He who was rich revolted at becoming poor. He who was so proud could not bear the thought of being dependent upon others for his daily food. The whole path of the Christian was repugnant to this man. Sorrow filled his heart at the thought. If he had accepted the Saviour’s offer; then his family would have been unhappy. Those who had been living in luxury would become penniless. Those who had been honored would be despised. Sometimes sorrow comes with His com ing. His C oming B rings D ecision M a t t . 12:30 Many things enter into the salvation of the soul. The principal thing is the place that Jesus Christ is to have in the life and the affections of the convert. Certainly it is not enough merely to be lieve about some of the actions and deeds of the Saviour. That will never trans form the life or satisfy the Saviour’s heart. Salvation entails the acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Lord of the life and the Sovereign of the soul. It means to leave the world and to enter into Christian circles with an utter abandon ment to the Saviour. It means that the heart severs itself from all others to be long only to the glorified Man of Cal vary. He demands the life, the body, and all the person for His own individual self. The decision must be made as to whether this is the path one wants to take.
Himself have complete charge of all po litical and religious activity. Now His place and authority and power are de nied Him by both civil and religious leaders. Some day He will sit upon His own throne as the great High Priest, controlling every spiritual matter, and as the King of kings and Lord of lords to control every life. No wonder angels sang when He was born. No wonder the shepherds rejoiced because He had come. treasures while the other prefers to pay for earthly bounties. The saved are in love with Christ while the unsaved see no beauty in Him but see instead great attraction in those things which are at enmity with God, so the sword comes into the home and there is a division of aim and purpose. If either one insists upon his chosen course, there is bitter ness and strife. 1 ..................Sirs W r o E A ’’".............1 Rev. Carlton C. Buck HI Idea 1. Plan well in advance to |j HI do something special for the shut- || HI in members of your church during || HI the Christmas season, such as || HI taking them gifts, singing carols jjj HI to them, etc. Supply the visiting || HI teams with Gospel tracts that they || II! may leave the Good News of the j[j |j Christ of Christmas with all upon || HI whom they call. || HI Idea 2. If you have a children’s jjj HI home in your city or county, || HI make arrangements for your young || |j[ people’s group to put on a Christ- || III mas party for the children. || HI Idea 3. How about having the j| III members of your group write an jjj HI original Christmas play, and then || HI produce it during the Christmas || jjj season? Your pastor or sponsor jjj HI will be glad to help you. || HI Idea 4. Challenge each member jjj III of your group to bring at least one || HI other young person to a Sunday || III morning worship service during jjj HI the month of December. A special || HI effort should be made to interest || jjj those who do not attend church jjj HI anywhere else. Everything possible || HI should be done to try to win them || jjj to Christ. jjj His C oming B rings S orrow M att . 19:22 The coming of Christ into a life com mands and demands great decisions. The Lordship of Christ brooks no competi tion, no rivalry. He must be Lord of all or He is not Lord at all. He must be Sovereign of the soul and of the life and have no hindrances and nothing to pre vent His supremacy. This, of course, brings sorrow into the hearts of many. The young man mentioned in this Scrip ture passage could not bear the thought of laying aside his place of honor and nobility to follow this itinerant preacher.
S upremacy op H is C oming Z ech . 6:13 This wonderful Lord was foretold as the One who was to be the King polit ically and the High Priest religiously. No one is as high as He. No one is as great as He. One day He will rule and reign over all the kingdoms on this earth. One day He will depose the usurper in Rome, the pope. He will de pose all other religious rulers and will W HEN Jesus comes, the song begins. Mary sang a wonderful anthem about His coming. The angels rejoiced and the heavenly host worshiped while Simeon praised his God in the temple. Christ is the subject of the songs of heaven as they are recorded in the Book of Revelation. The hpsts of heaven sing about Him arid to Him. His presence disperses the doubts and dispels the clouds that hover over sinful hearts. When Christ Jesus comes, hearts are inade to sing and the sunshine of heaven floods the soul. The heathen have no real songs. Christians sing the carols of heaven from radiant spirits because the Lord Jesus has taken away all the bur dens and blotted out all the sins. When Jesus comes, the mountains of difficulty disappear, the impassable rivers are forded, the difficulties are dissolved, and the burden of the heart is lifted. His C oming B rings P eace M icah 5 :5 Not only does the Old Testament af firm that Christ Jesus brings peace, but the New Testament also asserts the same precious truth in Ephesians 2:14. In each instance, Christ Himself is the peace. It is His presence that calms the storm and rests the soul. David’s fears of the dark valley of death were dis persed by the thought of the presence of his wonderful Lord. Paul could sing in prison because he was conscious of the nearness of the Saviour. Peter- could sleep in prison in the confidence that the omnipotent arms of the risen Christ were protecting him. Stephen could die under a barrage of stones with a radiant spirit resting in the resurrected Jesus. In every instance the presence of the living Lord brings peace; to troubled hearts. His presence is salvation. His C oming B rings a S word M att . 10:34 Christ brings peace to the heart that receives and enthrones Him. However, it is not often „that all one’s relatives and friends agree that Christ should be Lord of all. The husband may receive the Saviour and be filled with the peace of God, while the wife may refuse to trust the Redeemer and therefore take an opposite path. Usually there is en mity between the saved and the lost. One traverses the narrow path upward; the other traverses the broad path down ward. One wishes to invest in heavenly N O V E M B E R , 1 9 4 7
December 21, 1947 "GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST" L u k e 2:1-14
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