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XII.
Christian Growth and Experience
Chapter 139
:
Sowing and Reaping
1. WHAT does Paul say
regarding sowing and reaping?
"Be not deceived; God is not mocked:
for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he
also reap." Gal. 6:7.
2. How is the same
truth expressed by Christ?
"Judge not, and ye shall not be
judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be
condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
give, and it shall be given unto you; good
measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and
running over, shall men give into your bosom.
For with the same measure that ye mete withal it
shall be measured to you again." Luke
6:37,38.
NOTES.-A man's deeds, good or evil, usually
return to bless or curse him. A farmer who
sold butter to a village storekeeper and
took sugar in exchange, complained that he
was getting short weight. "Look here," said
he to the merchant, "it seems to me you're
giving me short weight sugar." "No," replied
the storekeeper, "that cannot be, for in
measuring out that sugar of yours I always
use a pound of your butter as a weight."
"Good and evil come back. . . . God made the
universe on the plan of the circle. Isa.
40:22. . . . We ourselves start the circle
of good or bad actions, and it will surely
come around again to us unless by divine
intervention it be hindered. Those bad or
good actions may make the circuit of many
years; but come back to us they will as
certainly as that God sits on the circle of
the earth. . . . What a stupendous thought
that the good and the evil we start come
back to us! Do you know that the
judgment-day will be only the point at which
the circle joins, the good and the bad we
have done coming back to us, unless divine
intervention hinders,- coming back to us,
welcome of delight or curse of
condemnation?"- T. DeWitt Talmage.
3. On what condition
does Christ say God will forgive us?
"For if ye forgive men their
trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also
forgive you: but if ye forgive not men their
trespasses, neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses." Matt. 6:14,15. See also Matt.
18:23-35.
4. According to what
principle does God deal with men?
"With the merciful Thou wilt
show Thyself merciful; with an upright
man Thou wilt show Thyself upright; with
the pure Thou wilt show Thyself pure;
and with the froward Thou wilt show
Thyself froward." Ps. 18:25,26.
5. How is the same
truth again taught touching the wicked?
"As he loved cursing, so let
it come unto him: as he delighted not in
blessing, so let it be far from him." Ps.
109:17.
6. According to what
was judgment called upon Babylon?
"Recompense her according to her
works; according to all that she hath done, do
unto her." Jer. 50:29.
7. Why did Christ tell
Peter to put up his sword?
"Put up again thy sword into his
place: for all they that take the sword shall
perish with the sword." Matt. 26:52.
8. Why was the Papacy
to go into captivity?
"He that leadeth into captivity
shall go into captivity: he that killeth
with the sword must be killed with the sword."
Rev. 13:10. See Lev. 25:10; Jer. 34:17.
9. What is to be the
punishment of spiritual Babylon?
"Reward her even as she rewarded
you, and double unto her double according to
her works." Rev. 18:6.
10. What does the
psalmist say win come to the persecutor?
"His mischief shall return upon
his own head, and his violent dealing shall
come down upon his own pate." Ps. 7:16.
NOTE.-In his letter addressed to the Jews,
dated Nov. 16, 1905, President Roosevelt
said: "I feel very strongly that if any
people are oppressed anywhere, the wrong
inevitably reacts in the end on those who
oppress them; for it is an immutable law in
the spiritual world that no one can wrong
others and yet in the end himself escape
unhurt."
11. What befell Haman,
who sought to slay all the Jews?
"So they hanged Haman on the gallows
that he had prepared for Mordecai." Esther 7:10.
See Ps. 9:15.
12. If one would have
friends, what must he do?
"A man that hath friends must show
himself friendly." Prov. 18:24. |
