199
B u s i n e s s
May 1932
T h e
K i n g ’ s
(Srum LfromTHE K IN G ’S TABLE . . . By T he E ditor
IE
It is well to get the habit of seeing great things in little ones; of seeing the molding hand of God in the dewdrop as well as in the infinite constellations which seem to crowd the infinity of space. “ The very hairs of your head are all numbered,” and as for so-called small things, “ take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones.” Look for great meanings; see in the dust the possibility of children being raised up unto Abraham; see in the temple stones possible voices of praise, if the natural worshipers shpuld suddenly become dumb; and see in . every rock, not stone only, but an unhewn stairway up to the Jeru salem which is lighted by the Lamb. . “Whom the Lord Loveth He Chasteneth” TT s r a e l f e l l into fretfulness and whining and dissatis- faction and rebellion. What did God do? He sent Amalek. It is no use to reason with peevishness. It is time wasted to try to expostulate with any man who is in a whining mood of soul, displeased because of his friend, discontented because of the scarcity of water. What must be done? An enemy must be raised up to smite him with the sword. What we need today is persecution; the church does not need more eloquence. We do not need some new invention in theological confectionary that shall tempt appetites that have been surfeited; we need persecution— the enemy at the gate. Then we should begin to forgive one another, to pray for one another, to come more closely together, and more near in that consent of soul Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee.
God
Is Here
u m a n n e c e s s it ie s and divine grace always meet in sweet concept. The Christian should have no fear in his life. We know-that there is a rock immediately ahead of us, but God can melt it into a river. We know that there is a Red Sea just in front of us, but God can divide it and let us pass as through an iron gate. We are aware that Jordan’s water is rolling just a few paces ahead, and we may have to go so near it as to touch it; but the moment our feet of faith splash in the waters of danger, the waters must give way, for faith can never fail. In the great encounters of life, either the spiritual or the material must give way, and God has never been stopped by that which is material and physical. God is never represented as being worsted or baffled by any of the material which is built up into the house which we call the universe. “ If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” Our power is not a power of gen ius, but an almightiness o f belief. Nature is always equal to our physical necessities; God has put everything in a nature which that other nature, called “ human,” requires for its bodily sustentation. All food is in the earth. All medicine is in the garden.- All healing is in the air which is blowing around us like a divine benediction. The water is sometimes kept in the rock, and the bread is sometimes locked up in the cloud and allowed to drop down upon us like very small coriander seeds which we gather with
which is blessed with insight into spiritual mysteries. We have lost in losing the enemy. The sting o f the Smithfield fire would correct a lot of our theology. The old gibbet would take the fretfulness out of our tone. The great earthquake rocking our cities would make us forget our ani mosities and unite us in bolder inter cession. This is the meaning of com mercial depression, of mercantile losses, of great and small afflictions in the family. This is the meaning of all the gloom, cloud, battle, and contest. We have been too peevish, wandering, discontented. We have been in need of knowing the true tragedy of life, and of being whip ped out of our peddling criticism, out of our mean and contemptible conceptions of God and His universe. The Bible Institute has needed the chastening hand of God. God has supplied this need generously! We needed the pride whipped out o f us. We boasted about our great ness, our beautiful building, etc., but it would be better far to lose every
wonder, and eat with an inquiry, say ing, “What is it?” All help is near, if we but understand it— “ there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; he it is.” The unknown is sitting next to you. The tree you need for the cure of the bitter pool is bending over the very water that needs to be healed. We realize the nearness of food, the nearness of those elements which are essential to the upbuilding and maturity of our lower nature. Why do we not realize the fiearness of the redeeming God—- the immediate presence of Him who says, “ Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in.” In all other things, we glory in the nearness of the remedy, in the close proximity of what we need, yet when we come into spirit ual inquiries, the soul says, “ Why standest thou afar off, O God ?” And the inquiry is rebuked by the infi nitely tender gospel: “ I am a God near at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off.”
Be Still B y A lice E. S herwood 0 fainting heart o f mine, be still, and let thy terror cease, In glad submission to the Father’s will, rest thou in peace, The tempest raging on the storm- tossed sea, brings needless fear, For thou art safe within the ark, and Christ, the Lord, is near. No pretty bird within , its cosy nest, more sure than thou, That care, protection, tenderness, the morning will endow. In calm security it rests beneath its mother’s wings, And trusting, u n a f r a i d , s e r e n e , throughout the storm, it sings. A deeper peace, 0 heart of mine, a tranquil, sweet repose, The peace o f God that Christ who ruled Lake Galilee bestows. The One who calms the mighty seas and rides upon the wave, Is with thee now, all-powerful, to comfort and to save.
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