tions as they prevail today. Because men have rejected the Word of God they are now struggling to find some faint whisper of His voice. They have decided that the Bible is simply a book of human documents with certain errors. So man has trapped himself between illogical leaps of faith and the total despair of his rational conclusions. Because of this God has judged him. The Lord uses His own sover eignty to establish His eternal pur poses. To divide the Red Sea He not only uses the rod of Moses but also sends an east wind to blow the waters back. To cure a man born blind He makes clay and annoints his eyelids. In redemption, instead of converting by an act of the supernatural He sends preach ers proclaiming salvation. Why, when He sends forth His Word, should He not cause it to enter first the understanding of the heart? He taught the writers of Scripture what to say in the very words they spoke. This is our marvelous leg acy through the Word which comes accurately from God. Think of our treasured inheritance: a supernat ural Helper, a supernatural life, a supernatural union and a super natural Teacher. PROMISE OF A SUPERNATURAL PEACE Scripture is careful to show us that the word "peace" never sim ply means the absence of trouble. It rather speaks of everything which makes for man's highest good. Most people do not understand the positive aspect of peace. The Indians of Ecuador and Bolivia de scribe peace as "to sit down in one's heart." Instead of running around in the constant anxieties of life, an individual is at rest within
who Jesus is or who he is. He is driftwood, helpless, without hope. He cannot find out any answers because there are divine sources which he has eliminated. So man is trapped. It is either the pessi mistic despair of his brain or the irrational, illogical hope of his heart. He either crucifies his brain or he crucifies his soul. And it is all because he refuses to believe in the absolute verbal inspiration and authority of the Scriptures." Eight centuries before Christ the northern kingdom of Israel was in a confident mood. True moral standards had reached bottom and people were badly treated. Upper class debauchery was a byword, ev en though there was a trade boom on. Money was flowing and society was affluent. Israel had a national faith so that attendance at worship was high. The nation was sure God was on their side. Into such a complacent com munity God dropped a bombshell. A farmer named Amos came storm ing into Samaria as a prophet of doom. He announced that soon the whole country would be enslaved and deported. First the streams of revelation were going to dry up. There would be a famine of hear ing the words of the Lord. As an act of judgment God brought the prophetic ministry to a halt. Those who refused to listen to the proph ets speaking God's Word would find no testimony whatsoever. Amos pictured the desperate scene of spiritual destitution which would result. There would be restless frantic souls wandering around lis tening to all that was being said, hoping to hear God's voice, yet all in vain. What a picture this is of condi
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