Category: EXPOSITIONS

          ‘Now, unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible,          the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever          and ever. Amen.’–1 TIM. i. 17.With this burst of irrepressible praise the Apostle ends his referenceto his own conversion as a transcendent, standing instance of theinfinite love and transforming power of God. Similar doxologiesaccompany almost all his references to the…

    ‘And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took    him.’    GENESIS v. 24.This notice of Enoch occurs in the course of a catalogue of thedescendants of Adam, from the Creation to the Deluge. It is evidently avery ancient document, and is constructed on a remarkable plan. Theformula for each man is the same. So-and-so…

    ‘And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him    for righteousness.’    GENESIS XV. 6.It is remarkable to find this anticipation of New Testament teaching sofar back. It is like finding one full-blown flower in a garden whereall else is but swelling into bud. No wonder that Paul fastened on itto prove that justification by…

    ‘The Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The    Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering,    and abundant in goodness and truth.’–EXODUS xxxiv. 6.This great event derives additional significance and grandeur from theplace in which it stands. It follows the hideous act of idolatry inwhich the levity and sinfulness of Israel reached their climax. Thetrumpet of…

The first words of this lesson give the keynote for its meaning. ‘Goddid prove Abraham’; the strange command was a test of his faith. Inrecent times the incident has been regarded chiefly as embodying aprotest against child-sacrifices, and no doubt that is part of itsintention, and their condemnation was part of its effect, but the…

          ‘Your work of faith, and labour of love, and          patience of hope.’–1 THESS. i. 3.This Epistle, as I suppose we all know, is Paul’s first letter. He hadbeen hunted out of Thessalonica by the mob, made the best of his way toAthens, stayed there for a very short time, then betook himself toCorinth, and at some…

    ‘And He brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now    toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to    number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be.    And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him    for righteousness. And He said unto him, I am the Lord    that brought thee out…

          ‘God is able to make all grace abound toward you;          that ye, always having all-sufficiency in all          things, may abound to every good work.’–2 COR.          ix. 8.In addition to all his other qualities the Apostle was an extremely goodman of business; and he had a field for the exercise of that quality inthe collection for the poor saints…

          ‘Of whom I am chief.’–1 TIM. i. 15.The less teachers of religion talk about themselves the better; and yetthere is a kind of personal reference, far removed from egotism andoffensiveness. Few such men have ever spoken more of themselves thanPaul did, and yet none have been truer to his motto: ‘We preach notourselves, but Christ…

          ‘Strengthened with all power, according to the          might of His glory, unto all patience and          longsuffering with joy.’–COL. i. 11 (R.V.).There is a wonderful rush and fervour in the prayers of Paul. No partsof his letters are so lofty, so impassioned, so full of his soul, aswhen he rises from speaking of God to men to speaking…