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T h e K i n g ’ s B u s i n e s s
October 1932
head is present. He operates through us; therefore, if we are conscious of His presence and power, we should be willing to undertake any task for Him. He will be present all the way, through each succeeding period. You have seen His manifestations for thirty years. Why doubt the next thirty ? “ Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world”—the end of each period, the end of all periods, the consummation of all ages! He abides; that one fact separates Him from all other beings. The founders of the different religions died. They do not abide. Christ came to die for us, He arose for our justification, He abides for our sanctification and glorifi cation. 3. His P resence G uarantees V ictory His is a victorious presence. There is no defeat pos sible for the church. Victory is guaranteed. We can ex claim, “ Blessed be God who giveth us the victory!” We can also exclaim, “ We can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth u s !” And we could appropriate ly add: “Who abideth with us, who supporteth us, who de- fendeth us, and who continueth with us through all the ages, changes, and consummations.” We cannot fail with His presence. We cannot be de feated when He abides with us. We cannot be assassinated when in Him we stand. We cannot be destroyed by enemies when He sets the table before us in the presence of our enemies. We cannot be crushed on any battlefied; we can not be overcome in any field of labor. His presence guarantees that the field of carnage shall be turned into the harvest field of plenty. The whitened fields shall be garnered, victory shall be written on every sprig of grass, on every sheaf of wheat, on every glistening sword, on every waving plume, and across the humble breast of every evangelist. His is the victorious presence. For thirty years, He has walked and talked. He has sown and-He has garnered; He has protected, and He has used for His glory your pastor and his forces. His presence is personal, His presence is permanent, His presence is preeminently victorious. Thus across these thirty years with Him we have come, and, standing at the threshold o f the decades yet to come, we are unafraid, and are perfectly willing to undertake any task either in this field or any other to which He may call because we know His presence is guaranteed. No minister ever had a better church, more loyal, lovable, faithful, or sweeter, more spiritual people. God bless them. I love you, my beloved people. May you ever be con scious of the presence and fellowship o f Christ. “ And he [Moses] said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have, found grace in thy sight ? is it not in that thou goest with us ? And the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name.”
able riches of His gospel. He was in that service, and He has been in every service since. (c ) The difficulties have been many, the obstacles have been great, the enemies have been cunning and designing, the friends have been numerous, masterful, and powerful, the field interesting and pleasant, the work glorious and successful, the results marvelous and unprecedented, all because o f His presence and His power. Mistakes have been many, sins of omission and commis sion numerous, weaknesses, failures, and falterings have been constant, but never in any one of the exigencies has Christ been absent. All the way, through all the trials, in all the difficulties, in all the successes, joys, and pleasures, He has been present. He has been first; He'has been all and in all. His personal presence was felt—we did not have to wait for the mass, we did not have to wait for the com munion table, but in every service, in every act, in every piece of work, in every circumstance, His personal pres ence was manifested. When He said, “ I will be with you,” we knew He there by made absolutely certain that His presence, fellowship, protection, and power would be manifested to us through each succeeding decade. 2. C hrist P romised to A bide with Us His is an abiding presence. He did not promise to be with us during the revival only, He did not promise to be with us just when the sun was shining and the chorus was singing, He did not promise to be with us only in the hours o f difficulty and trial, when the enemies of the world were conspiring with members of the hierarchy, but He promised to abide all the time, in all the conditions, and never to leave us. “ Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” ; The long, long trail does not have to be walked alone. It mattered not how dark the road, how long the lane, how hard the work, how dangerous the undertaking, how nu merous the enemies, or how stormy the night, we have never had to walk alone. The abiding, personal presence of Jesus Christ— marvelous! Two members of the Trinity are present all the while and cannot be taken away from the Christian—Christ at the right hand of the Father, in whom the supreme author ity and power of the Godhead is vested, and the Holy Ghost, the third member of the Trinity with us, helping us, strengthening us, supporting us, and fighting for us. The sovereign God of the universe, in the personality of the Son, and the Holy Spirit abide with us. The abiding pres ence of Christ guarantees the abiding presence and super natural power of the Godhead. It is impossible for us to explain the work that has been done here in any other way. He is present today. There are no difficulties when Christ is present. The critical hour through which we are passing, and in which the world is embroiled, cannot discourage the Christian. Christ is pres ent, supreme authority is present, the power of the God
W A L K I N G W I TH JE SU S B y H elen T hompson
’ Tis sweet to walk in Jesus’ way, To trust Him hour by hour, To leave with Him my future needs, To claim His present power.
’ Tis sweet to know these things are true, And that H e bore my shame; So I must make my daily life An honor to His name.
’ Tis sweet to know He’s with me, His hand is holding mine; And when the path gets rugged, He smooths the steep incline.
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