• September 1930
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tolerance and forbearance. Not tolerance toward the evil of the world but toward the brother in the Lord ; and not forbearance toward anything that denies the Lord but to ward the weakness of the brother. Lastly, he speaks of the practice in the conduct of the saints toward others, 15 :1-13. One word describes this section,—ministry. To minister to all as he, who is the Salvation, would minister. Such, ministry will call for sac rifice and service, rendered in truth and mercy as it did when our Lord was upon earth. To sum up, the manifestation of salvation is seen in a holy life, and a holy life is that which reproduces the life our Lord lived while He was upon the earth. Ü? Two Divergent Disciples ( Continued from page 416) The test came at the Cross. It always does. There may be little apparent difference between the professor and the possessor of Christ, between the earnest though blunder ing follower and the self-righteous sinner, in the eyes of the world while all goes well; but when the interests o f Christ are at stake, and the exigency of the moment de mands the sacrifice of self or of Christ, then the two are manifest. Both men failed : Peter, unexpectedly ; Judas, deliberately. Peter, overwhelmed by sudden fear, denied Jesus. Judas, when he found that Jesus did not lend Him self to fulfill his purposes and did not satisfy his selfish desires, coolly sold Him for thirty pieces of silver, resolv ing, perhaps, to profit by his friendship commercially, if in no other way. On the contrary, because of his firm faith in Jesus, and because of Jesus’ prayers for him, Peter’s failure became the gateway to a new and more powerful life; while the perfidy of Judas became the consummation of irretrievable ruin. In the divergent careers and destinies of these men we see the reflection of our own. Equal though we may be in social position, agreed though we may be in religious pro fession, alike though we may be in our opportunities for instruction and for service within the fellowship of the Christian Church, we have no guarantee of the same destiny unless we really possess the same salvation. Un less we realize and hate our own sinfulness, unless we “ hunger and thirst after righteousness,” unless we “ love Him because Pie first loved us” and acknowledge Him as Lord by the Holy Ghost, we can never be sure that our selfishness will not lead us where that of Judas led him. Those whose hearts are sensitive to sin, whose minds are eager for truth, and whose love is devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ, find a refuge in repentance; and, through the grace of Christ, rise victorious from each fall. Those who, in their self-sufficiency, exclude Him from the lordship of their lives, realize their desperate plight only when it is too late. Accordingly as we receive or reject His ad monitions, accordingly as we believe or refuse His tfuth, accordingly as we worship Him as our Lord, or make Him simply the means of our ambitions and the ornament of our professions, so will our destiny be.. Ill “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Prov. 14:12.
Light for Dark Days B y M argaret B arber
The days may yet grow darker, The nights more weary grow, And Jesus may still tarry, But this one thing I know: The Lord will still grow dearer, And fellowship will be The closer and the sweeter Between my Lord and me. ’ Tis our dear Lord we wait for, Our Hope! Our Joy! Our Friend! Himself we long to welcome, And just beyond the bend Hidden, perchance to meet us Before the day is done, The waiting will be over And heaven will have begun.
The Salvation of Scripture ( Continued from page 420) manufactured or worked up by obeying rules. They are the fruits of growth. Second, Paul speaks of the practice in civil affairs, 13:1-14. Three words will describe this section, obedience, tribute, and honor. The powers that be are of God, therefore punishment in the name of the State is punishment in the name o f God, and taxes paid to the State are taxes paid to God. The Christian who lives a holy life sees, and deals with, God, who stands behind the State. But salvation makes greater demands than the State and hence the duty of the Christian to the citizens is that •of love, not law. The State says, “ Thou shalt not injure,” while salvation says, “ Thou shalt do good unto.” The State, being impersonal, must rule by force; salvation, be ing personal, rules by love. The great incentive is found in the fact that Salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ, is at hand, “ is nearer than when we believed.” The Christian is called upon to walk hon estly, “ in good form,” according to what he is, a saint of God, while he waits for the day to break. Third, Paul speaks of the practice in ecclesiastical re lations, 14:1-23. Two words will describe this section:—
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