T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S
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th e most good? Out of P au l’s treasu re, the Gospel, have come the epistles to the Corinthian church, which have led thou sands to Christ and blessed so many churches. Bible Illu stration s.— John preached fearlessly, Lu. 3. P eter preached pow erfully, Acts 2. Philip preached the Word of God in Acts 8 . Stephen preached fearlessly, Acts 7. It is essential th a t the preacher know for an absolute certain ty th e th ing s th a t he preaches, and not only, so, bu t th a t he should feel ^hem. Too many rem ind us of th e little girl, who, on hearing a story, asked, “ Is it real, or is it preach in g ? ” “I believed, a n d ‘th erefo re have I spoken,” Psa. 116:10. “ So we preach, and so ye believed,” 1 Cor. 15:11. P au l P reached in Persecution.—-A B rahm an compared th e Christian mis sionary to a Mango tree. It puts fo rth blossoms and then weighs its branches w ith fruits. F o r itself? No, for the hungry who come to it for food. By and by th e tree is assailed w ith clubs and stones. Its leaves are to rn and its branches are bruised and broken. It is stripped bare. But does it resen t th is cruel trea tm e n t and refuse to yield fru it ano th er year? No, next year it is more fru itfu l th a n ever. One Purpose in Life.— Joseph Nee- sima was born in Japan, in 1843, tau g h t th e Chinese language and worshipped th e household gods. These “w hittled gods,” even as a lad, he refused to be- lie've in. A t sixteen he read from a borrowed Bible history th e first verse in Genesis, Bent on one p u rp o se/h e concluded to search in o ther lands for light. A t la st he reached Hong-kong, China, and thence took shipping for America w ith Alpheus Hardy, a Chris tian ship-owner. He became in terested in Neesima, adopted him, graduated him from Philips Academy, from Am herst. College, and Andover Seminary, and when P resident Steele, of Amherst, was asked for a recommendation, he
said, “ I can’t gild gold,” Neesima for fifteen years had had a dream of a Christian college in Japan. W ith trem bling knees he presented his de sired ideal. Five thousand dollars was raised a t th e close of his fifteen min u te address. This was th e beginning of the g reat college of Doshisha. In one of his letters he says: “My h ea rt is like a volcano of fire for th e love of souls in Japan .” In sp irit he was like Paul. P a u l’s P erson al Efforts.— Dr. J. O. Peek, a most successful soul-winner, said, “ If it were revealed to me from .heaven th a t God had given me a cer tain ty of ten years of life, and th a t as a condition of my etern al salvation, I must win a thousand souls to Christ in th a t tim e—-if it were fu rth e r condi tioned tp th is end th a t I m ight preach every day for th e ten years, b u t m ight not personally appeal to th e uncon verted outside th e pu lp it; or th a t I m ight no t en ter th e pu lp it during those ten years, b u t m ight exclusively appeal to individuals, I would not hesitate one moment to accept th e choice of personal effort as th e sole means to be used in securing th e conversion of th e thou sand.” Golden Text Illu stration .— Lord Gu th rie, while in London, went to hear some of the g reat preachers, as Canon Liddon in St. P au l’s and the famous Mr. Spurgeon in the London Taber nacle. But one day he chanced upon a stree t preacher and listened to him. Lord Guthrie confessed afte r a lapse of years th a t he could not remember one word of th e g reat preachers, b u t a rem ark of th e stree t preacher, he never could forget. He said, “ I have never been to college, b u t I have been to Cal vary.” Years ago, in Boston, lived a train ed musician,' who had been wounded in service for his country. Whenever he heard lively music, he could no t refrain from joining and whenever his pathos
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