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T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
May, 1934
Qirls’ QUERY CORNER
Q uestions for answer in this corner should b e s e n t t o M i s s Scott, 8 9 6 1 D i c k s Street,W . H ollywood, California. No name will be p u b l i s h e d .
C o n d u c t e d b y M y r t l e E. S c o t t
Dear Miss Scott: A friend has lent me some copies of the K ing ' s B usiness . I have read with interest the Cprner you con duct for girls, and I would like to write to you, too. I am a college girl and a Christian, but perhaps I do not see things just as you do. But what does that matter! I can not see why each person has not the right to her own opinion about the way to approach God. The important thing is experiencing and manifesting the spirit of love and service which Christ so emphasized by word and life. I may shock you a little when I tell you I have found that so-called “modern” preachers manifest more of this Christ- like spirit than some of the old-fashioned type, and they often inspire one to far higher thinking, ideals, andworship. Would not the appeal to youth be more effective if people forgot their creeds and showed a more united front as they seek to win young people to the Christian way ? Will not a church do more good in showing such a spirit than in spending its time worrying over whether everything is perfectly orthodox?—College Girl. My dear College Girl: Of course love is fundamental—it has been called “the forgotten fundamental.” If is most essential that we as Christians shall spend much time alone with God, that, as we go out to represent Him, we may go with His com passion and tender yearning for the lost and erring. It is true that a carnal spirit of vindictiveness or bitterness in a Christian is evidence of the energy of the flesh and is not of God. But it is also essential that we have clear-cut con victions gained from God’s own Word, and take our stand, in love, yet in firmness, for the truth as it is revealed in Christ Jesus. I am sorry that among the ministers whom you have met, who believe the whole Word of God, there should have been any who failed to manifest a Christlike spirit. It' is unfortunate that this has been your experience, but I am glad to say that my contacts with ministers of evangelical faith have led me to a different feeling. These are days of widespread rejection of all that is revealed in the Word of God, concerning the absolute holiness of God, man’s responsibility for sin, and salvation as being solely in Jesus Christ. And the desperate earnestness of the men who are standing firmly for what they know to be essential to salva tion, has made them seem less tender in their manner of speaking, in comparison with men who have no special convictions to uphold and who, therefore, do not travail in soul for the lost. As you casually read some of the Old Testament prophets, their messages do not sound espe cially tender. But as you dig deeper, you find it was the truest kind of love that compelled these messengers to sound the needed note of warning, even though it might seem severe. Would the soothing words of a false prophet, lulling to a false sense of safety and seeking to satisfy with lofty thoughts and beautiful' ideals, be more truly loving? My dear, beautiful thoughts and high ideals that leave out a personal acceptance of the atoning work of Jesus Christ will make one’s life attractive to the world, but will leave that soul eternally separated from God—separated by a barrier which can be broken down only by a personal partaking of the death of Christ. And a church that
stresses “the good, the true, and the beautiful,” and fails to give the essential message of the gospel, is worse than use less—it is the enemy of the souls of men. Yes, you have a right to your own opinion, but there are circumstances in which our opinions are of little value. If I break the law of the land, my opinion of what the law ought to be or to do makes no difference whatever. Neither is my opinion of any importance when I am dealing with God’s laws in the universe He has created. What God de clares is right—not my opinions—can be the only signifi cant standard. He has made plain in the Word His sovereign plans and the wondrous truths concerning our entrance into the Christian life, our walk, and our destiny. You speak of the appeal to youth as being greater when a “united front” is presented. But a unity that undervalues the supernatural aspects of salvation, cannot give to youth or to maturity any permanent satisfaction. My own obser vation, during twenty years spent in seeking to lead young people to Christ, has been that it is the old-fashioned gospel that attracts and holds. And reports from pastors of many evangelical churches tell of similar results. Receiving Him who offers Himself as Saviour, young people have received the unspeakably precious gift of “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” They find not only that Jesus Christ is the incarnation of the highest standards of character, but also that He offers the rich gift of power for progress toward those highest ideals. Dear girl, the issue is not the acceptance or rejection of ideas. It is not even a matter of the accomplishment of good works in the name of the Lord Jesus—important as that may be. The question is: “What think ye of Christ?” May I ask you to take your Bible, find some quiet place alone, and read prayerfully the first chapter of Colossians, beginning at verse 9? Then ask yourself the question: Can I honestly say, “I determine, by the grace of God, that in all things HE might have the preeminence” ? Upheld—Overshadowed “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand . . . . and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one” (John 10:28, 29). “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psa. 91:1). W hat assurance the believer should have in the con sciousness that there are two sustaining hands—the Jesus the Saviour upholding. This truth has been wonder fully brought to our attention by Annie Johnson Flint in the lines entitled “The Double Clasp” :
hand of God the Father overshadowing, and the hand of
The Saviour’s hand—how dose its hold, That none can loosen, none can break; No powers of heaven, or earth, or hell That loving clasp can ever shake. And over Jesus’ wounded hand The Father’s hand of strength is laid, Omnipotent to save and keep; Thus is our surety surer made. So, one beneath and one above, Father and Son their hands unite. How safe, how safe, the ransomed are Within that clasp of tender might!
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