THE HERALD
of Christ's Kingdom
VOL. XXVIII SEPTEMBER
1945 NO. 9
Table of Contents
The Crisis of the Christ
By Thy Words Acquitted; By Thy Words Condemned
"Be Ye Holy"
Prayer and Study of the Word
Another Question of Interest
Keep Hold of God's Hand
Holy and Reverent His Name
God Sends His Love to You
Encouraging Messages
SERVICE COMMITTEE NOTES
"Father, glorify Thy name."
- John 12:28.
THE
CIRCUMSTANCES under which this prayer came to be uttered were unusual, even in the unique
life of our Lord, for it was His crisis hour, as the immediate context shows: "Now is
My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save Me from this hour? But for this cause
came I unto this hour. Father, glorify Thy name." - Ver. 27, A. R. V. (margin) .
THE BOY JESUS
'There had
been other, lesser, crises in the life of our Lord, two of them, the Baptism and the
Transfiguration, being marked, as was this one, by the approving voice of His Father
from heaven. Even before He became the Christ, before He was anointed, when He was but
twelve years of age, it would appear that He experienced something in-the nature of a
crisis. The law under which He lived required all male Jews from twelve years old and
upward to appear three times. a year in the temple at Jerusalem. And to the next occurring
Passover, after Jesus had completed His twelfth year, He was taken by His parents.
"The pilgrimage to Jerusalem," it has been observed, "would be regarded by
the Jewish boys as a pleasant holiday, full of the wonder of travel, the freshness of
novelty, the pleasure of, social intercourse, and the excitement of scenes and
ceremonies peculiar to the paschal season, and toy the holy city." To the boy Jesus,
however, the attraction was not "the hills that were round about Jerusalem, or the
manner of stones and buildings which were enclosed in the city itself, or the gay and
crowded street, nor yet the social entertainment, but that quiet spot in the temple court,
where sacred history was recited, and Divine prophecy explained. And so absorbed did the
Boy Jesus become in converse with the learned in sacred lore, that the Nazareth
caravan started without Him, and He seems to have been aroused from His absorption by the
expostulation, 'Son, why hast Thou thus dealt with us? behold Thy Father and 1 have sought
Thee sorrowing. His reply intimates that He had expected to be set free from parental
restraint, and to follow a prophet's mission, while yet, like Jeremiah, only: in His
teens: 'How is it that ye sought Me? wist ye not that I must be about. My Father's
business?' It is, however, revealed to Him that He must continue as a child of Nazareth,
and with deep meaning it is recorded, 'He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and
was subject unto them.' Judea is more attractive than Galilee, and Jerusalem more
interesting than Nazareth, and the scenes of the temple more in unison with His spirit
than the workshop, and the teachers of the, law more congenial companions than the
Nazarenes, and the study of truth more in harmony with His spirit than' agricultural
carpentry, and the immediate entrance upon His mission more in accord with His zeal than
delay; but if there were hesitation it was only for a moment; gracefully, as the moon
falls back behind a cloud; silently and sweetly, as the star of the morning, still bright
and beautiful, retires before the rising sun, so Jesus went back to the oblivion of
Nazareth, until the time of His showing unto Israel, saying in His cheerful retirement,
'I am willing to be concealed and unknown. Father, glorify -- Thy name.'"
THE BAPTISM
Some
eighteen years later our Lord passed another crisis. What happened between these two
crises we would all be interested to know, but we have not been informed. All we are told
is that He grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man. Arrived at manhood's
estate, which, under the Jewish law, was thirty years of age, He carried out the
purpose, of which His boyhood days had given such glowing promise, and in full
consecration to the Father's will presented Himself to the Baptist at Jordan. Acknowledged
by the Father with a voice from heaven as His well-beloved Son; granted the Spirit without
measure, which appeared in the form of a dove, He is led by that Spirit into the
wilderness, there to be tempted of the Devil forty days. He is urged to relieve the hunger
which He experienced at the close of His long fast, by working a miracle for that relief.
He is tempted to presume upon His own destiny, and upon, the protection of Divine
providence, and for self-magnification to expose Himself to useless danger by casting
Himself down from the pinnacle of the temple. He is enticed to do homage to the Adversary
of God and man, and universal dominion is offered as a bribe. "This," as
another has remarked, "was temptation, real trial, positive probation. He was tried
as the sapling by the wind, and as the ship by the storm; as the vessel of clay by the
stroke of the potter, and as gold by fire." And the result shows that the Man Christ
Jesus was characterized by that perfection which consists in perfect love to God; for in
the words: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God";
"Thou shall not tempt the Lord thy God"; "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy
God and Him only shalt thou serve";-in these words, we say, the glorious sentiment of
our text is seen to be triumphant, and stronger than all other voices we hear the voice of
Jesus in each temptation saying, "Father, glorify Thy name."
THE TRANSFIGURATION
Another
crisis would appear to have been experienced by our Lord during the week preceding His
transfiguration on the mount. Only a week before this event He had announced to His
disciples that He must suffer many things, and be rejected, and be killed. Of what
transpired during that momentous week we have no record -- that is to say, during the week
which intervened between the day He first formally announced to His disciples His
approaching death and resurrection, and the day of His transfiguration, when again the
voice of His Father was heard from heaven in tones and terms of warmest approval. But as
an eminent writer has pointed out, since "St. Matthew tells us that 'from that
time forth,' from the very day, that is, on which He first announced His death to His
amazed disciples, 'Jesus began to show unto them that He must go to Jerusalem, and
suffer many things of the elders and scribes, and be killed'; it would seem probable that
He spent this week in discussing with them [that which, in the vision, they beheld Moses
and Elijah discussing with Him, namely, the decease, the departure], 'the exodus which
He was to accomplish at Jerusalem;' " that 'He spent this week "in dissipating
their foolish dream of a military triumph and an earthly empire; in answering their
remonstrances, in soothing their fears, in proving to them the necessity and the
expediency of His going away from them, and going by the dark road of death."
"We may
be sure, we think, since Christ lived not for Himself but for others, that the glory came
on Him, and the voice spake from the bright cloud on this occasion, for the comfort and
teaching of the disciples as well as for His own. Yet who can doubt that in this strange
and thrilling scene there was teaching and comfort for the Son of Man Himself? St. Luke
tells us that it was 'while He was praying that the fashion of His countenance was
altered.' And who can doubt what the theme of His prayer was? Who can doubt that, as
afterwards in Gethsemane, so now on the slope of Hermon, He was crying with strong
supplication and tears for a will at one with that of His Father, a will
obedient even unto death? The thought of the Cross had never taken such a hold on Him as
during the week in which He taught His disciples that the Son of Man must be
delivered up into the hands of men. What wonder if, as He spake, the prospect of death grew
darker, more shameful and more abhorrent, to Him who was the Life indeed? What wonder if,
when the week was over, His spirit grew faint within Him, so faint that He must needs go
up into a mountain apart and pray, in order that, by communion with His Father, He might
be reconciled to His Father's will and cheerfully make it His own?"
That this
was the substance of His prayer we may infer from the answer it received. The
Transfiguration was the answer. And what an answer it was! We cannot pause now to examine
all its lessons of faith and hope and love. We must content ourselves at this time in
noting that the Father, whose Name He desired above everything else to honor, granted Him
then and there a foretaste of the honor and glory that should shortly be His. Moreover
when the Father did this by causing His face to shine as the sun and His raiment to become
white as snow, what a suggestion this was of the glorious character our Lord possessed! It
was as though all the purity, all the splendor of His inner nature was breaking through
the veil of flesh, while the voice from heaven proclaimed Him the beloved Son in whose
devotion unto death the Father was well pleased!
THE FINAL CRISIS
But great
though the previous crises were, and magnificent the manner in which He met them, they did
but point to the last and chief crisis of His life to which our text relates, the crisis
which Jesus speaks of as the hour -- this hour. In the words of another:
"This was not only a crisis, and the greatest crisis, but the crisis of all former
crises. He had been born for this hour. To this hour -- the hour of His agony and death --
all the hours of His past life had tended. He had suffered before, but now His soul was to
become exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death. He had often sweat the sweat of toil, but
now He was to sweat the sweat of agony. He had been despised by men, but now He is to be
crucified as a malefactor. He had been deeply grieved by men, but now He is to be wounded
and bruised by God. Men had often hid their faces from Him but now God will forsake Him.
He has lived acquainted with grief, but now He is to die of a broken heart. This hour was the
hour of Christ's life, the hour of the hours of His sorrow, the hour in
the earth's history to which the finger of time had pointed since the day in which man
fell, and the hour upon the events of which rested the performance of God's chief
promises, the fulfillment of centuries of prophecy, the realization of Divine symbols,
and the salvation of the world. Knowing all that hung upon that hour, and already tasting
the sorrow He was to endure, His soul was troubled, fear agitated Him, perplexity obscured
His spiritual vision. He reeled and staggered beneath His burden," and He cried:
"Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Shall I say: Father, save me from
this hour? No! I will not say that. It was for this cause that I came unto this hour. I
will say, [and God be praised, He did say] Father, glorify Thy name.
"His
prayer is as simple as it is sublime. Throughout the Bible 'name' stands for
'character.' To 'glorify' a name, therefore, is to manifest a character, to illuminate it,
to render it illustrious, to bring out its full splendor. Hence the prayer of our Lord can
only mean: 'Father, manifest Thy character, especially Thy character as a
Father; reveal Thy goodness; let Thy Fatherly redeeming love shine forth in forms so
splendid that men shall be compelled to recognize and respond to it. Let them see Thee as
Thou art, that they may be changed into Thine image, and reflect Thy glory, by reproducing
Thy goodness.'"
"And
that which makes this prayer at once most instructive for us, and most pathetic, is the
fact that it could be answered, and that Jesus, even when He offered it, knew that it,
could be answered, only by the sacrifice of Himself. On His lips it meant, 'Let me die for
the sin of the world; let me bear the pain and shame of the cross, that men may know and
believe that Thou art in very deed their Father, know and believe that Thy love is an
everlasting love, a love which shrinks from no sacrifice, which can never cease to labor
for their salvation and welfare, till their salvation be effected, their welfare
secured.'"
"And
thus perplexity did not crush Christ, fear did not enervate Him; but emerging from the
cloud which for a moment obscured the cheerfulness of His endurance, and rising above the
crisis which for a moment threatened to drag Him down, He proved that His ruling passion,
strong even in death, is best expressed in the cry: 'Father, glorify Thy name.' The prayer
of the hour had been the prayer of every hour, the cry of His agony had been the
thirst of His joy, the aspiration of His last days had been His heart's desire through
life, the desire at the crisis had been His aim at every step. 'Father, glorify Thy name.'
This is the language of a perfect Son, of love with all the heart and soul, of filial
affection culminating in self-annihilation." Could our Lord have said more? Thank God
His character was such that to be consistent with all that was within Him he could not say
less.
(To be continued.)
-P. L. Read.
By Thy Words Acquitted;
By Thy Words Condemned
"Out of the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the
heart bring eth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringing forth
evil things. But I say unto you, that every idle [unprofitable or pernicious] word that
men shall speak, they shall give account thereof on ,a day of judgment. For by thy words
thou wilt be acquitted; and by thy words thou wilt be condemned." -- Matt. 12:34-37.
REALIZING
THAT we, the Church, are at the present time under the inspection of our kingly
Bridegroom, who is now present (Matt. 22:11) to gather out of His Kingdom (in its present
embryo or formative condition) "all things that offend" (Matt. 13:41), and to
gather unto Himself His jewels, His Bride (Mal. 3:17), we cannot too carefully consider
the principles upon which this judgment and this selection are made.
The above
words of our Lord indicate that the heart and the mouth are under very special scrutiny,
the former representing the individual character, and the latter being an index of the
character. It is in this same view of the matter that those words of wisdom were penned:
"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away
from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. (Prov. 4:23, 24.) The
indication is clear that a right condition of heart
is necessary to right words, for "out of the abundance of -the heart the mouth
speaketh," as experience testifies to every man. It is therefore just that our words
should be a criterion of judgment in the Lord's estimation, as He tells us they are. True,
honeyed words are sometimes only the masks of deep hypocrisy, but the mask is sure to drop
off sometime, as soon as selfish policy renders a change of tactics
necessary. The fact therefore remains that the words, the entire. course of conversation
and conduct, are an index of the heart.
Our first
concern, then, should be for the heart -that its affections and . dispositions may be
fully under the control of divine grace; that every principle of truth and righteousness
may be enthroned there; that justice, mercy, benevolence, brotherly kindness, love, faith,
meekness, temperance, supreme reverence, for God and Christ, and a fervent love for all
the beauties of holiness, may be firmly fixed as the governing principles of life. If
these principles be fixed, established, in the heart, then out of the good treasure of the
heart the mouth will speak forth words of truth, soberness, wisdom, and grace.
Concerning
our Lord Jesus, whose heart was perfect-in whom was no sin, neither was guile found in
His mouth, it was said, "Grace is poured into Thy lips"; and again, "All
bare Him witness, -- and wondered at the gracious words that proceeded out of His mouth." (Psa. 45:2; Luke
4:22.) Moses, personating Christ, foretold the blessed influences of the Lord's words,
saying, "My doctrine shall drop as the rain; My speech shall distil as the dew, as
the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass." (Deut.
32:2.) And Jesus said,
"The
words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life." (John 6:63.) So
wise, just, and true were the Lord's words, that, though His enemies were continually
seeking to find some fault, it is said, "They could not take hold of His words before
the people; and they marveled at His answers and held their peace." (Luke 20:26.) And
others said, "Never man spake like this man." - John 7:46.
Thus our
Lord left a worthy example to His people, which the Apostle urges all to follow, saying,
"Let your speech be always with grace [with manifest love and,, kindness] --
seasoned with salt [a purifying and preservative influence]." (Col. 4:6.) And Peter
adds, "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God" - wisely, and in
accordance with the spirit and Word of the Lord. Again, it is written, "Keep thy
tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile [deceit]." "Whoso keepeth
his mouth and his tongue, keepeth his soul from troubles." "The words of a wise
man's mouth are gracious words: but the lips of a fool [an unwise, reckless talker] will
swallow up himself. The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness, and the end of
his talk is mischievous madness." "Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thy
heart be hasty to utter anything before God; for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth:
therefore let thy words be few." - Psa. 34:13; Prov. 21:23; Eccles. 10:12, 13; 5:2.
Job, in the
midst of all his afflictions, was very careful not to sin with his lips. (Job 2:10; 31:30;
1:21, 22.) He knew that his words would be taken by the Lord as an index of his heart, and
he was careful to keep both the heart and the words right, saying, "What! shall we
receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil [calamities, troubles-for
discipline or refining]? . . . The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the
name of the Lord." There was no spirit of rebellion in a heart out of whose
abundance -came such words of loving submission, patience, and faith under severe
testings, and that, too, without a -clear apprehension of the divine wisdom in permitting
them.
The Psalmist
puts into the mouth of God's consecrated and tried people these words of firm
resolution: "I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue. I
will keep my mouth with a bridle, while -the-wicked-
[who tempts and tries the righteous] is
before me." - Psa. 39:1.
How
necessary to the stability of Christian character is such a resolution, and the
self-control which develops under a firm adherence to it. In an unfriendly world we can
expect to receive only the reproaches of our Master, for the servant is not above his
Lord. The world, the flesh, and the devil oppose our way: there are fightings within and
fears without, and many are the arrows and fiery darts aimed at the righteous. But what is
the safe attitude of the soul under afflictions and severe testings? Is it not in
silence before God, waiting and watching first to see His leading, His will, in every:
matter before presuming to touch things that often involve so much? So the Psalmist
suggests, saying, "I was dumb with silence: I held my peace, even from good [even
from doing or saying what seemed good in my own sight]; and my sorrow was stirred. My
heart was hot within me, and in my self-communing there burnt a fire [description of a
fiery trial]. Then spake I with my tongue" -- not to the revilers, nor to others, but
to the Lord.
Yes, it is always our blessed privilege to carry
our sorrows and vexations to the Lord;
"For He
knows
How to steal the bitter
From life's woes."
He does it,
as the Psalmist suggests (verses 4-6), by showing us, through experience, the vanity of
all earthly things and their utter inability to satisfy the soul's cravings or to
comfort the wounded spirit. Then comes the thought that the present life, with its cares,
vexations, and sorrows is passing away, that our days are but as a handbreadth, and
however vexing our experiences, they will soon be over; and if we permit them to do so,
they only will work out in us the peaceable fruits of righteousness, and develop in us
strong and noble characters, disciplined to thorough self-control, thoughtful
consideration, patient endurance of affliction, and loving loyalty and faithfulness
and trust in God. Then the assurances of the blessed rewards of righteousness in the
life to come begin to have a new and deeper significance, and we are made to realize that
this is not our continuing city, but we seek one to come. Thus the heart is separated from
earthly things and made to realize the superior worth of heavenly things. Nothing but the
Lord Himself can satisfy the longings of the soul, which, tempesttossed and tried, comes
to realize:
"How
vain is all beneath the skies,
How transient every earthly bliss,
How slender all the fondest ties,
That bind me to a world like this!"
Thus
chastened and comforted, we learn to look beyond the present to the glory that shall by
and by be revealed in the faithful overcomers, who, by patient continuance in well-doing
in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, seek for the prize revealed to faith
alone. Thus disciplined and blessed under fiery trials by going to the Lord for comfort
and help, the child of God begins to realize what it means to be dead to the world and
alive toward God, with a keen appreciation of His love and goodness and grace; and being
thus separated from the world, and more firmly united to Christ, the language of the heart
is, as the Psalmist further suggests, "And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in
Thee." (Verse 7.) Thus
"E'en
sorrow, touched by heaven, grows bright
With more than rapture's ray,
As darkness shows us worlds of light
We never saw by day."
Such is the
blessed result of bridling the tongue under circumstances of trial and vexation, and
humbly taking all our cares to the Lord in prayer, to the end that, when we speak, our
speech may be with grace, seasoned with salt, and that under all circumstances we may
speak as the oracles of God.
Considering
our Lord's words above quoted-that we must give an account for "every idle
[unprofitable or pernicious] word" -- in view of the fact that the present is our (the Church's) judgment day, we see
what great importance attaches to our words. All our words are taken by the Lord as an
index of our hearts. If our words are rebellious, or disloyal, or frivolous, or flippant, or unkind, unthankful, unholy, or
impure, the heart is judged accordingly on the principle that "out of the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." Thus our words, in all the varied
circumstances of our daily life, are bearing testimony continually before God of the
condition of our hearts. So our Lord's words imply: and in this view of the case how
timely is the admonition: "Be not rash with thy mouth; and let not thy heart be hasty
to utter anything before God [And remember that "all things are naked and opened to
the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." - Heb. 4:13]; for God [our judge] is in
heaven [upon the throne], and thou upon earth [under.. trial before the bar of God]:
therefore let thy words be few." Let them be thoughtful and wise, as uttered before
God, and not rash, hasty, and illy considered.
Again, in
harmony with the Lord's statement of the responsibility incurred by our words, it, is also written," "He that
keepeth his mouth, keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have
destruction." (Prov. 13:3.) What a fearful responsibility attaches to the tongue
that wags in an evil or even in a flippant way, which is also dishonoring to God! And how
necessary is the injunction of the Apostle Peter, "Be sober and watch unto
prayer"! - 1 Pet. 4:7; 1:13; 5:8.
The Psalmist
puts this prayer into the lips of all who feel this responsibility: "Set a watch, O
Lord, before my mouth: keep a guard at the door of my lips. Permit not my heart to incline
after any evil thing." "Let the words of my
mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength
and my Redeemer." "My lips shall
utter praise when Thou hast taught me Thy statutes. My tongue shall speak of Thy Word; for
all Thy commandments are righteousness. Let Thy hand help me; for I have chosen Thy
precepts. I have longed for Thy salvation [from all sin, and for the perfection and beauty of holiness], O Lord; and Thy law is my
delight." - Psa. 141:3, 4; 19:14; 119:171-174.
That, as
imperfect beings, we may always be perfect in word and deed is not possible. Despite our
best endeavors we will sometimes err in word as well as in deed, yet the perfect mastery
of our words and ways is the thing to be sought by vigilant and faithful effort. But,
nevertheless, for every idle word we must give an account in this our day of judgment. If,
in the daily scrutiny of our ways, which is the duty of every Christian, we discover that
in any particular our words have been dishonoring to the Lord, we should remember that
"if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous" (1 John 2:1); and in the name of our Advocate we may approach the throne
of grace, explain to our heavenly Father our realization of the error, our deep regret
at our failure to honor His name and His cause by a holy walk and conversation, tion,
and humbly request that the sin be not laid to our charge but that it may be blotted out
through His gracious provision for our cleansing through Christ, humbly
claiming that in His precious blood is all our hope and trust.
Thus we
should render up our account for every idle word; and by our words of repentance,
supplemented by the merits of Christ applied by faith, shall we be acquitted. Otherwise, the idle
words, dishonoring to the Lord, will'-stand against us and condemn us, and we will be
obliged to suffer the consequences. The first consequence will be selfinjury, for every
evil thought or word indulged hardens the character and inclines it the more toward
unrighteousness. The second consequence is a bad example to others and the stirring up of
evil in them. "A soft answer turneth away wrath, but
grievous words stir up anger." (Prov. 15:1.) Thus, as the result of unwise or
unkind words, we may stir up about us difficulties which will become the agents of
retributive justice to teach us the lesson of selfcontrol and consideration for the
feelings and opinions of. others. It is often the case that the Lord (or the devil) is
blamed for sending trials which are simply the natural results of our own mistakes And
those who fail to locate the root of the trouble (in themselves) pray in vain for the Lord to remove
miraculously what they themselves could obviate by obedience to the Word and vigorous
self-discipline. "If we. would judge [and correct] ourselves, we should not be
judged; but when we are judged we are chastened of the
Lord [largely by the experiences through which our own faults put us], that we should not
be, condemned with the world." (1 Cor. 11:31, 32.) But even should it be admitted
that the difficulties are not directly caused by God, or the devil ("every man is
tempted [tried] when he is drawn away of his own lusts [desires] and enticed") the
natural tendency is to blame the matter on some one else, and to, think that our loss of patience, our
hasty word or act, was the fault of another. How many deceive and encourage themselves with the
thought: "If everybody else had as reasonable and as
generous a nature as I have, our family or church gathering or community would
be a veritable heaven upon earth!" Beloved, let us examine ourselves, let us be very humble, lest the very
words of self-congratulation and self-satisfaction which we consider in our hearts (if we
do not utter them aloud) bring our condemnation. "If ye love them which love you,
what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them
which do good to you, what thank have ye [what merit is there in it]?" (Luke
6:33-38.) It is only when we "endure grief, suffering wrongfully," that our suffering is acceptable to God
as a sacrifice of sweet incense. "What glory is it if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye take it patiently? but if, when ye do
well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God; for even
hereunto were ye called." (1 Pet. 2:19-21.) Beloved, let us see to it that our
sufferings are for righteousness' sake only, and let us not charge God or our neighbors
for tribulations resulting from the indulgence of our inherited or cultivated faults.
"In
many things we are all faulty. If any one does not err in
word, he is a perfect man, able to control the whole body." (Jas. 3:2.) But such a
man does not exist. We all need and must continually plead the merit of our Redeemer and
Advocate, while we .strive daily to bring every thought into captivity to the will of
Christ, and to perfect holiness in the fear (reverence) of the Lord.
In view of
this fact, which we trust all of the Lord's people will endeavor more and more fully to
realize, viz., that we now stand before the bar of judgment, we inquire, in the words of
Peter, "What manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness?"
Godlikeness certainly cannot include any harmful gossip, any unclean or unholy
conversation, any disloyal or rebellious words. Let such things be put far away from all
who name the name of Christ in sincerity and truth. And let us remember daily to settle our accounts
with the Lord, to make sure that no record of idle words, unrepented of, and consequently
unforgiven, stands against us. "Let your conversation be as becometh the Gospel of
Christ." "Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever
things are just, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if
there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Thus out of
the good treasure of the heart we shall be able to speak the words of truth and
soberness,, .to honor our Lord by a godly walk and conversation, to subdue the evil
tendencies of our fallen nature, and to have our conversation "honest among the
Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evil-doers; they may, by your good works
which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation." - Phil
1:27; 4:8; 1 Pet. 2:12.
If daily we
render up our accounts to God and seek His grace for greater overcoming power with each
succeeding day, we shall
be acquitted in
judgment and stand approved before God through Christ, having the testimony of His Holy
Spirit with our spirit that we are pleasing and acceptable to Him. R1937, Feb. 15, 1896.
"Follow peace with all men, and
holiness,
without which no man shall see the Lord." - Heb. 12:14.
SUCH AN
instruction from God's Word must be possible in some way, or it would never have been
given. Before examining into. the matter, however, let us first inquire: Why is the human
race unholy in God's sight? They, as represented in Adam and Eve, were never created so.
Then why are not all their offspring holy? We reply: The
disobedience of Adam, his sin against God, is the explanation for it all. In man's
relationship with God, obedience or disobedience, makes all the difference, manifestly.
However, Adam not only disobeyed, but he did so deliberately, knowingly, of his own
volition; this wilful transgression of God's instructions made him unholy. He yielded his
members as instruments of unrighteousness, he sold himself under sin, and sin began to
reign in his mortal body; and the wages of sin is death. Thus, not only did Adam commit an
unholy act, but he himself thereby became unholy. Eve was in a similar state, for she too
transgressed; the result being that the law of heredity became evilly effected. Had sin
never touched the human race, it would be holy in God's sight today.
By nature we
are all members of this fallen, unholy race. How, then, can we be holy? Can we determine
that we will never sin? Well, yes, we may so determine, and may use our best endeavors to
fulfill our determination, but we must not be too deeply disappointed when we fail; for
"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." (1
John 1:8.) How, then, can we be holy? To be so looks about as possible as for a camel to
pass through a needle's eye. Yet we take comfort in the words of Jesus, "With men
this is impossible; but with God all things are possible." Only God can bring a clean
thing out of an unclean; but this is what He is doing for us; of course with our
cooperation. He does not coerce, because such a course would not effect His purpose.
Seeing that we
are addressing those who have already been redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus, and
have obeyed His instruction, "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink
His blood, ye have no life in you," we can here concentrate our thoughts on how it is
possible for such to be holy whilst dwelling in the contaminated flesh. To be contaminated
by sin is to be unholy; to be uncontaminated by sin is to be holy. Therefore, for new
creatures to walk according to the flesh, to let the old man rule, is to be unholy. To
walk according to the Spirit, to let the new mind rule, is to be holy. Here is one view of
our conflict: "The Spirit warreth against the flesh, and the flesh against the
Spirit; and these are contrary the one to the other, so that ye cannot do the
things that ye would." However, "If .we live in
the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit," remembering God's view of us: "Ye
are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in
you." Therefore, for us to walk according to the flesh means death; to walk
according to the Spirit means life, and life abundant. These conditions cannot be
questioned by us, but they need not cause us to be fearful, for, as Jesus remarked in
another connection, "Ye believe in God," that is, in a God of mercy, compassion,
love; therefore, "Believe also in Me," in Jesus who is our wisdom, our
justification, our righteousness. "Seeing then that we have a great High Priest that
is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we
have not an High Priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmi-; ties;
but. was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come
boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time
of need." For, "If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus
Christ the righteous." So, then, for the sake of our Redeemer, our Advocate, our High
Priest, "If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Such are the mercies of God for those who
trust Him, and obey His commands. Every true Christian knows full well that according to
the flesh he is undone, condemned. It may appear strange, therefore, that this admonition,
"Be ye holy," should be addressed to such. Of course when heaven is reached we
shall be holy, and all doubts and fears will have gone forever. But these words are
intended for application now; and those who are thus holy form the holy nation St. Peter
addresses, saying, "Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a
peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of
darkness into His marvelous light; which in time past were not a people, but are now the
people of God."
What a lesson
God has set us, to hate sin, and to love righteousness -- to be holy! Therefore,
"Reckon ye yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Christ
Jesus our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in
the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto
sin; but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your
members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over
you; for ye ... are under grace" --under God's favor. Therefore, "Let not your
heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." My beloved brother, be assured you need
not; if you are living up to the fullness of your privileges, you will not be troubled,
nor afraid. "Let not." "Neither let." Perhaps these words of Jesus seem as
difficult of fulfillment as those we are considering, "Be ye holy." In each case
fulfillment calls for the intelligent exercise of our own volition; we must appreciate our
privileges and act accordingly; and this brings us to the crucial point: Are we
faithfully doing our part, and not allowing failures, disappointments, nor any other thing
to discourage us? Let us be assured that God will answer our prayer for help in every time
of need, and that His grace will be sufficient in all cases.
To attain to
holiness, as we are enjoined, may appear to be almost beyond our hope; yet Jesus sets
before us a still higher state, saying: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is
perfect." It should be appreciated by us all that these admonitions of the Lord have,
necessarily, to be a first claim
upon us, upon our time, our
strivings, our devotion. Regarding this matter we must not allow ourselves to be deceived,
for nothing short of it will constitute us overcomers, and gain for us God's full
acceptance. As the Apostle informs us, it is for us to work out our own salvation with
fear and trembling. So, then, "Today, if ye will hear His voice, harden not your
heart"; but, rather, bring it under the full impulse of the Holy Spirit; by
watchings, by prayers, and by supplications, "For it is God which worketh in you both
to will and to do of His good pleasure." Later we will consider how, by the
imputation of Christ's righteousness, these seemingly impossible states of holiness and
perfection are attained in this life.
For our
encouragement can we discover up to date evidences of this work of holiness proceeding?
Is there any fruitage thus far? Any approach to holiness? Well, let us examine our
position for a moment. At least it can be said that we have shown repentance for sin, and,
by God's grace, have been forgiven; we have been "justified freely by His grace
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." "Therefore being justified by
faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." These are important
steps. But further, by God's grace we have been privileged to follow in the footsteps of
,Jesus, and have presented unto God a living sacrifice, and have been accepted in the
Beloved. "Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were
baptized into His death?" "Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we
shall also live with Him." Again, we have been begotten of God with the Word of
truth, "that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures." We have been
anointed of God, who, by His grace, has honored us to come under the anointing of the
great High Priest; and besides all this we have been kept by the power of God through many
a time of test. These are some of the many blessings which God has bestowed upon us
hitherto, saying: "Be ye holy,", be ye a saint, separate, set apart.
Of these
people of God, enjoying His rich favors, the! Psalmist writes: "Blessed is he whose
transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord
imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile." The Apostle enlarges
on this theme in the fourth chapter of Romans, saying: "To him that worketh not,
but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness. Even as David also described the blessedness of the man, unto whom God
imputeth righteousness without works, saying: Blessed are they whose iniquities are
forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not-impute
sin." Speaking of Abraham in this connection, the Apostle says: "He staggered
not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able also to perform, and
therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake
alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we
believe on Him that raised up Jesus from the dead; who was delivered up for our
offenses, and was raised again for our justification." "Having been justified,
therefore, by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom
also we have been introduced into this favor in which we stand; and we boast in hope of
the glory of God." From this vantage point the Apostle proceeds to show that, by
God's grace, we triumph also in various and trying experiences necessary for the
development in us of holiness; that we may become conformed to the image of our Lord,
who, through sufferings, became perfected. On account of this grace wherein we stand,
the Apostle was led to write: "There is, therefore, now no condemnation to them which
are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh-but after the Spirit."
"Therefore we glory in the Lord, who of God is made unto' us wisdom, and
righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.
Accordingly
our wisdom cannot be held in doubt, for it is in our Head, in Jesus, who is the wisdom of
God we are told. However we can rely on acting and speaking wisely only when we allow our
gracious Head to govern us, quite naturally. The lack of wisdom of our own is entirely
offset by our having God's wisdom available for the seeking. This wisdom of God is
provided to lead us in ways of righteousness and holiness
all our days.
The robe of
Christ's righteousness, which by God's grace covers our unworthiness, is not seen by human
sight, but by its virtue it hides our unrighteousness from our merciful judge. Our
sanctification is made possible in Christ alone, and is not just an act like our
consecration; it is a process which calls for determined effort on our part, a warring a
good warfare. As God said to His typical people of old, "Sanctify yourselves,"
and "I will sanctify you." God will sanctify us by His truth. Truth is received by, and operates in, a consecrated heart; the
more complete the devotion, the more advanced truth can be received, and the more of holiness
follows.
So, then, our
wisdom, our justification, our righteousness, our sanctification, our redemption, our
sonship, and our life, are all,
hid with Christ in God. If
nothing on our part ever interferes with this blessed state, then, "When Christ, who
is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory."
"O worship
the Lord in the beauty of holiness,
Bow down before Him, His glory proclaim;
With gold of obedience, and incense of lowliness,
Kneel and adore Him, the Lord is His name.
"Low at
His feet lay thy burden of carefulness,
High on His heart He will bear it for thee,
Comfort thy sorrows, and answer thy prayerfulness,
Guiding thy steps as may best for thee be."
Now, "Hear
the word of the Lord, ye that tremble at His word"; "Pursue peace with all, and,
that holiness without which no one shall see the Lord."
-H. J. Shearn.
Dear Brethren:
I am enclosing a quotation from George
Mueller that has been such a help and blessing to me that I hope you will see fit to
publish it in the "Herald." If it were as much help and comfort to even one of
the Lord's people as it has been to me, it would surely be worth while.
A year ago Brother Hollister suggested
a plan for Bible reading that my husband especially has found so very helpful, namely,
reading the four Gospels, through monthly. Brother completed a year of reading the Gospels
monthly, and others I know have found the plan beneficial. I can't read that much and keep
up with other things I need to read, as my vision is defective, but I do like to read
daily from both the Old and the New Testaments. In following George Mueller's plan I have
found it most helpful to consider the Sermon on the Mount, or other sayings of Jesus, or a
favorite Psalm or chapter.
Everything you dear brethren can do to
encourage prayer or study of the Word is, to my mind, one of the most helpful things you
can do for the Lord's people. God bless you as you seek to build us up in the most holy
faith.
With warmest Christian love, and with
many prayers on your behalf,
Yours in our glorious hope;. Mrs. E. A.
-- Kans.
GEORGE MUELLER'S SECRET
"It has
pleased the Lord to teach me a truth, the benefit of which I have not lost for more than
fourteen years. The point is this: I saw more clearly than ever that the first great and
primary business to which I ought to attend every day was to have my soul happy in the
Lord.
"The first
thing to be concerned about was not how much I might serve the Lord; but how I might get
my soul in a happy state, and how my inner man might be nourished. For I
might seek to set the truth before the unconverted, I might seek to benefit believers, I
might seek to relieve the distressed, I might in other ways seek to behave myself as it
becomes a child of God in this world; and yet, not being happy in the Lord, and not being
strengthened in my inner man day by day, all this might not be attended to in the right
spirit. Before this time my practice had been, for at least ten years previously, as an
habitual thing to give myself to prayer after I had dressed myself in the morning. Now I
saw that the most important thing I had to do was to give myself to the reading of
"the Word of God, and to meditate on it, that thus my heart might be comforted,
encouraged, warmed, reproved, instructed; and that thus, by means of the Word of God,
whilst meditating on it, my heart might be brought into experimental communion with the
Lord.
"I began
therefore to meditate on the New Testament from the beginning, early in the morning. 'The
first thing I did, after having asked, in a few words, the Lord's blessing upon His
precious Word, was to meditate on the Word of God, searching as it were every verse to get
a blessing out of it, not for the sake of the public ministry of the Word, not for the
sake of preaching upon what I had meditated upon, but for obtaining food for my own soul.
"The
result I found to be almost invariably this, that after a few minutes my soul has been led
to confession, on to thanksgiving, on to intercession, on to supplication; so that,
though I did not as it were, give myself to prayer, but to meditation, yet it turned
almost immediately more or less into prayer. When thus I have been for awhile making
confession or intercession or supplication, or have given thanks, I go on to the next
words or verse, turning all as I go into prayer for myself or others as the Word may lead
to it, but still continually keeping before me that food for my own soul is the
object of my meditation.
"Formerly
I often spent a quarter of an hour, or half an hour, or even -- an hour on my knees,
before being conscious of haying derived' comfort,,' encouragement, humbling of soul,
etc., and often, after having suffered much from wandering of mind for the first ten
minutes, or a quarter of an hour, or even half an hour, I only then began really to pray.
I scarcely ever suffer now in this way; for my heart being nourished by the truth, being
brought into experimental fellowship with God, I speak to my Father and to my. Friend
(vile though I am, and unworthy) about the things that He has brought before me in His
precious Word. It often now astonishes me that I did not sooner see this point."
Question:
Will you
please discuss John 7:52? Were the chief priests and the Pharisees right when they told
Nicodemus that out of Galilee ariseth no prophet?
Answer:
The context
shows that Jesus was being condemned without a hearing. In verse 32 we read that the
Pharisees and chief priests had sent certain officers to arrest Him. It seems that these
officers had happened to come at a time when Jesus was speaking to the people. His
words, as they listened, had been so persuasive, had contained so much evidence of truth,
so much proof that He was from God, that the officers had been impressed and awed by Him
and did not dare to take Him a prisoner. They returned without Him, saying, verse 46,
"Never man spake like this Man."
Instead of
questioning the officers to ascertain what they had heard, whether they had been
convinced that Jesus was the Messiah, and, if so, on what evidence the Pharisees
ridiculed the idea, saying, "Are ye also deceived?" At this point Nicodemus,
who was one of them, reminded them that the law in which they boasted, but in which, alas,
they did not delight, gave every man the right to a fair and impartial trial (Exod. 23:1,
2; Lev. 19:15, 16). His words were: "Doth our law judge any man before it hear him,
and knoweth what he doeth?" In verse 52 we read their reply: "Art thou also of
Galilee? Search and look; for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet."
If Nicodemus
had followed their advice and had searched sufficiently, he would have found the chief
priests and Pharisees in error. On this point we will content ourselves with quoting the
Diaglott footnote to John 7:52, which reads:
"This
conclusion [that out of Galilee ariseth no prophet] . . . was incorrect. Jonah was of
Gath-heper, in Galilee; see 2 Kings 14:25, compared with Joshua 19:13. Nahum was a
Galilean, for he was of the tribe of Simeon, and some suppose Malachi was of the same
place.
However,
while they were wrong in saying that no prophet was of Galilean origin, they would have
been correct had they limited their contention to the statement that the Messiah was not
to come from that province. This point had been made already, by some of the multitude, in
their discussions concerning our Lord. Their opinions are recorded a few verses earlier.
We quote from verses 40 to 42:
"Many
of the people, therefore, said: Of a truth this is the Prophet. Others said: This is the
Christ. But some said: Shall Christ come out of Galilee? Hath not the Scripture said that
Christ cometh of the seed of David and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David
was?"
The
Scripture had, indeed, so declared. We quote:
Psa. 132:11
"The
Lord bath sworn in truth unto David; He will not turn from it; of the fruit of thy body
will I set upon thy throne."
Jer. 23:5, 6
"Behold
the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King
shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days
shall Judah be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and this is His name whereby He
shall be called: The Lord our Righteousness."
Micah 5:2
"But
thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of
thee shall He come that is to be ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been from of
old, from everlasting."
These
Scriptures, however, while making it clear that the Messiah was to be a descendant of
David, and was to be born at Bethlehem, in Judea, contained nothing to conflict with the
thought that the Messiah, having been born of David's line, at Bethlehem, could be removed
therefrom to spend His early years elsewhere. Nor' do they offer the slightest
suggestion that Messiah's ministry must begin at Bethlehem, or for that matter at
Jerusalem, or at any other city of Judea. Had they been in the proper attitude of heart
the members of the Sanhedrim would have examined the evidences. So doing they would have
found that Jesus was a descendant of David and that He had been born in David's city,
Bethlehem, even though it was also true that He had been brought up in Nazareth of
Galilee. Moreover, by searching, they would have found a certain passage in Isaiah
respecting Galilee, which found a striking fulfilment in the ministry of our Lord. It is
found in Isaiah 9:2. There we read:
"The
people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of
the, shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined."
Who were the
people referred to by Isaiah as those who "walked in darkness"? The previous
verse supplies the answer to this question. They were the people of Galilee.
Isaiah, in
the closing verses of chapter 8 and the first verse of chapter 9 had been predicting,
first a time of trouble and then a time of joy, for Israel.
The pathway
of trouble would be where no light would dawn; where they would suffer hunger, not only
bodily hunger, but deep craving of heart for help that fails them and for relief which
never comes Their sufferings, he tells them, in 8:21, would be so great that they would curse both their
earthly and their heavenly king. Later, however, all this gloom would be dispelled; the
anguish of the nation would be removed.
Where did
Israel experience the distress and darkness here predicted? Isaiah tells us, in
considerable detail, in Isa. 9:1. First he mentions the land of Zebulun and Naphtali; then
he continues his description of the region to which his prophecy refers by saving it was
"by way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the nations." Let us read his
account, beginning with Isa. 8:21 and ending with Isa. 9:1, using the American Revised
Version, margin:
"And
they shall pass through it, sore distressed and hungry; and it shall come to pass that,
when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God,
and turn their faces upward; and they shall look unto the earth, and behold distress and
darkness, the gloom of anguish; and into thick darkness they shall be driven away.
"But
there shall be no gloom to her that was in anguish. In the former time He brought into
contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali; but in the latter time hath He made
it glorious; by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations."
The word
"Galilee" means a "ring" or a "circle," and since in
Isaiah's day the land was encircled by Gentiles, it was well named the Ring of the
Gentiles, or the Galilee of the nations. Moreover, with many Gentiles dwelling also in
their midst, and cut off, by this circle of Gentiles, from Judea, the great religious
centre of their day, the people of Galilee were, as Brother Russell has observed in R4557,
"in greater darkness than their brethren, in the very shadow of the death-darkness
that was upon the Gentiles."
The people
of Galilee, then, were the ones to whom Isaiah referred as those "who walked in
darkness." Did the time ever come when these people saw a great light? Let an
inspired writer supply the answer. We turn to Matt. 4:12-26:
"Now
when He [Jesus] heard that John was delivered up He withdrew into Galilee; and leaving
Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum; which is by the sea, in the borders of Zebulun
and Naphtali; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the Prophet,
saying,
'The
land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
Toward the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles,
The people that sat in darkness Saw a great light;
And to them that sat in the region and shadow of death,
To them did light spring up."
But while
Isaiah's prophecy found its first fulfilment in the earthly ministry
of our Lord, in a large sense it has yet to be fulfilled. While the light did, indeed,
shine brightly, at our Lord's first advent, the darkness comprehended it not. Only a
few-just one here, one there-appreciated the light then or since. As a nation Israel
rejected the Messiah. Blindness has continued upon her to this very day, and will
continue "until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in" (until the full number
has been selected out of every kindred, tribe and nation, to complete the Gospel-Age
Church). Then, the people "who walked in darkness," that is to say, the whole
world of mankind, both Jew and Gentile, shall see "the Sun of Righteousness arise,
with healing in His beams." (Mal. 4:2, margin.) Already:
"We
begin to see the dawning
Of that bright Millennial day;
Soon the shadows, weary shadows,
Shall forever pass away."
- P. L. Read.
Keep hold of
God's hand, O Pilgrim!
The way stretches far ahead;
And clouds of the night, long-coming,
Over the highways have spread;
But He leadeth on in wisdom --
There is nothing to fear nor dread.
Keep hold of God's hand, O Christian!
Be constant. Be true. Be strong.
The "joy of the Lord" shall strengthen,
Filling with gladness and song.
He knoweth the way we have taken,
And leads through the midst of the throng.
Keep hold of God's hand, O Christian!
We enter the atmosphere
Of Love's most holy environ,
Far up from the earth-ways drear;
And here in His heart He shall keep us --
The treasure He holds most dear.
And see! On the far horizon
The Star of our Hope appears.
It shines from the heaven of heavens
And the upper highway clears.
Lead on, O Pilgrim, triumphant
The end of the journey nears!
- Nellie Florence Jolly.
The Lord is in His holy temple:
let all the earth keep silence before Him." - Hab. 2:20.
FROM
EVERLASTING to everlasting our God is the same unchanging Being, dwelling in a light to
which no man may approach. He remains the same yesterday, today, for ever. The
starstudded heavens never cease to reveal His glory, and a far-flung firmament displays
the marvels of His handiwork. In wisdom He is infinitely perfect: His justice and power
beautifully co-ordinated therewith, and His love beyond any measure of man's mind. His
flawless judgments "are a mighty deep," and the multitude of His wonderful ways
"past finding out." To know Him is life eternal, and for those who are His,
"at His right hand there are pleasures for evermore." He is our God, and
because we are what He has made us-beings gifted with powers of mind and heart answering
to His own -- the unfolding revelations inherent in His Being, and His purposes embracing
the eternal ages, are now, and ever shall be, the undiminishable, joyous realm of
discovery for all His intelligent creatures. As for the present, no mount of
tranfiguration glory; no third-heaven vision possible to us, "whether in the body, or
out of the body," -- nothing could carry one beyond knowing only in part, and as
seeing through the haze of darkened glass. Mysteries would yet remain in the great
untouched realms of God's secret counsels. From regions unseen and numberless a multitude
of voices might yet be heard revealing that the half had never yet been told.
While eternal
ages roll along, our wonderful Creator will continue to unfold the wonders of foreknown
purposes, and manifest "the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us
through Christ Jesus." (Eph. 2:7.) His pleasure has ever been in giving pleasure to
His creatures, human, angelic, and His predestinated divine family. Of the eternal
pleasures designed for all of these, nor tongue, nor pen can portray more than a dim
outline. The eye may scan the known universe, and faith penetrate beyond the seen and
visible into the celestial spheres, "And all this is the mere fringe of His force,
the faintest whisper we can hear of Him! Who knows then the full thunder of His
power?" (Job 26:14, Moffatt's translation). Thus it is that our God and His beloved
Son appear more and more wonderful as our spiritual perceptions become more matured. As we
progress from knowing about God, and reach the plane of intimate relationship where we can
say with Jesus, "O righteous Father, . . . I have known Thee," then it is that
we see God as He desires we should.
Drawn into
this nearness to God through the study of His Word, we find Him coming nearer to us,
revealing Himself in ways calculated to completely humble us before Him, and yet lifting
us upward into the heights of His sanctuary where His presence is felt most manifest, and
where every power of response we possess is affected by His loveliness, goodness, and
grace. Here the prayer becomes intensely fervent, "Let the beauty of the Lord our God
be upon us." Here it is that we learn best how little we are, and how little is yet
seen n of the possible unfoldings of an inexhaustible God through endless ages to come.
But how
profitable is this realization of present limitations! How sublime the reverence for God
it creates within the heart! This is the condition of heart most pleasing to God, and this
is the heart into which He will bring "the spirit of wisdom and knowledge of
Him." (Eph. 1:7.) Thus from grace to grace, from knowledge to knowledge we follow on
to know the Lord, finding each fresh revelation of His grace an inspiration to "dwell
in the house of the Lord all the days of our life, to behold the beauty of the
Lord, and to inquire in His tabernacle." - Psa. 27:4.
"At the
beginning of our Christian experience we may have thought that the sense of mystery in
connection with spiritual knowledge would pass away as we grew older. At the beginning
there were many things we could not understand: but, we thought, I shall understand all
presently. How different has been the real influence of advancing spiritual knowledge!
If the Lord has called us, with advancing years, still further into His marvelous light;
if, as He gave to Peter on the transfiguration mount, a new and more magnificent view of
the person of Christ and the relation of the law and the prophets to Christ, He has also
given us brighter and fuller vision of Jesus; it is therefore no more true of us than it
was of Peter, that all sense of mystery has passed away under the brighter vision of the
truth. No! with the marvelous light has come to us, as to him, the marvelous cloud, the
more overwhelming sense of the infiniteness of God; of the tremendousness of the
infinite purposes; of the impossibility of comprehending all that God is, all that God
means.
"Think
not that spiritual knowledge means the reduction of the infinite truths of God to the easy
and familiar terms of every-day life. Spiritual knowledge means to be drawn step by step
into the marvelous light of the glory of God, and in that light to realize the
infiniteness of truth, till a man sinks down before his God and worships with holy fear.
Though each step in the marvelous light unfolds more that makes us feel how little we are,
and how vast Christ is, we know that here, and only here, have we found the peace the
world can neither give nor take away. 'Though pressed to earth by the weight of truth we
cannot grasp, the consciousness of having reached a nobler life burns within us, and our
soul testifies to Christ, 'Lord, it is good to be here.'"
Is this our
experience? Do we want it to be so? We should so desire it, for it represents nearness to
the infinite Being whom we are graciously permitted to call our Father. It is good to be
here! It is good to be here for the humbling of our spirits. Job was here when, out of his
further discovery of God he confessed, "I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the
ear: but now mine eye seeth Thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and
ashes." (Job 42:5, 6.) The holy Prophet was here when his intimate vision of the
Lord brought from his lips the cry, "Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man
of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have
seen the King, the Lord of hosts." (Isa. 6:5.) The Apostle Paul was standing here as
he reviewed the marvelous sweep of the divine purposes for Jew and Gentile, and under the
inspirational influences of that great, magnificent spectacle of the stately steppings of
our God, his pen indited words so expressive of his admiration and joy: "O the
depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His
judgments, and. His ways past finding out. For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who
hath been His counselor?" - Rom. 11:33, 34.
Blessed
indeed, are those pure in heart who thus see God as did job, Isaiah, and Paul. Such know
how "the reverence of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." They know that
walking reverently before the Lord is the humbling way, but the most blessed way. The
way too by which the heart realizes most clearly that only by walking with God and
dwelling in the light of His face can transformation and translation into the Kingdom of
His dear Son become a completed experience. "He hath showed thee, O man, what is
good; and what cloth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to
walk humbly before thy God." - Micah 6:8. - J. J. Blackburn.
I bring to you
the love of God!
I found it covered up--hid
'Neath a mass of misapprehension: then
It emerged.
The Springtime
told it to me as
Sun and shower brought the trees to life,
And the birds mentioned it as they
Called to each ether from the thickets,
And the tree tops.
Summer
throbbed with it as
Shimmering heat forced out the heads
Of grain -- His, promise to provide.
And Flowers, waved by light breezes,
Breathed it far and wide.
Autumn was
full of it: did you not
Hear it in the rustle of the leaves that,
In their dying, whispered it?
Their tints seemed gladly telling too,
That they had served His purposes.
I found it in
the fields of ripened grain
That bowed to reapers' sickle, to provide
His winter's store; and the ripe fruit
Of orchards thrilled me with it.
Winter approaches:
Tree, and bud
and bee and blossom are
Asleep; soon frost and bitter winds, will
Drive the last of migrant birds to
Warmer climes -- the swallow long since
Left -- and squirrels scurry -- busy with
Their stores of nuts and seeds.
And you, my
friend, and me?
How much have we? How stands our industry,
What have we brought of it?
What may we bring?
How much of
earth's fair surface
Has been scarred by wars and strife;
The voice of God in bud and flower,
And song of bird, is drowned
By cannon's roar for some.
And
pain-wracked bodies, cut and bruised,
And maimed. And broken hearts
Are everywhere.
How stands the case with you?
And how with me?
The message He
has, given me to bring,
I pray that we may much more fully
Realize; and bear it forth with
Evidence that crowns all proof -- from
Bethlehem's cradle and Gethsemane;
And then -- as
diadem
Of crown: from awful Calvary.
This is the message God would send,
To cure the world of sin, and blight, And pain.
This simple message -- at such cost Confirmed!
That God loves you and me and them.
-
W. F. Jones, November, 1944.
My dear
Friends:
A little
while ago I happened to have placed in my hand a magazine entitled: "The Herald of
Christ's Kingdom." After reading it I decided to write you, because on the inside
cover I saw, "This Journal and Its Sacred Mission," and, "To Us the
Scriptures Clearly Teach." When I looked at it, I said, This is what dear Pastor
Russell had in the Tower when he preached the Gospel of the Kingdom, and I have
missed it these many years. I had no idea that this title was still being used by some
one, and the same epitome of the faith once delivered to the saints, the same teachings
Pastor Russell so ably laid down as the Bible clearly shows. I have not been able to
comprehend how this was going on and I did not know about it. . . . I now have great cause
for rejoicing that after these years, sometimes doubting, not the Lord but myself,
sometimes almost despairing, in expectation of the Kingdom, but feeling there was
something wrong-aware of my own shortcomings, receiving but very little outside
encouragement and not being satisfied with what I did hear, and now to realize that what
we once rejoiced in as truth is still being preached, is really like one turning to his
first love. You will pardon me for opening my heart to you whom I have never met and of
whom I have never heard. It seems you are aiming at the same Gospel which is old but ever
new-the Gospel of the Kingdom....
I would like
to ask you to tell me how and why the change came about at Brooklyn after Pastor Russell
died. What can you tell me about this? . . . And what are you doing? Is the work
progressing, and what is the Scriptural leading? Of course I am not now doubting. I feel
that the way is secure. After all it is an individual matter. It is between ourselves and
the Lord we stand or fall. An organization will not suffice if we have lost contact with
the Lord and His Spirit-the Holy Spirit. Would like to hear from you brethren.
Yours most
sincerely,
E.
B. -- Ont.
Dear Folks:
Recently I
saw a copy of one of your pamphlets, entitled "Why Does God Allow People to
Suffer?" I am a letter carrier here and several of my patrons received one of these
booklets recently. I hadn't the time to read the entire work because of having to go on
with my work, and I suppose the receiver of the one I hastily glimpsed would have allowed
me to take it home and finish reading it there. However, I would rather have my own, and
in fact could probably use a few more than one, as I often meet with folks who wonder just
why God permits sickness, sin, failure, etc., to be on earth. That little treatise tells
why, in better language than I can tell them.
I'm not sure
about the exact wording of. the title but it is close to what I have stated it to be
above. Please tell me the price of this treatise singly and in nominal numbers. In this
day of turmoil, unrest, and uncertainty with no great mass repentance, as I can note,
it's a wonder God allows the world to exist at all.
Thank you
very much for your kind answer.
Sincerely
yours,
E.
L. K. - Pa.
"I send thee to the children
of Israel, to a rebellious nation that bath rebelled against Me. . . . And thou shalt say
unto them, Thus saith the Lord God. And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will
forbear (for they are a rebellious house), yet shall know that there hath been a prophet
among them." - Ezek. 2:3-5.
The following
will give an idea of the kind of responses we are receiving from the letter and literature
we are sending out:
Dear Friend:
I knew it was
the "Truth" as it was called thirtyfive years ago. We attended Sunday meetings
and the weekly Bible Study.
Since my son
died I have been so dazed that I don't know what I believe. I prayed for him so much, and
had so much faith that my prayers would be answered....
[One of the
local friends is calling on this dear one.]
Dear Sir:
We are writing to tell you we received
the Bible reading you sent at the time of the death of our dear son. ... The Bible reading
was a great comfort and help and we thank you so much for your kind thoughtfulness. It is
nice to feel that there are others who are willing to share the sorrow with us. . . .
Thanking you again, I remain
Yours
sincerely,
Mrs.
H. L.
Dear Ones.
Your letter
enclosing copy of "When the Morning Cometh" was appreciated. It surely did help
and it was so thoughtful of you. Our hearts are broken but our faith keeps us going. He
was a splendid boy and a Christian....
Sincerely,
N
O. -- Fla.
Dear Friends:
We thank you
for your letter and tracts. Am enclosing $1.00 for which please send me a copy of the
"Divine Plan of the Ages," and "Where are the Dead?"
Mrs
.L -- Ill.
We would like
to have every lost Service man's mourner receive a note of comfort with appropriate Truth
literature. When that work is completed there will still be obituary notices in every
paper that can be similarly served. If you need tracts or help in any way, let us know, If
the names come too fast for you to handle them all promptly, send what you cannot handle
to us.
The
Service Committee,
P. O. Box 3473, Mdse. Mart Station,
Chicago 54, Ill.
1945 Index |