THE QUIET HOUR.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 12 July 1924, Page 13

THE QUIET HOUR.

(Published bv Arrangement with the Hawera Ministers’ Association). SAVED SOULS AND A SAVED SOCIETY. (By Rev. David Ross, ALA.) The kingdom of heaven is for the present, and not for the future only. When Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom ol heaven,” He promises a present reward. The poor in spirit, who confess themselves poor in the best things, in the things which make one rich toward God, and who covert that true wealth above all. things, the kingdom of heaven is theirs here and now; its privileges are theirs, its life is theirs, its hope of glory is theirs. From the Sermon on the Mount we gather four charae- , teristics of that life in the kingdom of heaven. First, Righteousness. Not the righteousness which the world demands, but the righteousness which Christ demands, which includes all that is good in the world’s righteousness, and goes past it to a finer and higher righteousness. Second, Peace, which , means a quiet mind and soul at rest, because God is Father and is in control, and pledges Himself to provide. If the Father’s provision is pledged to those whc are in the kingdom of heaven <. why should they worry. Third, Love, whiph goes out to all whom life touches, in symapthy and brotherhood and helpfulness. Fourth, Safety. Such a life under the rule of God, and kept by God, can never perish. It is like a house built on a rock. The storms and floods beat against it, but it stands,: for it is founded upon the rock. Of these four characteristics of life in the kingdom of heaven, two are personal and two are social. Peace and safety are personal; righteousness and ; love are social. Peace and safety are a man’s possession within his own

soul. They would be his were he living alone on an island. Righteousness and love link him to his fellows. Righteousness supposes one who goes out and in among men, and enters into various relations with tljem, and has various dealings with them, "in all of which he

is governed by the will of Christ and moved by His Spirit. • Also he carries love into all these relations and deal-

ings. At home, in work, in society, his life is distinguished by righteousness and love. With this in our mind, let me say two things. First, Christ seeks a saved society, and not merely saved souls. The words “kingdom of heaven” imply a realm of people governed by the will of God. The same is implied in those petitions of the Lord’s Prayer. “They' kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” God’s goal is not a

number of souls snatched from the world and kept for His purpose in glory. His. goal is a redeemed humanity, a society here and there and everywhere over the earth in which Tlis will governs in all its affairs. This should not need to be insisted on, but it does. Indeed, it has been largely 7 neglected; We cannot make too much of Christ’s purpose of saying the soul. But we can make too little, and commonly; we have made too little, of His purpose of saving society. This neglect has fallen in with our

natural selfishness and slothfulness. If Christ’s purpose is to save the soul, and His purpose to save society is obscured, there is little stimulus to seek battle with the evils around us in the community. If I am saved, that is the chief thing. If at the same time society about mb is corrupt, it is a pity, but really it is not my concern, except that it lays on me a duty to keep myself unspotted. So religion has been made to pander to our native selfishness, making us convent ;with our own good. And it panders to our native slothfulness, which discourages us from doing, more than we need or from taking up burdens which are not thrust

upon us. Many Christians seem bent on getting to heaven with a minimum

of responsibility. But this is utterly foreign to our religion, and could never he regarded with anvthing but abhorrence but for our neglect of Christ’s purpose of a saved society. This neglect has been disastrous to society, and disastrous to the Christian life. Society has grown more corrupt, and (Christian life less brave and adventurous. Evil, not being challenged or defied or fought as it should, has grown insolent and daring. Christians, taking no risks and having no battle for the rule of Christ, have grown flabby and futile. Our religion without the kingdom of God to fight for has no enthusiasm and no grip, and the Church becomes a spent force in the community’s life The parable of the Good Samaritan illustrates the situation. That wounded traveller is society, which has been invaded by evil and wounded and broken. Many Christians have been content to play the part of the Priest and the Levite. But in truth their business is the business of the Samaritan, to see to this broken society in which they find themselves, and so to live and work and fight and pray that it shall be brought, bleeding as it is, within the realm of Christ’s rule.

Second, Christ seeks the saved saciety through saved souls. He gets individual men and women to accept His rule and to receive His Spirit. He teaches them His righteousness; makes plain to them the great principles of love and brotherhood and sacrifice that should inspire life: sends them into society, into its work, its fellowship, its politics, its recreation, to work out this righteousness and love which they have got from Him. It is so Christ saves society. Apart from such men and women and these lives loyal to His principles and Spirit, it can never be saved. Carry out His righteousness into all our wavs, go out as lovers of men, brothers and helpers of all you touch; by such living the way is prepared for the rule of Christ in our broken and wounded community. That means that we have to challenge the world in the name of the righteousness and spirit of Christ. Wherever obedience to His law of life and His spirit brings us into conflict with the principles and spirit of the world, we must challenge the world by our obedience to Christ. We have been too submissive, too tame, have thought too much of the world, have attached too much importance to its opinion and its. prizes. We have tried to be Christians without defying the world. But the trutfx is, a man must either defy the world or submit to it. Either he accepts the standard in order to live and work and prevail in it, or else, following Christ, he defies it and insists on living and working in it by the laws and Spirit of His Master. ‘Challenge the world and defy it, and you have a chance of saving it, and certainly you save your own soul. Submit to it and you are lost. Christ does not say to a Christian man, “the world is corrupt, its business is corrupt, therefore keep away from business, reduce your contact with the business world to the minimum, that you may not be tainted by its corruption.”- Rather, He says:' “The business world is corrupt. Therefore, go into it, carrying into your work My thoughts of conduct and My Spirit of love and brotherhood. No matter what the world says to you or does, be loyal

to Me, and I will see you through, and you shall help Me to win the great business world for My rule.” He does not say to a young man: “The sporting world, the word of recreation and pleasure is corrupt with the spirit of selfishness and materialism and commercialism ; therefore keep away from it, leave it to itself and the devil.” Rather. He says: “Go into that world as My disciple, carry My thoughts of life and sonduct and My Spirit with you. liemember that pleasure or recreation is always a secondary thiijig, and does not deserve a great deal of thought or time. Remember it never deserves the sacrifice of the Lord’s Day. Go out so into your pleasure and voii shall help Me to win that great world of sport and recreation for Mv rule.”

Why has he given us peace and safety but that we may be free to help Him to save society, in so far as we live in it and work in it and influence it?