September 1927
545
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
it so far as the psychologist is concerned, but it is more easily written than carried into effect. The Scriptures deal at length with the matter of for giving and forgetting. Believers are to “forgive, even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven them” (Eph. 4:32)'. Our Lord taught that we will be conscious of God’s for giveness of our sins about in proportion as we forgive others who have wronged us (Mk. 11:25), and Peter was told that to forgive a man seventy times seven was none too many (Matt. 18:21, 22). This spirit of forgiveness, the enabling of the indwell ing Holy Spirit, carries with it ability to forget as well as to forgive, for it is thus that God Himself forgives (Ezek. 18:22; Heb. 8:12). The Christian whose life is dom inated by the Holy Spirit, to his own surprise finds that he can pass up a slight as easily as he would cancel a note by tearing it in two and burning it up. He remembers that he has not been called upon to bear anything like the slights his Master bore, and that no one has ever treated him as badly as he himself has treated thè Lord. So he enters all the more heartily into the service of God,, realizing that forgiveness and a smile are the best revenge. Many of the humblest followers of Christ have had this victory without even a struggle. It is not a matter of will power or of saying repeatedly, “I will forget.” It is the fruit of the Spirit. An old colored lady, a devout Christian, was one day walking quietly along the street carrying a big basket of apples. A young sailor, for the sake of giving some com panions a laugh, deliberately bumped into her and upset the basket of apples. As the apples rolled in every direc tion, he stood back expecting to get more sport out of hearing her rave. But without any resentment, and giving him a look of mingled sorrow and pity, she said : “Young man, God forgive you.” It touched a tender chord in the heart of the young fellow, and with teats in his eyes, he apologized and declared that never again would he do a thing like that. This old lady knew nothing of psychol ogy» but she had divine grace in her heart, such as every true Christian should have. Nothing is more impressive than the spectacle of genuine forgiveness, and many more hearts would be touched if more Christians claimed this victory. ; T em p e s t in a T e ap o t T HE Sunday School Times publishes the following telegram from Dean Gray of Moody Bible Insti tute :— “In your review of Stanley Jones’ book you say, ‘A well known Bible Institute has commended it,’ and I ask that you kindly relieve us of that suspicion. Not only has our .magazine warned its readers against the book, but nearly two years ago, I cautioned our educational department against inviting the author to our platform.” The Times adds that its editors “welcome the oppor tunity to explain that the Chicago school was not the one referred to by its editorial statement.” It is not likely that anyone had suspected Dean Gray of having commended modernism in any way. We pre sume all the other Bible Institutes are equally disturbed by The Times’ veiled statement, to say nothing of hundreds of Christians who are left to guess which of the very few “well known Bible Institutes” has gone over to liberalism. Evidently The Times had reference to the fact that T h e K ing ’ s B u sin ess , some months ago, quoted with approval several paragraphs of Dr. Jones’ book, ending with the statement that if we had rightly understood Mr. Jones we could agree with the statements.
AT this writing, the Editor of this magazine, •s* - who is also Dean of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, is in Europe, where he is having very unusual opportunities of witnessing for the truth. The Managing Editor takes this op portunity to request the earnest prayers of all our readers for Dr. Maclnnis. He is not a strong man physically; his burdens have been exceedingly heavy, and his tendency is to burn himself out for the Lord he loves. A great future is, we believe, opening before the Bible Institute, and we know the enemy of truth would seek by any means to crush those who have a clear vision of God’s purposes; and to this end we ask special prayer on behalf of the one whose life and testimony mean so much to the Bible Institute of Los Angeles.
The tempest which has resulted from the statements made by our esteemed contemporary, demonstrates what a wide influence the paper has, and the havoc that may be wrought through the employment of veiled statements of this kind. The truth of the matter is that no Bible Insti tute, so far as we are aware, has the slightest leaning toward modernism, and certainly the readers of this mag azine do not need to be told that the editors do not know ingly endorse statements that savor of modernism, or any person known to be a Modernist. We have hesitated to brand Dr. Jones as a minister of Satan, as some have done, for the following reasons 1. His repeated insistence that he is not a Modernist, but a cordial believer in fundamental truth. 2. His declaration that his critics have pressed into some of his phrases meanings that he never intended them to bear. 3. Letters received from missionaries in India, whose word we have no reason to doubt, that Dr. Jones is preach ing the true Gospel in his evangelistic meetings. 4. The appeal sent out by the Evangelical Prayer Union of India calling upon Christians to pray that many souls might be saved in Dr. Jones’ meetings. 5. The fact that a number of orthodox scholars of equal standing with Dr. Jones’ critics, have pointed out that Dr. Jones does affirm in his book his belief in our Lord’s deity, His atoning work, etc., and that, in their opinion, the omissions of which some complain were not deliberate. 6. Because the editors of this magazine know from experience how it feels to be labeled Modernists by well-
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