23
January 1928
T h e
K i n g ' s
B u s i n e s s
wonderful picture of Christ entering heaven (the true Temple) at His ascension, and interceding at the right hand of God for us, while we are yet without the Temple (on the earth), also praying—and waiting. I n T h e P lace F or U s “For Christ is entered into heaven itself [of which the earthly temple was a type], now to appear in the presence of God, where Fie ever liveth to make intercession for us.” ■—-Paraphrase of Heb. 9:24; cf. Heb, 4 :14 and Heb. 7 :25; see also Rev. 8:1-4 and Psa. 141:2. Let the full signifi cance of this stupendous truth flood our souls; the interces sion of our great High Priest is coupled with the prayers of God’s people. When we pray, our petitions are en forced and seconded by Christ’s own intercession, which is both for us, and with us. Cf. Rom. 8:26-27. What an encouragement to pray! Our prayer-life, which, in itself, is as a frail string of weakness, is joined with, and counted as, the rnighty intercession of Christ, which is as the anchor-chain of a modern superdreadnought. Such a prayer-chain cannot be broken. Prayer is effective. Pray on, pray on, pray on! Again we return to our study of the movements of the priest. When he came forth to the waiting, anxious people, in the court, he blessed them with the blessings of the Trinity, quoted in Num. 6:23-27: “The Lord bless thee and keep thee —-etc.” In like manner, when our great High Priest appears THE SECOND TIME, He shall bring the infinite blessings of-the Godhead and the inesti mable palpitates with emotion, the mind staggers with heart palpitates with emotion, the mind staggers with amazement, as we foreview “as through a glass darkly” the blessings and treasures of a renewed earth : resurrec-r tion glory, Divine Presence, sinless perfection, joy un speakable, and love that passeth understanding—all to be veritable realities WHEN JESUS COMES TO HIS OWN! U nsearchable R ich e s F or A ll What a glorious gospel to live by, to suffer for, to die by ! We have an all-conquering Savior who purchased our eternal redemption by His own sufferings on the Cross; an ever-living High Priest who intercedes for us and with u s ; an eternally victorious King who.will soon come to take us to Himself and make us like Himself. And what unsearchable riches to proclaim to a world of lost sinners! Christ’s atonement is sufficient to save the most guilty; He ever liveth to rescue the most depraved, and change the vilest, if he will only believe; He is coming soon to judge the world in righteousness, and execute the just wrath of God against all unbelief and ungodliness of men. Therefore, as we have received the gift of eternal life, even so let us minister the same, as good stewards of .the Grace of God (1 Pet. 4:10). And now, but one word more: The people who waited for Zacharias to appear from the temple “marveled that he tarried so long” (Luke 1 :21). Many of God’s children today are marveling that their Lord has tarried so long. But what saith the Scriptures? “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord . . . . for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh” (James 5 :7-8). “For yet a little while and He that shall come WILL come, and will not tarry” (Heb. 10:37). A. Three Greatest Th ings The greatest joy in the world, is the joy of service; The greatest power in the world, is the power of love; The greatest war in the world, is the war with ourselves.
Qtories of Our O
t - Emduring H ym n s
Praise God,fromwhomall bless-ings flow,Praise Him, all crea-tures here be-low;
Praise God From Whom All B lessings F low ! O stanza of religious poetry can better express the- devout Christian’s sentiment at New Year’s time than Thomas Ken’s lines, which are beyond doubt the most universally and the most heartily sung of any ever written. Ken was a bishop of the Church of Eng land, one of the gentlest, truest and grandest men of his day. He was chaplain to King Charles the Second, and often-reproved “the merry monarch” for his sinful ways. “I must go and hear Ken tell me my faults,” the king would often remark before attending chapel. The king loved him and, even on his deathbed, sought his spiritual advice. The lines of our Doxology were written by Bishop Ken as the closing stanza of each of three famous hymns which he wrote: Morning Hymn, Evening Hymn and Midnight Hymn. Later the words were set to the .tune “Old Hun dred” by Wilhelm Franc, whose work was revised by none other than Martin Luther. The poet Dryden said of Ken : “David left him, when he went to rest, His lyre; and after him, he sang the best.” Praise and thanksgiving were an important part of Bishop Ken’s spiritual life. For years before he died, he wrote across the top of every letter he wrote, “All glory be to God.” The same words were uttered with his last breath. Under King James; .the Romanist, Ken was arrested for having Opposed the King’s religion. William the Second deprived him of his bishopric, and he retired in poverty to a home offered him by Lord Weymouth. He died at 74, a poor man, and, at his own request, was carried to his grave by the six poorest men in the parish. An old Methodist hymnal quotes the following lines-of Bishop Ken’s ; “And should the well-meant song I leave behind,
With Jesus’ lovers some acceptance find, ’Twill heighten e’en the joys of heaven to know That in my verse, saints sing God’s praise below.”
Surely, if the saints in heaven are permitted to hear our songs upon earth, Ken’s joy must have been greatly enhanced at the hearing of r “Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!”
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