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T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
April 1927
tian propaganda failed or prospered in proportion as the fresh data for religion present in Jesus were studiously concealed or openly proclaimed. Take Paul’s address at Athens: Says some fine things, God’s spirituality, a God afar off—one in whom we live and move, creation instead of chaos, Providence instead of chance, men of one blood instead of proud distinction between Greek and Barbarian. But at no point is publicity given to the distinctive Christian message. In this studied omission of the cross is the secret of his comparative failure at Athens and his subsequent change at Corinth. He writes penitently, “I deter mined to know nothing among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” The Gospel had lost its .savor when it was merged in Jewish commonplace.’ ” C hrist , C enter and C ircumference One critic says: “It runs counter to the whole spirit of the Book that we must have a different message to India from that delivered elsewhere.” For that matter, there are many in our own land who are sorely tried by the endless and often bitter jangling in many of our pulpits over Fundamentalism, Modern ism, Evolution and a score of other questions under public dis cussion. They hunger for a message that has Christ as its cen ter and circumference. No other message is worth the preaching. We have no greater business than to proclaim and live Christ. The Gospel does not need proof so much as we are inclined to think. It proves itself. Dr; James I. Vance well says : “You do not need to proV-e the soil that grows the grain that feeds the world. You do not need to prove the spring, that quenches your thirst. You need only to dip a. cup of crystal and drink. You do not need to prove the sun that shines in the sky. You do not need to prove the Gospel. It is axiomatic. It is not apologetics nor polemics that are needed. It is proclama tion.” “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” “What is the subject of your sermon for next Sunday?” was the question a certain minister’s wife was in the habit of asking her husband. One day she startled him by asking: “What is the object of your sermon?” It changed his ministry. Preaching is a passion, not a performance, to the man whose soul is afire with the love of Christ and for the salvation of souls, but unless this'fire burns within him, his message will dwindle to dull routine. G reatest .M essage for the L ost There is certainly much in Mr. Jones’ interesting book that all Christian workers should ponder. Surely no one can dis pute his principal contention that “if the finest spirits of the human race should sit down and think out the kind of a God they would like to see in the universe, His moral and spiritual like ness would gradually form like unto the Son of Man. The greatest news that has ever been broken to the human race is the news that God is like Christ. And the greatest news that we can break to that non-Christian world is just that—that the God whom you have dimly realized, but about whoss char acter you are uncertain, is like Christ.” “Further,” says Mr. .Jones, “I know nothing higher for man than to be Christlike. The highest adjective descriptive of char acter in any language is the adjective ‘Christlike.’ No higher compliment can be paid to human nature than to be called Christ like. When India, a non-Christian nation, wanted to pay her highest compliment to her highest son, she searched for the highest term she knew and called Gandhi a Christlike man.” After all, the preacher’s character is his capital, and his char acter is not what he is in the pulpit on dress parade. It is what he is without an audience. We are prone to forget that the very nature of our calling makes us an easy mark for the enemy, whose chief concern is that our lives should be made to belie our message. If this is what Mr, Jones is driving at, we are with him.
“Best” Books onProphetic Subjects Intensely interesting right now—TODAY Is the Antichrist At Hand? This book contains evidence of a most startling nature from the world of demonology, politics and religion, re garding the End-Time of the age, which is vividly por trayed. It is a book for the present momentous hour. No one can read this book without being impressed with the importance of the times in which we are living. It constitutes a challenge. The sense of crises and emer gency is breathed throughout its pages. It is fresh and stimulating. It is clear and forceful, speaking in no un certain terms. A warning rings out from every chapter, and admonition permeates every paragraph. __ Paper 50c, Cloth 85c Startling Signs of Great World Changes Soon to Take Place B y A . Sim s The World’s Unrest; Visions of the Dawn B y C hristobel P an k h urst A new book on prophecy By Rev. Oswald J. Smith
T his is an urgen t m essage. P resen t con d ition s are 1 p re sen ted clearly and logically. M odern European trends are show n to b e in accord w ith th e old p rop hetic W ord. The con d ition s in general are held up a s fu lfilling th e p red iction s o f the m en w ho w rote a s m oved b y th e H oly Spirit. The w orld’s u nrest is b elieved to be th e forerunner o f th e w orld’s p eace to com e th rough C hrist’s secon d ad ven t. A m ong recent b ooks on th e secon d ad ven t th is ea sily ta k es th e first p lace. C loth $2.00
H andy in form , a rtistic in ap pearance and good in the q u ality of its con ten ts, th is b ook ou g h t to h ave a large circu lation. T he ch ap ters are, S tartlin g S ig n s o f th e End; T he G eneva P rotocol; T he Red Internationale and th e B lack; M ussolini; T he Spread o f B o l sh evism ; T he R ed Terror; The S trid es o f A viation ; T he In crease o f R acial H a t r e d . A w akening a rticles every one o f them . P ap er 2 5 c
The Return of the Lord Jesus
B y D r. R. A . T orrey T he k ey to th e Scripture and th e p erfect and only ^solu tion of a ll our p o litica l and so cia l problem s. T reats esp ecially o f the G olden A ge th a t is soon com in g to th is earth. The w ondrous tru th s o f G od’s w ord on th is m o st im p ortan t ev en t o f u n fu l filled Scripture are b rou gh t ou t show in g th e im portan ce o f the tru th th a t bur L ord Jesu s is com in g again . T he certa in ty o f it. The m anner in w hich H e is com ing. T he resu lt o f H is return. T h e tim e o f it. Our a ttitu d e tow ard it. T he reading o f th is book w ill p rove an in sp iration to the ch ild o f God, esp ecia lly now w hen th is old w orld is in such turm oil. P ap er 50 c, C loth 75c Mysteries of the Kingdom B y W . C. S teven s Imperialism and Christ B y F ord C. O ttm an
The au thor sa y s: “ Im perial ism , a w ord in sisten t and re son an t in th e p o litica l v o ca b u lary o f tod ay, is, w ith ou t C hrist, beyon d the bounds of p o ssib ility . C hrist, a w ord cen tral and con trollin g in the th eo lo g ica l vocab u lary o f the church, is w ith o u t Im perialism , n either regnant nor real.” W ith Im perialism and C hrist is bound all h ope for hum an ity . “A great book— nothin g lik e it in the th eo lo g ica l lit erature o f to d a y .” C loth $1.25
T h is is one o f th e very b est sm all b ooks on th e Second C om ing o f C hrist— and so d if ferent. It d oes n o t aim to b e a trea tise upon th e L ord’s com ing. It m erely p a sses on b its o f revelation th a t seem to th e w riter to h ave been opened up to him b y th e S p i r i t th rough th e W ord. In th ese d a y s o f so m uch w rong tea ch in g o f so -ca lled K ingdom truth, th a t is a b ook to b e studied. Y ou w ill find it is excep tion al- Paper 35c, C loth 75c
The Patmos Vision
B y G eorge W . D a v is 4 T h is is th e b est sin g le volum e com m entary B IO L A B O O K R O O M Bible Institute, Los Angeles, Cal.
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