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May 1930
T h e
K i n g ' s
B u s i n e s s
239
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“The Divine Christening B y R ev . S tanley H. B ailes (Sermon preached at the Third Presbyterian Church, L o s Angeles, F eb. 9, 1930) f HE best-known name for the child of God is that of “Christian.” It is not a God-given name; it was first used at Antioch and intended as a term of derision. There are other, deeper, more significant terms which He applies to His own. A study of only a few of these will result in
whereas God intended that the title should apply to all believers. He did not mean that only the man behind the pulpit should be called a minister, but that all the members of the flock should also be ministers, from the youngest babe in Christ to the most experienced Christian. A minister is simply one who serves, and every redeemed child of God is saved to serve. “H e that is greatest among you, shall be your servant.” This lesson in humility has always been a difficult one to learn, because it is so contrary to the wisdom of the world. The world counts a man great who has many servants, while God measures greatness by the magnitude of one’s service. The great Exemplar is Jesus Christ “who . . . made himself o f no reputation, and took upon him the form o f a servant . . . and became obedient unto death, even the death o f the cross.” He "came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ran som for, many.” At least one of the disciples probably never forgot the incident when the Son of God washed His disciples’ feet. The disciples were gathered in the upper room. Every one present knew that the time had come when the task usually allotted to servants must be performed. There must have been an embarrassing silence as they waited for some one to volunteer for this duty, for there were no servants present. In that situation the work might natur ally have fallen to the youngest member of the group. But John, who was the youngest, would not thus demean himself. Was he not one of the chief apostles? What a rebuke he and his brethren received when the Master Himself, girded with a towel, began to wash their feet. It is significant that John is the only evangelist who re cords the incident. Possibly he was more impressed than the others by this lesson in humility. There is need today for a return to the Bible inter pretation and application of the term “minister.” It would inevitably lead to more glad and fruitful service for Christ on the part of each of His followers. III. V essels “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency o f the power may be o f God, and not o f us” (2 Cor. 4 :7 ). The figure of the potter and the clay is one of the most beautiful in the Scriptures. There are many useful and inspiring lessons to be drawn from it. For instance, the clay that is used in the making of the most elaborate pot tery forms also the common vessels of service. The clay is in the potter’s hands; he accomplishes what he wills to do. It is not an uncommon thing, for a beautiful vessel which God has made for His glory and service to be lifted up with pride because of its own beauty, forgetting that it has been made what it is by the hand of the Potter. Such pride and boastfulness utterly unfit it for service, It be comes necessary for the Potter to break it and begin the work anew. God must humiliate the proud because He alone is worthy of honor. He has said, “I am the L ord . . . and my glory will I not give to another” (Isa. 4 2 :8 ). When
rich discovery and will give us a new vision of our place in God’s great program. It would be a profitable exer cise to search elsewhere for other names by which we are known to God, but the present study is limited to five striking appellations which are found in one book, Second Corinthians. I. E pistles “Ye are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read o f all men. Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle o f Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit o f the living God; not in tables o f stone, but in fleshly tables o f the heart” (2 Cor. 3 : 2 ,3 ) . _ _ It is as though he said, “The world will not take the trouble to read the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John, but it will read the Gospel according to You.” As epistles we are read daily. Those who read form a judgment of the things of God by what they see in the children of God. They do not always read with a desire to criticize or rebuke. Frequently they are seeking eagerly for light and guidance , and they turn to the epis tles that are most accessible to them. The Scriptures have nothing to say to the ungodly except, “Repent.” So quite naturally they avoid the Scriptures and turn to the epistles that God intended they should read—your life, and mine. A returned missionary spoke recently in our Sunday school. She said that one of the boys would be her text. She began searching diligently behind his ears, under his collar, and in his hair. Finally she said, “I cannot find it. That is strange. God says you are a letter, an epistle, and I cannot find the stamp.” This illustration made the audi ence thoughtful. Two questions were in the mind of each one: Do I, as an epistle, bear God’s stamp upon my life? And, if I am a letter, to whom am I sent? Furthermore, we may say without violence to the text that we are not only epistles, “known and read o f all men,” but we are also writing epistles. The writing is for eternity. It will never be obliterated. Pilate spoke a truer word than he realized when he said, " What I have writ ten, I have written,” for there will be no erasures on the record of our lives. How carefully and prayerfully we should inscribe each day’s deeds so that men may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven, and that we may ultimately face our record with joy and not with grief. II. M inisters “Our sufficiency is o f G od : who also hath made us able ministers o f the new testament” (2 Cor. 3 :5, 6 ). One of the unfortunate changes which has crept into church practice in the centuries since our Lord ascended to glory concerns the use of the term “minister.” It is now applied to only a few individuals in the Church,
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