The Word of God The second unshakable thing is the Word of God. We read in Psalm 119:89, “For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven.” There was never a time when the Bible was attacked so fiercely as today, yet there was never a time when people had more reason to believe it to be the Word of God. Think of its fulfilled prophecies—prophecies concerning Christ, the Jewish nation, and the Gentile na tions. Think of its marvelous unity. Think of its power to lift men from sin to fellowship with God. Water cannot rise any higher than its source, and the Book that can lift men up to God must come from God. Think of its indestruct ibility. All down through the ages men have been attempt ing to destroy the Bible, but it cannot be destroyed, because it came from God and therefore, like God, is eternal. The most scientifically correct book that this world has ever seen is the Bible. Science will never be able to disprove the divine order of the creation as recorded in the first chapter of Genesis. I love to look at those words cut into the stone outside of the Bible Institute building: “For ever, 0 Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven.” In this day, when people have more reason to believe the Bible to be the Word of God than ever before, if a man says to me that he does not believe the Bible to be the Word of God, I immediately class him as an ignoramus. The Bible is the world’s best seller. I wish to urge you to build your life upon the Word of the living God. The Church of God The third unshakable thing I wish to mention is the church of God. My authority for this statement fell from the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord made this statement after questioning His disciples as to who the people in that day considered Him to be: He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and hlood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock 1 will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it (Matt. 16:15-18). The Lord Jesus built His church on the great central fact of Christianity, which is His deity. That is where the church stands: not on the example of Christ, nor on Christ as a good Man, or a great Teacher, but on Christ as the eternal Son of the living God. And because of that ever lasting foundation, the church is secure for time and for eternity. Every local assembly worthy of the name church has that foundation. Liberal bodies that deny the deity of Christ are not churches but simply clubs. The one and only church, the church which Christ is building, is made up of men and women who confess Christ as the eternal Son of God and are washed in His precious blood. It stands forever. Christ’s church is called “his body,” to illustrate the mystical union between Christ, the Head, and His people. One day _I boarded a streetcar and sat beside a man who was reading his Bible. We began to talk and the man said, “To which church do you belong?” I answered by asking, “What is your church affiliation?” He replied, “I am a Methodist, I was born a Methodist and I will die a Methodist.” Then he repeated his question, “What is your church?” My answer was, “I belong to the church which is His Body.” The man looked puzzled as he said, “That is a nefr one. I never heard of it before. When was it organ ized?” My reply was, “It was organized 2,000 years ago.” When he asked, “Where are its headquarters?” ’ and I an swered, “In heaven,” the poor man thought I had taken leave of my senses. When the Lord returns and the church is raptured, the only one that He will recognize will be that church. The Child of God The last unshakable thing that I wish to discuss is the child of God. “He that doeth the will of God abideth for Page Ten
H fjj The off1 rings of the Eastern kings of old Unto our Lord were incense, myrrh and gold; Incense because a God; gold as a king; And myrrh as to a dying man they bring. Instead of incense, blessed Lord, if we Can send a sigh or fervent prayer to Thee; Instead of myrrh, if we can but provide Tears that from penitential eyes do slide; And, though we have no gold, if for our part We can present Thee with a broken heart, Thou wilt accept, and say those Eastern kings Did not present Thee with more precious things. 9 ever” (I John 2:17). That was D. L. Moody’s favorite text, and he endeavored in life to. put the will of God for him into execution. If you, by the grace of God, determine to do the same thing, you will abide forever. You ask, “What is the will of God for me?” The will of God begins with believing on the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour. The Lord said to certain ones, “This is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life” (John 6:40). After you have come to know Christ as your Saviour, then you may speak to Him in regard to the sphere of your service. It may be that God will have you go to Africa, or India, or China, or to some other needy field. The will of God is not only the holiest place but also the happiest place in which to dwell. It is said that following a consultation with a specialist, at which time he had been informed that he was the victim of an incurable disease, and had only a few months to live, Dr. W. B. Hinson, the great Gospel preacher, walked out into the garden of his home, which he loved. Looking at the mountains reaching their majestic heads heavenward, and gazing in the direction of the mighty Columbia River, watching the sun as it slipped behind the everlasting hills, he said, “When the mountains have forever ceased to be exalted in towering strength above the cities of the earth; when the river has run its last mile; and when seas have passed forever from this universe; when the sun has risen and set in all its beauty and glory for the last time; yea, when the moon and the stars have forever ceased to give their light; when the mighty trees of the forest have shed their last leaves, and all nature has departed to its final rest, I shall live on, yes, I shall live on.” We have also read of the great sadness that came into the heart of a noted English pastor who had shepherded his flock for forty consecutive years. With deep emotion and with quivering lip, the pastor had resigned his pastor ate amid the shedding of many tears in his congregation. The next day the sexton was standing under the gallery in the great auditorium, when he saw the pastor come out and step behind his much-loved pulpit. For a moment he stood there in profound agitation, and then with a trembling but confident voice, he said, “I must sever my connections with this church.” Then, looking to heaven and thinking of his eternal union with Christ, with, upraised hand, he added: But this I do know, We two are so joined, These are dark days, possibly the darkest we have known for many a year. Let us lay hold as never before with a firm grip of unwavering faith upon these unshakable things, and spend our lives making them known with all of their meaning to a popr, lost, dying world. T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S He can’t be in heaven, And leave me behind. § § S S 3 § $ 3 § j§ s § 1 3 s 1 3 Nathaniel Wanley
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