“THE CHRISTIAN AND HIS WORLD”

Northern Advocate, 30 July 1938, Page 2 (Supplement)

“THE CHRISTIAN AND HIS WORLD”

The Sabbath Hour

Being a sermon written by Mr A. W. Bell, Church of Christ minister, Whangarei. WITHOUT doubt we are living in a time of crisis in world | affairs. It is a time when | nations and individuals are either made or broken. It is a time when even matters of internal administration of a country affect not only that country, but also the rest of the \v oriel. A very different atmosphere per- ! fades the world today than did a decade ago. In pre-war days, science fainted the future of the world in very bright colours. The keyword was progress. There seemed no end to discoveries, no impediment to the ushenmg in of the “Golden Age." But this has been, shattered in the intervening years. Another law than that of progress has been discovered to be in operation—the law of entropy. Leading scientists agree that the world is running down; that it is only a matter of time and our world will be destroyed “with fervent heat." Nor has philosophy any ray of hope for us in our deepening gloom. Bertrand Russell, one of the leading philosophers of, today, declares that "all the labours of the ages, all the devotion, all the inspiration, all the noonday brightness oi human genius, are destined to extinction in the vast death of the solar system, and that the whole temple of man s achievements must inevitably be buried beneath the debris of a universe in ruins. . . . Only on tire firm foundation of an unyielding despair can the soul’s habitation be safely built." Interpreters of history declare that, unless the trend of events takes a decided turn in another direction, we will witness a greater catastrophe than the world has known. Our civilisation is being threatened by the inroads of Fascism, and the more deadly enemy. Communism. Another world war will be the end of western civilisation. so deadly and inhuman have the weapons of war become. There are those who think that even without a war. disintegration will take

place, so utterly rotten has society become. Only by drastic operation and removal of the cancer will the world’s ills be cured and civilisation be saved. Some believe it not worth saving. It is along the lines of a cure that the crisis presents a challenge to the Church, Jesus was born at a time of unrest, of crisis in Palestine. Josephus tells us that during these years there were 10,000 uprisings against the Remans. The Palestinian Jew was noted for his national pride and exclusiveness, for his bigotry and hatred. All this militated against the God they professed to serve. Christ’s messages were heavy laden with judgment against this “wicked and adulterous generation." Tragedy loomed ahead for the nation. Already the fate of Jerusalem was scaled. Yet Jesus saw not sunset, but dawn. Such was His triumphant optimism that He sent a handful of fishermen to be instruments in ushering in His kingdom. He called them the “Light of the World.” and the “Salt of the Earth.” He sent them into the world with His message warning them about their reception—persecution and death. “But." said He. “fear not. I have overcome the world.” Those men and their followers did overcome the world, for on them the world had no hold. The world made them suffer; they rejoiced at being counted worthy to suffer. It killed them; they died praying that the murderers might be forgiven. Slowly, but surely as leaven, they penetrated society. In 197 A.D., Tertullian could write: "We arc but of yesterday, and we have, filled everythi'ng-r-cities islands, camps, forums —all we have left you are your temples." Without doubt the Christians of that era “outthought. out-lived, and out-died the pagan. When Jerusalem was destroyed. John saw the New Jerusalem coming out of heaven. He saw mere; a new heaven and a new earth had come into being. Lo, all things had become now! Christians had learned to place their confidence not In tangible things,

but in spiritual, for these, though unseen, are eternal. ! John saw that the recreation of Christ had begun. Already Christ had overcome the world. Already He was victorious. When Rome fell to the barbarous Goths, Augustine wrote his treatise on ‘The City of God.” He saw arising from the dust of ancient Rome a new civilisation—a Christian civilisation. Histqry has shown that a time of world crisis is a time of greatest opportunity to the Church. Our world is very like that into which Jesus came —so His feet are on the ground we tread. His message is for our day. He overcame the world because He was aflame with love. That brought new life to the world. It will do the same today. ’ The greatest service we can reader to our generation and our nation is to follow the way of Christ. Paul, in 1 Cor. 12, concludes his teaching on ways of service by saying: “Behold. I show unto you a more excellent way.” That way is described in Chapter 13. We need faith that even if this world is aostroyed, it is not the end. God's Kingdom is an everlasting one. We need hope, for there have been darker ages, yet the light shone. But above all, we need a love so strong and deep that will penetrate to the very heart of the world, that it will convert Caesar himself, that it will save the world.