The record-union., 1899-05-23

human symbols. Some of the men re-
ceived a clearer revelation than-others.
Truths like the doctrine of immortality,
dimly seen in. the days of Moses and
David, shine resplendently in the days
of Paul. Truths that Moses saw i'm
perfectly are luminous in the character
and words of Jesus. There are degrees
CT inspiration. 1t is not heresy surely
to believe that the Apostle John, who
lived so near the heart of Jesus, was
more fully inspired and more truly
understood the character of God than
the writer of the book of Ecclesdastes
or of the songs of Solomon.
When you read the Bible you need not
reproach yourself because all parts of
the book are not equally interesting and
equally helpful to you. Those long
genealogical tables in the book Of
Chronicles have their place and use in
the great sweep of revelation; but no
one expects to get from them the
spiritual nourishment derived from the
fourteenth chapter of the gospel OF
John. Bones are necessary to the
growth of the fish, but l never think OF
eating the bones. You cannot have
apples Without a tree with root and
stem and branches. When l want an
apple l do not feel called on to gnaw
away et the root of the tree. 1t is the
fruit itself I go for You cannot have
bread without stalks of wheat and
chaff protecting the grain When am
hungry / do not go to the straw stack,
I go to the cupboard for the loaf. Now
the Bible is a great tree of revelation,
whose fruit is for the healing of the ma
tons There are in revelation what
may be called the root and stem and
branches-the great historical frame
work. The Old Testament histories
and generalogies are instructive and
necessary <arts in a great system of di-
vine revelation. But the elimination
of revelation, the bread of life for the
sustenance of mans soul, is Jesus
Christ, God manifest in the flesh. The
testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
prophecy. "Ye search the scriptures, !"
said Jesus to the unbelieving Jews, and
these are they which bear witness of
me; and We will not come tor me that
ye may have life
Some men are doing that same thing
to-day. They are searching the Scrip
lures. not to find Jesus, not to
lieu lIelr SOQIS WILL slllS DlCdo VI i1LC,
but to find difficulties and contradic-
tions. When l find men worrying about
how the sun could stand still in the
days of Joshua and about how Jonah
could live in the belly of the whale, and
where Cain got his wife, it makes me
think of men sitting at a dinner table
and instead of eating the part of the
fish nature intended to be eaten are
choking themselves by trying to sWal-
low the fins and bones and scales of the
fish. Instead Of eating the sweet, nutri-
tious corn, they are knawing away at
the hard cob that bore the corn. E,v-
erybody knows there are passages in
the Bible difficult to understand. AS
Peter says in his epistles about the writ
ings of Paul, there "are some things
hard to understand which they that are
unlearned and unstable wrest, as they
do also the other scriptures unto their
own destruction That which was in
tended to be a savior of life unto life
may prove to be savior of death unto
death.
The Bible was given for a definite
purpose. 1t was given to make men
wise unto salvation, and sis (profita BILE
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in Righteousness, that