January 1932
T h e K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
19
of faith had gone no farther than that. They were like the people of whom we read in John 2 :23 and 24. They be lieved in Christ, but in such a reserved way that He did not commit Himself to them. They did not receive Him as Lord and Saviour; therefore they did not possess the divine life. They might follow on for a time and then do as those o f whom we read in John 6 :66—they went back and walked no more with Jesus. Yet they are referred to as disciples, those under discipline. The peculiar temptation to which these Hebrew be lievers were exposed was that of falling away from Christ and going back to Moses, departing from the substance and returning to the shadow. This was a temptation pecu liar to Jewish disciples. The Gentile had nothing to return to except his idols and the idolatrous practices o f pagan ism. but the Hebrew believer had something far more attractive in the Levitical system, with its temple, priest hood, and sacrifices. If, after leaving these and professing faith in Christ, he departed from Christ and went back to Judaism, he would “ crucify the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame.” It would be equivalent to say ing that Christ was not what He claimed to be, but a mere pretender who deserved the death o f the cross. Such a course as this would be the result o f a deliberate choice, after which there would be no renewing unto repentance. It was not a sin committed in weakness or on impluse, but a deliberate rejection of the one and only Saviour by a dis ciple who had professed faith in Christ but never possessed Him as “ the way, the truth, and the life.” The illustration in verses 7 and 8 confirms and war rants the conclusion that the words of verses 4 to 6 were addressed to professors who, being on the borderland be tween shadow and substance, might fall away by t u r n i n g again to that which is described in Galatians 4 :9 as the “ weak and beggarly elements” of Judaism. The illustration from nature does not refer to the amount of fruitage pro duced, but to the kind. “ Thorns and thistles,” applied to the realm o f spirit and morals, are the product of the old life, the natural man. They are not the fruit o f the Spirit in the regenerated soul, but the work o f the flesh, or the self-life (cf. Gal. 5:22-24). T h e , S trong C onsolation The writer turns from “ they,” who are only profes sors of faith, to "you,” who are the possessors of that sav ing quality. “ We are persuaded better things of you,” he writes, “ and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak.” Faith had energized the true believer as it al ways does, and love had manifested itself in ministering to the need o f God’s saints. Perhaps they had forgotten this, but God had not forgotten, neither would He do so. Having manifested faith and love, the apostle exhorts them to look forward in hope unto the end. In doing this, they would overcome the temptation to spiritual sloth, and, they would become followers of those “who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” The example of Abraham is now introduced. He met the test of faith and. received the crowning blessing from God. He was willing to lose his most precious possession rather than to doubt the promises o f God and distrust Him. He patiently endured, and the Lord made the promise im mutable by confirming it with an oath. I f God will do this for one of the heirs of promise, He will do it for all of them. The purpose o f the writer is to show that everything is sure to those who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before them.
At this point, hope becomes the dominant note. What we hope for is within the veil; that is, it is in heaven, whither Jesus has already entered as a forerunner. Com menting on this passage, Dr. Rotherham says: First, our hope is an asylum to which we have already fled; then it is an anchor by which we are still firmly to hold fast; and then, finally, it becomes personal and is embodied in a Forerunner who has gone before us, in our behalf, but whom, sooner or later, we are to follow, to be where He is already—else our Forerunner He would not be. The first transition involves a complete change o f figure, since an asylum and an anchor are distinct things. But the second transition is less abrupt. The “anchor” is transformed into a Person—into a Forerunner; but there is a bond o f con nection between the tw o; for an anchor enters within a veil—the veil o f water; and it is through a veil that our Forerunner, Jesus, has entered. The anchor is like Jesus. Jesus becomes an Anchor and our Forerunner as well. Or, to bring out in other words this delightful^ incongruity o f metaphor, which becomes such a spark ling irradiation o f blessed truth, we may say that the veil o f water hides the anchor and the firm rock in which the anchor holds, sug gests another veil—not of water; the veil between earth and heaven. Here the apostle brings the subject back to the High Priesthood o f Christ, which is going on within the veil, and which is not only perpetual but permanent, for He is “ a high priest forever.” Two Splendid Student Organizations T he group known as the King’s Daughters was organ ized four years ago at the Bible Institute of Los An geles. Its purpose is to create Christian fellowship among the students. All the girls living in the Institute dormitory are eligible for membership! The present en rollment is 140. Twice each year the girls spend a week end at a camp in the near-by foothills, where rest and spir itual refreshment are combined. Among the King’s Daugh ters, friendships are formed which last a lifetime, and prayer fellowship is fostered, the full result of which it will require eternity to disclose. The Student Missionary Union is another vital part of the school life o f the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It is a channel through which the accumulated knowledge and spiritual endowments of the students—both men and women—are directed toward the world’s neediest fields. It recognizes that the years spent in training will lose their highest value unless they produce in the life a condition of full yieldedness to God’s will. Meetings are held every Thursday evening. There is an active membership o f nearly 200 at the present time. Over seventy members are preparing for full-time foreign mis sionary service, and more than 120 have declared their will ingness to serve God in any field—at home or abroad— wherever He may indicate. Nine prayer bands meet regularly to pray definitely for the particular field in which the members are interested. There are three deputation teams which hold services whenever invitation is given. Last year, as a result o f this effort alone, there were over 200 decisions. Furthermore, the members o f the Union have found it a great joy to have part in helping to meet the financial needs of those who are now engaged in service on the field. From October to January, $385.00 has gone to ten former students, who have recently turned their faces to the for eign fields, and to seventeen evangelical missions. The student organizations are a good barometer o f the spiritual life of any Christian school. They record impar tially the depth o f the prayer life, the intensity o f love for Christ, and the extent o f devotion to the unfinished task o f foreign missions. At Biola, thank God, the record is highly encouraging.
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