THE KING’S BUSINESS
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of God,” i. e., God’s own utterances. The word translated “oracles” means utter ances or sayings. In the Septuagint trans lation of the Hebrew Bible it is used of the breastplate of the high priest which he wore when he consulted Jehovah, but ¡t is also used for a Word which is used of “any utterance of God whether precept or example.” But these words of Paul not only tell us that the Jewish scriptures were God’s own utterances, they also tell us that there could be no greater advantage than that of beifig “entrusted with the oracles of God.” And today, in a fuller sense than the Jew, we have been entrusted with the oracles of God. What a glorious advantage it is. Yes, and what a solemn responsibility; The fact that the Jews were unfaithful to this sacred trust did not render nugatory the faith of God, their want of faith (did not) make of none effect the faithfulness of Go.d. Thursday, June 14 . Rom. ' 3 : 4 - 8 . When it is a case of God against man, the man who really knows God will say unhesitatingly, “Let God be found true, but every man a liar.” The word of Gqd will stand against the words of all men, including all scientists, philosophers, liter ati, etc., etc., but how few there are today who are ready to accept God’s word against that of all men, or even against that of a few men, especially if these few men are supposed to represent the “latest scholar ship.” And now the Jew might bring forward a second objection, viz. “If our unrighteousness commendeth the righteous ness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous if He visiteth with wrath?” It might seem that if our unrighteousness commendeth the righteousness of God, then God would be unrighteous if He visited us with wrath for that' thing that commend eth His own righteousness. Paul’s holy soul so revolts against such a suggestion even that he will not even put it in the natural form "Is not God unrighteous, who visiteth with wrath?” He puts it at once in the form that suggests a negative answer,
“Is God unrighteous, who visiteth with wrath ?” For even suggesting this he apol ogizes parenthetically and then he thun ders o u t. It; may not be,” or “Away with the thought.” Our version puts it “God forbid.” That gives the force of it, but the word “God” does not occur in the way that Paul puts it. Paul next takes up the thought that lies at the bottom of the objec tor’s argument, viz.: “Let us to evil, that good may come” and pronounces doom upon those who advocate this position. But this position, horrible as it is to the really discerning mind, has often been advocated in one form or another, not only by Jesu its, but by others as well. All so-called pious frauds” are founded upon this thought. But there is in reality no such things as a truly pious fraud, for “pious frauds” are impious iniquities. It is never right to do wrong, no matter how much good may promise to result from the wrong done. Anyone who in any form advocates doing wrong that good may come is under the condemnation of God. Friday, June 15 . Rom. 3 : 9 - 18 . Now Paul proceeds to show that all, Jews as well as Greeks, are sinners; “They are all under sin.” To prove this he goes to the Jews’ own Scriptures bringing together dark pictures of the moral condi tions of the Jews quoted from different parts of the Scripture (Ps. 5 : 9 ; 1 0 : 7 * 14:1-3; 36:1; 140:3; Prov. 1-16; Isa. 59:7). From verse ten to eighteen we have an awful but an accurate picture of human nature as it really is until man is bom again. There is not one righteous person in the whole human race “no, not one.” There is not one that understands until his mind is opened by the Spirit of God. (1 Cor. 2:14). Men are not by nature seeking for God, but running away from God. Every member of the human race is turned aside and all of them together have “become unprofitable." “There is nnt one that doeth good, „ 0 , not so much as one.” The throat, tongue and lips of every member of the human race is corrupted by
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