August 1931
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
350
IN STEP M CHRIST . . . By CLINTON KRAFT, Wasco, Calif.
verse, Romans 4 :20, speaking of Abraham, declares: “He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith.” Yet many people, after accept- ting Christ as their Saviour and starting to walk with Him, get out of step and fall back. They are not steadfast. One of the greatest tragedies of today is that the young people are not continuing steadfastly. A writer in the Methodist Recorder, London, says: “I am afraid of the superficiality of my generation. I would, rather have the Puritan with his keen sense of obligation and his keen sense of duty than to see young people giggling out their best days.” Oh, that we young people might stand stead fastly! We are not to compromise with the world, but are to be separated from it, standing firmly for what the Word plainly teaches. The subject of steadfastness brings with it the thought of walking worthily (Col. 1:10; 1 Thess. 2:12). We are Christ’s messengers, called to bear His name. Let us walk worthy of that high calling. Henry Drummond once said: “What we need is not more, of us, but a better brand.” Paul wrote to the Ephesians: “I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called” (Eph. 4:1). Another translation of the text gives this thought: “Be like trees, fast rooted.” The picture is of a mighty tree with its roots going down into the depths of the earth, withstanding the winds and storms because it is securely anchored. If we are rooted in Christ, we can stand. We will “take root downward, and bear fruit upward” (Isa. 37:31). We must also be established in the faith—“the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). This is summed up in 1 Corinthians 15 :3 and 4, where Paul says that “Christ died for our sins according to the scrip tures ; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” We have received the faith; let us determine never to waver from it. Jean Henri Faber, the eminent entomologist, was asked this question: “Do you believe in God ?” He replied, “I cannot say I believe in God. I see Him; without Him I understand nothing; without Him all is darkness. You could take my'skin from me more easily than my faith in God.” May we have a faith like tha t! May we, at the end of our race, be able to say with Paul: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7) ! S how F orth C hrist —T he C onsummation If we start with Christ and continue steadfastly, what will be the result? Our text tells us: “Abounding therein with thanksgiving”—we will show forth Christ. This word “abounding” might be better translated “overflowing.” In step with Christ, we are literally over flowing with thankfulness. This condition will manifest itself in our actions, in our words, and in our deeds; and others will soon see that there is a power within us which
“A s ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him : Rooted and built up in him, and stab- lished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving ” (Col. 2:6, 7). V ^ ne of th e greatest kings of the southern kingdom of God’s chosen people was Jehosh- aphat, whose father was the good kiiig, Asa. Jehosha- phat was in step with the Lord because, as 2 Chronicles 17:3 and 4 tells u s : “The Lord was with Jehoshaphat, be cause he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; But sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.” Because he was in step with God, he waxed great and increased in wealth; and when he cried to the Lord time and again, the Lord de livered him. We have a leader, Jesus Christ, One who has gone before and has set us a good example, just as Asa did for Jehoshaphat. But we cannot go forward under His lead ership until we are in step with Him. S tart W it h C hr ist —-T h e C ommencement “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus . . . . so walk ye in him.” In 1874, in the city of London, David Livingstone was buried in Westminster Abbey. The streets were lined with people, thousands of them, seeking to pay respect to the memory of that great pioneer missionary. A poor old man was noticed weeping bitterly. He was poorly clad and unkempt. Some one asked him the cause of his grief. “I ’ll tell you,” the old man replied. “Davie and I were born in the same village. We attended the same day school and Sunday-school. We worked at the same loom. But Davie went that way and I went this. Now he is honored by the nation, and I am neglected, unknown, and dishonored.” Yes, every one must choose whether or not he will walk with Christ, and that choice determines his life and his destiny. Having received Christ by faith, we must also walk by faith. This is how we keep i n .step with Him. Ours must be a living faith centered in the Lord Jesus Christ. S teadfast in C hrist —T he C ontinuation “Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught.” We can keep in step by being steadfast. “Be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15 :58). There is a word about Josiah in 2 Chronicles 34:2 which is illuminating at this point. It says that he “declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left.” That is steadfastness. And another ^Synopsis of an address representing the men of the grad uating class of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, June, 1931.
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