TO WHOM DO YOU BELONG?

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26772, 15 May 1948, Page 9

TO WHOM DO YOU BELONG?

NO MAN IS HIS OWN MASTER Written for the Otago Daily Times by the Rev. Gardner Miller That is a very illuminating remark with which the Apostle Paul closes his letter to his friends in Galatia; ‘‘From henceforth let no man trouble me; for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.” There is a touch of, impatience in it, certainly there is the note of finality. The argument is ended, there is nothing more to be said. Dr Moffat, in his translation of the Apostle's remarks, makes it very much clearer; like an art expert who restores an old picture so that its colours stand out clearly: “ Let no man interfere with me after this, for I bear branded on my body the owner’s stamp of the Lord Jesus.” The picture is one familiar in ancient days, but, thank God, is unknown in ours. It is that of the right of a slave owner to brand, with a scorching iron, his private mark on the flesh of men and women who are unfortunate enough to be his slaves. Such branding indicated that thes.e men and women were his property—surely the most degrading conception of humanity ever accepted. We brand animals. to-day, but not humans • Yet it would be wrong to say that men and women belong to themselves, that they do not wear brand marks, although unseen to human eyes. Paul would never have subscribed to the popular and arrogant statement so often heard to-day: “ I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” The man who first said these words was certainly brave, was certainly very much battered by life, but for all that, the words are false, while we give due credit to their sentiment. Paul said quite deliberately that he belonged to another. I would say that such an admission on Paul's part must have cost him much. He was a proud soul, he had a mighty intellect and was not accustomed to “suffer fools gladly.” That he did admit that Another had first claim on him, indeed every claim, is surest proof that a miracle had taken place in Paul’s life. If you turn to 2 Corinthians, chaper 11, you will read there something that one moment will chill your blood and the next moment make it race along your veins. It is a hurried record, something tossed off as it were, of the stains and bruises and lashings his poor body suffered at the hands of others because he' made no bones about the fact, which he broadcasted that he belonged to; Another. But I* think his meaning goes deeper in the closing, and peremptory, remark in his Galatian letter. There, I believe, he refers to marks, brands, that do not stand out livid on his body, but that characterise his new life in Christ. In other words, he is saying that Christ lives in him and that he is proud to be known as the Lord’s slave. There Are Other Lords This great truth is evidenced in other directions. There are other lords, other masters, other slave-owners. And it is man’s lowest indignity to give himself over to lords of the flesh, of selfishness, of greed, of meanness and cruelty. There are no depths to which a man cannot descend. When sin is in control, men lose not only their balance but also their self-respect, and often fall to a level that a beast would disdain. Why this should be so is one of the heart-breaking problems that inflict humanity. ‘That a man should allow himself to be governed by low aims and sinful passions is a condition that must puzzle the angels. Paul was never in any doubt regarding the meaning of such human degradation. To him it was due to the fact that men were under the power and persuasion of the dethroned powers (1 Con., 2:6). Paul believed the devil was in control of this world; that he had legions of evil spirits to do his will. He. believed that such evil spirits enticed men and women and by their plausibilities enticed them to the doing of their will. That the devil is a reality I do not doubt. That there is a kingdom of evil is surely very evident. That the devil —in many forms- and disguises—is in control of many men and women is the only explanation for the horrible and beastly and cruel things that are happening all around us. I believe Hitler was devil-possessed. I believe also that to-day we are in the opening stages of a gigantic struggle against the organised forces of evil led by Satan. The drunkard, the cruel, the mean, the lustful, the selfish, the bigoted, the cold-hearted are all men and women who exhibit the stamp of their owners. No man belongs to himself. There is no such person as a masterless man. To whom then do you belong?

Like Him We become like the master we serve. Paul rejoiced humbly in the fact that he belonged to Christ, and proudly exhibited his owner’s brand. The devil’s brand is never difficult to find. Is Christ’s brand on us growing pale? What are His marks, what the characteristics that no one may mistake? Surely patience, suffering, hope, understanding, love and dignity are revelations of our glorious bondage to Him Who purchased us with His shed blood? • I shall never forget what a London woman once said to me. “If ever Christ should visit London I would recognise Him. He would be like my minister” She had seen the owner’s stamp on a humble man who was unaware of his greatness. For others to see Jesus in us is to be really and truly Christian.