August 1931
351
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
they do not have. This may be said to be the consum mation of our life on earth, for if we are really over flowing with thankfulness, we cannot help but tell others of our joy; and to give forth the word of life is at once the chief privilege and highest responsibility of the be liever. Robert Speer says: “Any man who has a religion is bound to do one of two things with it : change it or spread it. If it isn’t true, he must give it up. If it is
true, he must give it out.” The Christian can not hoard the gospel. He must show forth Christ. We are to walk with Christ by faith, in the same way that we received Him; we are to, center our faith upon Him. We are to be steadfast, walking worthy of our vocation, being rooted and built up in Christ and estab lished in the faith. The result will be a life overflowing with thanksgiving, giving glory to God.
HIDDEN LIFE .„CHRIST* • . . By ANNIE McCOY, Bellingham, Wash.
T f we were to search the Word of God for a verse which could be said to be the testimony of the women of our class, I doubt if we could find a more complete or a more suggestive phrase than that part of Colossians, the third chapter and the third verse, which has been chosen as our class motto: “Hid with Christ in God.” Secluded, more or less, from the distracting influence of the world, we have experienced during the past two years a more intimate and vital fellowship with our Lord than ever before. With Him, we have enjoyed precious communion; in Him, we have found the source of all power and wisdom and life; and from Him, we have re ceived all the riches of our inheritance as sons and daugh ters of the King. However, if this relationship could exist only in such a place as a Bible Institute, it would indeed be insufficient. But this will ever be our standing, even when we find ourselves alone with God in the very strongholds of the adversary. Hidden with Christ, we shall stand, and we shall be victorious. The text seems to apply particularly to us, the women of this class, because, in a sense, our service is in the hid den sphere. Our place, for the most part, is not in the foreground. Ours is that inconspicuous ministry carried on in the rear ranks, interceding for those at the front, and giving that lowly, loving service that is our part in God’s plan. Perhaps there are some to whom the meaning of the phrase “the hidden life” is obscure. To illustrate its mean ing, we turn to the Word. For instance, when David was hidden in a cave, he cried: “O Lord . . . Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living.” And the Lord proved to be a refuge indeed. He not only pro tected His servant, but He gave him victory over his ene mies. So frequently was this the Psalmist’s experience that, near the close of his life, he could sing a song of praise like this: “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour.” Moses also partook of the blessings of the hidden life. We watch him as he faced the perils and dangers of the wilderness trip. Well he knew the hostilities of the tribes that were to be met, and the discontent of the people! But it was at this time that he gave to us that psalm which is so rich in truth and comfort: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the *Synopsis of an address representing the women of the gradu ating class of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, June, 1931.
shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my god; in him will I trust.” Yes, the hidden life is the blessed life. Is not our God “the same yesterday, and to day and for ever” ? These words breathe comfort to me and to the others of this class who are looking forward to service on the foreign field. People say, “But think of the danger!” To this, each of us can reply, “The Lord is my refuge, whom shall I fear?” Hidden in Him, we are safe and secure. There is a song which most of us know and love. It was written by Mr. Cushing in answer to a call from Mr. Sankey for something new to help in his gospel work. It sounds like David, yet the author says that it was the out growth of his own heart conflicts and soul yearnings. 0 safe to the Rock that is higher than I,
My soul in its conflicts and sorrows would fly. So sinful, so weary, Thine, Thine would I be, Thou blest Rock of Ages, I’m hiding in Thee. In the calm of the noontide, in sorrows lone hour In times when temptation casts o’er me its power; In the tempest of life, on its wide heaving sea, Thou blest Rock of Ages, I’m hiding in Thee. How oft in the conflict, when pressed by the foe, 1 have fled to my refuge and breathed out my woe; How often, when trials like sea billows roll, Have I hidden in Thee, O thou Rock of my soul.
The hidden life is not only a life of victory to those who take it, and a life of security and safety from all dangers, but it is also a life of fruitfulness and power. Whenever I think of this aspect of the hidden life, the memory of one of my Sunday-school teachers comes to me. She was an old lady, so crippled with rheumatism that she had to be helped to the church, and finally had to give up her class altogether. One would think that such a helpless person could not be of much use to the Lord. But through the influence of this godly teacher, practically every member of the class has stood true. In herself she was weak and helpless and unfit for ser vice. And that, in a spiritual sense, is what we ourselves must become. Few of us are talented, and none of us, in ourselves, has wisdom or power to carry out His com mission. But our ministry is not to be bound by our limi tations. We are dead, and our lives are hid with Christ in God. We are not our own, for we are bought with a price. In the light of all this, we are going forth to face the future with joyful expectation, knowing that He who possesses us, indwells us, and hides us in Himself will use us to glorify His name.
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