Covenanter Witness Vol. 54 - Rparchives.org

am"
JUNIOR TOPIC
February 13, 1955
by Mrs. Philip W. Martin
AN IMPORTANT QUESTION
Scripture: Mark 9:27-38
Memory Verse: "And he saith unto
them, But WHOM SAY YE THAT I
AM And Peter answereth and saith
unto him, "Thou art the Christ." Mark
8:29.
Psalms
February Memory Psalm 25:3-6,
page 57.
Psalm 16:1, 7, 8, page 27.
Psalm 38:10, 11, 13, page 98.
Psalm 13:3, page 23.
The Lord Jesus Christ performed many
miracles when He was here on earth.
He healed the sick and miraculously
fed five thousand men besides women
and children. At another time He fed
about four thousand people. All these
miracles show that Jesus is God for no
mere man could do these things which
Jesus did. These miracles led Jesus to
have some talks with His disciples. To
day we are studying about one of these
talks with His disciples.
Jesus and His disciples were going into
the towns of Caesarea Phillipi. The time
was drawing nearer when Jesus would
die on the Cross for our sins and we
have several very searching talks of
Jesus with His disciples. As they were
walking on the road between two villages
of Caesarea Phillipi, Jesus asked His
disciples a question. "Whom do men
say that I am Now Jesus knew the
answer to this question but He wished
to make His disciples think about Who
He was. The disciples thought back over
what they had heard people say about
Jesus. Herod and some others thought
He was John the Baptist come to life
again. Some people thought Jesus was
that great prophet Elijah of the Old
Testament times who had come to life.
And if He was not so great as Elijah,
then He was one of the prophets. We
who know Jesus Christ as our personal
Saviour and Redeemer think that these
are such silly
answers. John the Baptist
and Elijah and Isaiah and Jeremiah
were great men, but they were still
MEN. They could not do the miracles
that Jesus was constantly doing. But
I'm sad to say that lots of people today
think that Jesus is simply a great teach
er. They think that, perhaps, He is the
best of the prophets, just a very good
man. They just don't want to believe
that they
are sinners and have to have
a Saviour if they are to be saved from
God's wrath.
Then Jesus asked His disciples an
other question. "But whom say YE that
I
am"
Jesus is asking you and me this
question today. We
are sad to think
there are some people who think Jesus
January 26, 1955
is only a man. But what somebody else
says doesn't have to be our answer. You
and I must answer the question for our
selves. Notice that little three-letter word
BUT. It isn't a whole lot of good for us
to know what Aunt Susan or Uncle
Josiah or even Mother and Daddy think
of Jesus. However, we must admit that
it ought to have a good effect on us
to know that our parents know the
Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour.
A doctor was on his deathbed. The
minister who had known his father and
mother, came to visit this doctor. The
minister was much concerned about the
doctor's soul. And he asked him, "Do
you know Jesus as your
Saviour" "Oh,"
said the doctor with a sneer, "my mother
and father used to believe that stufif
but I don't." And the doctor died. He
should have known better. He had a
good opportunity to know Jesus, but he
refused to accept Him as Christ, his
Saviour. What answer do you have for
this question, "Whom do YE say that
am"
I (Take a little time out in your
Junior meeting to have several Juniors
tell whom
they say Jesus is."
Peter, who is known as the "spokes
man"of the
disciples answered Jesus'
second question. "Thou art the Christ."
What did Peter's answer mean It
meant that Jesus is the Saviour who was
promised way back in the Garden of
Eden after Adam had sinned. He is the
One of whom Isaiah wrote, "He was
wounded for our
"Christ"
transgressions."
in the New Testament is the
same as "Messiah" in the Old Testa
ment. See John 5:24.
"Christ"
means
"The Anointed One." There were kings
and priests who were anointed, such as
Aaron, Saul, and David. But "THE
Anointed One" is "King of kings." He is
not just a high priest but our GREAT
High Priest. The work of the high priest
was to stand between the people and
God. But the high priest was himself
a sinner. Our GREAT High Priest has
no sin; He will never die; He did not
have to offer animals but gave Him
self to die for our sins; He is praying
for you and for me. This Christ is the
Christ, the Saviour of all who will re
ceive Him into their hearts. Is He
YOUR Christ
For Your Notebook:
Write a short paragraph giving your
personal answer to the question which
Jesus asked His disciples, "Whom say
YE that I
SABBATH SCHOOL LESSON
February 13, 1955
Rev. W. J. McBurney
(Lessons based on International Sunday School
Lessons; the International Bible Lessons for
Christian Teaching:, copyrighted by the Inter
national Council of Religious Education.)
NEW LIFE IN CHRIST
John 3:1-21; 10:7-16; Acts 16:19-34
2 Cor. 5:17
Printed Text, John 3:5-7; Acts 16:25-34;
2 Cor. 5:17
Memory verse: Rejoice in the Lord al
ways: and again I say, Rejoice. Phil.
4:4
Three and a half score years ago, a
young preacher, supplying our pulpit, en
tertained us youngsters of all ages, with
a song, "Put the cookies on the lower
shelf."
The song was an appeal to
preachers to phrase the truth in lan
guage that we could reach. Jesus was the
perfect example in presenting the truth
in a way that could be understood. He
brought the truth right down where we
could reach it.
Nicodemus was a very tall man, in
tellectually. He realized that Jesus was
dealing
with truths much deeper than the
common people could understand, and so
was presenting them down where they
could be reached. Nicodemus wanted to
go into the very heights of the mystery,
and know how a man became a "New
Creature."
Christ handed him the mystery
on a shelf so high that he could not reach
it. "Ye must be born
again."
Nicodemus
called out to have it put down a little
lower. Christ immediately brought it
down a shelf; "Must be born of water
and of the Holy Spirit."
Nicodemus had misunderstood,
thought the change was something physi
cal. The New Birth is not of the flesh.
It is by water and the Spirit. By water,
the old is washed away. Then the Holy
Spirit gives New Life, creating the New
Man.
Jesus spoke in the language we know.
He spoke of the fields, the seed, the
cattle, floweres, houses, foundations; He
illustrated Heaven by the home, and
family relations. He gave us a sugges
tion of God's love in the prodigal's Fa
ther,
of the way
of salvation in the
prodigal, and of the need of brotherly
love in the elder brother.
Our physical birth was without our
knowledge or understanding. The most
learned physician does not understand.
How can we expect to understand the
invisible Spiritual birth And so Christ
and His disciples talked much of God
the Father; Jesus our Brother, the Holy
Spirit the Comforter, sons, brothers,
heirs. They spoke of things that are eter
nal in terms of our present experience.
Thus they
would lead us to realize in
some measure the relationship between
God and his children.
Acts 16:25. Paul and Silas were in
prison in Philippi. They were in the in
ner prison, bound, and their feet in the
stocks. Their backs bruised from beat
ing, and unwashed. Why Because they
had freed a slave girl from an evil spirit
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