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THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
to make his calling and election sure. “ Work out your own salvation w ith fear and trem bling.” T h at is good Arminian- ism. “ I t is God who worketh in you to w ill and to do of H is good pleasure.” T hat is good Calvinism. Both together make good Christianity. SUNDAY, NOV. 27. M ark 11:20-26. The Power of F aith . There were two hundred and seventy- six souls on th a t ill-fated ship, Acts 27:37, and two hundred and seventy-five hearts were sinking in despair. One alone stood up and calmly said, “ I believe God.’' Aets 27:25. The soldiers and sailors m ight have thought th a t Paul was mad. “ Do you see those breakers, Paul? Do you h ear th a t thunder? Did you feel those timbers crack? ” “ Sirs, I believe God th a t it shall be even as it was told me, ’’ and so it came to pass th a t they all es caped safe to land. John Wesley said, “ Give me a hundred men who h ate noth ing bu t sin, fe a r nothing b u t God and know nothing bu t Jesus Christ and Him crueified and I w ill set th is world on fire. ’’ M ight he not have said “ so many men who believed God?” This old world is combustible enough to be set ablaze by any man or woman who can say under all circumstances, not in boasting arrogance bu t in calm, confident, courageous faith , “ I believe God.” “ Lord, give us such a fa ith as this And then w h a te ’er may come, W e’ll taste e ’en here the hallowed bliBS Of our eternal home.” MONDAY, NOV. 28. Acts 28:1-14. P au l a t Melita. Paul ’s voyage may be tak en as a parable of life. The island which they finally reached may represent Heaven. Every thing must be given up to reach it. While all reached th e shore in safety, perhaps no two reached it in th e same way. Some swam through th e surf, some clung to a broken spar or piece of board, others were washed ashore, thus barely escaping. Not all Christians reach Heaven in the same way. The heavenly city has twelve gates. Bev. 21:10-12. Men who have not tra v eled one inch of the way together may meet a t the throne. Some go trium phantly w ith shout and psalm of victory, some barely entej, saved so as by fire, reaching the shore of glory on th e shattered fra g ments of th eir earthly hopes. H appy in deed are they who get to Heaven in .a n y way and a t any cost, b u t Oh for the abundant entrance into the everlasting
storm-tossed ship upon the sea. “ Are they not all m inistering spirits, sent fo rth to m inister for them who shall be heirs of salv ation ?” No child of God ever need, fear of being forgotten or forsaken in time of need. Everyone doing th e w ill of God, is immortal till his work is done. I f P aul must stand before Caesar, he could not perish on the way to Borne. Nothing can happen to us save by th e permission or decree of our Heavenly Father. FRIDAY, NOV. 25.—Acts 27:36-44. The Shipwreck. Paul prayed not only for himself but for his fellow -travelers and the sailors. God hears and answers prayer. I f Paul had not been on board and if he had not prayed, all would have perished. Every life was saved because there was one man on board who knew God and who knew how to pray. I f they only knew .it, wicked people owe much to the good. The lives of two hundred and seventy-five persons were carried safely through th e storm be cause of the intercession of one good man. How many ships are kept afloat, how many railw ay train s are kept from col lision because a Christian is on board 1 The wicked in any community do not know w hat blessings they enjoy for the sake of the pious people around them. Sodom owed much to Lot. The chaff is safe as long as the wheat lies beside it. The resi dence of a godly man in a city block is an insurance for every one who lives in it. We never know how much we owe to the prayers of our friends. “ Wherefore let thy prayers rise like a fountain for me night and d ay .” SATURDAY, NOV. 28. Rom. 8:24-31. D ivine Sovereignty and Human Agency. “ God h ath given thee all them th a t sail w ith th e e .” This is the sovereign decree of God. “ Except these abide in the ship ye can not be saved.” This is the co-operating agency of man. Divine sovereignty and free human agency are Scriptural and true b u t irreconcilable by the human reason. In P a u l’B shipwreck they are seen in harmonious adjustm ent. I f the angelic assurance was trustw orthy why should anybody do anything? W hat did it m atter w hat was done or w hat was not done? Would not all be saved any way? Thoughtless unsaved people some times speak in th a t fashion concerning salvation. By doing so they not only ex pose th eir ignorance bu t give evidence of not being saved. Every one who appre hends and appreciates the Divine election of sovereign grace will give all diligence
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