Covenanter Witness Vol. 53 - Rparchives.org

air"collection."receive."church,"inth. Only freemen could contend inthese games, and the contestants mustgive satisfactory evidence that for tenmonths they had undergone the necessary preliminary training. For thirtydays before the contests, all candidateswere required to attend exercises atthe gymnasium,and only after theyhad satisfactorily fulfilled all the requirements were they permitted to contend in the games. The victor in eachcontest was crowned with a garland ofleaves which was regarded as a crownof honor.No young Greek ever suddenly foundhis brow encircled with a wreath. Noyoung Greek ever obtained the prizebecause of family prominence. No oneever obtained it by money. The onlyway in which it could be attained wasby a personal victory. It required selfdisciplineand agonizing effort to gainthe trophy.The teacher can easily apply thisfigure of the ancient games to theChristian life, which requires much selfdisciplineand rigorous training andagonizing effort."I therefore so run, as not uncertainly; so fight I, as not beating the(verse 26). To run uncertainly meansto run without a definite object, and tobeat the air means to go through themotions of fighting without defeatinganyone. Paul is determined to run withan object before him, and whenever hestrikes, he means to strike an enemy."But I buffet my body, and bring itinto bondage" (verse 27). If a personis to be absolute master over himself,he must bring his body into subjectionto his spirit. He must rule over "theflesh,"that is, he must bring his fallen nature into subordination and hislife must be a life dominated and governed by the Holy Spirit. A boxer usually strikes someone else's body, but this"boxer strikes his own body. And theChristian, in disciplining his life, buffetsand subdues his corrupt nature, whichelsewhere is called "the flesh."2 Timothy 2:3-5. The same rigorous discipline was an essential part of militaryservice in the great Roman army. Inthat age of terrible social corruption,the army was the one organization inwhich men were held in check, andlearned to live disciplined lives. In theTNew Testament narratives we meet sev--eral officers of the Roman army (Luke23:47; Matthew 8:5-10; Acts 10:1-4;Acts 27:42-43), and all of them appearto be fine men. In athletic contests oneis contending against a rival; but inmilitary service he is fighting againstan enemy. What disciplinary measuresmust the Christian exercise in his ownlife?August 4, 1954SABBATH SCHOOL LESSONAugust 22, 1954by Rev. Joseph A. Hill(Lessons based an International Sunday SchoolLessons ; the International Bible Lessons forChristian Teaching, copyrighted by the International Council of Relicious Education..GROWTH THROUGH CHRISTIANGIVINGLesson Material: Acts 20:35; I Corinthians 16:1-2; 2 Corinthians 8:1-9.Printed Text: I Corinthians 16:1-2; 2Corinthians 8:1-9.MemoryVerse: Acts 20:35 ". . . It ismore blessed to give than toThe average per capita giving duringthe past year in the CovenanterChurch was $20.75. This means that onthe average, each member contributeda fraction more than five cents a daytoward the Lord's work. This is ashamefully small portion of our dailywages, earned in answer to our prayer,"Give us this day our daily bread."Our daily labors are all performed inthe service of Christ, yet only fivecents'worth each day is done specifically for His Church.In states where a sales tax is levied,most individuals easily spend more thantwenty dollars per year, penny by penny.Many families spend more than twentydollars per year on postage and stationery. In some areas it costs $36 per yearas a rental fee on a community television antenna. People pay it gladly. Agreat deal of money is spent in triflinginstallments for insignificant items, butin a year's time the total expendituremounts up to an unbelievable sum. Indrawing up their household budget,many people regard contributions tothe Lord's work as a miscellaneousitem, like postage and sales tax. It isa sad fact that many peoplespendmore for personal amusement than theygive to the Lord's work. Others spendmuch more each year for tobacco thanthey give to the Church.I Corinthians 16:1-2. After a magnificent discussion of the glory of the resurrection of believers, Paul launches immediately into a discussion of liberalityin giving, and the duty of relieving wantamong the brethren. Chapter 15 is athing of beauty. Its sublime languagewas penned on the heights. Yet thereis no break between it and the verypractical duty of caring for the bodilyneeds of fellow Christians. In Paul'smanuscript there were no chapter divisions; it was a continuous discourse"O death, where is thy sting? O grave,where is thying thevictory? . . . Now concernAre these ideas incongruous? Is the association unworthy?Does the call to duty take somethingaway from the thought of heavenlyglory?Paul's transition ismonyin perfect harwhen we realize that the wholeman is redeemed in Christ Jesus. Bodyand soul participate in the redemptionpurchased by Christ. And the transitionbetween thoughts of glory and thoughtsof duty is seen to be even more in perfect accord when we realize that partof the purchased blessings of redemption are enjoyed by the Christian inhis earthly life. The "collection" referred to by the apostle was a sum ofmoney that was to be given to a largegroup of poor Jews in Jerusalem, whobecause of their Christian faith, wereoutlawed and denied a living. This help,given by fellow saints in Corinth, wasa concrete evidence of the grace of Godtoward them. The "collection" was anearnest (a "dawn payment") of the inheritance which was to be theirs inglory. Although it was of temporalnature, it came to the poor saintsthrough the grace of God, and was apart of the salvation which they hadin Christ Jesus.2 Corinthians 8:1-9. Tithing is oftenregarded merely as a "means of supporting therather than as amatter of stewardship. In church budgets and statistical reports, the financial aspect of giving is thrust into prominence instead of the religious aspect.It is a sign of real growth in the Covenanter Church that Synod's Stewardship Committee is leading the Churchto think in terms of tithers instead ofdollars. Tithing is not primarily a practical duty, but a religious duty. It isvery significant that 39 verses of 2 Corinthians, almost one-sixth of the entireepistle, are devoted to the subject ofgiving.Muchhas been written concerningthe benefits of tithing, both to the giverand to the Church. It seems to be takenfor granted that religion is a matter of"values"and benefits, that man's welfare is greatly heightened by religion,and that men should be willing to giveliberally to "a good The "spiritcause."ual benefits" of giving are often urgedas the reason why we should be liberalin giving to the Lord's work, as thoughit were a sort ofinvestment whichpays rich dividends. The only rightmotive for giving, however, is love forGod. Our giving ought to be the spontaneous expression of our deep gratitudeto God. Instead of the spirit of bargain,the spirit of thanksgiving ought to bepreeminent in our giving.It is sometimes necessary today almost to beg for contributions to theLord's work. But Paul tells us that theMacedonian Christians begged him to75