July 1927
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The Influentia l Christ ICTURE the workshop of a common carpenter . in a back street. Inside is a young man born in fa humble family, associating all His life with the common people and having no intercourse with scholarship and no access to books. This young man of His own accord sets out to stir the conscience of the town. He does not play the role of a popular hero. He has no axe to grind. This apparently uneducated peasant suddenly
George Lorimer said: “Christ in subsequent history is more marvelous than Christ in Galilee.” Who dares to say that He was just another man? Who will be so foolish as to think he can escape Jesus of Nazareth—that he can put Him aside as though He never existed ? ah? Iden tifica tion W ithou t Victory “Planted together in the likeness of His death—raised in the likeness of His resurrection.”
displays a spiritual knowledge beyond any thing ever known in the place. He speaks with authority. No one can corner Him in His talk. He makes tremendous claims as to His own person and work and, to climax it all, He reveals marvelous power to heal the sick. Very naturally the home folks were jealous and tried to explain Him away. They said He was mad; a blasphemer; demon possessed. So unanimously were they against Him that He did no mighty works in their midst and the town that saw most of Him was benefited the least. Yet there stood His matchless works and His unanswerable words! Later, in order to get rid of their problem, they killed Him, and He baffled them by rising from the dead. The problem of explaining away Christ is a still bigger one now for added to the resurrection is the fact that this same man has been steadily winning the world’s allegiance and after these 2000 years the workman of Nazareth is worshipped by millions as “Emmanuel, God with us,” He is the one central character of human his
“Reckon yourselves to be dead—but alive unto God through Jesus Christ.” Rom. 6 : 6 , 11. T HIS is the doctrine of “Identification,” so prominent in Paul’s Epistle. It has to do with the victorious life. But many devout people talk about being “dead with Christ” and rejoice in the “position in Christ,” or “identification with Christ,” who seem often to fall short of the fruit of the Spirit which the apprehension of this truth is supposed to produce. As one writes: “I have seen this truth for years, but it does not appear to make any difference in my life.” It is a great step in advance to really reckon on the efficacy of Christ’s death for a guilty past, and upon the power of His death and resurrection for a present vic tory. We are inclined to think that too many consider this merely from the posi tional standpoint and do not apprehend the truth in relation to the context. To make it simply an “attitude” may lead to spiritual pride, while at the same time no one is made aware of any real change in the life. We may well rejoice that He has won for us salvation from a death penalty and a new and wonderful life power, but we are
tory. Some would say His followers through the cen turies have all been mistaken, yet there stands the record of millions of lives transformed by believing in Him, millions who have died in triumph who would have gone out into the night of despair but for Him, What would the Nazareth folks have said if someone had told them that in 2000 years, all over the world, among the highest and most intelligent races, the name of their young carpenter citizen would be the world’s most influential name? Jesus seemed to have an utterly hopeless project before Him. He rallied but a few humble followers. He had no time and no forces for organizing a world system of religion. He left not a word in His own handwriting —just a bit of His spoken truth recorded by comrades of His own social standing. The story of that brief min istry, climaxed by His death and resurrection, is still the greatest uplifting power in the world. His words are the most widely circulated of any in the world. His name is high above all human names. In 1906 S. G. Ayres compiled the titles of 5000 books about Jesus Christ, written in the English language. It is claimed that 25,000 books have been written about Him.
indeed stopping short of victory until we see that this is made real in the life only by the operation of the Holy Spirit in conjunction with our apprehension of the truth. Paul immediately shows that the word “yield” is the big gest word in the Christian’s spiritual vocabulary (v. 13). Notice its repetition throughout the chapter. This proves that the real seat of sin is in the WILL, which makes the members of the body its instruments. Sin “reigns” just as long as the will goes with the solicitations to evil, although one may be well versed in the doctrine of identification. The Spirit reigns the moment the will says, “No” and presents the body “a living sacrifice” to Christ (12:1 -2). Not until then can the Holy Spirit take up one’s battle or cause any real transformation. The more we unload, the more He fills in. The more we reckon upon Him and yield to Him, the more ready the will becomes to permit God to “work in us to will and to do of His good pleasure.” The Parental Frown H IEF Justice William H. Waste, of the California Supreme Court, does not hesitate to say that there is a rising tide of' lawlessness among the youth of today and c
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