SUNDAY READING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 15930, 29 May 1915, Page 8 (Supplement)

SUNDAY READING.

£ P''U - - . I I .st * t i f Ji BY DR. J. tVILDTO CHAPMAN. .

THE AMEN"- OF THE, SPIRIT, ' , /' i"' • " 1 •• "V.-.# . ' (Hot. xiv., 13 V ' , ■« ■ -Mtryi ■si- - .- t

Tttß Vword translated " Yea" in this text ia literally "Amen," and I shall :read it thus'; "Amen, saith the Spirit." Tho world has many magnificent galleries of art, but this Book of Revelation is the besti . of them. As we study it our hearts are thrilled and our eyes are moistened. Humanly speaking, St. John is tho author, and ho is, most ot ail, gazing into the face of One Who had loved nim and given Himself for him. " Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth." Then there is ei break. It is as if the Spirit of God was hushed for a moment. Suddenly he breaks out: "Amen, gailh tho Spirit." This is one of the interruptions so frequently found in the Bible. "Jesus Christ the 5a mo yesterday, to-day, yea and for ever." —H,eb. xiii., 8, r.v.). It is as if the Apostle were saying : "Jesus Christ is the . same to-day as Ho was yesterday;" and all the hosts of the skies break in, saying : " Amen, He is still and will bo for ever the same." Our text is like the antiphonal verses of Psam 24, one choir answering to the other. "Amen, saith the Spirit." Love and Sensitiveness.

Many expressions are used in the Bible referring to tho Spirit of God. For in•etance, take Lien, i, 2: He " moved upon t,he face -of the waters." Literally the .word is, " brooded.'' In this picture tho {Spirit is like the" mother-bird hovering 1 over her little ones. He is always watching;, caring for us. In Matt, iii., 16, He is theDoTe. This text represents tho sensitiveness of tho topirit. " A sound as of a rushing, mighty wind." — ii., 2. We are told that the wind blows when tho air rushes in to (ill » vacuum. The Spirit of God will fill a life when it is emptied. He is like a fire (Acts ii., 3). Fire makes puro by consum-ItTg-'drose. 1 had in my church a man who wag employed in the mint, and he took} me where the gold is purified and made into money. He said ; "We keep fire under tho gold until we see in it the rejection of our own faces; then w know it is pure." The Spirit of God can make lis whole every whit, until men see in us the likeness of Jesus Christ. ",' The Divine Listener.

. These' are pictures of the Spirit. It .is as if Ho were listening, while we sing, to say " Amen !" It would be a great day in l 'Church when the people sang as if mi the presence of God, as if they had to givi'aa account, and sang for the approval ok' the Spirit of God. When we sang, "My Jesus, I Love Thee," could Ho say "Amen!" It is as if He were listening to the prayer and saying "Amen!" I have thought that it was as if He were listening to.the preaching; and this is the highest thought of preaching—say only the thing to which the Spirit of Cod can Ray, " Amen !" Ho man has a right to believe that he can have the. Spirit's presence, or power, or Amen," if he preaches about anything else than Jesus. 16 would be a great thing if we were to go through our sermons line by line 6n.<onr knees, cutting out the thing, "that did not grip; us. Whenever; a iman' sounds the ; keynote,' ."Jesus," the Spirit will say ;- " Amen!'' There are some tni-igs to which" to-day the Holy, Ghost can give His as- " cent. . '.» •'- .■:.«y - .*;; .. ;"-''. ,t;' -i L—the-BiW'e is the Word of, God : Some tell ns that it ''contains" the Word I ■ of Godi A That is quibbling. lOf course, ii ; contains the Word of God/ because it i f , '-■'; the very Word of God. ; How ; "may I v know it!,;. (1) Recc»Te It by faith:' You 1 > say not scientific. Yet, it is. Faith :-is. the most scientific : thing in the worldv Take faith out of a man and you have . ; taken awaysbas life)' (2) If God is in'this; if Book, talk to Him. If you are &• doubter, .gefTdown on your knees, talk to God; and' before you have been at that long you wilt see that the Bible is getting to be a : wonderful Book. (3) If Christ is in ■ this Book, walk with Him. If you would :.. know that ,the, Bible is r the, Word of - God, walk with "Him. (4) If there are promises v written in this Book, prove them. If you would r know that the Bible is God's own' 'V Book, do not .quibble about it, Riding be*. : ; uindtprenositjons! j Take its promises and *;\- task then at the Bask of Heaven. Ido j; ; not -'know anything 'that v '.can scatter a -:•■•.. doußt bo . quickly 'as j doing what we. are' iold; (5) If you know that the Bible is - i tlhe Word oiGodj live it. -

f;j Holding to the Word of God. ■-""■ : • To one of the greatest scholars we have s il said: "Mays I still stand by the old •Book' and preach it!" He said : "I neves believed in it as I do to-day. ) 1 am almost at tho" sad of life's journey, and I shall ;. goon see Him. I never Believed in it as I .do to-ifay." * Listen! It is ■ the Word of God, and when I: , say 'that;-' I hear' the T words f " Amen, saith the Spirit." •;. Jesus is the Son ?of God: It was said some time* ago that the.battle.of .the coming; years would be fought round the Cross, and it is so. The battle of to-day is about thavDeity of- Jesus, Christ. • ilea, went on from criticising the Book to saying that Jesus is not the Son of God. But Heis.the very Son of, Gqd.; How do I know it? 'Tesf Him in heathen lands. 'In . China, in Korea-, and in Japan we were : told. that, wherever the Lord Jesus was sought >i> -He' r was always found. Test Him. I lift up ky face and say : " Lord Jesus, • .Thou'art'the^very Son oi God." And I .hear the Teply : "Amen, saith the Spirit. "~ Hl.—We are fcions of God 9 When L : say that in my heart I hear Him answer r ' " Amen !" ;" If wo are eons of God, we are' not free from trial, but we are sure of glory. One day we shall see Him. The Bible is the Word of God. . "Amen, saith the SpirTTT" Jesus is' the' Son of God. "Amen, saith the Spirit." I am a!, •.child of God. "Amen, .saith the Spirit." 1 One day I shall see ilim.

' THE GOSPEL IN A NUTSHELL. BT JIR. WILBUR CHAPMAN'. For God so loved the world that He gave Ris only hescottea Son that whosoever believetb in Him should not corish. but have everlasting life.— iii., 16. -• LutSeb w-ell said that'this text' contained the Gospel in a nutshell. Here is a revelation of God's great love for lost and ruined men, and here is hope for all who have gone out of the way. On the ground of this Scripture alone we need have no fear in approaching God, for if He loved its well enough to give us anything, why should we hesitate to come to Him witii all our need and sins, and since His gilt was His only begotten Son let us come with boldness unto the Throne of Grace. "For God so loved the world." This' is inclusive enough for all, for we are a, part of the world, and thus the object of His love. • •

"That He gave His only begotten Son." Here is provision enough for all. The sacrifice was infinite, and the price He paid sufficient, to cancel the world's indebtedness on account of sin, and this included all mankind. "That whosoever believeth in Him." .This is definite enough for all, for we are s> part of the great company of the " whoFoevers," and in order to claim our share in this great blessing we need only to determine whether we really believe in Him Who loved u;s and gave Huns*]* for vs.

Should not perish." By the gift of God's Son, and by means of His death upon Calvary, atonement has been made,, the penalty for sin has been met, and the destroying effects of sin have been'overcome. - " Have everlasting life." The wicked have continual existence, but everlasting life is entirely different. Accepting Christ, He becomes our life, we Jive in Him, He lives in us. we shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck us out of His hand. It is a good tiling to make personal God's precious promises.' If you should underscore all the personal pronouns in the Gospels and Knistles, you would be amazed . to see how individualistic is God's message to man. Write this verse on the fly-leaf of your Bible. Only write in vour own name:as I have written mine : " For God ; BO loved tile world that He gave His only begotten Son that: Wilbur Chapman, beXlieving sin, Him, should not perish, but ?;.,havefeverlasting-life." As a ; matter of' fact',';God's" promises;, are all .quite vas fdefinite as this. 'Then why should we fear? :■"'".• ■■~,•.•.''■".■■■'■■ ■■■:■■'■■■"■:■■:.-'. -■■.'- ■ ■■■.■•■■