyond the reach of natural vision and
is too refined to be perceived by the
carnal mind, upon which celestial light
must be poured before its verities can
be perceived. "The natural man recelveth
not the things of the Spirit of God
because they are foolishness unto him,
neither can he know them because they
are spiritually discerned." And this
realm of which we *?peak is where
man's highest interests lie; for the
things of the Spirit are of vastly more
concern than the thingB of the flesh.
"Ye were sometimes darkness, but now
are ye light in the Lord; walk as children
of light."
The great mission of the church is
to give light. "Ye are the light of the
world." The announcement is almost
startling to us, as it must have been to
the discinlon Tf Vino v.??~ ??'J
? >r>ww, *v uuu uv.v-11 oaiu mai
our Turd's way of assigning duty is to
require impossible things. He told the
blind to see and paralytics to rise and
walk. A few followers with nothing
to eat: were commanded to feed the multitudes;
and the "little flock" was told
to "make disciples of all nations." The
same responsibility was placed upon
them when he said, "Ye are the light of
the world." He meant that through
the lives and services of hiB people,
evangelization should be carried to
every part of the earth, and bis redeemed
people should be gathered to
himself. The commission to a little
band of peasants was that they should
"go and make disciples of all nations."
The commission Is continued to us who
believe on his name through their word.
We muBt not doubt because the task
la f A 11a ~ * ? ? * t
w W UD Jiujniooiuie VIi
The impossible with man is possible
with God, and whatever true light
shines from us is from God, who commanded
the light to shine out of darkness.
We cannot understand our being
the light of the world, except as we
realize that Christ is the light of the
world and that, if we follow him. we
shall not walk tn darkness, but shall
have the light of life. A necessary inference
from this plain truth is that,
if we are not living according to the
revealed nlan of God. our efforts are
vain. Man-made lights will not shine.
The -light that shines from Christ 10
not exclusively for the Illumination of
self.* "Let your light so shine before
men that they may see your good worhs
Rnd glorify your Father, which Is 'n
heaven." A candle under a bushel is
worse than useless.