The W o rk and the W o rk ers By William W. Orr, D.D.
grace to use what earthly wealth we have in order to increase our deposits in heavenly treasuries! The Book of First Thessalonians H OW long is it since you have taken a real good look at this little gem tucked away in the heart of your New Testament which came from the pen of the Apostle Paul? This book, the first Pauline epistle, is notable because of its emphasis upon the second coming of Christ. There are five chapters and 89 verses. At the end of each chapter there is a reference to the thrilling hope of the soon return of the Lord Jesus Christ. We live in perilous days when men’s hearts are failing them because of fear, and there is a tendency for even Chris tians to be influenced by the prevalent pessimism. Even God’s children can be carried away with this sense of hope lessness unless they learn to rely upon that particular promise in the Word of God which is given for the express pur pose of lifting us out of the valley of despair and to the heights of anticipa tion. Of course we refer to the blessed hope of the Lord’s return, which has a counteracting effect upon disappoint ment and discouragement. This truth applies when things look darkest and is in itself a sign of the nearness of the return of Christ. When all around is darkness, we know that is just what we may expect before the trumpet of God will sound and the dead in Christ shall be raised first. The hope of the Lord’s return is the great source of spiritual optimism given by God to re fresh and encourage the hearts of His children along life’s pathway. It is a marvelous spiritual exercise to read with the eyes of your hearts verses 13 to 18 of the fourth chapter of Thessalonians. Paul, under the guid ance of the Spirit of God, wrote an answer to a question asked by the Thessalonian church concerning their loved ones who had passed away. They wanted to know what would be their status at the rapture. So Paul, with heart burning and eyes glowing, dips his pen in the ink of inspiration and tells the Thessalonian church that when the trump of God sounds the dead in Christ are to be raised first and then we who are alive and remain will meet them in the clouds and so shall we ever be with the Lord. What a glorious prospect! What an uplift for heavy hearts! These things are true and righteous altogether and what is more, all indications point to the soon realization of this glorious hope. We commend to your waiting hearts the study of First Thessalonians. To be sure, all the verses do not speak of the Lord’s return. There are practical things and admonitory passages but shining through all the gold of this golden book are the sparkling diamonds of hope, announcing the return of Christ.
the message of God to inferior vehicles. The practice of printing large quantities of tracts on inexpensive paper has sought to be justified in the minds of some through the result of larger audi ence acceptance, but the fact of the mat ter is this, that in our present day and age cheap-looking tracts are not received but discarded and the cause entirely lost. Worthless Currency R UMMAGING among personal ef fects often reveals some curious results. After the close of World War No. 1, there was quite a bit of commer cial activity in disposing of highly in flated European currency to American buyers. It will be remembered that, for in stance, in Germany the mark which used to be worth about 25 cents in American money skyrocketed to astro nomical heights so that one could pur chase a 500-million mark note for a few cents. Bushel baskets of this inflated currency were needed by the distressed Germans of that day to purchase even a loaf of bread. Holding a 500-million mark note in one’s hand today is a reminder of the extreme uncertainty not only of cur rency but of our life’s so-called certain ties. Here is a piece of paper. On its face it is worth 125 million dollars but actually it could not be sold for even a penny. At one time it had value, but due to the changing currents of life, it has long ceased to be worth anything whatsoever. We are in a spiral circle of inflation in our own land today. Although it is to be devoutly prayed that America will never reach the pitiful state of post war Germany, there is a needed lesson for Americans. The day will surely come to all, rich and poor alike, when earth’s wealth will be completely value less. Our standard today is gold, but in heaven gold is of such little value that the streets are paved with it. We think that pearls are of great price, but in heaven they are in such abundance that the gates of the city are built of them. Some day it will be necessary to revise completely our entire standard of values for that day will surely come when all the wealth on earth will be worthless. What, then, can we not lay up treas ure in heaven? Most certainly we may and one of the ways to lay up treasure on the other side is to use earth’s wealth today for the glory of God! It is questionable whether it is ever right for truly born-again Christians to lay up quantities of money here. If a Christian is blessed with much of this world’s goods, it should be a sign to him that he is to use it to advance the cause of Christ. In this way he lays up treasure in the bank of heaven. But do not think because you are not a finan cial giant that you cannot deposit money in the heavenlies, for God meas ures gifts not by their earthly extent but by the spirit in which they are given. May God give us wisdom and
Christ’s Mission Helps Newspapers recently carried the story of Luciano Negrini, an Italian priest who resigned from the Roman Catholic priesthood to marry an American sweet heart. After vainly endeavoring to en tice Mr. Negrini back to the priesthood, the Roman church turned on him and used its mighty influence to prevent the couple from obtaining any kind of em ployment in Italy. When they were close to starvation, the English people got hold of the story and with the aid of outsiders brought the couple to America where Christ’s Mission, an agency for aiding former Roman Catholic priests, gave them help. Copies of an informative folder showing the plight of former Roman Catholic priests may be obtained by writing to the Mission, 160 Fifth Ave., New York, N. Y. Nov/ Master Romans An excellent movement begun in 1926 is the Bible Mastery Campaign suggest ing the reading of a book of the Bible through until it is mastered. This year during the month of October, the cam paign suggests that Christian people read and reread the book of Romans through until they not only get a grasp of the book, but the book has a grasp of them. Further information regarding this excellent plan may be secured by send ing a stamped envelope to Rev. C. J. Boppell, 2666 37th Ave., S.W., Seattle 6, Wash. Mormon Advance According to the Utah Christian Mis sion, Mormonism is truly on the march. Last year the Mormon Church spent over $40,000,000.00 propagating its doc trines and there are 5,000 full-time missionaries out in the field as well as 5,000 part-time missionaries, most of them laboring in this land. The Mormons, according to Rev. Harry A. McGimsey, wormed their way into the big Easter Sunrise Service held at the Hollywood Bowl each year. They supplied a 300-voice Mormon choir and plan to repeat the performance annu ally. The building program of the Mormon Church also reaches astronomical fig ures. The Utah Christian Mission fear lessly moves in and out among these people, preaching the true Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Gospel Recordings Report According to recent statistics issued by Gospel Recordings of Los Angeles, in a two-week period 8203 records in ( Continued on Page 22)
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