June, 1942
THE K I NG ’ S B USI NESS
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quickly dismissed your sin by plung ing into some other form of sinful excitement and pleasure. But now, after- you have done wrong, perhaps said thè bitter, Unkind" word, you cannot forget it when the Holy Spirit brings it home to yoùr heart. Even when your sin is confessed and for given, you cannot f o r g e t it easily. Again with David you say, “My sin is ever before me" (Psa. 51:3). Before conversion, you felt very S t r o n g , self-reliant, self-righteous; now you feel your weakness, your sin, y o u r dependence on an arm stronger than your own. In this fact lies the proof that a real work of grace has taken place; in your sense òf weakness and dependence lies your security, your hope of deliverance by the power of the Lord Himself. Whén the believer gets a knowl edge óf his own heart, of its sin, its weakness, its self-love, its self-seek ing, .seif-sérving nature, its deceit- fulness, envy, jealousy,, malice, thén he sees how utterly impossible it is for him to rid his heart of its evil. It is then that he sees his need of ’ utter dependence on Christ, and from his heart goes up the cry: “Thou must save and Thou alone." Then he is well on the way to victory and prog ress. God is not able to help us until we get rid of our self-confidence and put our confidence in Him. When the believer l o o k s away from self and looks to God, completely and con tinually, for deliverance—t h e n He gives the grace and strength to break $in;s galling chains and to walk be fore ,Him in holiness and love. As we maintain the upward look, the look which speaks so eloquently of our need and dependence on God our Saviour, so Shall we gain the victory. When we cry, “Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe” (Psa. 119:117), then will come the assuring response, ,‘‘l the Lord . . . will hoA thine, hand, and will keep thee” (Isa. 42:6). “Without me,” says the Lord Jesus Christ, “ye can do nothing” (John 15:5), and this is a truth we are very slow to learn. The sooner we learn to look away from self to Christ, the sooner shall we overcome the evil in our hearts. My cousin, Herbert Lockyer, who is now in America, uses the illustra tion of a ejergy voucher which en ables him to travel for half fare over most American railways. On every coupon are the words, “Not good- if detached.” And, as Dr. Lockyer ex presses it, “We are no good if de tached from Christ, for without Him we are and can do nothing.” A Ufa of Abiding We must first depend on Christ, and then we must abide in Christ. It is not in a life of wrestling, strug
gling, f a s t i n g that the victory is gained,, but in a life of abiding. It is as we abide in Christ, in His love, in His Word, that we gain a real mas tery over sin. As we abide in Christ, so He will, abide in us; His life, His power, His love and glory will flow into our lives, enabling us to be “more than conquerors.” In so far as we abide in Christ, His life .will flow unhindered into our life,, bringing forth those :fruits of holiness and love which were perfectly manifested in His life. We are not only to read the Word but to appro priate it as well, to take it into our hearts and there let it abide to work good within. As we abide in Christ and His Word abides in us, we shall be prepared and strong to meet the enemy of our souls. “ I have written unto you, young men,” says John, “ because -ye are, strong, and the word
of God abidetH in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one” (1 John 2:14). In depending on Christ and abiding in Him we shall find we have discovered the secret of the victorious life. The story is told of an aviator who was troubled by a somewhat strange sound in his plane. Search revealed that a large rat, which had found its way on to the machine at the airport, was eating at a very vital part of the plane’s structure. In his position up in the air, the airman could not stop to try to kill the rat. Upward he soared, up and up, ''until in rarer air the rodent could not breathe and rolled over , and died. Thus is it with our sins. Up in the rarer, air of our unbroken fellowship with our glorious Victor, evil desires quickly die. Beloved, if we would not sin, we must live near to God! California my faith in Christ nor cause me to doubt my salvation. This past semes ter has shown me that that statement bears, little "validity. It seemed that every class in which I e n r o l l e d brought up the subject of Christianity, its teachings and doctrines, and the matter of course was approached from a very skeptical angle by the use of the scientific method of reasoning. “After several class periods, I began to feel as if my once firm foundation was made only of snow and was fast melting away under the heat; of the discussions. During this period I had .been unable to atténd Bible League regularly because of my outside work ing schedule, but finding myself in such a state of mental confusion, I decided it was time I arranged to get to Bible League again. T h r o u g h prayer, through Christian friendships, through a fundamental church, and through Bible' League, I am able to quote even more emphatically than ever, 2 Timothy 1:12: T know whom I have believed.’ We Christian stu dents recognize what a power Bible League is and the potential influence it may have for the Lord in the future.” On the Edge of the Campus Just what program and fellowship are provided by the Bible, League that this university student mentioned? Not mere “ atmosphere” and so- [ Continued on Page 237]
Living Witnesses for Christ On a Great University Campus By MARGARET HORTON MORGAN Berkeley,
■ S SHE FACED the microphone in an Oakland radio station, a L. Senior at the University of California frankly told her listeners these facts: “Four years ago when I started my college days at Berkeley and first at- ' tended Bible League in its. infancy, I was one of those who carne with the firm belief that nothing could disturb [Alumni of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles in the years that T . C. Horton and Mrs. Horton were asso ciated with the school remember grate fully their remarkable soul-winning ministry among young people. In their capacity as counselors to students en rolled at Biolaj these leaders were affec tionately known as " Daddy and Mother Horton.” A similar, relationship to youth has been the privilege of V. V. and Mrs. Morgan (Margaret Horton), son-in-law and daughter of M r . . and Mrs. Horton, but in this instance'in the setting of a state university campus, where M r. Morgan is Director of the University o f California Bible League. As one young woman from this group expressed it, " They're just Papa and Mama Morgan to the whole bunch. They are definitely the leaders, yet not dictatorial, and we value every bit of advice they give us as individuals or a group.” — E ditor ,1
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