418
September 1929
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
leisurely devote two to three hours every day or so, not merely to devotional exercises, but to the very act of secret prayer and communion with God. Consider that thy time is short, and that business and company must not be allowed to rob thee of thy God.” Impossible! someone says. Remember, then, that these men, such as Judson, impressed empires for Jesus Christ, and laid the founda tions for God’s kingdom imperishably at the citadels of heathen darkness. Their work may not be exactly the same as ours, but who will deny that a great work has yet to be accomplished ? That which has been done in spiritual matters can be done again, and better. Is not this the hope held out by our Lord Himself? “ Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works thin these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” The past has by no means exhausted the power of God. The church that is attempt ing to live on its past for its miracles of power and grace, is a dying church or is already dead. Evangelism breathes the atmosphere of prayer. It is a sad sign that the prayer meeting of the church seems to be passing, so that in many a church it is now anything but a prayer meeting. Within the last two years I have attended association meetihgs at. which the topic for dis cussion in several instances was: “Shall we continue the midweek prayer service?” We must return to a renewed devotion to this spiritual exercise of prayer. L oving A llegiance to a P erson Evangelism in the final analysis is the proclamation of Christ and Him crucified. The Lord Jesus Christ is the heart of evangelism. Evangelism will die out in any atmosphere of doubt concerning him. He is the “Evan gel.” Paul, that matchless apostle of Jesus, declared, “How that Christ died for our sins according to the Scrip tures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures; and that he was seen of Cephas, then o f the twelve: after that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; o f whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep." In the proclamation of the Gospel there is no room for haggling over the difference between divinity and deity. He is either the Son of God supernaturally born, or the son of man naturally born. He cannot be both in the light of His own claims. If He is less than very God and divine only as we are, though different in kind, then He is not risen. " And i f Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.” “For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised : and i f Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are per ished. I f in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.” “Christ and him crucified” is the focal point of salvation. The resurrection of Christ from among the dead magnifies that focal point until it becomes the beacon light of the world for time and eternity. All events in the calendar of God in history converge at the cross. All events in the calendar of God in the present, find their fullest interpretation in the cross. All events in the calendar of God for the future will be lit up with the radiance of the cross. “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” He thus be comes the loadstone of the ages. The cross is the place from whence the greatest display of moral and spiritual energy flows out to the universe. The fountain from whence flows the crystal stream that has blessed a world
of men, as men in all ages have been brought to the cross. Let us be true to Christ at the place of His central attrac tion, holding forth the cross, which stands for the doctrine of the Gospel; i.e., of salvation through Christ crucified. Our sermons and addresses and Sunday-school teach ing may lack style and eloquence and poetry, but they are worth while if in them we have the message of the cross. Last summer while on my vacation, I was attracted by a scarlet creeper. Its blossoms were closely clustered and very brilliant. It was not until I was leaving the spot, after feasting on that beautiful thing, I noticed that it was growing against the wall of a dilapidated cottage—I only saw the scarlet creeper. There may be many defects in our humble ministry and work for Christ, but we can, by cultivating this plant of renown, so beautify it, as to make men and women, the young and old, confess the charm and power of Christ’s redeeming love. “Outside the gate the Saviour died, That the way might be free and broad, For the children of men to His wounded side And His sacrificial blood. His cross like a far-seen beacon stands In the midst of a world of sin; And stretched out are his bleeding hands To gather the wanderers in.” One hundred laymen once told a newspaper represen tative in interviews just what they wanted from the pulpit. The substance of their requirements is given below, and may be taken as representing the kind of preaching the average layman wants today. “They want the plain, unadulterated preaching of the Gospel, without the prevalent psychological or sensational effusions. “They want sermons that touch life as we find it today, and that strike home. “They want sermons in which Christ figures as the Re deemer to manifest the love of God and to inspire to holy living. They want His atoning work set forth as the only remedy for sin and the only hope of the sinner, and do not care for ‘smart sayings and spectacular performances in the pulpit.’ “They want sermons that will take them away from their worldly cares and worriments and bring them the cheer and consolations of the Gospel. ‘The shadow of the cross is still more potent than all the new theologies about which some men rave.’ “They ,want a minister to take a text and ‘then stick to it,’ not turn away from it to roam ‘in a ten-acre field.’ They do not want him to ‘sugar-coat sin’ and make hell meaningless. They care little for sensational theories such as ‘How to be Happy though Married.’ “They want him to emphasize sins of omission as well as sins of commission. They believe that expository and doctrinal preaching should not altogether go out of fash ion. One does not like sermons with too many stories or illustrations or legends. Another likes sermons on Scrip ture characters. Another suggests that the preacher should acquaint himself enough with his people to know just what kind of message they most need. Another wants him to preach straight Biblical truth without fear or favor, and ‘hit us squarely between the eyes.’ More than one wants Christ to be the center of all preaching.”
Made with FlippingBook Annual report