November 1928
676
T h e
K i n g ' s
B u s i n e s s
to discover whether or not there is reality in their profession. * * * Compare “Father of lights” (Jas. 1 :17) with “father of lies” (Jn. 8:44). , * * * When the Law was given, three thou sand were slain. When the Spirit was given, three thousand were saved. * * sje Dr, Morgan points out that the word “decease” in Lk. 9 :31 ("They spake of the decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem"') is the word exodus, meaning “a going out.” It was not sim ply His death that was referred to but His exodus into heaven as eternal High Priest. The word was one familiar to Moses w lS was with Him on the mount. *•------------------- :----------------- -------* POINTERS FOR PREACHERS ^ The only man who can convince others that the Bible is true is the one who knows in his own soul that it is. —o— Sympathy is something that cannot be learned at college. —o— The best way to preach Christ is to preach what He preached. r—o—■ The preacher who is always behind will soon have a congregation just like him. —o— About the most gldrious thing that can happen to any preacher is to have a hard time for Christ’s sake. —o— If .you want to lift your people very much, you must have hold of God’s hand when you make the effort. — o — If you try to get men to understand the Gospel, you will fail; but if you preach it with a heart on fire with love for their souls, you will succeed. — o — If your object is simply to deliver a lecture, course, win applause, and make money, elegant moral essays will do; but if you want to save souls and please your Master, they.won’t. — o — You can’t point to the cross 'with a frown oh your face. —o— If brains could have saved the world, the world would have been finished long ago. — 6 — T/'Of ;recent . years,” says The Life of Faith, “there' has been a terrible increase . of what is known as topical preaching, by which expression is meant the amateur discussion of various secular problems in the Christian pulpit. ' Against this method of preaching it should be enough to state that a preacher was riot commis sioned to express his opinion as tp cur rent events, but to declare the unsearch able riches of CHRIST.” 1
2. How can a dead man function? (a) Rom. 8 :5-13 answers both ques tions, Flesh—death; Spirit—-life. Note: This pertains to fruit. 1. The body being legally dead, every wire connecting us to world must be cut, Rom. 6:11; 8:12. 2. Every wire toward heaven must be connected, Rom. 6:4; Col. ,3:1, 2. (a) The same power that raised up Christ from the dead'gives ac tion to a body which is legally dead. (b) The contrast in power is simply measured by the contrast be tween God and man, and func tions just in the measure that all the wires of the world are cut '(Col. 3:2; 2 Tim. 2:4), and the life is completely yielded unto the Lord. III. Perfect Together in Glory, 1. If we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him, 2 Tim. 2:12; Rom. 8:17. (a) Ought not Christ to have suf- ered these things, and to enter into Hfs glory ? Luke 24 :26. 1. Leaving His glory in heaven (John 17:5), He crossed into the valley of death (the world). 2. The only way back was through death, and ■ in fulfillment of proph ecy, the death of the cross, Phil. 2 : 8 ; Psa. 22:1-18; Isa. 53:4, 5; John . 12:31, 32. 2. We know . . . we shall be like Him, 1 John 3 :2. (a) The same verse- tells us when. 1. Not only shall we be like Him in eternity, but- just in the measure that we make our crucifixion with Him real (Rom. 6:5; Gal. 5:24) we shall be, here and now, in the likeness of His resurrection. (a) Our power is unlimited, Phil. 4:13. (b) We go on from glory unto glory, 2 Cor. 3:18. (c) Perfect with Him, Eph. 4:13. —-A D. Ellington. *----------------------------------------------f B I B L E B R I E F S p ---------------------- |---------------------- *1 A young English clergyman who some years ago went carefully through the Bi ble to find out how many promises it con tained, found that there were eight short books that had no promises at all, but that in the whole Bible there were 4,939 promises. * * * Abundant Grace, (1 Tim. 1 :14)S-In Salvation. All-sufficient Grace (2 Cor. 12:9)B-In Suffering. Great Grace (Acts 4:35)SFor Service. Manifold Grace (1 Pet. 4:10)—For all need. * * * In a remarkable book by Dr. Halford E. Luccock,entitled“Preaching Values in New Testament,” he quotes Moffatt’s translation of Pilate, “I am innocent of this good man’s blood. It is your affair!” He says, “Four times in the trial of Jesus ’He was ‘handed over’ to someone else on the plea that He was their affair,”.
A missionary writing from Manchuria tells of seeing dis played by a Standard Oil depot away up there the ambitious slogan : “Get The Light to Every Dark Corner of thé World" Is there not in this a rebuke and challenge to the churches of Christ? The fact confronts us that throughout Asia and A f rica are 'found multitudes of towns and villages lighted with the kerosene oil,of the West, but without the light of the saving Gospel of Christ, .
“Who is he that will harm you if ye be followers of that which is good?” asks P e t e r P e t . 3:13);,. The word “harm” is the word used of Herod “vexing" Christians (Acts 12:1). Peter had learn ed inBps- endurance of persecutions that the persecutor had no real power to harm him. * * * The Talmud throws- interesting light on the words of John the Baptist, who said of Jesus , “whose shoe latchet I am not worthy ’to unloose.” Here is what we read in the Talmud :; “Every office a ser vant will •do for his master, a scholar should perform for his teacher, except loosing his sandal-thong.H John consid ered himself unworthy to do that which a Jew would not do, even."for his leader. * * * “Let him eschew evil” in 1 Pet. 3 :11 means literally : “Let him swerve out of the way of evil.” * * * “My son, despise not thou the chasten ing of the Lord” (Heb. 12:5). The word aligoreo means “to disesteem.” Do not regard lightly . (R. V.) the Lord’s disci pline. We welcome wealth, prosperity and popularity. Who can tell the loss we sustain because) we regard lightly the messengers of discipline fsB * * * In Heb. 13:8. the expressions have the force of a proverb; “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, yesterday and the day before , , yesterday and today, yesterday and tomorrow." He is the same omnipo tent Christ ;*before He came into the world, before. His passion, before His ascension, and today in heaven— always, the same. He is unchangeable and never dies. * * * In 1 Pet. 3 :l-2 Peter suggests that un saved husbands may be won to Christ without a word, through the chaste con duct of their Christian wives. Verse 2, which ■reads : “while- they behold your chaste conversation,” is rendered in one version : “while they keep an eye on you." Christian wives should remember that unsaved husbands “keep an eye on them”
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker