The Holy Mount. Matt. xxviii. 16-20. 1 Cor. xv. 6. At the Sea of Tiberias. John xxi. JERUSALEM (continued).-Is governed by the Turks, who have a garrison for soldiers there. The & 4,000 Christians of various 1-24. 1 Cor. xv. 7. All power is given, &c. In Jesus head bodily. If we would do good, [99.] Then the eleven disci-dwelleth all the fulness of the Godples went away into GALILEE, into a mountain which Jesus had appointed them. And Je-ing of the apostles, the long-prosus came, & spake unto them, saying, 'All power is given unto me in heaven & in earth. we must ask for it in Jesus. from December to April, the num- Go ye therefore, and teach all every good and perfect gift. ber increases to about 28,000. The round of devotion consists in a visit to the r. Jordan, in which they bathe: & a visit to all the holy places in & around the Holy City. After which whiles away the hours with music ime hangs heavily, and the pilgrim in the coffeehouses and spirit-shops. The protestant bishop resides there. tlans are engaged in making gold & silver lamps, &c., for the churches and convents; in painting represertations of the various sacred places; and in making rosaries, cru The Latin and Greek Chris cifixes, &c., in mother-of-pearl, olive thirty-six colleges. They follow no trade but of necessity, as bakers, but hers, and grocers. The markets and bazaars are tolerably well supplied with necessaries. and palm wood. The Jews have Gore therefore each -see..... xxxviii.-also..ivii. Mary,' ..... Less., xcvii. - and going to Emmaus, xcviii.-also ut Jerusalem, .... ibid. That disciple whom Jesus loved-at the supper,..... Less. lxxxv.-at Less. xxi., the cross,..... Less. xcv. Simon Peter,-see..... xli.; 'I am ready, &c.-at the sup; per,..lxxxvi.; Though all men,' &c.,.. xc.-Compare Simon Peter followed Jesus,' and his denials, .. xcii.; at the sepulchre,'..xcvii. PRACTICAL LESSONS. I to do all we are able, by teaching and sending others, to spread the gospel in all the world. 2 To be encouraged in every difficulty, knowing the goodness and power of the Lord. 8 To be mild & forbearing towards those who are weak in the faith. 4 To be forgiving, and ready to allow to others an opportunity of evincing amendment, as our Lord did to Peter. nations, baptizing them in the And of the Son. Who hath mani fested the Father's love to man, and tercession, the blessing is bestowed. influence, through the Son, we know the love of God, and walk in love as because of whose atonement and in And of the Holy Ghost. By whose Christ hath loved us. The All things whatsoever, &c. read in his whole life, and death. Children, have ye any meat? This seems to have been a gentle way of and self-confidence, as thinking that they were better able to provide for was in the work unto which he had called them. themselves by fishing, than Jesus Yet was not the net broken. Our Lord is able to disappoint us when we think ourselves most successful, as well as to prosper us when ali things seem against us.. In the forbrake; in this, when they feared disaster, the net was not broken. If Peter loved his Lord better than mer instance, (see xxi.), the net Lovest thou me more than these? he did the things connected with his former worldly occupation, then he was to shew his preference more than he had done: he was to be fully engaged in his Lord's service, self so abundantly able to provide. flock of Christ is made up of young as & trust to Him who had shewn him Feed his lambs and sheep. The [-] Jesus shewed himself dom, grace, and power. sheep; and made known to him by After that he was seen of James. well as old; and Christ would of nourishment in due season. have each receive their proper kind Glorify God. How, in his death, he should rejoice in being counted worthy to suffer for his Lord, whom he had so often mistrusted & denied. It is recorded of Peter, that when sentenced to die of crucifixion, he requested to be crucified with his head downward. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1 Jesus commanded his disciples, saying, Go ye therefore,' &c. 2 3 Jesus encouraged his disciples, saying, Lo, I am with you,' &c. Although the disciples had not obeyed the Lord, but sought, by their own labour, to obtain necessaries, Jesus kindly encouraged them, by his word and almighty power, to trust him. 4 Although Peter had so lately and grievously denied his Lord, yet the Lord kindly forgave him, and re-appointed him to be one of his ministers. days of pardon and peace for Zion, of the Lord: Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, Jerusa lem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion, shall say, Blessed is he that cometh when Jerusalem shall hear the word For the promise of the Father. The outpouring of the Spirit, (Joel ii. 28); which also Christ had promised. books of the Old Testament. In the law of Moses. The first five Jerusalem, Bethany. Acts i. 4-11. Mark xvi. 15-19. Luke xxiv. 44-51. 1 Cor. xv. V. Jerumiam. Luke xxiv. 52, 53. Acts i. 12. John xx. 30, 31; xxi. 25. Mark xvi. 2). JERUSALEM-(contin.)-The word [100.] And Jesus being asof God leads us to hope and expect sembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from JERUSALEM, but wait for the pro-1 mise of the Father, which saith he, ye have heard of me. All things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning me. Isa. lii. 2. For, when her children in the name of the LORD,' the curse shall be taken away, And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited,' Zech. xiv. 11. And living waters shall go out from Jerusalem, ver. 8. And Many peoto seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusa lem, and to pray before the LORD, ple and strong nations shall come viii. 22. For at that time The LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day there shall be one LORD, and his name one,' xiv. 9. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto JERUSALEM to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain,' ver. 17. of Moses?-the prophets?the To what did Jesus open their under Psalms? standing? What is the gospel they were comture? [and is baptized? manged to preach to every creaWho proves that he truly believes What shall become of such as be lieve [believe? What signs should follow such as How should miracles be wrought? In what consists speaking with new tongues? [taking up serpents? tures. And in the prophets. Comprehended the books of Joshua, Judges, and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, which and Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and were called the former prophets; the 12 smaller books from Hosea to Malachi,-the latter prophets. And in the Psalms. The Hagiographa, or holy writings. It comprehended the Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Solomon, Ruth, La mentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and the two books of Chronicles. Opened he their understanding. To know the meaning of the prophecies that foretold his death and resurrection, and his coming again. And preach the gospel. Proclaim the free forgiveness of God in the gospel, and the joyful hope of the kingdom of heaven; which is the blissful inheritance of all who are regenerating Spirit of God. willing to be prepared for it, by the He that believeth and is baptised, &c. He who by his actions proves he has been given the Holy Ghost, without which he is none of Christ's. Shall be damned. Shut out from the kingdom of heaven, and have his In my name. Jesus wrought mi Shall speak with new tongues. B able to communicate the truths of the gospel, in the languages of the nations, never before learned by them. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scripAnd he led them out, to BETHANY; and said, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every ON THE EXPLANATIONS. What was the promise of the Father? creature. He that believeth What books comprehend the law and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall reCover.' And he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. And while he blessed them, he was received up into heaven, & sat on the right hand of God. And While they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into hea-disciples, and about which Jesus had ven? this same Jesus, which In what consists the miracle of To what was Jesus received up? They shall take up serpents. About one-fourth of the serpent tribe are venomous; and the bite of such, or dinarily, produces death. Poison might be taken accidentally, And if they drink any deadly thing. or administered to them wickedly. While he blessed them. [mise to them? While In what did the Lord fulfil his pro PRECEDING PARALLELS. Being assembled together with them -sermon on the M., Less. xix., XX.; ordination in Gal., xxvii.; fore tells his death in the way to Caes. Phil.,.xlvii.-at Cap., . . xlix., l.; apart in the way going to Ixxxv., xci.-at Jerusalem, xeviit on a mount in Gul.,xcix.-at The prom. of the Fath.-Ixxxvii.-ix. Jerus.,. lxxi.-at the supper, .. the sea of Tiberias,..xcix. Go ye into all, &c.-Comp. ..xcix. Sat on the right hand, &c.-Compare 'right hand of power,..... xcii. Shail so come, &c.-Comp. of the coming of the Son of m.-M. Olivet, .. lxxxii., lxxxiv.; prom. to the apost.at the supper, .. lxxxvii. PRACTICAL LESSONS. 1 In all our services for God's glory, to wait for heavenly direction as to his will. 2 To believe on Jesus as our media tor with God, on whose right hand he sits until his foes are made his footstool. 3 To look for God's Son from heaven. 4 To be constant in worshipping God, & in blessing his holy name. 5 To labour for the glory of God, knowing that he will work in, and by his people. is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. [-] And they worshipped him,& returned to JERUSALEM with great joy: and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen. [-], And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen. he assured them of his favour. Was received up into heaven. To have the glory which he had with the Father from the beginning. The right hand of God. This is the seat of honour among men, and is used to illustrate how the Father delights to honour his Son in his mediatorial office. Ye men of Galilee. All our Lord's followers were probably Galilæans. Shall so come, &c. This is a blessed assurance to comfort all sorrowing largely discoursed. They worshipped him. Jesus, as being one God with the Father, is worthy of divine honour. Establishing the truth of the gospel Confirming the word with signs, &c. of salvation which they preached, by miracles of healing, &c. A CATECHISM OF The Systematic Bible Teaching Mission, FOR BOTH THE HOME AND THE SCHOOL. Q. 1.-What is meant by the Systematic Bible Teaching Mission? A.-Mission here signifies a call from God, to show (1) how Ministers, Teachers, Parents, and Missionaries, may with safety and certainty teach the religion of the Bible to all ages in Schools, Homes, and Religious Services. (2) How fathers and mothers may be reached and enabled by the same teaching to both train their children and benefit themselves during the week at home. (3) How all or either of them may, at any time, without study, but specially every 13th Sunday, so examine in the School, the Home, or the Church, as that all can answer every question. (4) How learners by this teaching imbibe a right state of mind and consciousness of progress, and may be retained in the Sunday School. (5) How God the Holy Spirit (as may reasonably be expected) does richly bless this teaching in Schools, Homes, and Churches, and by it revives religion everywhere. Q. 2.-How then does the Mission work? A.-By a series or system of definite Weekly Lessons on Bible religion with easy Methods of teaching them. Q. 3.-Why is it called Systematic ? A.-Because it teaches Bible religion by a complete, comprehensive, and graduated system of Standard Lessons, both Catechism and Scripture, designed and adapted for both Home and School use, from 3 years of age to maturity. Q. 4.-Why is it called a Complete System? A.-Because its teachings exactly suit all ages of life, all capacities of mind, all classes of society, all denominational agencies, and, by translation, all nations of the earth. Q. 5.-Why is it also called Comprehensive ? A. Because it covers in its teaching, not only all ages, classes and capacities of mind, but also the essentials of revealed, or Bible religion in both Old and New Testaments in their Doctrine, Experience, and Scripture Characters, specially aiming to make them easy and interesting to all learners. Q. 6. What then is meant by "Bible religion" ? A.-Bible religion is a distinct work in the mind, twofold in its nature and origin, i.e., both Human and Divine; the Human is the work of Man, as man, to teach intelligently the letter of the Bible; the Divine is wholly of God to make the Word in the mind both influential and saving by the renewing power, grace, and energy of God the Holy Spirit. Q. 7.—How are these two parts of Bible religion further distinguished ? A.-In the former the mind is passive, or receptive; in the latter it is active. In the text "Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man," both are included. Both God and His commandments must be known by somebody teaching the Word: both the human teacher and the Divine Word are necessary to that fear and that obedience; but still, as only God could give the Word, so only God can make the Word effectual and saving, nor can He until it has been intelligently taught. Q. 8.-In what sense is this System or scheme graduated? A.-In its special arrangement in 5 Grades or Standards, that as all ages and capacities are found in the Schools, very young children and others four times their age, so they as much need different lessons as they need different clothes, and these are therefore provided for them by the 5 Grades or Standards. Q. 9.-Into how many Departments is the System divided? A.-There are three distinct Departments as under :— I. The Introductory, to prepare the mind and for use at home. II. The Catechism System, to teach Bible Doctrines. III. The Scripture Narrative, 500 Lessons on the Life of Christ. The System is most effective when taught in this order. Q. 10.-What then is the First, or Introductory Department? 1. To prepare the minds of learners for Bible religion. 2. To arrest the attention of Mothers to the duty of Home training. 3. To induce reverence for the Lord's Day, Worship, and Ministers. 4. To encourage daily devotion, Morning and Evening, with Bible Voices. 5. To teach the need of the Holy Spirit by a silent prayer. Q. 11.-What then is the matter and design of the 1st of the 5 Introductory parts? A.-The 5 Preparatory Texts, which if thoroughly taught and very often repeated, do induce a true reverence for the Great God, and the Holy Bible, so little seen in either School or Home now. Q. 12.-What is the matter and design of the 2nd of the 5 Introductory parts? A. By the first two Graces thoroughly taught, and often repeated in School and daily used at meals at Home, to arrest the attention of Parents to Home training, and to induce a frequent and grateful remembrance of God and His many mercies, a first step in parental training. Q. 13.-What is the 3rd of the 5 Introductory parts ? A.-The design of the 3rd part is to teach a Holy reverence for the Sabbath, the Sanctuary, Ministry and Ordinances, and proper honour to Parents, and due respect to others, by knowledge of Sunday Morning Hymn, Tune, and Prayers, as under : "This is the day," "Old Winchester," "Suffer me not, O Lord," and Sunday Evening Hymn, Tune, and Prayers. 66 Lord, how delightful," "Ernan," "O Lord God, who knowest." These should be well taught for School and Home use, before the Lessons of the System are commenced. Q. 14. What is the 4th of the Introductory parts? A.-The design of the 4th part is to induce in each a conscientious observance of daily devotion, Morning and Evening, by the 1st and 2nd or 3rd Prayers, Hymns and Tunes for every day with Bible Voices. Morning. "My God, who makes," "Northampton," "Almighty God," and "Bestow on me," "Our Father." Evening. "And now another," "Evan," "O Lord God, bless all my friends," "Our Father." It is hoped these devotions will be encouraged by Parents with Bible Voices, and in Schools by the 12 Test Questions. See S.B.T., pp. 121, 122. Q. 15.-What is the last of the 5 Introductory parts ? A. To teach the constant need and help of the Holy Spirit by the following silent prayer to the Lord Jesus Christ, to be said on entering School or Church::-" Most Merciful and Gracious Lord Jesus, I pray Thee send down the Holy Spirit now into my heart, that I may think of Thee, learn about Thee, and love and please Thee in all School duties this day, and Thou shalt have the glory for ever. Amen. These 5 Introductory parts are of essential importance to the success of the System in both School and Home, not only at once but also in all after life; and thus closes, with Books of the Bible set to Music, the Introductory Department. |