God Himself calls a halt to the whole matter. During this time, the preaching of the gospel will continue in spite of the barriers and in spite of hardships. Men and women will be born again and will know -the peace of God’s protecting hand in the midst of a world of unrest. Then, at God’s own time, the earth will once more know the tread of the feet of the One whose Name is the Prince of Peace. Then, and not until then, will peace actually come to this earth. Can we hasten that day? Can the church of Jesus Christ so serve as to shorten the time? Yes, by follow ing implicitly the command of Christ, which is not to endeavor to bring about peace by worldly means and carnal weapons, but to continue faithfully to proclaim the God-given and God-empowered message of sal vation for lost humanity through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. May God give us heavenly wisdom to be faithful to our world-wide vision and task, and do the will of our Heavenly Father for this present day. ★ Juvenile Delinquency TT is evident that at last our coun- ■*- try has become exercised over the problem of juvenile delinquency. Various solutions are being offered, many of them with real merit. Wom en’s clubs and men’s organizations have taken up the problem, and it is gratifying to see that to some extent there has been a recession in the numbers of young people in trouble. We want to go on record as approv ing anything which will afford op portunity for constructive living and right thinking among our young people. However, it has always seemed to us that juvenile delinquency was an effect, and not a cause in itself. It is a symptom rather than a disease. It is the result of a very grave spirit ual disorder. That disorder is the wrong kind of home environment. One msty talk as he likes about the repressive influence of the stern and rigorous Puritan home, but there is no argument against the fact that such homes produced children of principle and backbone, which formed the virile strata of our na tional life. If we could have in America today the influence of the early American home, there is no doubt that the problem of juvenile delinquency would almost disappear. Now what constitutes the right kind of a home?. Let us remember first that the home is God’s own in stitution, and that God understands our frame, and remembers that we possess a sinful nature. Therefore, in His wisdom, He has seen fit to JUNE, 1947
establish the home on the clear principle of certain punishment for broken laws. It is part of His plan that obedience should be exacted from children, and - that the best method to bring about such obedi ence is by a liberal use of the rod. Furthermore, God has planned that no child should grow up without clearly understanding the place of the Creator in the universe and in the lives of men and women. The means of bringing about these re sults in the home are the reading of the Word of God and the observ ance of prayer. What is the conclusion of the whole matter? It is simply this: Good homes produce good citizens, and good homes are only possible on the basis laid down in the Scrip tures. When men and women seri ously attempt to rear their children in the fear of God, and follow His precepts, they will find coming to their aid both supernatural strength and wisdom which God has promised to supply. ★ Profitable Summer TN these days of liberal theology and lax thinking among multi tudes of Christian people, there has risen a splendid movement in the Summer Bible Conference. All over our land are delightful vacation spots dedicated to the purpose of providing a vacation refreshing both to spirit and body. This coming summer, the Bible In stitute of Los Angeles is sponsoring a Bible Conference at beautiful Mount Hermon, deep in the heart of the redwood country of Central California. Mount Hermon, for the past forty years, has been a favorite vacation spot for thousands of God’s children. An excellent program has been arranged with outstanding Bible teachers including Dr. Louis T. Tal bot, Dr. William Evans, Dr. Vernon McGee and Dr. Harry Rimmer. Music will be in charge of Dr. Herbert To- vey. Dates of the Conference are from August 24 to September 1, in clusive. Inquiries regarding accommoda tions should be directed to the Busi ness Manager, Mount Hermon Con ference Association, Mount Hermon, California. All other inquiries should be sent to the Conference Director, Dr. William Orr, 558 South Hope street, Los Angeles 13, California. ★ Startling Figures HTHE unchurched masses of the world are increasing at the rate of six million more per year than all the additions to all the churches. This is to say that from 1890 to 1935,
the heathen population of the world made a gain of 270 million over all the increases in the combined churches for that period. Surely here is cause for a heart searching of Christendom to find the answer to this desperate problem. For far too long, the Christians have been content to “hire” a pastor, not only to fulfill Certain spiritual obligations, but to do their Christian work for them as well. The result has been the slowing down to a snail’s pace the all-important task of winning one’s fellow man to Christ by personal contact on the part of the average layman. We need to pray that God will give us a lay-revival that again the rank and file of the church will take up the Saviour’s commission to win men one by one to Him. Certainly there will be no appreciable impres sion made upon the heathen world in its darkness by the select group of the “clergy.” ★ The Divorce Evil rpODAY’S statistics indicate the like- lihood that one out of every three marriages will end in divorce; that one out of five will not last one year; that more than half will not survive the first five years. These figures are furnished by Judge Edwin A. Robson, of the Superior Court of Cook County, Illinois, who has made a careful survey of the divorce cases which have come be fore him. Judge Robson states further: “I have discussed the religious features with my litigants who have appeared before me, and I have found that only a very small percentage of per sons who seek divorce attend church with any degree of regularity.” There is no doubt but that this great evil, which is the fountainhead of a score of other wrongs, is due basically to a lack of the fear of God. The only cure for it is a religious revival—a return to the moral stand ards based upon the gospel—which existed in our country a century ago. If we put back in the churches the old-fashioned mourners’ bench, if we place the Word of God in our homes, if we give the Lord Jesus Christ His rightful place in our own personal lives, there will be no divorce prob lem in our country. Since divorce is the failure of mar riage, and the failure of marriage is but the result of spiritual breakdown in the lives of married people, the only cure for the divorce evil is for each one involved to get right with God. There is far too much indiffer ence on the part of Christians to this great problem which is ruining the home life of our country. Page Five
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