No. 7
VOL. IX
JULY, 1918
The King’s Business
“The Street Called Straight” Published once a month by the BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U. S. A.
BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES (INCORPORATED) LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U. S. A.
Free Training School for Christian Workers
| . ' . . - ' | Lyman Stewart, president. J. M. Irvine, secretary. T. G. Horton, superintendent. H. A. Getz
DIRECTORS
,R. A. Torrey, vice-president. Leon V. Shaw, treasurer. William Evans.
Nathan Newby
J. O. Smith
DOCTRINAL STATEMENT We hold to the Historic Faith of the Church as expressed in the Common Creed of Evangelical Christendom and including: The Trinity of the Godhead! The Deity of the Christ.
The Maintenance of Good Works. The Second Coming of Christ. The Immortality of the Spirit. The Resurrection of the Body. The Life Everlasting o f Believers. The Endless Punishment of the Im penitent. The Reality and Personality of Satan.
The Personality of the Holy Ghost. The Supernatural and Plenary au thority of the Holy Scriptures. The Unity in Diversity of the Church, the Body and Bride of Christ. .The Substitutionary Atonement. The Necessity of the New Birth.
SCOPE ÒF THE WORK
P t im n c o • The Institute trains, free ™ * of cost, accredited men and women, in the knowledge and use of the Bible. Departments: except on Saturdays and Sundays. ; (2 ) Extension work. Classes and conferences held in neighboring cities and towns. (3 ) Evangelistic* Meetings conducted by ourevangelists. (4 ) Spanish Mission. Meetings every night. (5 ) Shop Work. Regular services in shops and factories. (6 ) Jewish Evangelism. Personal work among the Hebrews.
(7 ) Bible Women. House-to-house visitation and neighborhood classes. (8 ) Oil Fields. A mission to men on the oil Helds. ^ (9 ) Books and Tracts. Sale and dis tribution of selected books and tracts. (10) Harbor Work. For seamen at Los Angeles harbor. (11) The Biola Club. Daily noon meetings for men in the down-town district, with free reading-room privi lege». (12) Print Shop. For printing Testa ments, books, tracts, etc. A complete establishment, profits going to free dis tribution of religious literature.
TDa@ E mei
MOTTO: " I the Lord do keep it, I will water it every moment lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day."—Isa. 27:3 Published by BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES, Incorporated Entered as Second-Class Matter November 17, 1910, at the postoffice at Los Angeles, Cal., under the Act o£ March 3, 1879. Copyright by R. A. Torrey, D. D., and Bible Institute of Los Angeles, for the year 1918 _ VOL. IX JULY, 1918 N o .J CONTENTS Editorial: G od ’ s Word for the Present Hour— Still Further Development of the Work of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles— The President’ s Call to the Nation for a Day of Humiliation, Prayer and Fasting— The Assassin of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand Dies but the War Goes on— The Pope as a Mediator— The Attitude of the Papacy in the War— How a Soldier Feels in Battle— The Outrageous Blasphemy of the Movies— There Are Others—-When the War Will End— Wants to Help Your Boys— Resignation of Managing Editor— Evan gelistic Department ............................................................ The Missionary’ s Message. By Dr. R. A. Torrey.................... Friday Evening Bible Class. (Picture).................................... Evangelist Nicholson ..........................................-........................ Homiletical Helps. By William Evans..................................... Puzzling Passages and Problems. By R. A. Torrey................ Through the Bible with Dr. Evans.............................................. Book Reviews........................................................... -..................... Evangelistic Department. By Bible Institute Workers.......... International Sunday School Lessons. By Institute Specialists Daily Devotional Studies in the New Testament for Indi vidual Meditation and Family Worship. By R. A. Torrey ................................................... -...........................— 545 553 560 561 562 565 567 572 5 74 583 616
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E VERY Young Man and every young Woman whose life is consecrated to the Master’s service, should be able to Open the Scriptures to others. Here is A FREE DAY SCHOOL and A FREE NIGHT SCHOOL at your service. At a trifling cost, the same results may be attained through the C O R R E S P O N D E N C E S C H O O L
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R. A. TORREY, D. D., Editor T. C. HORTON, J. H. HUNTER, W ILLIAM EVANS, D. D., Associate Editors A. M. ROW, Managing Editor
Voi. 9
JULY, 1918
No. 7
E D I T O R I A L
/" 'O D ’S WORD FOR THE PRESENT HOUR.
“ For our fathers have trespassed, and done, that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD our God,- and have forsaken Him, and have turned away their faces from the habitation of the LORD, and turned their backs . . . . Wherefore the wrath of the LORD was upon Judah and,Jerusalem, and He hath delivered them to trouble, to astonish ment, and to hissing, as you see with your eyes,” 2 Chron. 29 :6, 8. “ And be ye not like your fathers, and like your brethren, which tres passed against the LORD God of their fathers, who therefore gave them up to desolation, as ye see. Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the LORD, and enter into His sanctuary, which He hath sanctified for ever: and-serve the LORD your God; 'that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you. For if ye turn again unto the LORD, your brethren and your Children shall find compassion before them that lead them captive, so that they shall Come again into this land: for the LORD your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away His face from you, if ye return unto Him,” 2 Chron. 30:7-9. “ Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me,” Ps. 50:15. t “ If God be for us, who can be against us?” Rom. 8:31. In recent numbers we have spoken of the proposed enlargement of the work of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. We have long desired to provide here the most thorough, systematic course of training in Sunday School Methods and Teaching to be had anywhere in the world. Rev. John H. Hunter, who has had very large experience in this work in Chicago in connection with the International Sunday School Association, has given much time to the work here, but his many other duties have prevented his developing the course as he would have liked. The Dean of the Institute, in connection with Mr. Hunter, have been looking for several years for the right man to put in this place in the Institute curriculum. We believe we have found him in Rev. Henry Albert Dowling, D. D., and we have secured him for the place and he has already begun his work, but will enlarge it with the beginning of the new school year, September 25. Dr. Dowling was born at Marietta, Ohio, December 5, 1856. He attended S TILL FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF THE WORK OF THE BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES.
546 THE KING’S BUSINESS the Grammar School at Marietta and began teaching while yet in his, teens. Later he completed the Preparatory Department in Marietta College, then went to Otterbein University, and still later took a course in the Bonebrake Theological Seminary at Dayton, Ohio. Both the Otterbein University and Bonebrake Theological Seminary are institutions under the care of the United Brethren Church. Dr. Dowling received the degree of Doctor of Divinity from Otterbein University in June, 1911, in recognition of his specialization in Organized Sunday School Work. At the General Con ference held in Decatur, Illinois, in 1913, he was elected General Secretary of Sunday School Work for the denomination. After much consideration he decided that he ought to decline this invitation, as he was so strongly urged to remain in the work of the International Sunday School Associa tion. He was converted at the age of 17, and became a Superintendent at the age o f 19. He served as Pastor in the East Ohio Conference, United Brethren Church, for twenty years, but for the past seventeen years has been connected with the Organized Work, having served as General Sec retary in Detroit, Michigan, and in the State work in Ohio, Arkansas and Southern California. He was Dean of the “ School of Principles and Meth ods,” in connection with the “Long Beach Assembly and Bible Conference,” for four years. He has specialized in Organization, Teacher Training, and Bible School Pedagogy for a number of years. He has a very unusual familiarity with every phase of Modern Bible School activity, and is familiar with the last word in technique and educational methods and Sunday School work. He is the author of a number of leaflets that are in very general use. His experience in Institutes tod Conferences in connection with World, International, State, County, and District Association, has- brought him in touch with practically all the great leaders in this, his chosen field of Chris tian work. The Institute counts itself happy in having secured his services. On the second day of April the United States Senate passed a reso lution which was concurred in by the House of Representatives, to recom mend a day of public humiliation, prayer and fasting. For some weeks President Wilson was silent as to his purposes regarding this request. Many wondered why he did not act upon the suggestion o f ' the Congress of the United States, and in many places prayers were being offered that President Wilson be led to appoint such a day as Congress had suggested. Some were disposed to criticise him for not doing so, but many others had that confidence in the President that led them to think he would act in due time, and he has acted. On the eleventh day of May the President issued the following proclamation: By the President of the United States— A Proclamation Whereas, the Congress o f the United States on the second day o f April, last, passed the following resolution: Resolved by the Senate (the House o f Representatives concurring) that, it being a duty peculiarly incumbent in a time o f war humbly and devoutly to acknowledge our dependence on Almighty God and to implore His aid and protection, the President o f the United States be,-and he is hereby, respectfully requested to recommend a day o f public humiliation, prayer and fasting, to be observed by the people of the United States nPHE PRESIDENT’S CALL TO THE NATION FOR A DAY 1 OF HUMILIATION, PRAYER AND FASTING.
THE KING’S BUSINESS 547 with religious solemnity and the offering of fervent supplications to Almighty God for the safety and welfare o f our cause, His blessings on our arms and a speedy restoration o f an honorable and lasting peace to the nations o f the earth: And, whereas, it has always been the reverent habit o f the people of ‘the United States to turn in humble appeal to Almighty God for His guidance in the affairs o f their common life; , Now, therefore, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States o f America, do hereby proclaim Thursday,'the Thirtieth Day o f May, a day already freighted with sacred and stimulating memories, a day of public humiliation, prayer and fasting, and do exhort my fellow-citizens o f all faiths and creeds to assemble on that day in their several places o f worship, and there, as well as in their homes, to pray Almighty (God that He may forgive our sins and short-comings as a people and purify our hearts to see and Jove the truth, to accept and defend all things that are just and right, and to purpose only those righteous acts and judgments which are in conformity with His will, beseeching Him that He will give victory to our armies as they fight for freedom, wisdom to those who take counsel on our behalf in these days o f dark struggle and perplexity, and steadfastness to our people to make sacrifice to the utmost support o f what is just and true, bringing us at last the peace in which men’s hearts can be at rest because it is founded upon mercy, justice and good will. . . . : U In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal o f the United States to be affixed. ' Done in the District o f Columbia this eleventh day of May in the year o f our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and Eighteen, and o f the Independence o f the United States the One Hundred and Forty-second. WOODROW WILSON . By the President. ROBERT LANSING, Secretary o f State. The heart of every Christian in America, and every intelligent Ameri can should rejoice that the President has been led to take this action, and it is to be hoped that this day will be observed throughout the United States. If it is observed as it should be, and if the people who pray meet the con ditions of prevailing prayer, this day will prove the turning point in the war. T he a s sa s sin o f th e a r c h d u k e f r an c is F e r d in an d dies BUT THE WAR GOES ON. The immediate pretext on the part of Austria and Germany for the political combinations and the unwarranted demands on Serbia and the military mobilization that fed to the war, was the assassination of the Arch duke Francis Ferdinand, heir apparent to the Austro-Hungarian throne by Gavrio Prinzip on June 28, 1914. Of course all know now that this was simply a pretext. It has been proven on no less authority than that of a German Ambassador to England, and by others, that the war was determined on beforehand on the part of Germany, and that Germany just used this as a pretext and urged Austria on against their own judgment and desire, to make demands that were absolutely unwarranted. Nevertheless, it is interesting to know that Gavrio Prinzip, the assassin, died on May 1st of tuberculosis in a fortress near Prague, but the war is going on with more intense fury than ever. T he p o p e a s a m e d ia t o r . An article appeared in the press of the country May 1st saying* “ Pope Benedict intends to issue a new peace offer on Whitsunday,%May 19th, Cologne newspapers announce. The document, it is said, will be of more pressing nature than formerly and will contain concrete offers of
5.48 THE KING’S BUSINESS mediation by the Pope with the possible co-operation of neutral sovereigris, Similar information of the Pope’s intention, it is said, has reached Berlin, where it has been received sympathetically.” We do not wonder that it was received sympathetically in Berlin. To propose Pope Benedict as a mediator in the present conflict is about as reasonable as to propose the Kaiser as a mediator. He would be just about as fit a mediator as the Kaiser, and no more fit. As we have indicated in another editorial, it is plain as day that his sympathies are all with the Kaiser. His suggested proposal was received so unfavorably that later infor mation from Rome indicatèd that he had never had any intention of making any such proposal. Those' who wish to see the triumph of the right in the present world conflict would do well to keep their eyes on the Pope as well as on the Kaiser. Something is constantly arising to show how the papacy, as a system, blindly favors the Central Powers, and is antagonistic to the Entente Allies. In the Province of Quebec the priests have been very largely back of the opposition to conscription to the army of the Allies. Cases have not been unknown before conscription was passed, where the priests quite openly dis couraged the Roman Catholics from enlisting, and have suggested to them that it was well to let the Protestant farmers go, and then they would get their farms. In some localities' some have thought this was almost a settled policy. In the recent opposition to the conscription in Ireland the Roman Catholic authorities, priests and higher ecclesiastics have formally, in a regular ecclesi astical gathering, made public announcement of their determination to resist the draft. No protest against this was made by the Pope or the Papal Court, but on the other hand, when the Archbishop of Carniola placed himself at the head of the revolutionary movement in a part of Austria-Hungary he was instantly taken to task by the Pope. In a despatch by Reuter’s Limited of May 1st it was said: “ It has been learned from Serbian sources that unmistakable signs of an approaching revolution in Austria-Hungary are becoming,daily more evident. .A plebiscite is being held among the Serbs, Croats and Stovenes in favor of their union with Serbia and Montenegro in one national independent' state under the scepter of King Peter ,of Serbia. Thé prime archbishop of Carniola is at the head o f the movement. Demonstrations of a very serious character are taking place in the Jugo-Slav provinces. Now comes news that at the request of the Austrian government, and with the sanction of the Pope, the nuncio at Vienna has opened a disciplinary inquiry against the archbishop of Carniola for placing himself at the head of this revolutionary movement. Great developments are expected,” Why didn’t the Pope institute a disciplinary inquiry into the action of the Roman Catholic prelates and priests in Ireland for putting then .selves at the head of the anti-Ally conscription movement in Ireland? Simply because the latter was in favor of the Allies, whereas the action of the archbishop of Carniola was against the interests of the Kaiser. It is well known that the Sinn-Fein revolution that Germany stirred up in Ireland, and that did So much to hamper the British army, was largely manipulated by Roman Catholic rTHE ATTITUDE OF THE PAPACY IN THE WAR.
THE KING’S BUSINESS 549 priests and professors, but we have never heard of any censure from Rome. The Pope’s notorious peace proposal was clearly of German origin. On the other hand, the Pope has never raised his voice in any clear and ringing way against the appalling atrocities of the Kaiser and his minions, even when visited upon faithful Roman Catholic subjects. Cardinal Merrier, who has proven himself a true shepherd of his people in the outrages to which they have been subjected, has‘ had no hearty support from Rome. The papacy has been one of the most dangerous enemies that the cause of the Allies has had. A very large share of the Roman Catholics in America, both priests and people, have been loyal, but the influence of the papacy as a whole in other lands has been altogether bad and sinister. And not a few of our Irish Roman Catholics in America, in their bitter hatred of England, have done what they could to foster a revolution in Ireland that has been inspired by Germany. TTOW A SOLDIER FEELS IN BATTLE. “ The following is a letter written by a soldier, whose name we omit, to a dearly beloved friend of- the editor, William Bradley, who is doing a won derful work among the soldiers in Egypt. This letter was written some time ago. The censor scratched out the names of places, and the place from which the letter was sent: I I am afraid that my report this month must be a personal one rather than a general report, for the greater part o f the time I have not seen nor heard from the dear lads to whom I have thé honor to minister. The great thing to which our thoughts turn, is the fierce battle at —------ and those o f us who came out alive, look back and marvel at the mighty protecting power o f God. The narrow escapes we had, the near presence of God in the midst o f terrific shell fire, abundantly prove the truth o f the Psalmist’s statement “ The Lord is my strength and fortress.” I do not know how my dear comrades fared in the battle, but one thing is abundantly clear—they feared death little, but feared God -much. A little before my own Battalion went into action, and just at the time when the noise o f the fight was' terrible in intensity—four o’clock on the Monday afternoon—Bro. Rowe came up to me and said “ Praise God, Yea, though I walk through the valley of the Shadow of Death, I will fear no evil, for THOU art with me.” When Bro. Went approached, he too exhibited a wonderful faith—“A thousand shall fall by thy side,’’ he said, “and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall NOT come nigh thee.” This was the last word I had from either o f them. I have had none other since, but I know that this faith is the real thing—the faith which endears men to God and which would, should they be called upon to make the great sacrifice, ensure for them, through ,Jesus Christ, a much higher promotion. At twenty minutes past five, Tuesday morning, I had the narrowest escape from death that ever man had. I heard a shell coming and threw myself into a hole hard by. The shell burst just over the hole and killed and wounded my surrounding com rades. Only a few o f us, six in number, reached the trenches, only to receive a terrible baptism o f shell fire, Lying flat at the bottom o f the trench, covered with dirt by the bursting shells, gasping for breath, the end did not seem far away, when God spoke to. me, “ I will never leave thee nor forsake thee” and I knew I would be safe from then. Now this experience is no exaggeration—I honestly felt God’s presencé. Oh, that any one who knows not Christ, chancing to read this, would accept Him and prove Him to be all that is said o f Him. The promise o f God was graciously fulfilled, for later during the fight, one, bullet tore a hole in my tunic, another shot away one o f my tunic top buttons, and a third hit my equipment at the back and glanced off the brass buckle. The Lord had placed a shield round about me. Another incident I must record, clearly establishes the love Christian men have one for another. During the shell fire previously mentioned one o f the six men had curiously enough carried in dear Horace Wake o f the 4th, who had been wounded
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THE KING’S BUSINESS in the face during the night. The dear lad did not worry much about his own wound, but repeatedly asked if I were safe. When some hours later I was told o f his affection ate anxiety for my safety, I thanked God for the blessed “tie which binds our hearts in Christian love.” May God richly bless our dear brother. Now I fear. I must draw to a close, but one .word more to all the brethren—i» “ Lift up your head and rejoice for your redemption draweth nigh.” It is not only a word o f encouragement,, but a COMMAND. In the midst o f terrible dangers must- we lift up our heads? Yes; God’s way for His people to acquire strength is to become faint, and then to receive His strength. His way for them to become rich is by scat tering all they have. Trust mightily, brethren, in God, and He SHALL deliver you. B e 'o f good courage, lift up your head “ for the Lord God Omnipotent Reigneth.” I extend my , heartfelt sympathy to Brothers Wake and Went. May God be near to them in their- hours of pain and heal their wounds. My thanks to Mr. Bradley and Padre .Morris for their welcome visitations, and with hearty Christian love to you and all the household o f faith. The theatre has been for many years one of the most destructive forces morally in society, but the American stage has never ventured upon the daring indecencies and the outrageous blasphemies that characterize the Movies throughout the land. There is nothing too vile for them to present on the stage, and nothing too sacred for them to attempt to pollute. The dif ferent movie organization^ are vieing with one another to see which can sur pass the other in daring or in blasphemy. In The American Lutheran Survey in the issue for April 4th, the following protest was made against the so-called biblical plays : “A certain minister lay dying. -His friends tried to comfort him with the' most precious passages o f Scripture, but in vain. ‘All these,’ said he, ‘I have used in jests and puns.’ An so, though perhaps not deprived of salvation, he was deprived o f its consolations in his dying hour. Similar judgment will fall upon all who have allowed their ungodly curiosity to lead them to enjoy ‘the much heralded morality ‘play,’ ‘The Wanderer,’ now creeping its slimy way through the theaters of America. It illustrates the impudence of the Devil and his underlings, for it lays unhallowed hands on the sweetest parable o f all, the story of the Prodigal Son. True, ‘the biblical narrative has been so changed and adapted to stage purposes that only in part does it accord with the biblical narrative.’ But what o f that? (Rev. 22:19). Just judgment will fall upon those who have been, the guilty spectators. They will henceforth, to the end o f their days, be unable to listen to the reading of that consolatory gospel story without memory dragging out all the profane embellishments and lustful realism of the play. We do not hesitate, in the interest o f souls that need a place for repentance, to' denounce as diabolical and as an attack on Christ and His Word and the plan o f salvation by grace this ‘biblical play’ and the whole satanic spawn o f biblical plays. The playwrights would better, in biblical phrase, cut off their right hands before writing such rubbish, and the spectators pluck out their right, eyes before gazing upon it. W e can easily imagine the Saviour’s applying to our American cities that ‘pack1 the theaters where such stuff is staged the fierce denunciation he applied to Chorazin, Bethsaida, and his own city Capernaum. When will ‘Christians’ cease to allow themselves.to": be seduced by Satan and his breed?” i ' The movies are rotten root and branch, and- the sooner Christian people absolutely refuse to have anything to do with them the better. 'T'HE OUTRAGEOUS BLASPHEMY OF THE MOVIES.
COHERE ARE OTHERS. ■
We are thoroughly in sympathy with all efforts to promote the well being of our soldiers at home and abroad, their physical Well-being as well as their spiritual interests, but we should always bear in ,mind- that “ there are others,” , and in our devotion to this, glorious work among our soldiers
THE KING’S BUSINESS 551 we should not neglect our duties to our home church, and our duties to the community in which we live, and above all, our very solemn obligation to those who are perishing in the darkness of heathenism. This has-been well expressed in a leaflet that has recently been sqnt out by Mr. R. D. Smith, Secretary- Treasurer, of The Bible House of Los Angeles: “ There is a strong tendency among Christians in these days to abandon the regular work of the church at home and abroad in behalf of the present particular service of ministering to the soldiers and sailors of the various nations. That these men are in great need is certain and that the serious mind edness of those at the front futnishes a special opportunity to lead many of them,to Christ is beyond disputing. But to our mind this does not give warrant to what is going on, namely, a mass movement, both in giving and serving, in their direction at the expense of overwhelming and ever existing needs in other directions. Besides, we fear that if much of the effort in behalf of the soldiers and sailors, were analyzed it would be found to be more patriotic than religious. The spectacular is ever attractive and it is easy to become enthusiastic over what appeals, to the imagination. At the same time the common-plac6 and the prosaic may constitute a greater need and demand a more constant sacrifice. We commend any and all true spiritual work being done for soldiers and Sailors to our friends, not because they are militants but simply because they are men in need of salvation. But we also commend to them the suffering and rapidly dying hundreds of millions of the human race who live in the regions beyond, whose spiritual need is beyond all describ ing and for whom fewr are caring.” We were asked yesterday, as we have been asked so often before, when we thought the war was going to end. We do not know. A while ago, while in Phbenix, Ariz., a Phoenix paper published the following poem from a Lieutenant in the army, who had gone forth from Phoenix to the war, in which he undertakes to answer the question. We think his statement is a suggestion of the accuracy and reliability of much of the knowledge we have regarding many things connected with the war, as well as to the time of its end. We never felt less like becoming a prophet as to dates than at the present time. While we do not know when the war is going to end, or when the Lord is coming, we do know our Lord is coming' some day and then there will be an end to this war and of all war. “ Absolute knowledge I have none, But my aunt’s washerwoman’s sister’s son W HEN THE WAR WILL END.
Heard a policeman on the beat Say to a laborer on the street That he had a letter just last week Written in the finest Greek From a Chinese coolie in Timbuctoo Who said the negroes in Cuba knew Of a colored man in a Texas town
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THE KING’S BUSINESS Who got it straight from a circus clown That a man in the Klondyke heard the news From a lot di South American Jews About somebody in Borneo Who heard a man who claimed to know O f a swell female society fake Whose mother-in-law would undertake To prove that her husband’s sister’s niece Had stated in a printed piece That she had a son who had a friend Who knows when the war is going to end.”
T1I7'ANTS TO HELP YOUR BOYS.
Rev. Thomas G. Koontz, D. D., with whom we are intimately acquainted, desires parents who have sons in camp at Anniston, Ala., to send their names to him that he may be interested in them and help them in their life.
DESIGNATION OF MANAGING EDITOR.
Mr. A. M. Row, who has been managing 'editor of T he K ing ’ s B usiness for the past three years, has tendered his resignation, this being the last number to be issued under his management.
■pVANGELISTIC DEPARTMENT.
Do you read each month the reports o f our evangelistic workers, under the above head? There is inspiration here for every man and woman who is interested in the saving of souls, and it would be unfortunate for any reader of T he K ings B usiness to fail to have the help that will come to them from this source. Many of these incidents can be used by you in your Sunday School teaching, in personal work, and in conducting meetings.
The Missionary^ M 8 s s a . f i
By Br„ H. A * Torrey 2 B®ass ©2 ISAM« Institute ©S ¡L©s Angeles
Note. —Address delivered' by Dr. Torrey to the Student Volunteers of Southern California, in the Auditorium of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, Sunday, May 5, 1918, at 11 o’clock a. m. - i HAVE been requested ;to speak on the subject |o f The: Missionary’s Message. I have two texts in which our Lord Jesus Himself sets forth, the Missionary’s ' . Message, >.and these, two texts; contain the
lives were lovely and attractive in many ways, but who did not have the right message; and, however attractive their lives were, as messengers o f God„ as mis sionaries o f Jesus Christ, they were a total failure. To put it in another way, a mis sionary is an ambassador, the ambassador o f Jesus Christ to mem An ambassador’s business is to represent his king or gov ernment, to urge the views o f his king or government upon the people to whom he is accredited. The important thing with an ambassador as with a messenger, is his message. His conduct is important only as honoring the king and gaining credence for and giving weight, to his message. Both the messenger and the ambassador must get their message from their king; The messenger is a bearer o f a message not the author o f it. The messenger or ambassa dor has no right to^ substitute his own notions for the message with which he has been entrusted, I f an ambassador or a messenger should venture to substitute his own ideas and notions for the. message with which he had been entrusted by his king whom he represented, he would be re called and severely punished. Adas! many a missionary has substituted his own spec ulations for the message with which his King has entrusted him, and unless he repents, his King will set him aside and punish him, instead o f commending and rewardnig him.
substance o f a ll'I have to say. The first is Mark 16:15, “ And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.” The second is Matt. 28:18-20, “ And Jesus, came unto them, and spake unto them, saying, all authority hath been given unto me in heaven and upon earth, go ye, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I com manded y ou : and lo, I am with you alway, even- unto the end o f the world.” I. The Importance of the Message. The missionary is a messenger, a mes senger o f God to men. The important thing with a messenger is his message. His life is important as emphasizing his mes sage and as gaining credence for his mes sage; but the message, for. which his. life is to gain credence and which he is to illustrate in his life, is the thing o f first importance. I f the messenger does not bear the right message, he is an utter fail ure as a messenger, no matter how beauti ful, noble and self-sacrificing his life may be. There have been missionaries whose
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THE KING’S BUSINESS
II. What Is the Missionary’s Message? W e come then directly to the question, What is the Missionary’s Message? What is the message with which the Lord Jesus has entrusted His messengers and ambas sadors ? In regard to that we are not left to our own speculations or guesses. The texts which I gave at the beginning tell us very plainly and unmistakably just what is the message o f the Messenger or Ambassador o f Jesus Christ: “And He, said unto them, Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). “And Jesus came to them, and spake unto them, saying, all authority hath been given unto me in heaven and upon earth. Go ye therefore, and maké disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and o f the Son and of the Holy Ghost : teàching them to observé all things whatsoever I commanded you : and lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world” (Matt. 28:18-20). It is very evident from these two passages which contain our Lord’s parting statement of the message that He would have His messen gers carry to the ends o f the earth, that the missionary’s message is “the Gospel,” the exact and full Gospel. He said to His disciples, His first missionaries, ' on this occasion, one o f the most solemn in all this world’s history : “ Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature,” and as Matthew records it, He added: “ Teaching them to observe all things what soever I commanded you : and lo, I ’am with you aiway, fevqn unto the end o f the age.” This makes it plain that it was not merely the Gospel that was to be their message, but the full Gospel. That brings us to the question, What is the Gospel ? We \are not left to speculate about that either, God Himself has defined the Gos pel. “ Gospel” means, as you all know, “ Good News.” What is the Good News that- the Lord Jesus bade’ His disciples to go and preach to every creature, and that He bids the modern missionary, either at home or abroad, to preach to everyone to whom he has opportunity to preach? ’ The
greatest missionary in all the history of the church, the Apostle Paul, under the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit, has answered that question and defined “ T h e G ospel ." He says in 1 Cor. 1-4, “ Now I make known to you, brethren, the ■Gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye received, wherein also ye stand . . . . for I delivered unto you first o f all that which also I received, how that Christ died fo r our sins according to the scriptures; and that He was buried ; and that He hath been raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” This is God’s own definition of thè Gospel. 1. We see then that the first part o f the Good News is that “ Christ died fo r our sins.” That is the first part o f the mis sionary’s message, the message that Jesus Christ commanded the missionary to take to all lands, the atoning death o f Jesus Christ. Any man who is not preaching and iterating and re-iterating the atoning death o f Jesus Christ is untrue to his God-given commission. He is not a true missionary o f Jesus Christ. T h e’ Holy Spirit through this same Apostle Paul, the greatest missionary in the history o f the church, has developed this part of the Gos pel again and again in his epistles. For example. Paul says in his. epistle to the Galatians (Gal. 3:10-13), “ for as many as are o f the works of thé law are under the curse, for it is written, cursed is èveryone who. continueth not in all things that are written in the book o f the law to do them. .' . . Christ redeemed us from the curse ó f the law, having become a curse for us: For it is written, cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree.” He says again in 2 Cor. 5 :21, a letter written to another community where he ha'd worked as a foreign missionary,- “Him who knew no sin He made to; be sin on our behalf; that we might become the right eousness o f God in Him.” Hé says again, writing to the church at Ephesus, where he had also been a foreign missionary for more than two years, in one o f the most successful missionary enterprises, not only O f his life, but o f all history,-iii Eph. 1:7:
555 message than that? I wish I could say no; but not a few missionaries at home and abroad are bringing a message that at least lays very little emphasis on the blood, and often ignores the blood, and some even positively renounce and oppose the doc trine o f the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ as the ground, -the only ground, upon which God forgives our sins. 2. But while the fact that “ Christ died for our sins” and purchased our redemp tion by His own atoning blood, is part of the missionary’s message, it is not all o f it. The second fact in the missionary’s mes sage is that Jesus Christ “ hath been raised on the third day according to the scrip tures r” (1 Cor. 15:4). While the atoning death, the atoning blood, is a central part o f the missionary’s message, it is not all o f the missionary’s message. The mis sionary must also declare and emphasize the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the fact of the actual resurrection from the dead of His body that was crucified. Indeed, it was the resurrection o f Christ from the dead upon which the first missionaries constantly rang the changes. Peter on the day of Pentecost makes his whole message cen ter in that fact. He sums up all that he said before in these words, “Who seeing this before, spake o f the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus did God raise up,, whereof we are witnesses,” (Acts 2:31, 32), and then he makes the practical application : of these words : “Let all the - house o f Israel therefore (i. e. because Jesus. Christ had been raised from the dead) know assuredly, that God hath made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified.” So With every., other sermon that Peter preached, he made the center o f it the actual, literal resurrection o f Jesus Christ from the dead. For example, he sums up his wonderful Sermon in the house, o f Cor nelius with these words, “Him (Jesus)' God raised up thé third day, and gave Him to be made manifest, not to all people, but unto witnesses that were chosen before of God, THE KING’S BUSINESS “W e have our redemption through His blood, the forgiveness o f our trespasses, according to the riches o f His grace.” Here again and again we find the same thought, as the central thought of his mis sionary message, the thought o f Christ dying for our sins, and the “ Good News” that forgiveness is given to us on the ground o f the shed blood o f Christ. The first part then, o f the missionary’s mes sage as given by God Himself, is the doc trine o f substitution, o f atonement by the shed blood of Jesus Christ, the doctrine that the Lord Jesus Christ bore every one o f our sins in His own body on the cross, and that He by the shedding o f His blood made a perfect atonement for our sins and that any men of any nation may obtain for giveness o f sin simply on the ground that Jesus shed His blood and thus made atone ment and on the single condition that they believe in Him who shed the blood. Any missionary who does not make the doc trine of the substitutionary atonement of Jestis Christ an integral and central part, and a continually appearing part, of his message, is not true to his commission and should be recalled and will be punished by God, whether he is by his ecclesiastical superiors or not. Any Gospel that leaves out the. atoning blood is something sub stituted fo r the one and only Gospel God has commissioned the missionary to declare. And the one who' Substitutes another Gospel for God’s Gospel brings a curse apd a punishment instead o f a bless ing and a reward upon his own -head. About this;the Bible is unmistakable in its teaching. The Apostle Paul Says in Gal. 1 :8, “ Though I, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto, you any Gos pel other than that which we preached unto you (viz., the Gospel that Christ died for our sins and Secured redemption for us on the ground o f His shed blood and on that ground .alone), let him be anathema. As we have, said before, so say I now again, if any man preacheth unto you any Gospel other than that which ye received, le.t him be anathema” (Gal, 1:8, 9). And does any missionary ever' bring any other 556 THE KING’S BUSINESS Him after H e rose from the dead" (Acts 10:40, 41), and then he makes the practi cal application o f this great “ Good News” that God raised Jesus from the dead in these wordsj “And He charged us to preach unto the people, and to testify that this is He which is ordained o f God to be the Judge o f the quick and dead. To Him bear all the prophets witness, that through His name everyone that believeth on Him shall receive remission o f sins.” In a sim ilar way the Apostle Paul in his 'great sermon on Mars Hill, to the Stoic and Epi curean philosophers, after having prepared the way by quotations from the Greek poets and in other ways, comes to the heart of his message in these words, “God now com- mandeth all men everywhere to repent: because He hath appointed a day in which He will judge the world in rightoeusness, by that man whom He hath ordained, whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead." Study every' other sermon of Paul or o f Peter as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, and you will find that the heart o f every missionary message along with the doctrine o f the atoning blood, was the doctrine that God had raised Jesus Christ from the dead. The resurrection of Jesus Christ should occupy the same cent ral and dominant place in the missionary’s message today that it did with the early missionaries o f the cross. It is an inte gral' part o f the Gospel and any missionary who is preaching the atoning blood but omits to preach and emphasize the resur rection o f Jesus Christ is untrue to his commission and is not preaching the full Gospel that God has commanded the mis sionary to preach. But the resurrection o f Jesus Christ involves .other things that grow out o f it as an essential part o f the missionary’s message. It involves the absolute. Deity o f our Lord; for the resurrection o f Jesus Christ from the dead was God Almighty’s stamp o f endorsement on Jesus Christ’s claim to equality with the Father. Jesus Christ had said while here on earth, “I and the Father are one” (John 1Q:30). He had said, “All men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father” (John 5:23). He had even gone so far as to say that He was so absolutely one. with God that he that had seen Him had seen the Father (John 14:9). These were tre mendous claims to make. The ecclesiasti cal leaders o f the day disallowed these claims of Jesus Christ, they had Him cru cified for making these claims. Jesus Christ': had told them that God would set the stamp o f His endorsement upon these claims by raising Him from thé dead, and this God did. So the absolute Deity of Jesus Christ is an- essential part o f the missionary’s message and any missionary who is preaching any Saviour less than an absolutely Divine Saviour, is not preaching the true Gospel, the Gospel that the Lord Jesus Christ has commanded him to preach. The resurrection o f Jesus Christ also demands that we believe that Jesus Christ was a teacher sent from God, who spoke the very words o f God. This also was Jesus Christ’s claim. He said in John 7:16, “My teaching is not mine, but His that sent me.” He said, as recorded in John 12:49, “ The Father which hath sent me, He hath given me commandment, what I should say and what I should speak.” And He said in John 14:24, “The word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me.” God set the stamp o f His endorsement upon this claim by raising Jesus Christ from the dead. Therefore the missionary must declare, the Divine Origin and Absolute Inerrancy o f Every Utter ance o f Christ. This involves the accept ance o f the entire Old Testament as the Word o f God, for Jesus Christ endorses it as such, and this leaves the destructive critic without any standing as a missionary o f Jesus Christ, Any missionary who does not accept the entire Bible as the Word of God, or who does not proclaim it as the Word o f God, is untrue to his commission and is not a true missionary o f Jesus Christ, however excellent he may bè in his character and however kind he may be in his intentions. But the resurrection o f Jesus Christ involves another thing, that is THE KING’ S BUSINESS 557 3. But as glad and glorious and full as these glad tidings are, eveh this does not constitute the full Gospel. The' Apostle Paul, not only preached a Christ who died for men’s sins, who became sin for us that we might' become the righteousness of God in Him, a Saviour who made per fect atonement for sin, and through whom we may have pardon for. all our sins by simply believing in Him, and a Saviour who rose again and is now living to make intercession for us and who can and will give us daily victory over sin if we only trust in H im : H e preached furthermore the “ Glad Tidings'’ that this same Saviour some day is coming back again and that glad news is a part o f the missionary’s message. The Apostle Paul says in Phil. 3 :20, 21, writing to a church where he had done wonderful missionary work under, very difficult circumstances, “Our citizenship is in heaven; from whence also we wait for a Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall fashion anew the body o f our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of His glory, according to: •the working whereby He is able even to subject all things unto Hmiself.” That this was a very important and constantly emphasized part o f the Gospel that Paul preached, is evident from his epistle to the Thessaloni- ans. This was the first inspired epistle that he ever wrote, or at least the first epistle o f which we have any record. It was to a church where he had been a missionary and where he had preached the Gospel “ not in word only: but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance” (1 Thess. 1:5). And the epistle is addressed to young converts; but in every one o f the five short chapters in that epistle is a ref erence to the Second Coming o f Christ and it is evident from that epistle and from the Second Epistle to the same church, that the Second Coming o f Christ had been an important and prominent part o f Paul’s missionary message to the people o f Thes- salonica. Not only so, but he also com mands the young converts in Thessalonica to emphasize this truth in comforting one another in their afflictions. Paul says in a very essential part o f the Gospel which the missionary is to preach, and that is not only do we have Christ for us on the cross through whom we ■, have perfect atonement for our sins, but we also have Christ for us at the right had o f God as an everlasting intercessor, and One who has all power in heaven and on earth and Who therefore has power to give' us vic tory over sin in all its manifestations every day o f our life. It is a part o f the mis sionary’s message to preach a risen Saviour who has all authority in heaven and on earth (as one o f our texts puts it) and w h o, therefore' can, as a .Saviour living today with “all power,” come into our lives and take the weakest o f us ahd make possible for us a life o f daily victory. “Good News” o f a risen Christ for us at the right hand of the Father involves the Good News of a Christ dwelling “ in us, the hope o f glory.” And the missionary in his message should not only point men in all lands to Christ on the cross through whom they may have pardon, .but to Christ on the throne who is ready to come down and dwell in their hearts and make over thdir lives into the likeness o f His own. This is a message that men and women in the darkness of heathenism sorely need today. The two great problems that confront lost men and. women in the heathen world today are, first; how to get pardon for the sins already committed, and second, how to get deliver ance from the power o f sin. These prob lems are fully solved in the missionary’s message, in the Gospel, the Gospel of Christ. The problem o f how to get par don for sin is solved in “the Good News” o f the atoning blood, the problem o f how to get victory over sin in daily life is solved by “the Good News” o f a Living, Risen Christ who is ready to come into our hearts and lives and give us victory, and Who is able t o , come and dwell in our hearts and take possession o f our lives and make them over into the likeness o f His own life. This is the message that the world is longing for today, and for lack o f knowledge o f which, the world is per ishing today. 558 THE KING’S BUSINESS to be with Himself forever in conscious and eternal blessedness. Whatever you may say or leave unsaid, never forget that you must say this. This is your message. If you do not declare it in its fullness, you will be an unfaithful, and disobedient messenger o f Jesus Christ and He will set you aside and you will be punished for your infidelity rather than rewarded for your - fidelity. Conclusion: This is the one message for all mission ary lands. The ways o f presenting this message may vary according to the dif fering conditions among the people to whom we go, but in whatever way we vary the method o f presenting the message, this message we must present. The mistake has been often made o f thinking that before w£ present this Gospel message we must prepare the people for it. This is not qnly contrary to the practice of the apos tles, but to the best experience o f modern missionaries. Paul and Peter always began with this message as soon as they cbuld get a hearing and kept ringing the changes on this message. I once visited one o f the best known missionary colleges in India. It was under, thoroughly Christian aus pices, thoroughly orthodox auspices, but I was told it was not expected that, we should preach, the Gospel to the students there, that they thought that was not wise. What they were trying to do, they said, was to prepare a class of men to receive the Gospel. I found that the college had been going on for many years educating the men, even training them in the Bible, but definitely avoiding the direct presen tation o f the Gospel; and above all, avoid ing any attempt to bring the students to an acceptance and public confession o f Jesus Christ. The practical result, as I learned by inquiry, was that they had turned out one generation o f students after another to know the Bible in a theoretical sort of a way, and that consequently some o f the most dangerous opponents o f the Gospel in India had gone* out from that college, having been trained to know the Bible but the 4th chapter of that epistle, “ I would not have you *to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died, and rose again, even them also which sleep in Jesus, will God bring with Him. For this we say unto you by the word o f the Lord, that we which are alive, and are left unto the coming o f the Lord, shall in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the-voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: so shall we ever be with the Lord. Where fore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thess. 4:13-18). Here then is the most specific command that they use this part o f the Gospel in comforting those that were in sorrow, the doctrine, or the “glad tid ings,” that the Lord Jesus Christ was com ing back personally to this world. It is evident that this glad news, just as good news as the news that He died for our sins, and just as good as the news that He rose again and ever liveth to make inter cession for us and to give us victory over sin, that our Lord Jesus is coming again personally and visibly, is an essential part o f the Gospel, The Missionary’s Message. To sum it all up, the Missionary’s Mes sage is that Christ died for our sins, a per fect atonement' for all the sins o f every man who will trust in Him; that Jesus Christ rose, again and is thereby accredited as a messenger sent from God Who spoke the very words o f God, as the Son o f God in an altogether unique sense, in whom dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bod ily, and who lives to make intercession for us and who can come into our hearts and make His’ dwelling place there and shape our lives in conformity with His own; and that some day He is coming back again to this world to judge the world, to raise the dead, and take those who believe in Him
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