heart. The Bible gives us the true pic ture and discloses the cause of man’s trouble (Rom. 1:18-23; 3:9-20; Eph. 2:1-3). Study these Scriptures carefully. But when God’s truth comes to a man and he believes the message of salva tion through Christ, he is immediately liberated from his guilt and becomes a clean man in the sight of God (Rom. 3:21-31; 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 2:16). In the next place, the truth about Christ frees a man from the power of sin. God has worked out a perfect scheme of salvation. He takes care not only of our guilt but also of our inability to do His will and please Him. Many a Christian has received Christ as his Saviour without recognizing, at first, that He must also receive Him as Lord. This was the great Apostle’s mis take for a time (Rom. 7:7-25). But Paul soon learned that victory as well as salvation comes through Christ (Rom. 7:25a). Study Romans 6-8 in this con nection. Note that in these three chap ters the Holy Spirit gives the believer instruction in the overcoming life. The Means of Spiritual Freedom It is really a wonderful thing to be a free man spiritually. Every born- again believer knows this to be true. The question may come, How can a man be set free from the guilt and power of sin? Again, the Bible has the answer. Jesus said, “ Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). What is the truth? The truth is the Word of God. The Bible gives man the truth about God, about man, and about every important problem facing man— his origin, his purpose, and his destiny. Make a list of the great truths we would never know were it not for the Bible. Notice that our Lord said “Ye shall know the truth.” The word know does not mean a mere assent to the truth; it means an acceptance of the truth, a surrender to it and, a determination to obey it. Are these things true of you? The Preservation of Spiritual Freedom The Apostle says “ Stand fast there fore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free” (Gal. 5 :1). Here is the only way to maintain your spirit ual freedom which is yours in Christ. Standing fast implies resistance to every attempt to rob us of our free dom. The devil would love to rob us of our spiritual freedom; he would' like to enslave us again in our sin, or in some false religious system that tells us we must earn our own salvation. Standing fast indicates a frank ac knowledgment that Christ has done all that is necessary to give us spiritual freedom. Paul urges believers to stand fast in the liberty “wherewith Christ has made us free.” Our liberty does not depend on anything we do or can do, but on what Christ has done. He has set every believer free. Our part is to rejoice in this liberty, to thank Christ
lives of those who hear and heed. Acts 16:6-10 is the record of the Apostle Paul’s hearing and answering the call of Europe for the gospel. Because he heeded this invitation, you and I today are believers instead of pagans. Let a Christian never say that he does not believe in missions. Missions gave us the gospel! The world needs men who know the Lord. There is true and lasting help for the multitudes of the world only through the gospel. Marshall plans, and “ Care” packages, and the efforts of world or ganizations through the UNO are all good, but all are only supplementary to the message of Christ. When we have ministered to a man’s body, we have ministered only temporary relief; but when we minister the gospel, we have ministered eternal relief. The world needs men who are aware of the worlds real need. Paul knew that all men needed Christ. For this reason he was willing to answer the Mace donian call. Let the church today realize afresh that the world is doomed with out Christ, and let God’s people put forth every effort to send out the gospel. Nov. 16, 1952 RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN AMERICA John 8:31, 32; Gal. 5:1-6 Religious liberty is one of the im portant blessings of the American way of life. We who live in this country ought to thank God daily for the privi lege of worshiping Him in the way we think is right. We ought, also, to value this privilege and do all in our power to defend it and maintain it against all who would rob us of it. American young people would do well to study books on Church History to see what dire consequences attend every effort at religious coercion. The freedom to which the Scriptures of our lesson refer is not so much na tional or international religious freedom in the physical sense, hut of spiritual freedom of the individual soul which is by far the most important. The Need for Spiritual Freedom John 8:31,32 In this text our Lord Jesus Christ makes reference, to the liberating power of the gospel. It is the Good News of the gospel which sets free the soul. Someone may ask, From what is the soul liberated? In the first place, the truth of the gospel sets a man free from the guilt of his sin. Every man, woman, boy and girl in the world is a guilty soul. He is guilty of sin both by nature and by action. Every honest person will quickly admit that this is true. All the world gives evidence of rebellion against God and His Word and will. Surely war, murder, crime, drunkenness, adultery, divorce, etc., are but symptoms of a dreadful disease that has gripped man’s
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