TH E K I N G ’ S B U S I NE S S
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blessings. Prayers are made for their own restoration to power but not for a blessing on the nations. They reject Christ and Christianity, claiming that it is false. They reject the New Testa ment, declaring it to be untrue except in its history. They believe in the efficacy of the work and ministry of the rabbis and in their own faithful observance of their ceremonies. 4. JEWS BELIEVE THE MESSIAH WILL COME (Mai. 3:1). When they observe the Passover, the Jews leave a vacant chair at the table, hoping that the Messiah will come to occupy it. They look forward to His coming. They do not seem to have a clear understanding' as to how He will come. They reject our interpretation of those passages which refer to Christ’s being born of a lowly virgin and describing His sufferings and death. They believe their Messiah will come in power and glory to reign as sovereign of the nations (Mai. 3:3). They maintain that Jerusalem will be restored as the capital of the world under Jewish rule and that David will again sit upon the throne as God’s leader for the world. However, in spite of all these rosy dreams, their cry is, “We live in disappointment and die in despair.” FEBRUARY 24, 1946 W H A T DO ROM AN C A T H O L IC S B E L I E V E ? (Matt. 16:13-20) T HE ceremonies and teachings of the Roman Catholic church are a mixture of the teachings and prac tices of all the prominent false re ligions. There is a certain amount of the true faith in it and some of the elements of the Hebrew religion. Be cause of this admixture, this church successfully appeals to people in every religion and binds them together in an unusual association. It teaches that the mandates of the church as given by the church “fathers” are above the statements of the Bible and are more binding than [any of its teachings. They declare that only the priests have the right to interpret the Scriptures. The person of Mary predominates in their worship. She is the goddess of Roman Catholicism. Catholics believe she is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. They teach that she, rather than Christ, is the intercessor with God the Father, on man’s behalf. For Those Who Have Topics 1. ROMAN CATHOLICS BELIEVE THAT MARY IS SUPREME. Jesus is usually presented as a dead Christ nailed to a cross, having no power or authority, and of practi- cally no worth. He is shown as a baby in the arms of His mother. The mother
is God, or that the New Testament is the Word of God. In those passages referring to the “son” or to two Je- hovahs (Psa. 110; 45:7), they believe that the second, person mentioned is one of the Old*Testament prophets. They teach that b l o o d sacrifices are no longer n e e d f u l but they do have h substitute for them (Hos. 14:2). They believe that what they say with their lips is accepted by God as if it were the sacrifice of a calf. They believe that the Messiah will come some day. This is the faith of the orthodox Jews. Many Jews deny all the teaching of the Old Testament except the historical parts. 2. JEWS BELIEVE IN SALVATION BY WORKS (Ex. 19:8). The Israelites had a very elaborate system of religious ordinances and ceremonies which God gave in order to reveal Himself. At once they set about to interpret all of God’s laws
divided into two groups—those who belong to the Lord and those who reject God and His Christ. Racial dif ferences largely d i s a p p e a r when Christ brings His light and life into the- heart. Enmity is removed, dis sensions disappear, national barriers are broken down, when Christ is ac cepted as the Lord of the soul. 3. GOD’S CALL IS DIVISIVE (2 Cor. 6:14,17; 1 John 2:15)., The plan of the world is for all men to mingle and mix on grounds of equality. The world has no sympathy with those who take the path of sep aration from the world and its sins. God severs us from the world but this division is not based on color or race or social standing, but altogether on the basis of the Lordship of Christ Jesus the Saviour. God demands that those who belong to Christ disunite themselves from the enemies of Christ. Those on the narrow road are to be separate from those on the broad road, regardless of their race or color. 4. THE COMMANDS OF GOD ARE TO THE CHRISTIANS (Rev. 1:7). God’s people of every color have an ear for God’s words. The unsaved have no time for G o d or for His Word. The only remedy for racial animosities, anti-Semitism, for hatred for the Negro' or the Japanese is found in Christ Jesus. When He is trusted and loved, in Him men become broth ers; there is no other cure on earth for racial schism. In a truly orthodox church, you will find around the Lord’s table the rich and the poor, the educated and the illiterate, and those of different races in happy fel lowship. This-is God’s plan. FEBRUARY 17, 1946 W H A T DO J E W S B E L I E V E ? (Deut. 6:1-15). npHE JEWS had a God-given religion. Since Abraham’s day, salvation has always come through the Jews. They were given a code of laws containing ten commandments engraved on the stone tablets and 613 others written by Moses on scrolls. God declared that if anyone kept these laws, he would be saved (Lev. 18:5). Never did the Lord promise that He would save a man who tried to keep them or one who did his best to keep them. He must keep them absolutely, if he would be saved by the law. Since no one ever did keep them, a sacrifice was necessary to save the guilty men who broke the law. For Those Who Have Topics 1. JEWS BELIEVE THERE IS ONLY ONE PERSON IN THE GODHEAD (Deut. 6:4). Jews believe that there is a living God, but they do not believe that ■Jesus is God; or that the Holy Spirit
“ The world will never be e v a n g e l i z e d by public preaching— only by individ ual effort. The most effec tive method of soul winning is, beyond question, personal hand-to-hand work, leading men one by one to Christ,’ —R, A. Torrey
in great detail and to apply them meticulously. Their rabbis compiled a book called “The Talmud” in which they magnified minor truths into major issues. They placed great stress on the various and sundry religious works but paid little attention to the condition of the heart. They believed much in “doing” but very little in “loving” the Lord their God. They were zealously occupied with “things” but their hearts were far from the God who loved them. They substituted works for faith. 3. JEWS BELIEVE THAT THEY ONLY KNOW GOD (Amos. 3:2). It has never entered into the think ing of Israel that God will provide a way of salvation for anyone except themselves. They have never sent out missionaries to other countries, tell ing of their God and of His love and grace. They were and are completely self-centered. They felt and they still feel that all of God’s provisions for eternity are for them alone. Gentiles are not invited to partake of their
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