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THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
December, 1940
to be a good and true young woman, she was really an utter sham, and thgt now their worst suspicions were con firmed. For Mary, those months were months of exceptional difficulty. Even - Joseph, to. whom she was espoused, was ' broken in mind and heart until God spoke a word to him. We may think it was a strange path that Mary was permitted to travel, and . we may wonder why God did not in some way deliver her from embarrass ment, but therein is a deep secret: Nobody can reallyV be used of God to fulfill His purpose in his life until that pne has proved himself. ‘ Anybody, of course, can be engaged in Christian activity and be an officer in a Christian organization, counting his importance by the number’ of committees upon which he serves, but the fulfillment of the divine purpose is quite another matter. There are three inescapable qualifica tions for all who would know the divine purpose to be fulfilled through them. Immediately we submit to God for that, we shall find, experimentally that the curriculum will include a trial of patience, a willingness to forgive, and the power to endure unjust suffering without complaint. All these elements were present in Mary’s experience, and no doubt she visualized them before she consented to the angêFs commission. Preeminent, however, was the willing ness to endure unjust suffering and re proach. How little we understand this ! We attend a convention, hear the call of God, and respond. Then the test comes, and we prove ourselves utterly unable to sustain it. In England, some of our bridges have a red diamond-shaped symbol at either end.-Ht is a warning to those who would cross that the bridge cannot take any weight, but is limited. If, therefore, a lorry driver comes with a ten-ton wagon to a bridge .which cannot take more than five tons, he must make a , detour and, find another bridge that is strong.enough to bear the load. Some Christians have that diamond-shaped symbol against them, too. God has had to put a warning: “This believer, very energetic, cannot stand the strain of injustice1!” Hence when God would use us, He cannot, and He must needs find another. Is this the reason that you have not fulfilled the purpose God has for you? Is this the reason that you are put aside? And do you feel it to be an impossibility for you to be patient^ to suffer unjustly, to forgive in the spirit of Christ? Are you crying out, like « Mary, “How shall this be?” Then hear thé answer of that angelic voice: “The Holy Ghost.” The good news is that God is willing to do the impossible for you, even as He did for Mary. He is willing to carry out His purpose in you as He did in
Mary. To your cry of bewildered hesi tancy He answers: “The Holy Ghost.” Now He is waiting for your answer. Will it be, like Mary’s, “Be it unto me according to thy word” ? If as you come to the conclusion of this meditation, the call of God is coming to you ijr a new and deeeper way, then quietly bow be fore Him even now, and let the reply come,from the heart: “Be it unto mç, according to thy word.” You may lie sure that from the very.instant that you thus surrender with all your heart to the way and will of God, a secret work will begin within you, the work of the Holy Spirit. The divine nature and the divine purpose will be fulfilled in you to His glory and to infinite blessing to others. Th e P rince A woman in India had leafaed that she was ai sinner, and that God is holy and cannot pass by sin. She often said, ■ “I need some great prince to stand between my soul and God.” After a while, she heard that the Bible contained the account of a Saviour who had died for sinners. So she asked a Pundit to read the Bible to her. He be gan at the first chapter of Matthew, and as he read the list of names in the gen ealogy of Christ, the woman thought, “What a wonderful Prince this Jesus must be to have such a long line of an cestors!” And when the Pundit read, “Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins,” the woman exclaimed, “Ah, this is the Prince I want! This is the Prince I want!”—C. Hickman. ming, and Utah. Traveling with auto mobile and trailer, he and Mrs. White engaged in-highway Bible teaching, go ing to C. C. C. camps and to churches up and down the Pacific Coast, pre senting Bible conferences for needy con gregations. He often testified that this opportunity to preach the gospel to the “ unreached” was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. When one considers the several outstanding positions in which he formerly labored—as pastor, for thirty years in three"pastorates, as West Coast Regional Director for the Moody Bible Institute for seventeen years, and as *President of the Bible Institute of Los •Angeles—one realizes the signifi cance of this fervent evangelistic pas sion. Sympathy for Mrs. White, for the son, William C. White, and • for Miss Alma Beckley will be felt by many in all parts of the country who learn of the Home-going of this servant of His who “made a ptilpit of his circum stances” and sought to teach others the happy art of doing likewise. AROUND THE KING’ S TABLE [Continued, from Page 453]
Fu lfilling the D ivine P u rpose How shall the divine purpose be ful filled through me? How many of us who know something of divine grace have not yearned to know the vital answer to this question? The years are slipping by so rapidly, and so little seems to have been accomplished! What does God really want to do through me, and how shall it be done? The answer is at once simple and profound. The experience of Mary will make it clear. Prom the moment she accepted the divine commission, the Spirit began His work. But that did not mean that a life of ease was hers. It was not long before she was the subject of village conversation. There , were those who had believed in her and were profoundly disturbed in mind, not know ing what to think or how to act toward her. There would be others who would at once declare that they were not in the least surprised at the news that was current. They might say they had al ways thought such a thing would hap pen, for they had seen beneath the sur face and knew that, while Mary seemed
“ For u n to y o u is born . . . a S A V IO U R ” ILk. 2 : 11 ).
“ Look unto me, a n d be ye SA V E D , all the e n d s o f th e earth; for I am God, and there is none else’’ (Isa. 45 :22 ).
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