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AUGUST 12, 1945 THE ART OF GETTING ALONG W ITH OTHERS By Mrs. Jack Brown There are many theories today, in so-called psychological circles, to the effect that either, you possess the fac ulty of being able to get along with others, or you do not have it and can do nothing about it. No doubt it is true that some people are naturally better natured than others; yet on the other hand as young people ma ture they can all cultivate the graces which make for happy living and get ting along with others. The world considers this problem from the stand point of the mind, but God in His Word begins with the heart. “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23). 1 A REGENERATED HEART. What is in the heart is certain to be revealed. If there is selfishness, greed, envy, covetousness, and pride it will manifest itself in daily living. Of course, these things do not contrib ute toward the art of getting along with others. One of the first marks of a regenerated heart is love toward God and man. "We know that w'e have passed from death unto life, be cause we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” A loving, regenerated heart is well described in I Cor. 13. The three greatest graces of the Christian life are faith, hope, and love. "But the greatest of these is love.” Love and .discord cannot dwell together. The rule of the Christian’s life should be “Christ first, others second, and self last.” From the Christian standpoint, the prime requisite in the art of get ting along with others is regeneration of the heart. II. HUMILITY (Luke 14:8-11). When Christ was on earth, one Sab bath day He was invited to the home of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread. The Pharisees were known as a very proud self-righteous sect who sought to exalt themselves. Christ be held them choosing the places of highest honor that day; He then warned them that when they were bidden to a wedding not to sit in the best seats lest they should be asked to move down to make room for someone of higher rank. The prac tical application given by our Lord to us is found in verse 11: “For who soever exalteth h i m s e l f shall be abased; and he that humbleth him self shall be exalted.” Do not think that your opinions are the best that there are, and that there is no other way to accomplish things For Those Who Have Topics
along with others,'do not leave Christ out of the picture. Begin with a re generated heart, and ask Him to help you grow in these Christian graces.. AUGUST 19, 1945 W H A T ’S WRONG W ITH GAMBL ING ? E xodus 20:15; P roverbs 16:8; 26:18 By Lowell C. Wendt In considering this topic, let us find the underlying principles of gambling, and what our attitude toward it should be. I. WHAT IS GAMBLING? “Gambling is an agreement be tween two parties by which the trans fer of something of value is made dependent on chance, in such a w.a-o that the whole ,gain of the one is equal to the whole loss of the other.” 1. Some say gambling is all right because business, farming, and even life itself is a gamble. It is true that all these things involve a hazard. But one does not take a chance in business, nor endanger his life to save another, for the mere thrill of the risk. No, these pursuits are not gam bling. The possible loss from honest investments is entirely different from the folly of risking something one may own on the uncertainty; of chance. 2. Usually we think of gambling in relation to its professional forms, for getting that tossing pennies, matfch- ing nickels, buying a chance on a bicycle, "pools,” flipping to see who pays the bills, are gambling as well. Unthinkingly many young people en gage in these practices. But in God’s sight all sin is wrong, whether little or big, and these insignificant gam bling practices are displeasing to Him., II. GAMBLING IS WRONG BECAUSE OF WHAT IT IS. . 1. Gambling involves not only a risk, but its principle is to get some thing for nothing to the extent of rob bing others who desire equally to get something for nothing. Those who gamble and bet, pride themselves on their cunning, but in reality they are madmen. There is no greater folly in the world than willful sin (Prov. 26:18, 19). 2. Gambling is on a par with rob bery, and it breaks the law of God (Ex. 20:15). For instance, one man meets another in a dark alley and takes his money at the point of a gun, and we call that robbery. Two men sitting at a table agree to take each other's money with dice or cards, and we call that gambling. The only For Those Who Ksve Topics
except by your method. Exalt the Lord Jesus Christ, and be considerate of others and their ideas, and do not push yourself forward. III. NON-RETALIATION AND GEN EROSITY (Matt. 5:38-42). In the sermon on the mount, Christ compared the old Jewish law with the new era of grace which He ushered into this world. Under the law it was “ an eye for an eye,” and a "tooth for a tooth,” but in the dispensation of grace this was changed. He said to His disciples “resist not evil”—that is, personal offences against yourself. Do not retaliate against what you feel 16 a personal wrong; there is a day com ing when God will bring all things into judgment. You need not take matters into your own hands to mete out punishment. Generosity—verse 42: “Give to him that asketh thee and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.” Generosity springs from the heart of love. Perhaps one may not have much but there is always some one who has less. The well-known quotation from Lowell’s poem is very true: “Not what we give, but what we share, for the gift without the giver is bare.” IV. JUDGE NOT: Censorious criticism (Matt. 7:1-5). The Lord Jesus Christ said to His disciples, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” Then He asked them why they should try to pick a mote out of their brother’s eye when they had a beam in their own eye. Surely the first order of business should be to take the beams out of their own eyes. It is so easy to see the faults of others and to overlook our own. Often times if we could “see ourselves as others see us,” we would not be so hasty with censorious criticism of others. An illustration given in the "Ep- worth Era” shows us how to avoid criticism. A little girl proudly brought her first copy book to her daddy to look at one evening. She had tried hard, and it was neatly done. As he turned the pages and praised her for her efforts and fine work, they came to one page-which had on it two small blots. She immediately placed her lit tle finger over them and said, "Papa, don’t see the blots!” How precious it would be if amid all the nameless strifes and discords that so fret and chafe us, we could just lay the finger on the sullied page of human lives and not see the blots! When little nesses and meannesses and petty op positions vex us, let us lock away from these to some brighter pages! Conclusion In cultivating the art of getting
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