The Devotional Life of the Sunday School Teacher E-Book

James Russell Miller

• Herausgeber: Darolt Books
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Seitenzahl: 93

Beschreibung

One of the most significant words in the teaching of Jesus, is that in which he gives his command concerning the care of the children. He asked Peter a question, "Do you love me?" and when he got a satisfactory answer, he said to him, "Feed my lambs." He had in mind the figure of a shepherd. David had sung, "The Lord is my shepherd." Jesus himself had used the figure to describe his own tender watchfulness over his people. They are his sheep. The children are the lambs. The word used here means, "little lambs." This suggests that the very youngest children are included. They were infants that were once brought to Jesus, whom the disciples would have kept away, but whom he welcomed so warmly, saying "Allow the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not." This book will help people teach children in Sunday School and in ministries dedicated to teaching children.

Leseprobe

PREFACE

James Russell Miller (20 March 1840 – 2 July 1912) was a popular Christian author, Editorial Superintendent of the Presbyterian Board of Publication, and pastor of several churches in Pennsylvania and Illinois.

James Russell Miller was born near Frankfort Springs, Pennsylvania, on the banks of the Big Traverse, which according to his biographer, John T. Faris, is a merry little mill stream which drains one of the most beautiful valleys in the southern part of Beaver County. His parents were James Alexander Miller and Eleanor Creswell who were of Irish/Scottish stock.

Miller was the second child of ten, but his older sister died before he was born. James and his sisters attended the district school in Hanover Township, Beaver County, Pennsylvania until, when James was about fourteen, his father moved to a farm near Calcutta, Ohio. The children then went to the district school during the short winters and worked on the farm during summer.

In 1857, James entered Beaver Academy and in 1862 he progressed to Westminster College, Pennsylvania, which he graduated in June 1862. Then in the autumn of that year he entered the theological seminary of the United Presbyterian Church at Allegheny, Pennsylvania.

The Christian Commission

The Christian Commission was created in response to the disastrous First Battle of Bull Run. On 14 November 1861, the National Committee of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) called a convention which met in New York City. The work of the United States Christian Commission was outlined and the organization completed the next day.

In March 1863, Miller promised to serve for six weeks as a delegate of the United States Christian Commission, but at the end of this time he was persuaded to become an Assistant Field Agent and later he was promoted to General Field Agent. He left the Commission on 15 July 1865.

The Pastorate

Miller resumed his interrupted studies at the Allegheny Theological Seminary in the fall of 1865 and completed them in the spring of 1867. That summer he accepted a call from the First United Presbyterian Church of New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. He was ordained and installed on 11 September 1867.

Rev. Miller held firmly to the great body of truth professed by the United Presbyterian Church, in which he had been reared, but he did not like the rule requiring the exclusive singing of the Psalms, and he felt that it was not honest for him to profess this as one of the articles of his Christian belief. He therefore resigned from his pastorate to seek membership in the Presbyterian Church (USA). In his two years as pastor, nearly two hundred names were added to the church roll.

The Old and New School Presbyterian Churches were reunited as the Presbyterian Church (USA) on 12 November 1869, and Miller became pastor of the Bethany Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia just nine days later. When he became pastor at Bethany the membership was seventy five and when he resigned in 1878 Bethany was the largest Presbyterian church in Philadelphia, having about twelve hundred members.

Rev. Miller then accepted the pastorate of the New Broadway Presbyterian Church of Rock Island, Illinois.

In 1880 Westminster College, his alma mater conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Divinity and later in the same year came the invitation to undertake editorial work for the Presbyterian Board of Publication in Philadelphia. Hence Dr. Miller had to resign the Rock Island, Illinois pastorate.

In Philadelphia, Miller became interested in the Hollond Mission and eventually became its pastor. During the sixteen months of the pastorate the church membership grew from 259 to 1,164 and Sunday School membership climbed from 1,024 to 1,475.

On 29 October 1899, St. Paul Church in West Philadelphia was organized with sixty-six members. Miller was chosen temporary supply and became pastor in 1906. Miller remained pastor until the year of his death, 1912. The church at that time had 1,397 members.

Family

On 22 June 1870, Miller married Miss Louise E. King of Argyle, New York, whom he had met two years earlier. They had three children,

• William King,

• Russel King, a fairly well known music teacher and composer, and

• Mary Wannamker Miller who married W.B. Mount.

Editor and author

Miller began contributing articles to religious papers while at Allegheny Seminary. This continued while he was at the First United, Bethany, and New Broadway churches. In 1875, Miller took over from Henry C. McCook, D.D. when the latter discontinued his weekly articles in The Presbyterian, which was published in Philadelphia.

Five years later, in 1880, Miller became assistant to the Editorial Secretary at the Presbyterian Board of Publication, also in Philadelphia.

When Dr. Miller joined the Board its only periodicals were

• The Westminster Teacher

• The Westminster Lesson Leaf

• The Senior Quarterly

• The Sabbath School Visitor

• The Sunbeam

• The Presbyterian Monthly Record

During his tenure at the board the following periodicals were added:

• The Junior Lesson Leaf in 1881

• The German Lesson Leaf in 1881

• Forward in 1882

• The Morning Star in 1883

• The Junior Quarterly in 1885

• The Lesson Card circa in 1894

• The Intermediate Quarterly circa 1895

• The Question Leaf circa 1996

• The Blackboard circa 1898

• The Home Department Quarterly in 1899

• The Primary Quarterly in 1901

• The Normal Quarterly in 1902

• The Bible Roll in 1902

• The Beginners Lessons (forerunner of The Graded Lessons) in 1903

• The Primary Teacher in 1906

• The Graded Lessons from 1909 to 1912

• for Beginners

• Primary

• Junior

• Intermediate

• Senior

• The Westminster Adult Bible Class in 1909

The Sabbath School Visitor the Board's oldest periodical became The Comrade in 1909.

From 1880, when James Miller first joined the Board to 1911, when he effectively retired because of ill health, the total annual circulation grew from 9,256,386 copies to 66,248,215 copies.

Dr. Miller's first book, Week Day Religion, was published by the board in 1880, the year he joined the Board.

Chapter 1

Sacredness of the Teacher's Work

One of the most significant words in the teaching of Jesus, is that in which he gives his command concerning the care of the children. He asked Peter a question, "Do you love me?" and when he got a satisfactory answer, he said to him, "Feed my lambs."

He had in mind the figure of a shepherd. David had sung, "The Lord is my shepherd." Jesus himself had used the figure to describe his own tender watchfulness over his people. They are his sheep. The children are the lambs. The word used here means, "little lambs." This suggests that the very youngest children are included. They were infants that were once brought to Jesus, whom the disciples would have kept away, but whom he welcomed so warmly, saying "Allow the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not." No mother of an infant child should ever feel that the Son of God is too great to care for her baby, to receive it into his arms and to bless it.

An interesting story is told of Francis Xavier, the Jesuit missionary. Once when throngs were coming to him and he was almost utterly exhausted, he said to his servant: "I must sleep, or I shall die. No matter who comes, do not wake me." Then he crept into his tent and his faithful attendant stood guard. Presently the young man saw his master's pale face at the tent door. Beckoning to him, Xavier said, as if frightened: "I made a mistake! I made a mistake! If a little child comes, waken me." It is thus with our Master. When a little child needs him he is always ready to answer the call.

No flock of lambs in any wilderness is beset by so many perils as are the children in this world. It is the duty of the Church to protect them. The mother is the child's first natural keeper. Every home should be a sanctuary, where the little ones born into it shall be safe. We are careful about health and bodily safety. We make our homes secure shelters from the elements. We look after drainage, ventilation and warmth. We are careful about food, water and clothes. Are we as careful about the moral shelter which we provide in our homes?

Protection is not all. The lambs must be fed  not their bodies only, but their minds and their spiritual natures as well. Every home should provide for the best possible education of the children who come into it. The mother is the child's first teacher; her heart is the child's first schoolroom. The children should be taught early to look up to God, to trust him, to love and obey him. If they are Christ's lambs they should be trained from infancy to know their good Shepherd, to listen for his voice and to follow him.

The parents come first, but the teacher's part is also of the greatest importance in the shepherding of Christ's lambs. The Sunday school is the Church caring for the children. Very sacred are its functions. It obligations cannot be met by any mere perfunctory or routine service. In the Jewish church the most urgent commands were given concerning the training of the children. They were to be instructed from their infancy in the Holy Scriptures. These heavenly words were to be lodged in their hearts so early and so deeply that they would color their first thoughts, sweeten their first affections and give tone to all their aspirations and desires.

This is what we as teachers should seek to do for the young children in our classes. We should fill their hearts and minds with divine influences  the words which are able to make them wise unto salvation. We have the children when their lives are easily impressed, and when the blessing of our teaching will help to shape them for noble character and great usefulness. We should use the utmost diligence to take possession of them then for God.

Jesus made very clear the essential qualifications of a true shepherd. Before he committed his little lambs to the care of Peter, he asked him in a most solemn way, "Do you love me?" and got his answer, "Yes, Lord." There must be in the heart love for Christ, to make the apostle ready to be a shepherd of Christ's lambs. There was special reason why the question should be pressed at this time. Peter had sinned  he had said in his weakness that he was not one of the Master's friends. He must unsay that denial and assert his love for Christ in a most unmistakable way, before he could be entrusted with the care of souls  little children's souls.