November, 1935
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
426
NOTES on
B y N a d i n e K. W a r n e r
know, for earth’s gold is opaque with “the rust of avarice and the filth o f lust,” full of “tragedy and shame, and deeds of darkness, lost chastity, and sullied honor.” The gold o f the New Jerusalem is as clear as crystal. In the words of Dr. I. M. Halde- man, “ In the city o f God, gold and precious stones will be so common that men will walk on the one, and look without envy on the other.” Do you recall the closing words following John Bunyan’s beautiful descrip tion of the Celestial City? “And after that they shut up the gates; which, when I had seen, I wished myself among them.” Illustrations for the Leader I. A H igh S alary , or H eavenly R eward ? To young people who face the city’s op portunities for material gain, there often comes the temptation to devote their pow ers to money-making without first ascer taining the Lord’s plan for their lives. In China's Millions appeared the story o f a Chinese Christian who met this problem: “ The Standard Oil Company wanted two extra men, and out of the twenty who applied, Mr. Li was one of the two chosen. He was housemaster in a boys’ boarding school of the China Inland Mission. His wages were to be double what he was earning in the school. Mr. Li prayed much about the matter. He accepted the posi tion, but, when he found he would have to work on Sunday he gave it up. Then the manager offered him three times higher wages than he has as a teacher and gave him his Sundays free. He returned to the office but became very unhappy, and in the evening after praying with the head teacher o f the school, he wrote the fol lowing letter in English: ‘I am sorry I cannot come and work for your company. I have decided to work for God, and win the boys to Jesus Christ. I get you a thousand pardons.’ j->,“ The manager said to one of his friends: ‘I thought I did well to engage a Christian, but I see they put Jesus first and business second.’ ” II. T he C hallenge of the . C ities Dr. F. B. Meyer was asked, “What is the greatest mission field in the world?” And his answer was, “The United States, because here you have all nationalities of the world centered.”— S elected . DECEMBER 8, 1935 TYPES OF MISSIONARY WORKERS A cts 8:5-8; E phesians 4:11-13 Meditation on the Lesson “A missionary is one who is sent with a message. He is not to find a message, nor to make a message, but simply to deliver the message given by the One who sends him,” declares L. L. Legters. The Christian church is a missionary church. Take the missionary note out of
resurrection was not alone witnessed by His followers, but prophesied by David, and attested by the coming o f the Holy Spirit whom Christ had promised. The effect o f that single sermon was the addi tion to the church of about three thousand believers who “ continued stedfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers” (R. V .). II. C hrist W ants the C ity (Matt. 23:37). This passage has been described as an apostrophe “ineffably grand and mejting. It is the very heart of God pouring itself forth through; human flesh and speech. God is here pleading with men, bleeding for them, and ascending only to open His arms to them and win them back by the power o f this story of matchless love that would conquer the world.” The heart of our Lord was heavy as He looked over the city o f Jerusalem. Why? He was burdened because He saw the unhappiness and wickedness behind those city walls; He knew the false standards, shame, wicked lives; He knew not alone the present conditions, but the future re sults as well. He weeps today as He looks down upon the seething multitudes build ing upon poor foundations, living in deg radation, walking in darkness rather than in light. He waits and longs today to use the lips, the hands, the feet, the personality o f each believer to rehch this multitude. III. T he H eavenly C ity (Rev. 21 :l-27 ). “ Paradise Lost” was a garden; but “ Paradise Regained” is a city. Note, how ever, that that city is described by the ad jective “ new.” There are two words in Greek which may be translated “new” : neosr which means new in appearance, and kainos, which means new in kind. It is the latter word which is used to describe the “new Jerusalem” and the “new heaven” and “new earth.” There are those who, in ignorance, scoff at the smallness of the Holy City, not reckoning that the twelve thousand ful- longs would represent fifteen hundred miles north and south, east and west; or in other words, a city six thousand miles in circumference. Furthermore, the city is fifteen hundred miles in height. There are twelve foundations, each a precious jewel, bearing the name o f an apostle. The wall of the city is of jasper. The walls are a symbol o f salvation (cf. Isa. 60:18). Thus, throughout all eternity, we shall ever be reminded of the redemp tion which was wrought for us on Cal vary’s cross. Each of the twelve gates is a single pearl. The pearl is a symbol of the church for whose purchase the Lord Jesus Christ, as the seeking Merchant, sold all that He had (cf. Matt. 13:45, 46). Thus we shall ever be reminded that we have been “brought with a price.” The street is to be pure gold. I do not believe that it will be gold such as we now
DECEMBER 1, 1935 MISSIONARY WORK IN CITIES A cts 14:1-7 Meditation on the Lesson “History is the story of great cities. It has been said, ‘God made the country, man made the town, and the devil made the city.’ If that be true, then we can well understand why God sent His messengers to Nineveh, Babylon, Jerusalem, Athens, and Rome. As the ancient world was ruled by the cities, so the modern world is now being ruled by the cities. This dominance is evident in modern Europe when we note the influence of modern Paris, Berlin, Leningrad, and Rome upon the nations^of which they are the capitals. This condition is also apparent in our own beloved land when we see the mighty influence that New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, and Los An geles wield in the political, economic, social, and spiritual realms o f American life . . . The city is the magnet for youth . . . The city is a living thing. Its heart’s blood is either good or bad, and in the midst of its seething turmoil are to be found some of God’s sweetest saints and also the devil’s worst emissaries. The world’s moral and spiritual battles have been fought in the cities . . . “ Christ came to Jerusalem, the capital o f the Jewish world. From Jerusalem went the gospel to the ends o f the earth. In the lives of His followers, Christ came to Antioch . . . Corinth . . . Philippi . . . Ephesus . . . Thessalonica . . . Rome. If Christ and the early Christians thus chal lenged and conquered in these old world cities, is not that same gospel as powerful to win its way in the cities of today?”— J ohn B unyan S m ith , in the K ing ’ s B usi ness . The Lord has a use for each o f us— whether we live in cities or towns—as channels of His blessing for others, per haps in hospitals, missions, jails, at places of employment, or in the schoolroom. Have we definitely presented our “bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God,” which is our “reasonable service” ? Have we asked Him to make us usable and useful? Have we, too, said with Paul: “I am debtor” ; “I am ready” ; “ I am not ashamed [am proud] of the gospel of Christ” ? Have we said, “ Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ?” Suggestions on Daily Readings I. P reaching to M ultitudes (Acts 2:14, 21, 22, 36). The baptism o f the Holy Spirit had com pletely changed Peter, the cowardly denier of his Lord, into a fearless defender and spokesman. He sets forth Jesus Christ— the rejected, risen, reigning Lord. Jesus is proved both Christ and Lord by His fulfillment of prophecy and by His mir acles, His death, and His resurrection. His
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