Message delivered at the Commencc- ment of the Bible Institute of Los An geles, June 10, 191,8.
By 0 . Kearnie Keegan, D.D.*
Thè God-taught preacher does not min imize any portion of God’s revelation. All is essential. Every Scripture is de signed to lead to regeneration or sancti fication, for the new birth or growth in grace and in knowledge. While some may think lightly concerning the New Testament church, God does not estab lish unimportant things. We must have convictions—not just opinions. Opinions are those ideas we hold, but convictions are those which hold us. We have the Word of God, the infallible revelation from our Heavenly Father, for our faith and practice. We are instructed to test the doctrines to see if they be of God. If Christ is not central and pivotal fn them, we had bet ter discard them. If they lead us to waste our time in unprofitable, self- glorying predictions and opinionated the ories, we had better abandon them. We would do well to major upon winning the lost to Christ and training those we win in the winning of othersi If we stay busy about the main mission of the Mas ter, we will not get lost in the mountain wilds while taking unnecessary excur sions in dim-marked paths. The God-Sent Are God-Called The ministry is not à profession; it is an obsession. The God-called person may run to the highest mountain or to the farthest islands of the sea, seeking to escape his God-given responsibility, but he will find he cannot get away from God’s call. Let us learn a lesson from Jonah. We are doing the work of Christ a great injustice when we go to our young
It does not follow from ordinary crea tion. It is not written, “ If creatures, then heirs.” Neither is it found in natural descent. It is not written, “ If children of Abra ham, then heirs.” Nor can it come from meritorious service, for it is not written, “ If serv ants, then heirs.” Nor is it by ceremonial observances. It is not written, “ If circumcised or bap tized, then heirs.” “ But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become thé sons of God.” If yoü do not know beyond a doubt that you are God’s purchased possession through the vicarious work of Christ on Calvary, all else is vain. This fact is foundational. The God-Sent Are God-Taught Too often in this modern age have we substituted tradition for “ thus saith the Lord.” We have majored in man made ritual to the exclusion of God- given revelation. The Lord Jesus de clared that He would send the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, who would teach us all things and bring all things to our remembrance. The God-taught preacher or Christian is well-rounded in his concept of God’s Word. He does not ride a hobby, but declares the whole counsel of God. A preacher who rides a hobby is like' one on a merry-go-round. The horse he rides is pretty; there is a lot of fanfare and noise, but when he has finished the ride, he hasn’t gone anywhere or done any good! - 1 .
“A fter these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and -place, whither he himself would come” (Luke 10:1). I N this perilous hour of the world’s history, it is imperative that we have Christian leaders with a sense of mission. When Jesus gathered His fol lowers about Him and selected seventy who had completed their course of train ing in His peripatetic school, He per sonally commissioned them to the task that lay before them. They were truly God-sent. However, I am fully persuaded that they were no more God-sent than you if the following things are true in your life. We may know that we are “come to the kingdom for such a tiihe as this” if the emphases of this message are the pivotal points in our lives. The God-Sent Are God-Bought Today we have many watered-down theories concerning salvation. There is little wonder that the forces of modern Christianity are' seemingly in retreat. We have too many enemies within the camp. The Word declares, “ The blood of < j esus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin” and that we are bought by His precious blood. We are “heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ . . . and if children, then heirs.” Charles Haddon Spurgeon clearly stated the grounds of our peculiar re lation to our God: * Pastor of the Temple Baptist Church, Los Angeles, California.
Scenes from, the thirty-eighth Commencement o f the Bible Institute o f Los Angeles, June 10, 191,8. On the left), the great auditorium o f the Church of the Open Door is seen, filled to its capacity of 4,800; on the right, is a view o f the famous missionary map of the world on which colored lights indicate the missionaries supported by the church, and the hundreds of graduates of the school in foreign lands, as well as the motto o f the class of *48 “ Order My Steps.’* S E P T E M B E R , 1 9 4 8 Page Seven
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