December 1928
735
T h e
K i n g ' s
B u s i n e s s
The Only Hope of the Future B y W. B ell D awso , n , M.A., D.S c ., F.R.S.C.
HEN we endeavor to see into the future, and especially if we ask in any comprehensive way what the future of the human race is likely to be, the answer given by present-day discussions and philosophies has very little in it that is at all reassuring. There is, how
only real advance is an approach to conditions in which mercy and truth meet together, and righteousness and peace become reconciled. Is A C r isis N e a r ? There is a feeling abroad that we are approaching a crisis in the affairs of men; and while we look ahead in our anxiety to perceive what the future may bring, we hear around us many voices. The Scientist counsels us to be hopeful, as we view the great advances that are being made in his domain; yet he can give little ground for con fidence. Sir Oliver Lodge puts the counsel thus: “Have faith in the rationality and goodness of the universe, and believe that what lies before you is full of hope and life.” This may sound well, but can we rely upon it? The Evo lutionist assumes that man, having risen from the animal level, has the future in his own hands, and must carve out his own destiny. If every human being would strive earnestly to improve himself and becpme more helpful to others, he would expect a perceptible advance within a few generations. But he sees no indication of such earnest and sustained striving; and, according to the most recent evidence, the Evolutionists have now become frankly pes simistic; and in regard to the future, they can only leave their followers to wander in mazes of uncertainty or despair. As we feel our way amongst these diverse views and indecisive discussions, we reach the conclusion that we must turn for light to an entirely different source. If we are to know anything with certainty regarding the future, it must come to us from God, by a revelation of what His plans and purposes are for humanity. If we believe in a Creator, it is surely reasonable to suppose that He has some plan, some objective, towards which He desires to guide the human race. The question therefore is : Can we know what the plan or purpose of God is; has He revealed this to us? The obvious answer is that we have such a revelation in the Scriptures which we call the Bible; and if this is doubted, one thing at least is absolutely certain and beyond dispute: that if it is not in the Bible, it is nowhere to be found. G od ’ s S u b lim e P urpose T owards H um an ity The Person of Christ is the focus in which all the promises of God meet, and the:center from which they radiate. We find accordingly at the beginning and end pf His life' on earth,* that, announcements are made by angels in regard to these two great outstanding promises pf God, which characterize the two halves of the Bible. A t the birth of Christ, angels announce the fulfillment of the expectation of the Old Testament, when they pro claim : “ Untoiyou is born this'day, a Saviour which is Christ the Lord.” Again at the close, when the Lord has just ascended to heaven, angels make this announcement to the apostles while they gaze upward: “This same Jesus ?which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.” These two announcements, both stated in the direct and simple language in which angels speak, bring out the two sides of God’s sublime purpose towards humanity;
ever, a manifest desire to face realities as they a re ; and no one now desires to live in a fool’s paradise, and to sup pose that all the troubles of this distracted world are sure to come right of themselves in the long run. At first sight, it might appear that the outlook of the Evolutionist is the most hopeful, for his teaching is that on the whole there is a gradual advance to better, things; and if we have patience for a few more generations, our descendants will find themselves in an improved world. Two very serious considerations arise in opposition to this view, however, when we attempt to apply it to human progress. Our increased knowledge of the early races of men, derived from modem investigations, has brought to light the high intelligence and culture in remote times. There has, therefore, been no steady advance, but one civ ilization after another has been overthrown and replaced for a time by semi-barbarism. The antiquarian is thus led to ask seriously: May not this happen again to our present civilization? For these ups and downs of the past show how little ground there is for hope of steady advance. W h a t I s O ur M oral A dvancem en t ? But the other consideration is still more definite; for it has become evident that all our inventions and the in creased comforts which they bring to modern life, have not led to a corresponding moral improvement. Any thoughtful person must realize that moral advancement, taking this in its broadest sense, is the true test of any progress that can be of lasting benefit. For example, if the object of education is merely to make everyone more capable, this increase in cleverness may be used for evil ends quite as readily as for any good purpose. This indeed may be taking place; for it is disconcerting to find that with the rise in the general level of intelligence, crime is on the increase. It is also recognized that the advance of science does not tend, in itself, to decrease the chances of war. All our boasted inventions seem only to make us increasingly uneasy as to what they may come to be used for. In the realm of industrial development, the social investigator sees this to be an unjust world, from the standpoint of economics, in which one man is valued at two or three dollars a day while another may draw his hundreds. As Dr. Stephen Leacock forcefully puts it, if the problem of distributing wealth fairly is not solved, the world will “blow up” ; and he recognizes that the blind forces of the industrial machine are getting beyond our control. If we went on to review the opinions of leaders of thought, amongst statesmen and investigators in the various political and social departments, it would only show how uncertain is their outlook and how apprehen sive they are. For it is clear that justice, righteousness and the keeping of promises, constitute the only founda tion for the stability of society or for world peace. The
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