February 1931
86
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
1 SNotes on Ghristian Sndeavor B y M ilo F. Jam ison
'«H
T HERE is a general impression abroad that young people tend to shy at a found in the Bible. It is true, undoubted ly, that many are afraid of the whole sub ject of theological discussion, but usual ly that fear is one which has, to a large extent, been implanted in their minds by the attitude of certain of the so-called “broad-minded,” liberal religious leaders. In the past few years there has been an intensive campaign to create in the minds of church people the idea that anything which comes under the heading of doc trine, creeds, or theology is but a remnant of- a moss-grown archaic medievalism which has no meaning in this modern day and generation. Even the old terminology has been desecrated by the new religion ists. The old terms “conversion,” “re generation,” “salvation,” “sanctification,” “prayer,” and the like are either relegated to the realm of the obsolete or are modi fied and changed so that they have an al together new meaning. In contrast with the above it is our earnest conviction that young people to day are intensely interested in thp real, vital facts dealing with God and man, sin and life eternal. In spite of all of the propaganda against “worn-out” theology, the fact of the matter is that young people are more and more turning to “the old- time: religion” not only because it was good enough for their fathers, but because, by a process of intellectual discernment, they are realizing that it is the only satis fying answer to the problem of the ages. After all, nothing that the modern re ligionists have ever presented can satis fy the mind from a rational standpoint, in explaining the facts of this universe, like the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Wherever there is a clear, intelligent pre sentation of the gospel message in its simplicity and power, there is an imme diate response on the part of young peo ple. In substantiating this statement, witness the churches which are standing true to the fundamental doctrines of the Bible and compare the work being done among their young people with that be ing done in the average modernistic church. The new youth in this, new day still responds to the old gospel message of a Christ who can save from sin. A LL of this leads up to the thought which we desire to present for this month in the discussion of the topics an nounced for the Christian Endeavor meet ings. We have already considered in January what we termed the concordant method of lesson preparation. In Feb ruary a study was made from an analyti cal viewpoint. It so happens that the March subjects lend themselves very well to what might be termed a doctrinal ap proach. — o — The Doctrinal Approach
March 1—What Jesus Teaches about God our Father—GOD. March 8—What is the Church ?-?- THE CHURCH. March 15—My Responsibility to the Church — CHR I S T I AN SERVICE. March 22—Important Ideas in John 3: 16—SALVATION. March 29—Why Christ is a Worthy Ma s t e r — CONSECRA TION. It must be remembered that prepara tion for these lessons is not limited to the doctrinal method Suggested in the follow ing outlines. Either the concordant meth od or the analytical method may be em ployed if preferred by leader or speakers. The material presented is merely sugges tive of another method of lesson prepara tion. Each week the approach is made from a slightly different angle, yet the method is always topical and, in general, doctrinal. —o— March 1, 1931 God '"THE contemplation of the being and nature of God is the highest realm into which the human mind can project itself. It is evident that no comprehen sive discussion of the great subject is pos sible in the limited time available in the average Christian Endeavor meeting. However, the attempt should be made on the part of every young person to discover as much as he can of what the Bible teaches on the subject. It is amazing to learn how little the average young person has really thought about this subject. In a questionnaire which was given to a group of university young people, one question read: “What is your conception of God?” Because the group was Christian, many of the an swers showed evidences of some Bible training and teaching. However, among others were such answers a s : “I have found no definite conception” ; “I have none” ; “it’s a big problem” ;, “the spirit ual Power in control of the Universe” ; “humanly inconceivable.” The subjects which follow present a brief outline for the study of the person of God. A whole month could be spent on this discussion, but the very reading of the questions will at least open the field of study. D iscussion Q uestions 1. How Much Proof Is Necessary to Ra tionally Establish the Fact o f the E x istence of. God? Is the, burden of proof on the affirmative or negative? 2. Discuss the Following Arguments for the Existence of God: a. The Ontological Argument. The human mind possesses the idea of an absolutely perfect being. This
Again a word of caution should be in serted against any mere haphazard dis cussion without adequate preparation. The Christian does not believe in a system of philosophy concocted in his own mind. The Christian believes that the Bible, as the Word of God, furnishes an infallible rule of faith and practice and the, only real basis upon which to build our con ception of God, the world, and the rela tionship of one to the other. Therefore, to attempt to discuss any subject from a Christian viewpoint without having first ascertained the facts presented in the Bible is a foolish procedure. Such a dis cussion should not be classed under the name of Christian, but rather under the name of pagan, because it sets up human speculations instead of divine revelation as the source of final authority. There fore, it will be necessary in the discussion of the topics for this month to make a careful study of the Bible material which is presented in each. In order to avoid confusion, it has been deemed best to-simplify the wording of the topics. It is rather remarkable that the five subjects which are given for March, when reduced to the underlying thought involved in each, suggest a fair ly well rounded approach to the whole field of Christian doctrine. The topics, together with the subject under which we shall discuss them, are as follows: Who Will Help? Mr. Jamison, the editor of this page, is the Director of the University Bible Clubs, an interdenominational organiza tion which is providing a Christian fel lowship and testimony for students on the campus of the University of California at Los Angeles. The university com mences a new semester of instruction in February, at which time there will be a large number of new students entering the institution. The Bible Clubs are eager to contact now as many of these young people as would be interested in, a Chris tian activity on the campus, since the friendships made and the habits formed during the first six weeks of school life are vitally important in the moulding of the entire university course. It is, there fore, important that every effort be made to align them with a definitely evangelical Christian work as early as possible. Parents, pastors, Sunday-school teach ers, and friends who may know of young people who are attending or planning to attend the University of California at Los Angeles in Westwood Hills will »be help ing them and helping the University Bible Clubs if they will mail in the names, ad dresses, and telephone numbers of such students to : THE UNIVERSITY BIBLE CLUBS Milo F. Jamison, Director 472 Hilgard Avenue Los Angeles, California.
doctrinal discussion of the truths to be
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker