ten
October, IM I
T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
When God Would Do
Some Bigger Thing
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chards, no com in the fields, no sheep in the pen, nor cattle in the shed. But he cries: “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” We see it also' in the story of Job. He had lost everything, His home had gone; his health had gone; his friends were estranged from him; and his wife had become cynical. He was beset by the unfinished circumstance. It was as if his wife sneered, as he sat among the ashes, “Still holding to your loy alty? Curse God, though you die for it.” Turning to her he asked in effect, “Are we to take good from God’s hand, and not evil, too?” When his friend Bildad came along and mocked him, supposing he had sinned, Job replied that he knew of One who would champion him at the last. And when his friend Zophar re buked him for his self-righteousness, he said, “Hold your peace. . . . Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.” That is the spirit and that is the faith which relates our experiences not only to God’s commands, but also to God’s contradictions—God contradicting our experiences, contradicting our im pulses, contradicting our aims—but all through these unfinished circumstances teaching us His ways. It will fill our minds with peace and will put stability into our lives if after every unfinished circumstance we can say, " ‘Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us. . . . But if not,’ we will still trust Him.” Will we remember and believe that God’s faithfulness reaches unto the clouds? We may be expecting God to do some wonderful thing for us, to open some iron door, to remove something that threatens our peace, to give us souls for our hire, to pour down upon us showers of blessing. “But if not,” if the showers of blessing do not come, if the iron doors still remain closed, if we can see nothing but the trivial’ round and the common task, let us determine still to go on with God. Let us resolve that there shall be no deviation from our duty, whatever happens. If we do not get the sun shine, let us follow the gleam. If our dreams seem to be missing their ful fillment, let us take the next step. If we are conscious of repeated failure, let us not lower our aim. If the battle
seems to be going against us, let us not desert the colors. It. is with a spirit .and with a faith like this that God will do bigger things for us than ever we expected. D elivered in the Fire Just look at this old story of the three men in the fire. They expected that God would deliver them from the fire; but He did a bigger thing than that. He delivered them in it. Most of us want God to rescue us before the crisis comes; but He rarely does that. He rescues us from the other side of the crisis by means of which our character is beaten out and perfected. It is only in the fires of testing that our manhood is developed. Venture on the right, and leave the future with God. TO compromise with our ideal is to imperil something higher than we know. Faithfulness is always vindicated. No man who has ever tested the worth of righteousness has had cause to re gret his choice. He will tell you that truth lives in the furnace. These men expected that God would check the king’s hand. But He did a bigger thing than that. He changed the king’s heart. These men, passing through the furnace, brought to King Nebuchad nezzar the saving knowledge of the grace and poorer of God. You do not know who is looking at you when you are passing through that sorrow. You do not know whom you may be lifting nearer to heaven by a plucky, glad, and courageous acceptance of that grief as being in the will of God. I feel sure these men expected some loss if they were cast into that furnace. But what did they lose? They lost only their fetters. The fire did not hurt them; it only snapped their bonds. When persecution rages, God’s men are free as they have never been before. There was never a freer tongue than Luther’s; never a braver mouth - than that of John Knox; never a more cour ageous heart than that which throbbed in Wycliffe’s breast. The fire bums every fetter that would withhold us from the “good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” Again, these men expected that in some way God would vindicate their faith in Him. But God did a bigger thing than that. He revealed Himself in the fire with them. We know, of course, that He is never absent from us. We know we are shepherded day and night by His love. As it takes the
night to reveal the stars, so it takes the furnace to reveal the Lord. It was in the fire that God gave to these men an experience of His fellowship such as they had never known before. It is in the furnace that we experience the sweetest fellowship of our Lord and Saviour,Jesus Christ. Great as our ex pectations may be, they may 'not be great enough. God is going to do an infinitely bigger thing than we have ever dreamed, if only we will stand with Him whatever comes. God grant us this spirit and this faith in view of any disappointment that may await us, or any mystery that may cloud our pathway, in view of all that may stagger us as God’s greater thoughts are brought into conflict with our own. In every unfinished circum stance such spirit and faith always lead us to triumph in Christ. Let us trust Him to do some bigger thing for us. A LETTER W OR TH READING Zacatecas, Mexico, August 28, 1941. The King’s Business, A few days ago, some one from your office kindly sent me several copies of your magazine. I wish I could tell you what a blessing they have been to me personally and to our people. T h e y came at just a time when I was sorely tried and have brought great comfort to my heart. Then as I passed on their splendid and comforting and enlighten ing articles to our people, they have also brought to them great blessing. I wanted you to know what a help you have been to some of His little ones here in this part of His vineyard . . . We have a large field here in the north of Mexico . . . We stand as you do for the whole Bible and a holy life in God’s people . . . From a humble be ginning, with a few people gathered in a small room, God has given us a terri tory which covers three states in the north of Mexico and some fifty stations. Just as soon as I can, l ’ am going to subscribe for your paper, for we need it for our own benefit and inspiration and also to use for our people . . . Yours in His service, M------------ M------------ 558 South Hope Street, Los Angeles, California Dear Friends in Christ:
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