The Tupelo journal., 1903-02-27
PAYING THE PRICE.
God Too Good a Business Manager to
Give Something for Nothing.
Even Salvation Costs the Sinner
Something Popular Idea Re-
futed by the "Highway md
Byway" Preacher.
copyright, 1903, by A. N. Kellogg News
paper Col

clothed, and that the shame OF tiny naked
ness do not appear: and anoint thine eyes
with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. KEY.
S:1S.
Text Setting.-This text, from
which the Lord may be pleased to
teach us His truth and the certainty
with which He operates, is taken
from the wonderful revelation OF
Jesus Christ given to His beloved
disciple John, as he communed in the
Spirit on the Isle of Patmos on the
Lords Day. 1t is part of the message
to the church at Laodicea, II of the
seven churches to whom a last solemn
warning and admonition was sent. 1t IL
the commonly accepted view of Bible
scholars and commentators that,
while the churches addressed had an
actual existence and the several mes
sages had their direct application to
the special needs of the churches at
that time, still it was the intention
and purpose of God that these let
ters should have a wider and general
application to the church of Jesus
Christ during the Gospel dispense
ton, until its taking up as the bride
of Christ. Johns prophetic vision is
separated by the Spirit, Who dictated
it's writing, into two divisions: The
things which are" and "The things
which shall be hereafter"
There is much difference CT opin-
ion among Bible students as to in
depreciation, some holding that The
things which are" imply the present
state of things in the churches when
John was writing, as represented III
chapters 2 and 3; and that THE
things which shall be hereafter" are
the things symbolically represented
concerning the future history of the
churches, as set forth in chapters
4 to %; while others believe that
"The things which are" marks the
present period of the church in the
world to the time of the coming OF
Christ in the glory and clouds OF
Heaven to receive His bride, the
church, as it is taken out of the
world to meet Him in the air, and
1.-THE things which shall be here&ft'
er" are the things set forth from
the fourth chapter TO the end of the
Revelation, and describe what will
take place in the world after the
church has assembled to be with its
Lord.
This latter opinion is gaining
ground among the most devout ano
spiritual Bible scholars, and certain
L. ,.ro, ,ro-oorol .n4a,oct on6 fnrpe
to the message to the seven churches
and brings our ext into living touch
with present conditions and needs
for while we may always learn help
full spiritual lessons from texts
which plainly have their application
to another time and place and peo'
pie, still when we feel hat a text is
directly addressed to us, it's author
ity, and meaning, and force arr
deepened and intensified.
A Fallacy.-It costs the sinner
something to obtain salvation. II
costs the Christian something to wiz
as a personal possession the spiritua
riches which are in Christ Jesus. The
language of Gods Word is so misun
derstood when it speaks of salvation
and spiritual attainments as gifts
that what God offers is undervaluct
and the way of obtaining the gift:
is almost entirely, if not wholly, lost
1t weakens the force of the Gospe
message to the heart of the sinner
to wholly emphasize the gift OF God
and make no reference to what thu
sinner must give up in order to OBJ
tain the gift. The Christians WIKI
think of spiritual gifts as something
which God is to pour into them, with
out their giving up something in re
turn, live a shallow Christian life
and instead of the substantial mani
festation of the fruits of the Spirit
there is the sentimental and emo
tional talk about the possession Of
the deep spiritual gifts of God ant
an entire absence of their evidence
in the life. The sinner often deludes
himself into the thought that he i:
willing to receive the gift of saliva
ton, while he refuses to pay the
price of a surrendered will, and the
Christian, in prayer meeting gener
ally, and sometimes elsewhere, talks
the richness in Christ Jesus, and ever
goes so far sometimes as to claim
possession of them, while he is fill
ing his heart and life so full of 9th
er things that there is room fol
nothing else.
God is toe good a business manager
to commit His treasures to thought.
less or ruthless hands. He under
stands the human heart too well te
offer something for nothing. The
story is told of a British lord. who a.
the result of a wager with a friend
who was a keen observer of human
nature, stood on London bridge al
day long with a tray full of glitterine
gold sovereigns which he offered fol
sale at a shilling apiece. All day
long he stood there appealing to the
crowds as they passed TO buy genu.
inc gold sovereigns at a shilling each
but the people looked askance at the
unheard-of bargain and passed on
He could not sell his coins because
the price at which he offered then
convinced the public that they were
not only not genuine but were not
even worth the shilling asked. Ant
when God offers salvation and other
spiritual gifts He does not agree tc
give them for nothing, but exacts
price for every one.
The reason the Gospel to-day i.
often not "the power of Gcd unto